Lightroom 2 Magic

Posted by MontereyJohn (Salinas, California, United States) on 5 June 2009 in Landscape & Rural.

This is shot from the Hahn Winery on the west side of the Salinas Valley in the Santa Lucia Mountains about 15 miles from the town of Salinas. The sky is milky from water evaporation from the highly irrigated vegetable fields in the valley floor. The other side of the valley is the Gabilan Mountains and they are about 12 miles away. So what to do to make this pop?

This picture involves a little Lightroom 2 magic. The mountains in the distance were washed out in the afternoon haze. First I fiddled a bit with the exposure and contrast to brighten things up. Then I used the adjustment brush tool, which is new to LR version 2, and reduced the exposure of the mountains further to darken them and give them contrast to the valley floor. I love this program!

Thanks for dropping by and sharing in the joy I take in this art of photography. Enjoy your visit, and if you have any comments or useful criticisms, please feel free to share them.

You can visit my web site at http://monterey-john-photography.com/

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