Two contrasting shots from Snowdonia

Nick Livesey

Nick Livesey

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Hi folks,

I was out today on what seems to be the first decent bit of weather in the last two weeks!

On driving out of my village the local lake was mirror-still so, even though I don't like shooting this scene it seemed rude not to!

Later on, I was up in the hills and was treated to something more to my taste :)

Thanks for looking.



It would have been rude not to - Reflecting on life in Capel Curig by Nicholas Livesey, on Flickr


The Peaks of the Ogwen Valley from Elidir Fawr by Nicholas Livesey, on Flickr
 
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Not sure why you don't like #1, it's a very pleasing scene, as is #2 for entirely different reasons.
 
gramps said:
Not sure why you don't like #1, it's a very pleasing scene, as is #2 for entirely different reasons.
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Gramps, this scene is a ten minute walk from my home and I've shot it numerous times...it is one of the best roadside views (one minute from the car) in Britain and such a wonderful place to capture. However, in all the shoots I've done here I've never felt any satisfaction from them because the shot is so easily won.

Maybe I'm a masochist but unless I've put in some physical effort I don't get anything from a location (photographically) however good the image is, and in this case it's not great!

The two images are really to illustrate how the mood and light in Snowdonia changes so radically during the course of a day.
 
2 nice shots nick, I really like the second one
 
The first is one of the most beautiful images of the area I have ever seen. It's superlative and seeing moments like this make life worth living. I adore the image. I wish I was there. As a person this sort of tranquil scene fills me with joy. As a photographer I strive for images of this outstanding and unprecedented calibre. It's perfection.

The second in the other hand does nothing much for me.
 
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SFTPhotography said:
The first is one of the most beautiful images of the area I have ever seen. It's superlative and seeing moments like this make life worth living. I adore the image. I wish I was there. As a person this sort of tranquil scene fills me with joy. As a photographer I strive for images of this outstanding and unprecedented calibre. It's perfection.
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Blimey, steady on Steve! Isn't it wierd that that the image leaves me quite cold and I'd consider it as distinctly average?!!!

I suppose it's all about how we see the world, our emotional states and our expression of them. I suppose I'm generally a pessimist and so I do prefer darker images and find bright and cheerful ones lacking in emotional content. It certainly goes deeper than personal taste and I think the images we strive to produce say a great deal about our peronallities.

Thanks for the lovely comment :)
 
Both are very nice Nick it was worth the stop for that reflection. The second shot is great.
 
I'm a cheerful chap. Always an optimist with a sunny disposition.

It's an extremely classy image and probably my favourite of yours bar one other corker of a reflection you did...

I read with interest your comments about physical exertion and how you feel if the image is harder to take it's more rewarding. I couldn't agree less. I've spent 2 weeks over in the Alps, Dolomites and Pyrenees and my favourite image of the lot is a drive and arrive image. Here because of national park statuses there's comparatively little road side shooting and you have to walk bloody miles (in my book anyway) to get a half decent image. In the Alpe de Suisi in the Dolomites you can't drive around in your car, you have to fecking hike from your hotel...I don't like this, I like to drive, arrive, short walk just to hide the road and you know the rest.

I guess that's how I got into photography-not the hill walking route but a love of road trips and car travel in the countryside.
 
A nice brace of shots Nick. Lovely reflection in the first and its almost perfect with hardly a ripple to be seen, I rarely see reflections like this even if I'm up early, perhaps I'm just not looking for them.
I really love No2 great light and my eye runs right through the shot following the footpath along the ridge, nice balance between light and shade too.
 
I have to agree that No. 1 is very average. It is a very commonly photographed location and the light and atmospheric conditions are dull, dull, (and even more dull). But the OP knows that.

No 2 is much better in just about every way. I just wish i had the energy to get out into the mountains as much as I used to!
 
jerry12953 said:
I have to agree that No. 1 is very average. It is a very commonly photographed location and the light and atmospheric conditions are dull, dull, (and even more dull). But the OP knows that.

No 2 is much better in just about every way. I just wish i had the energy to get out into the mountains as much as I used to!
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Yes, Jerry, No1 is a bit ordinary; techically good but with little to inspire, especially as I can walk here from home in about 10 minutes!

No 2, while not being an amazing shot does at least convey some emotion and atmosphere. A reminder of another wonderful day spent in the mountains that I love. It's a shame theat for whatever reason you are not able to walk the hills as often as you might like :(
 
jerry12953 said:
I have to agree that No. 1 is very average. It is a very commonly photographed location and the light and atmospheric conditions are dull, dull, (and even more dull). But the OP knows that.

No 2 is much better in just about every way. I just wish i had the energy to get out into the mountains as much as I used to!
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It's the other way for me. Twos for me the dull average image and the first shot is utterly captivating.

Beauty seems to be very much in the eye of the beholder.
 
I really like them both for different reasons.

With the first though, as much as I like the reflection on the right the pastel colours and tones seem a sharp contrast to the clarity of the darks and lit tree on the left, Snowdon itself really is the lesser element in the scene in some ways.

The second is the image that really holds my attention for longer. It is a superb composition with lines all the way through it and repeating patterns, and also beautifully processed with a nice dramatic sky.
 
Nick Livesey said:
I suppose it's all about how we see the world, our emotional states and our expression of them. I suppose I'm generally a pessimist and so I do prefer darker images and find bright and cheerful ones lacking in emotional content. It certainly goes deeper than personal taste and I think the images we strive to produce say a great deal about our peronallities.
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Interestingly I'm not generally a very optimistic person overall - the glass is usually half-empty for me - but I actually come alive when I see a brightly lit, beautiful landscape, especially if I can photograph it.....

But, knowing the location so well, and how much potential it has for great images, I probably wouldn't evn have stopped on that particualr occasion.
 
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