[ 27mm - f/10 - 239 seconds - ISO125 - D800E with 24-70mm f/2.8 ]
Some images take a few seconds to process, some a few hours, some days and some several months. This one falls in the latter category. Why? Well, I really like it a lot and I wanted the processing to be just right … this usually means that I process it from scratch various times, let it be for a while and come back later to see if it needs further tuning. It is not that I PhotoShop it to pieces (I don’t even use PhotoShop). It sometimes just takes time to find the right balance between tones, contrast and structure in various parts of the image. Gradually the differences between subsequent versions become smaller … luckily …
This T-shaped pier can be found in Lake Geneva (Lac Léman) near the small town of Morges. I shot this image at sunset after a heavy rainstorm. Some of you may remember my image called “The End”. This was shot on the same night. What I like the most in this image is that the pier is lit sideways, which creates a nice play of shadows and light.
I used a Lee 10-stop ND filter and a Lee 2-stop ND filter to get to an exposure time of 4 minutes. I processed the image with Adobe’s Lightroom 4.2 and Nik’s Silver Efex Pro 2.
Click on the image, if you are interested in buying a print or license. For more images like this, please visit:
The Waterscapes gallery, or …
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THis is absolutely wonderful, and the water so perfectly milky….. fantastic job Johan!!!
outstanding!
Thank you both very much Sandra and Ricardo!
Wow this is absolutely fantastic !!!!! Incredible processing and perspective Bravo !!!!
many thanks Lizett!!
Ok… This is… Spectacular Johan ! The …’s were used to visualize my gasps for air due to the excitement I experienced studying this exceptional photo!!!!!!
thanks for the very kind words Jerry
Beautiful bw picture!
thank you and nice to meet you
Wonderful tones on the water and on the pier Johan! Great composition too.
merci dominique! Have you been there already?
No, I was wondering where it is located near Morges…
it’s a place called Preverenges. We should go shooting there together
I agree
Amazing! Your galery is just awesome. Congratulations!
thanks for the great compliment Bence. Always nice to hear!
wow.. fantastic image!!
thank you Markus!
Take to long for the process but the result is: OUTSTANDING
<3 <3 <3
Gorgeous tones Johan.
@Leyla: yes a bit too long, but can’t help it
Thank you!
@Annette: thank you Annette!!!
@John: many thanks!
Johan, a wonderful bw longtime work, the light is very good. Have a great evening.
thank you Markus! Have a great evening as well!!
Absolutely stunning!
thanks Davorin! Much appreciated!
Great monochrome capture and composition !
Excellent capture and processing
@Eric: Thank you Eric!!
@Bjarte: thanks for the compliment and nice to meet you
Great Picture!
danke dir Ralf!
icing on the cake.. when all is said and done.. have to admit.. your recipe is deliciously tasteful.. hugs
You took the time to Treaty. She is is magnificent. Nice work.
@Hope: lol, thanks you Hope!!
@jany: merci Jany
Superb LE Johan ! You really blow my mind with this!!
Look another pier… just kidding Johan
Nice LE, well done.
@Sophie: glad I do Sophie! Thank you. So when will we see you in CH?
@Fabrizio: sorry really couldn’t resist! Thank you!
Very nice!
Danke dir Mark !!
schitterend !!!!
wow! this is such a fantastic picture! love this calm, mystical and yet very beautiful atmosphere! realy stunning work Johan!
Dank je wel Encarna !
@Mikko: thanks for the compliment Mikko!
Excellent perspective and composition, Johan! Beautiful shot!
Very nice.
Thank you very much Thom !!
@Luci: many thanks
great shot, wonderful light and sky
Thanks!
great!
Absolutely crackin’ image, Johan… Love the low key and lines…
Thanks f.a. fiebig !
@Shawn: thank you Shawn. Nice to hear!
Your post processing workflow sounds a lot like mine Johan. Usually it’s a lot of back-and-forth, and seldom do I go in a straight line from raw image to end result. Int his case all the work was well worth it I think. The image has a great balance between texture and smooth areas, great toning, and it “just feels right” in general. Great work!
Thanks for the compliment and feedback Armand! Btw I have that a lot less with color work. B&W is a bit more then hitting that B&W button ain’t it
Wonderful, fantastic, marvelous…. words pop up but can’t define what I feel watching your work here! Maybe I gonna try and find my breath back to begin with
Haha are you serious Dominique
Have to say that it is very nice to hear!
I’m always serious :-p
what did you drink tonight ?
What didn’t I drink. It’s Tuesday, a brand new week ahead, only water for me. Serious I was and am serious
best wishes Johan!
of course only water! Have a great week Dominique!
absolutely fantastic !!!
thank you Elena!!
This is fabulous Johan; it was worth the wait!
Thanks George! I am glad it is out there now
beautiful Johan
Woow so beautiful !!!
Thank you very much Dalibor! Enjoying winter over there?
@Azahar: thanks for the wow!
my pleasure Johan
mostly at home with small hiking tours, very bad weather- waiting better times…
you?
although I am not a climber, I am experiencing the same Dalibor. Weather isn’t really cooperating so far on the days I went out. Will keep trying though
keep trying, no other way Johan
yep, and trying is fun anyway
Amazing, amazing work. I can definitely see and appreciate the amount of effort that’s gone into producing this masterful piece!
that’s a great compliment Eustace! Getting from raw to this aren’t that many adjustment. The problem is getting each step right
Brilliant! Love the symmetry and the perspective!
Stunning work my friend !!
@Manuela: thank you and many thanks for sharing!!
@David: many thanks David!!
its just perfect !!
That’s a superb shot Johan
Thanks for the compliment Jorunn !!
@Gerard: glad you think so Gerard!!!
Great one Johan. Bravo.
Just beautiful Johan!
@Michel Paulin: merci beaucoup Michel!
@Michael B. Stuart: Thanks!
stunning calmness and beauty !!!
Absolutely breathtaking! Excellent work
Johan, totally in awe, so exceptional! Love it!
@Syuzanna: thank you
Done with the exams?
@Alycia: thanks for the compliment Alycia!
@Louisa: that’s very nice to hear Louisa!! Thank you!
Absolutely brilliant Johan!
The process is more important than the end result. At least for me – the photographer. Patience paid off.
@Matthieu: thank you very much Matthieu!!
@Tomasz: thanks Tomasz and nice to meet you !
I love your description of processing activity
I have quite a few of those shots which are just not “ready” yet although I’ve already processed them more than once … it’s just like good wine I guess 
and you just published a very good bottle Johan
Where should I go..?! Left or right?! Or… Maybe….straight?? Great picture. We should sit there in summer with a picknick… And just enjoy the view….
@Matthias: many thanks Matthias! Guess that is something familiar for most of us. I have it less with color work though.
@Deborah: all three? And yes on the picknick!
it actually impresses me that you use lr4 and silverefex “only” .. I would have taken bets that this one would require layers and masks for processing. Very nice work
those would probably make my life easier Matthias, but I have been too lazy to learn PhotoShop so far. To be honest, if the water had enough time to even out there is no issue. I just need to be very careful with what I do in LR before doing things in Silver Efex and doing things in LR again. I do apply some local adjustments here and there of course
Whatever you did here and no matter how much time it was needed, it was the right thing to do. Everything is looking as it should, I love the tones and the overall light balance in the image. Great work!
i love it when you love what I do
Do only thing I was still debating today was the amount of highlights to apply especially in the sky. Think I like it as is now though …
Actually Johan, the highlights in the sky is one of the things I like best in your image!
gorgeous and very peaceful Johan – and composition and treatment is spot on to.
Fully agreed on every photo needing it´s own timeline to, editing is a natural process that is unique for every photo and not some technical number we dial in (even tho some treat it like that
).
Time well spent on this one
wonderful capture, great shot
@Michael: exactly my point Michael! Thanks for the compliment!
@Mady: thank you Mady!
you are welcome Johan
Thanks again Michael !
Months? Very glad you took the time Johan to make it to your taste. Very powerful and strong. Great work.
yes, with at least a few weeks in between attempts of course
Glad you like the result Louis!
just perfect!
many thanks David and nice to meet you!
Beautiful and strong composition. I like it mucho!
thank you mucho!!!
Lots of great comments on your new photo Johan. Personally I am not big fan of perfectly mirrored composition but here you did great job, the mountains on the horizon and the sky had broken it. I really like the details on the timber panels and the light on the posts. I don’t know why, but for me this photo is quite surreal. Superb!
Worth the wait Johan , excellent all around!
@Grzegorz: glad you like it Grzegorz! The light was quite special that day. It was hard to figure out how it would influence the end results as the waves were quite strong. Came out quite ok I think
@Dana: many thanks Dana!
Beautiful Johan
beautiful perspective
Thank you Benoit and Jutta !
And immediate attention grabber! Great stuff Johan!
Thanks Bill! That was the idea
Award winning work Johan and well worth the wait. Excellent!
An award? Now that would be great Don! Haven’t been chasing those so far. Thanks for the compliment!
I think they will chase you on this one Johan and once again, superb image.
Thanks for the vote of confidence Don
Purely stunning Johan!!
Absolutely incredible light, wonderfully processed image!
@Robin: thanks Robin
@Alex: many thanks. Glad you like it!
Absolutely stunning and the light is amazing Johan !
Stunning work!
Beautiful work and well worth the time Johan!
@Marilou: thanks for the compliment Marilou!
@Subra: thanks!
@Robby: glad you like it Robby!
so fabulous! glad you persisted
Beautiful detail and tones. Really like the light coming in from the right.
Great stuff!
WOW, stunning!
Thank you and nice to meet you Shelly !
@Quincy: nice to meet you as well! Thanks for the kind words!
@Sumit: thanks Sumit!
@Milena: thanks for the WOW. I like that
this is just WOW! I mean I love it and I wish i knew some special words to describe it beside awesome, and brilliant and wonderful and amazing!!
Great composition Johan !
I like it, especially how you managed to shovel the snow away. No wonder it takes time… The square format serves the subject well. Thanks!
Fantastic work, Johan! Great perspektive and wonderful tones!
very well like the black here very much……<
Striking Johan. I hear you on the time thing though. I released an image at the beginning of this year that I actually shot in Jan 2010. 3 years before I felt I had it right
Great !
Wonderful capture and I had a great time browsing your website
wonderful image johan….thank you….
Fabulous – worth the time spent !!
Gorgeous!
nice black tones
Love this, Johan. I like how the long leading lines of the pier meet the horizontal end. The shot has great balance and symmetry.
@Ada: your comment is more then special enough Ada. Thank you!
@David: merci David!
@Wilfried: no snow, just extensive bird droppings that needed to be dealt with Wilfried! Thank you!
@Andreas: you are very welcome and thanks for the kind words!
@christian: thank you!
@John: thanks! I have a few “old” ones like waiting patiently to be rediscovered
@Didier: thanks Didier!
@Meg: thanks and glad you enjoyed yourself. Thanks for finding me on Facebook as well!
@Kamal: thank you Kamal!!
@Johan: thanks Mr. Busy
@Richard: thank you Richard!
@Dimuth: many thanks Dimuth!
@Simos: thanks for the compliment and your are welcome
Fabulous Johan and so worth pondering over for so long.
Thanks for the kind words Rosie!
Beautiful! Johan, for most things I create, I must put them aside for a while, too. It gives me a chance to get perspective. Fantastic shot…all your hard work made this so lovely!
This photo make me thinking about life. Where I want to go? Look back of my life journey, feeling time is limited. I will work hard in the future.
Looks swiss made
) Very long and very beautiful Johan 
)
Wonderful tones and composition Johan
Such an exquisiteeeee image!!!. Excellent, excellentttttt Johan
.
Sure I can feel and see the time that you spent here, no more words than… Perfect!
It worth the wait… Really like this one..
@Michelle: thanks for the compliment. For me it depends a little on whether it is color or B&W. Need to think about that
@henry: glad it does that to you Henry!
@Anette: many thanks Anette!
@Giannis: thanks for the compliment Giannis!
@Yasmin: your comments always put a smile on my face. Thanks for that
@Patrice: merci Patrice!
Beautiful Light & Great Composition
Perfect Shot
Many thanks Vishal !!
Great comp…absolutely love it. I can completely understand what you are talking about. I’ve had a couple of images I had to come back to over the course of a year to get them to where I wanted them to be. I would work on them for awhile and then delete everything in frustration
I am sometimes PP a photo and don’t like it or I do not get out what I think is in the photo. days later I try again or as you describe weeks / months
. Super shot and PP Johan
@Jim: looks like we all have the same frustrations sometimes
Thanks for the kind words!
@Walter: many thanks Walter!
The tones and details are simply exquisite Johan.
Hey thanks Tom!
How stunning!! I love the wonderful contrast and details!! Those lines are perfect!!
thanks for the compliment Margaret!! Glad you like it
I love this one!! It’s gorgeous!! You are going to be my recommended photographer on the Landscape Photography Show on Tuesday. We can only show one photo and I’m showing your beautiful photo of the Alps with the snow blowing!! I promise NOT to mess up your name!!
I would be honored
Not sure which image you are referring to, but I trust you will choose a nice one 
Mystical.
Love it Johan !
Like this very much Johan !
I had to share this beautiful image – wow!
Beautiful, beautiful, beautiful Johan ! Great work, Love these dark tones!
@Kelly: thank you Kelly!
Hope all is well with you!?
@Danielle: hey Danielle! Glad you love it!
@Vitor: many thanks Vitor!
I’m doing well Johan – thanks for asking. I hope you and yours are doing well too. Have a wonderful weekend!
All’s well here as well Danielle. Thanks. Have a great weekend too!
@Lena: many thanks for the kind words and for sharing Lena!!!
Thanks for the kind words Emanuele!
@Emanuele:
wonderful work!
Very well done Johan recognizable story
@Оксана: thank you very much Oksana
Thanks for the compliment Nikola!
@Nikola: it’s a B&W thing for me … it takes more time before I am satisfied
Magnificent work Johan! All the waiting and tweaking really paid off. The light and tonality is amazing.
Hey Kurt! Thank you for the compliment! Hope all is well with you!?
Thnx Johan. hanging in there…working a lot these days.
Hope you like your work Kurt
And hope it is just temporary! Have a great weekend!
A great weekend to you as well Johan!
Thanks Johan for the wonderful pic! I’m still looking for that kind of shot myself.
many thanks Stephen!
Your efforts were worth it Johan !! Love the tonality here
Thank you very much Paul !
Love the dark mood here Johan
Thanks Rohan !
Thats a a very top quality perspective and processing job Johan
Thanks David !!
I really can’t imagine anything that could be more perfect with this image.
Superb!
Thanks you very much Sinead !
Serene and precise Johan, excellent work!
Thanks Michael and Krystyna !
Can’t force my eyes to look away. What a hypnotizing scene!
Thank you very much Valesa and nice to meet you
Nice to meet you too Johan! And it’s a pleasure, you have a lovely blog
Thanks for the compliment Valesa !
inspiring shot, love it!
many thanks!
Beautiful!
Serious fine art quality!
Many thanks Enrique and Nicholas !
great one!
Thank you Sandra! Have a great week!
Perfectly shot and processed, Johan!! The soft, tones in the water are gorgeous (seeing actual shadows in the water on the left ….and on the end pier, is quite fascinating) and the woodwork looks brilliant!
– lovely to read about the patience you apply in your workflow as well
)
always a great pleasure to read your comments
Thanks for the feedback! Regarding may workflow: promised my self to leave the image alone for a few months now. There are a few bits and pieces I might want to adapt a bit at some point. Happy it is out now though 
It’s well worth the effort and time you took for it Johan – you are right: it’s not so much a technical issue why editing images can take so long but finding the right balance between tones, light, lines and all other things that make a good photograph. I haven’t posted anything new for 3 months already, still working on the same 2 images for months, still finding the right balance. This is a great photo!
thanks for the feedback Joel! Much appreciated!
Great work!
Thank you very much Marc and nice to meet you!
Perfect exposure and PP here Johan
Awesome!
Henrik and Neil: thanks again both!
Beautifully done Johan.
Happy you like it Kerry
what a remarkable shot, johan! absolutely loved seeing this!:)
thank you very much Betty! It was challenge to process, but I like how it came out
wow, this is so amazing! something like that i am dreaming about to do on my own
need to buy a darker nd-filter before going to sardinia in april!
Thanks Nicolai! Glad you like it
Go for it … you will get addicted though!
oh yea…. I love Silver Efex Pro 2. I downloaded the program to try it for 15 days and never intended to buy…. but now that i know what i’m missing out on without it… it’s going to become a necessity in my workflow. :-\
Thanks Mitchell! Silver Efex is pretty amazing
I should give it a try. I am looking at Color Efex and Silver Efex it seems everywhere I go I hear good things about both.
Haven’t used Color Efex that much yet. Silver Efex is one of my favorites Valesa
Hi Johan I recently acquired both programs but haven’t given them a test run yet. Can’t wait!
You won’t regret it Valesa! Make sure to watch a few video’s on the two programs to get you going. Quite a few things you can do (and overdo)!
Really nice shot .
Great work!!
Thanks Jukka and Marc !
Love the light here Johan
Hey thanks Rohan!
absolutely beautiful….
Superb composition!
Thank you both Shannon and Manuela
That’s fantastic!!
Thank you Yvette! Dank je wel
Geen dank!
Hi Johan, I recently acquired both programs but haven’t given them a test run yet. Can’t wait!
You won’t regret it Valesa! Make sure to watch a few video’s on the two programs to get you going. Quite a few things you can do (and overdo)!
Beautiful long exposure. Love the tone and the mood you managed to get into the image.
Thanks very much Miguel!!
Mighty fine image Johan. Patience has came good here!
Great photo and work Johan!
@Ian: Yep! Thanks Ian
@Robert: thanks again Robert!
beautiful Lexp work – you have some wonderful images in your gallery
Thank you Sweedon! Glad you like my stuff
Piers always are special to me but this capture beats them all!
Same here Joan. I keep getting back to some of them to get different perspectives and moods. It’s worth it
So inspiring!
Thanks again Dominic. Nice to hear that you find this inspiring
And you are on my great photographers list
That sounds like a very cool list to be on Dominic !