Wildflowers and Sunset Sky in Fort Bragg

Posted by Don Smith (California, United States) on 24 June 2008 in Landscape & Rural.

Here is another sunset image I made on my first evening in Fort Bragg which is about 8 miles north of Mendocino, California. I have been actively seeking foreground elements in many of my images to create a sense of depth and scale. I spotted these wildflowers but had to put myself in a precarious position down a steep cliff. My main concern was that I was wearing tennis shoes instead of my hiking boots. Needless to say, I was extra careful with my footing. The other concern was the wind. I did get some movement in the flowers but it didn't bother me. This image was created using 4 separate exposures and blending them together with Photomatix Pro 3.0 HDR software Photomatix Pro 3.0 using the Blend Images mode. I converted the four exposures to 16-bit TIFFS prior to dragging them into the dialog box. This technique tends to eliminate the halos and artifacts which can appear at times using Tonemapping. If you are interested in purchasing a copy of Photomatix Pro, please use my code donsmithphotography at checkout and you'll receive a 15% discount! As always, to see more of my images, learn about my upcoming workshops, or purchase a copy of my book On the Edge please visit my website at Don Smith Photography