Mysterious Island

This is a photograph of a 'Mysterious Island'. Taken many years ago, in a distant place that time seemed to have forgotten. Well maybe I'm being a bit over melodramatic with the text. The image was captured on the Trent and Mersey canal – which I know some boaters might agree in places looks like a land that time forgot. 

Words can be used to set the scene and images can be used to add the fine detail and to deepen the mystery further. Short of adding the background sound effects of crickets chirping and the howls of some animal in the distance – so the words will have to do.

However, the image I posted is not quite what it would seem to be at first sight. In photography, there is no such thing as a bad image. The 'black cat photographed in a coal hole' is a good image if what you actually want to portray is 'a black cat in a coal hole'. I have included the original image, which as you can see is quite flat and quite lifeless. However, because mist is a wonderful medium for creating flat light. Plus we are all used to mist being used for dramatic effect, in those mystery films. So mist can also be used to add a bit of an atmosphere of mystery to the end result.

Photography today is much more than just point and press. Its become much more creative through what can be achieved through editing the digital image. So what I did was to load the image into my editor of choice (Corel X6) I then edited the image to 'improve' the look feel and atmosphere. I started by cropping out extraneous bits in the image, which the let me create the impression of a small island surrounded by water. Then I upped the contrast a bit. The mist itself was quite patchy and showed up quite well in the darker reflections of the water. Because of the flat calm, the water was providing a very good mirror and a neutral density filter. However, the final effect was created when I turned the image upside down. Voilà!