Submitter's name:	Walt Wayman
Title:	Can You Say Cliche?
Gear used:	OM-4Ti + MD2 + 21/2 Zuiko + B&W KR3 filter
Diaphragm:	f/8 (I think.)
Shutter speed:	1/250 (Just guessing.)
Film used:	Fuji Provia 100F
Technical information:	Exposure was determined by a single spot reading on the grass. The slide was scanned with an HP PhotoSmart S20 at 2400 dpi, dusted, adjusted and resized to TOPE dimensions in Picture Window 2.5.
Why:	Frustrated by my failure to get an original, never-been-done-before water shot, I decided to do just the opposite and see how close I could come to the ultimate cliche, and this is as near as I got: a tourist attraction that's been photographed a million times, unartistically placed dead center in the frame, surrounded by just what you would expect, all quite properly reflected in the obligatory water. I even shot it at the wrong time of day, just before noon, in an attempt to break as many "rules" of good photography as I could. In spite of my bad intentions, I kinda like this picture. I'm not sure I'll make and frame a big print, but then again, I just might.
Subject information:	Mabry Mill on the Blue Ridge Parkway in Virginia. Every few years, either in the spring or fall, when the weather is perfect, we take off for a week and drive the parkway (469 mi.) and Skyline Drive (105 mi.) from one end to the other, Cherokee, N.C., to Front Royal, Va., then turn around and come back. The speed limit is 45 mph, making for a relaxing and leisurely three-day one-way trip, and the scenery is great, though becoming less and less so because of increasingly dirty air, especially in the Shenandoah. Ragtop or T-top sports car highly recommended.
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Comment left by: Olaf Greve (no e-mail specified)

You may say it's a cliche shot, but I like it nonetheless. Nice colours, nice composition and remarkable perspective distortion control (note that this was shot with a 21mm!).

Comment left by: Mike Cormier (no e-mail specified)

When I saw this shot I IMMEDIATELY though two things: A)Fuji slide film and B)Photoshop color saturation enhancement... Then I saw it was Provia and all was explained. I like it very much nonetheless, although the sky has an almost greenish tinge to the blue. Could this be from the KR3 filter?

Comment left by: Mickey Trageser (no e-mail specified)

Very clever of you to claim you intended to break all the rules. Especially the time of day! This was the absolute perfect time of day for the shot. Look at the resulting texture revealed in the mill's side boards and roof! I agree that the framing of the mill could be improved. Cut the right side at the sandbar, and take out half of the area above the roof. Then you have the mill to top right drawing you to the water. It is a water shot, right? Beautiful color and sharpness.

Comment left by: K Norton (no e-mail specified)

Ahem. Mabery Mill. (not Mabry). Most photographed spot in Virgina. Of course, I've shot at least three rolls there myself. Might be a cliche shot, but I've sold more than a couple pictures of it. Dead-center composition is the only way you can photograph it. Doesn't work any other way. Nicely done.

Comment left by: Eric Pederson (epederso@darkwing.uoregon.edu)

Clichés become that way because people find them worth repeating. Though if you really wanted to make the point of a cliché, then you could use Photoshop to put a layer of jigsaw puzzle pieces on top. :-) This idyllic scence might be something you could play with further to make less cliché (for your wall-hanger), but keeping the elements that everyone likes. Convert to monochrome, selective desaturation, watercolor, ...

Comment left by: Ian Manners (no e-mail specified)

I like it, its knowing when to break the rules (even accidently) that counts. Some scenes cannot be shot within the rules, and as mentioned above, this is obviously one of them :-). This has a great relaxing yet still enriching feel to it due to the colour saturation as well.

Comment left by: benson (benson@research.haifa.ac.il)

OK, ok, I'll BUY the calendar! Perfect execution - I'm amazed you can do it with a 35mm - and not a larger format. Shows what can be done with expertise. I ordered the latest HP scanner - can't wait to get it if it can do this!

Comment left by: Anonymous Visitor

Like tunnel vision. Every element -- fences, tree line, banks of the pond, road, even the clouds and ducks -- leads the eye to the mill, then to the reflections in the water. Hypnotic, serene. Way cool!

Comment left by: Jay Maynard (jmaynard@conmicro.cx)

Print this one big on textured paper and hang it on the wall. As Eric said, cliches get that way because there's something there worth repeating, and I don't think I'd touch a thing.

Comment left by: bbbean (bbbean@beancotton.com)

Although its a cliche to say so, cliche's don't just happen. I think I might have toned down the saturation justa bit (or turned it up to give a psychadelic edge), but its a nice shot, worthy of a brochure, calendar, postcard, or your mother's den.

Comment left by: Joel Wilcox (no e-mail specified)

Extremely pleasant, enjoyable photo.

Comment left by: E Dean Lawson (edl@alaska.net)

Having grown up in Mt. Airy, N.C.: this place, "Mabry Mill", is only a short drive. Yes, doing the "Parkway & Skyline" drive is leisurely. Taking the many hikes to explore the trails could take months. Now, living in Alaska for the past 20 years, I thank you for this view from the parking lot. As an 8 year old kid with an ice cream cone in one hand, I remember my first memories of this place. Maybe I should hang a big print here in my home. Thanks again for sharing this place.

Comment left by: Annis Howard Davis (Ahdavis1@aol.com)

The Blue Ridge Parkway (up to the Skyland Drive in Virginia) is truly one of God's greatest gifts to mankind! My family has a wonderful old mountain farmhouse near the Parkway (Grassy Creek, NC) and driving the peaceful and majestic Parkway is a wonderful way to relax and take in mountain splendor..especially in spring and fall. Thank you for a beautiful photo!

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