neilds37 Loc: Port Angeles, WA

It's all about the colors (colours)...

I love it when the atmospheric conditions are right and the sky begins to redden before the sun tops the horizon.

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Billyspad Loc: The Philippines

Nice idea. FYC type words my friend. Ol' Billy would struggle to do better than the poetic lines you have penned here.
Actually like the initial feel of the shot but when one looks closely one sees the horizon is not straight and just maybe the bird is too sharp and a very light shadow underneath him would go a long way to convincing he was real.
Three easy quick things and you have a great shot.

neilds37 Loc: Port Angeles, WA

I'm confused, Billy. I never considered a shoreline as a horizon before. The left side of this photo is a whole lot closure than the right side, so how can something receding away be viewed as level? All I can go by is the cameras internal level. Sharpness of the bird is a giveaway alright, but these cormorants fly so darn fast I've never seen a shadow below them... I'll have to go back through my photos and re-check this.

Billyspad Loc: The Philippines

Water forms it own level does it not? And the bird may fly fast and that just means his shadow moves fast as well. Your 100th of a second freezes the birds movement along with his shadow. Your bird shadow needs ripples like the lights from the ship remember

neilds37 Loc: Port Angeles, WA

Yes, water forms its own level. So, let's look at the waterline of the ship, which we are viewing at an oblique angle. Should we use the waterline of the stern as level, or the waterline of the ships side. Close, but not equal. Likewise, we are viewing the waterline of Ediz Hook at an oblique angle. Now let's place a carpenter's level diagonally across a table. The line where the tabletop meets the base of the level is the waterline where the water surface meets the shore of Ediz Hook. Do we "straighten" this image by rotating until the base of the level is horizontal? Everytime I post a photo with the shoreline around the harbor visible I get called on the photo being crooked.

Jim-Pops Loc: Granbury, Texas

Outstanding question & example
I like what you said and will keep this in mind for future PP. I think in this case you did it correctly. I am remembering a picture I keep fighting with and couldn't get it and keep wondering what to do. Your example proves nothing was wrong. Thanks for taking the time and photographing the explanation.

neilds37 Loc: Port Angeles, WA

You are very welcome. I figured it about time I put some fallacies to rest, as I keep going through this time after time.

Billyspad Loc: The Philippines

Niel you post for comment and if a water level looks off to the viewer then surely they have a right to mention it? Its your picture you do with as you wish my friend and whatever the science is visually, to ME, it looks wrong and if it were mine would use the shoreline to straighten it. Before mentioning it I also checked the bridge of the ship which unless a large wave has just hit should be about level. It appears to be out by the same amount as the shoreline.
But it aint my picture so if your happy leave it publish and be damned as someone famous said.

neilds37 Loc: Port Angeles, WA

I checked the bridge of the ship too. The problem there is, it's being viewed at an oblique angle also, and therefore is not going to be level. We really need something that is being viewed straight-on, and here we don't have it, so your solution is the only correct one for you. This is a case of "to each his own".

Linda From Maine Loc: Yakima, Washington

There really is nothing like the sweet anticipation of what a new dawn will bring - especially for those of us who love to photograph it!

I'm very glad the discussion came up about receding shorelines as I once tried to correct someone's in Gallery, and received a long, scientific explanation of why I was wrong

To the image: very effective for me, Neil. Simple, gentle, peaceful, appealing. I wouldn't change a thing.

minniev Loc: MIssissippi

A nice subtle example of pre-sunrise. You've managed the subtlety of the colors nicely and didn't try to get more than was there, which is so easy to fall in the trap of. This could benefit from some noise control, but in the end it'll be a pleasant image of a ship before sunrise in your beautiful home area.

Join the club of recipients of "the horizon needs straightening" posts. Most of my landscapes with a horizon bring suggestions of straightening, and often I decide they are right. What I find is, the perception of straight many times outweighs the truth of the matter, especially with water where a shore is visible. We all have to decide how we will treat this anomaly. My own inclination in your image would be to align the shoreline as if it were straight, even though it might not be. How I handle it in my own images varies with content. A place I often photograph has a series of small islands at different points, and a meandering shoreline that is almost but not quite uniform. So my straightening varies depending on which part I've got in the composition. Because I struggle so much with this dilemma I wonder if it would support its own thread to discuss varying ways to approach it.

neilds37 Loc: Port Angeles, WA

Thank you, Linda.
Since I was about to do it when your post came in, how about we change it to add Billy's suggestion of a shadow for the bird, which it did happen to have.

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neilds37 Loc: Port Angeles, WA

Thank you for your comments, Minnie. I already have applied about as much noise control as it will take. Be aware, however, that if this were printed at 100% like you probably viewed it at, it would be 65" wide. My 8x10 is near flawless.

As far as the question of what is straight, could have it's own thread, or just continue on here.

Linda From Maine Loc: Yakima, Washington

Great added detail.

Jim-Pops Loc: Granbury, Texas

Excellent shadow. I would never have come up with your version.