Flogging Kevin

I just saw this post by Moose Peterson and noticed an unexpected sentiment expressed in it. I don’t mean to second-guess Moose or question his tastes, but I thought I would offer my thoughts as feedback.

The image I’m referring to is the last one, the HDR of the “Lady Jo” plane with the orange background light. Moose says, “Then once it did, I switched to the other side and did the 5 frame HDR. While a valid technique, I’m tired of it. I’m on the hunt for a better solution, it will probably take some time. In this application, the shadow detail which shouldn’t be present is. I just need that solid black. Gotta play with that.”.

I’m not sure what he’s going for here. I would imagine that one of the 5 exposures has a great sky and no detail at all on the plane, so if that is what’s desired, just use that image? I’m totally guessing here, so it’s not a rhetorical question. Also, I think the detail is perfectly valid. There could be a hint of Joe McNally strobe light on the side of the plane providing detail, or the plane could be just outside a hangar which is reflecting just a bit of the sunrise light. Both options are just as valid as the HDR in my mind.

It’s probably just not what Moose was going for, but I think it’s an awesome shot! Keep going, I love seeing the great shots and not-so-great shots, since they’re usually all better than mine.