Submitter's name:	Stephen Scharf
Title:	Chiles Valley Mustard
Gear used:	Olympus C4040Z 4.1 megapixel digital camera
Diaphragm:	Programmed AE
Shutter speed:	Programmed AE
Film used:	Not applicable
Technical information:	1600X1200 JPEG resized to 512X384, f1.8 lens
Subject information:	Taken while on a motorcycle ride through the Chiles Valley.
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Comment left by: Winsor (wincros@earthlink.net)

Very nice. Makes me nostalgic for a road trip again.

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

I can't quite put my finger on why, but I really like this shot. Perhaps it's the broad spectrum of greens you've managed to capture. The rows of posts seem to push me towards that clear blue sky and that lush green field...

Comment left by: siddiq (no e-mail specified)

very nice! i'd only wish for more definition in the sky (perhaps via POL or ND filters)

Comment left by: Wayne Harridge (no e-mail specified)

Good forground interest, forget the sky

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

Beautiful country! I like the contrasting fields, patterns, and overall feel of the shot.

Comment left by: Anonymous (no e-mail specified)

A polarizer or ND would have brought the blue out a bit more, but1) it wouldn't have been true to the way the sky really looked and 2) I don't have one for the little C4040Z. Additionally, I don't know what effect it would have had on the brilliant yellow of the mustard, which is what I principally wanted to capture. It would have been hard to ascertain this looking through the P&S-ike viewfinder of the C4040. I took an almost identical photo to this with my OM-1 and print film, and the sky looks identical to what you see here.

Comment left by: Charles Sdunek (charles@mormons.com)

I really like this photo, all the little details could keep me busy for quite some time with eyes darting from one corner to another. As Mike said, the greens really look good. Using a polarizer isnt too bad if its marked. You hold it up in front of your eyes and turn it till you like it, then screw it onto your taking lens with the same mark up. hehehe...have to do it that way with my retina. I dont think this image needed it though, a darker sky might even detract from the image.

Comment left by: Scott Gomez (no e-mail specified)

Nice strong compositional elements work well here with the limited color range. I've come back to this image a few times now, and I just keep finding more to see in it. Very good use of composition to get the viewer's eye to want to re-examine the image.

Comment left by: Andy Radcliffe (andyjradcliffe@aol.com)

Beautiful, inviting countryside,and very well captured. Good to see(though it makes me envious as hell!) that at least some of us have had decent spring weather. Lovely stuff.

Comment left by: John A. Lind (no e-mail specified)

Excellent use of the foreground vineyard for leading lines to draw the viewer into the image and scale it for a sense of great depth. Middle and background contains a wide variety of fields and hills to keep interest and capture the totality of what is there. Sky looks very natural to me, perhaps because I'm accustomed to using films with restrained to moderate saturation. You didn't state time of day, but it looks near mid-day from foreground shadows. This tends to create sky with a paler shade of blue. Would be interesting to see what it looks like in early morning or very late afternoon . . . to see how the light changes the scene through the day. This is another one that draws me back to view it again with its pastoral qualities.

Comment left by: Stephen Scharf (scharfsj@ix.netcom.com)

I'd like to thank everyone for taking the time to take a look and for their constructive and encouraging comments. There is so much talent in this group, and it provides a real incentive for one to do their best work. These TOPES are a great goal and incentive for improving one's skills. I am already planning on how to approach my photo for the the next TOPE, Water!

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