"Prisoner's Moonglow"

"Prisoner's Moonglow"
©David A. Ziser

I've been looking at this image for quite a while- in a much different version of course. I loved the color and lines of the image but just couldn't get the density right to suit me.  When you check the camera specs, you'll see it was made in daylight. You know how it is, the image is looking good to you but still not quite "singing" to you.  That's where this image has been for me for since I Captured it 3 months ago.  I started to "play" with it in Lightroom this morning and tried some more variations on it.  I was always wanting to "save" the shadows but then I decided to darken the entire image instead.  I was getting closer to what I wanted.  The image was trying to sing to me but not quite.  I took the Lightroom Clarity slider all the way to the left and there it was - an almost ethereal image that was capturing exactly what I wanted the image to say.  To me, the shot had always looked like a prisoner's view from his cell below.  Stylizing the image with this dark, ghostly feeling completed the composition for me.  Now it "sings" for me. Now there is a certain cathartic feel to the image. The deep contrasting cool and warm colors fading into dark shadows, the not so sharp wrought iron bars blocking the prisoner's escape to the moonlight above all combine for an image I enjoy very much. Sounds pretty heavy for a Thursday morning, but it wasn't meant to be. Camera specs: Canon 7D fitted with 18-200mm IS lens at 80mm, F16 @ 1/1600 second, ISO 800. Enjoy!  -David