Misty Siwash Bay in Color and B/W

[NorthernFocus]

Siwash Bay is a spot in Prince William Sound that we visit every summer. There is a huge tidal flat at the head of the bay, a couple of interesting little water falls, and typically there are quite a few sea otters. The down side is that it is usually raining. This is a shot looking up towards the head of the bay on an unusually clear morning. The sun nearly broke through the clouds and mist that day

This is stitched together from four horizontal frames shot at 55mm on a cropped body. The four frames were processed first in LR. Unfortunately the only stitching software I have is PSE which will only handle 8-bit images. After stitching the B/W version was generated with the "gold" preset of the B/W plug-in within Perfect Photosuite. I was surprised that with the "dynamic contrast" tool in the Perfect Effects plug-in I was able to pull as much or more detail out of the clouds in the color version.

Large versions posted at 1200px wide.

[flashback]

Dan,
That is one beautiful scene (and image).
Switching back and forth between the color and B&W I find more detail in the color version, both in the clouds and in the trees nearest the water. I'm wondering if fiddling a bit with the levels might bring out more detail in the B&W. That being said I do prefer the B&W. The pano in either case is spectacular.

[bnnrcn]

Dan,they are both beautiful

[Mike Buckley]

The monochrome reminds me of the landscapes produced by the famous 19th-century photographers. Well done!

[Brownbear]

I prefer the colour version... Beautiful! I especially love the beautiful colour, low lying clouds and tranquil waters.

The B&W version doesn't appeal as much to me, likely just my personal preference.

[Kaye Leggett]

I'm going to sit on the fence as I like them both and can't decide if one or the other is better.

[Shadowman]

Very nice.

[IzzieK]

Dan...I like the colour version too...lots more detail. Just a thought...have you ever tried landscape doing a portrait orientation instead? More frames but you are not limited to just 5 or 8 frames and more sharpness in the PP too.

[NorthernFocus]

Thanks for the comments, folks. Wish you could all see this place in person. But the reason I like this particular image is because it captures the mist. Which is typically much thicker and not nearly as photogenic

Izzie, I have done some panos using vertical frames. I've only done it on a tripod. This was made handheld from a boat. The mist was shifting pretty rapidly too and there was some sense of urgency which lends itself to shooting horizontal. Though more sky in the middle would have helped.

I will try bringing out a bit more detail in the B/W version as a learning experience if nothing else. I'm just starting to fool around with B/W a bit and have zero experience with it. I certainly must be doing something wrong as I've always heard/read that one of the advantages of B/W is to bring out more detail which clearly isn't the case here. Or is that conventional wisdom just a hold over from film days when B/W film had finer grain?

[deetheturk]

Cracking image Dan,I'm slightly more drawn to the colour version,but both are superb for me,well done bud!

[Magog]

Both great images, Dan.
I tilt towards the B&W version - I think the view suits the more stark monochrome treatment.

[Mike Buckley]

I certainly must be doing something wrong as I've always heard/read that one of the advantages of B/W is to bring out more detail

As much as I've read about making monochrome images, I don't remember seeing that. The software tools used to enhance monochromes are exactly the same tools used to enhance color images, so I don't understand why monochromes could have more detail.

[NorthernFocus]

Thanks for the comments. In this image I think I still prefer the color version. But on truly foggy/rainy days, this area is near B/W in reality. The one exception is at low tide when the bright yellow/golden seaweed is exposed.

What brought these last couple of posts of mine forward is the fact that I've finally gotten around to cataloging some of my landscape shots in LR. When I ran across some of these shots taken on the sound I decided to try a conversion or two.

As much as I've read about making monochrome images, I don't remember seeing that...

Which is why I think it's a hold over from film days that still persists. With digital it's not logical. How is it possible to show more detail by working with less of the information available in the digital image capture? In my mind it is more a matter of eliciting a desired feeling about the scene.

[Mike Buckley]

How is it possible to show more detail by working with less of the information available in the digital image capture?

While I agree that it's not possible to show more detail, a monochrome image has the same information as the color image so long as the monochrome version is made by converting from color rather than by desaturating the color.

[John 2]

Must Admit that I'm on the fence Dan. Both of these appeal to me equally. I like mono but I believe that it has to add to an image before I abandon colour but I think that the colour version is very nearly monochrome anyway (if that makes sense?).

[NorthernFocus]

Mike, I get the difference. Not sure all the information digitally available is visibly meaningful. That's my point is human perception. Once color is removed from the equation there is only contrast/tonality to provide detail. Though for 20 percent of males it's one and the same.

John, it does make sense. The color version isn't far removed from monochrome. Even more monochrome in appearance with slightly heavier clouds/fog. Which is normally the case out there and why I've departed from my life's long prejudice and begun to dabble with the B/W. We'll see how it goes...

[outwithmycamera]

Nice images Dan - I like the black and white more, simply because I think the scene is really very monochrome already. Like some of the others I would like to see the detail in the clouds seen in the color version better preserved, and perhaps a slight bit of contrast, particularly deeper blacks in the forested areas.

[Mike Buckley]

Once color is removed from the equation there is only contrast/tonality to provide detail.

Agreed.

[mknittle]

I like both. but lean towards the black and white.