Nikon D800, 50mm f/1.4 D lens, f/11, 0.4-1.6s, ISO 100, finished in Photomatix Pro and Lightroom 5

I’ve taken Rich Harrington’s advice and read The Visual Story, by Bruce R. Block, and the one point that always comes to mind is that contrast is a major key to a great image. Color contrast is one of the first topics, and he teaches that even the richest red is more red when viewed next to blue.

I’m applying this to photographing fall colors, which are at full power in much of the USA right now. Green is a cool color and when green trees and grass are included with the warm orange and red of the changing trees, it makes all the colors more vibrant.

Of course, using Photomatix Pro to combine three exposures and end up with a 16 bit TIFF also helps keep the full range of color under control without losing a drop to clipped highlight areas.

So, get out there, find some contrasting colors and make some pictures.