Seven, a photo from Jujuy, North

Photographer's Note

El Cerro de los Siete Colores (The Seven Coloured Hill) in Purmamarca - probably the highlight of the Quebrada de Humahuaca - a UNESCO World Heritage area in north-west Argentina.

The light on the main hills behind the town is best in the morning, so it is one of those places where it is worthwhile staying overnight and setting the alarm for just before dawn to find a good location for early morning shots. This shot was taken just after the sunlight came fully in to the valley.

Please ignore shutter and f-stop settings - I was more than a little annoyed at myself over this one. I have only recently moved from slide film to digital and I keep forgetting to reset the ISO after low-natural-light work. I feel even dumber that I was shooting manual at f/11, 1/2000 and my brain still didn't register that there was something very wrong: I blame it on the 5:30 a.m. alarm. My photos from the morning look great at half-postcard size, but it is a real shame I cannot enlarge them to a decent size.

Suppiluliuma, bmukherjee, delpeoples, jafadabret, ruisc_pt, dta, dip, s_lush, yeln, Waylim, CLODO, Longroute, Angshu, maloutim, i9l2y1m8a8t3, chanteuse ha puntuado esta nota como útil.

Critiques | Translate

Suppiluliuma (3931) 2010-08-06 8:08

By looking at its icon, I thought that was a collage. Even while looking at its full-format, layers are so well-defined that this perception still seems to be justified.

Your note is rich and frank, and I understand the loss of texture is due to the high ISO 3200 setting.

My suggestion would be to include the trees below a bit more or, if possible, to avoid them altogether by taking a higher angle.

Nice shot Iain, thanks for sharing.

Cheers,

Erdem

[4]

korbee (6619) 2010-08-06 8:25

Dear Lain,quality could be improved litlle,but one thing is for sure,landscape and its colors are exeptional,thanks to your cropping and preseting.

jan

gut31 (144) 2010-08-06 8:39

Hello

very nice colors. I agree with Suppiluliuma may be a little bit more of trees would give more contrast at the picture. Very nice shot.

TFS

jemaflor (146412) 2010-08-06 8:59

Hi Iain,
Impressive landscape, colors are strange, well captured and tfs this original view.

pauloog (11751) 2010-08-06 9:46

Hello Iain,
At least on this format the photo offers a firework of colours and forms, an incredible sight in fact.
Regards,
Paul

PaulVDV (62810) 2010-08-06 10:26

Hello Iain,
Absolutely a remarkable and pretty impressive landscape.
But what is the explanation for the complete different colours of these hills ?
Best regards, Paul

tomescuc (3291) 2010-08-06 12:44

Love the texture and colors, and how the layers unfold. Close to abstraction, and like a painting. Nice idea to leave the trees on the bottom - they provide an additional compositional subtlety. One of the most interesting images on TE these days.
cheers,
Cristian

mkamionka (73532) 2010-08-07 2:03

Hi Iain,
excellent work. Never heard about this place. It resembles the shapes and colors of Colorado Plateau.
I love the variety of colors, excellent quality allows to enjoy the texture as well.
Very well done, TFS
M

Tayon (1995) 2010-08-07 17:38

Hi Ian

fantastic colors and a good POV for these very beautiful and strange place.

I really like to see this image larger than this, but despite of the Suppiluliuma comments I think the trees are in the right place...

TFS

Tayon/Taba

smarcell (19965) 2010-08-30 0:00

Hello Iain,

here is a place where Nature really made its best.
The tele view makes it look like a modern art paint.
Definitely a place I would like to visit
Cheers
Stefano

delpeoples (60342) 2010-09-06 1:51

Hi Iain, my God, I thought it was a patchwork quilt when I saw the photo in miniature. What amazing textures and those warm tones are spectacular. Excellent tight framing and depth. Hard to know where to crop it as it seems to go on forever, the landscape looks so vast. Great job, TFS adn I wish you a good day, Lisa

jafadabret (56501) 2010-09-07 6:01

Bonjour Lain,
C'est une photo comme on en voit peu même sur TE. L'important c'est le graphisme et surtout les couleurs qui en font une œuvre à rapprocher des belles toiles de grands peintres.
Amicalement
Jacques

Cafalex (924) 2010-09-07 6:19

Hello Iain,

This picture is a bit different from the rest of your impressive portfolio but is beautifull. I really like the succession of the successive plans that gives a panel of colours.

Well done,

Alexandre

mafegan (8626) 2010-09-08 6:58

Hello Iain
Regardless of your settings this is an amazing scene. Such a variety of colours overlapping each other. A painted landscape. Tfs, Marlene

ruisc_pt (11584) 2010-09-09 9:08

Don't worry Iain about exposure settings here..
You got the splendours and magic moment of dawn light.
Fantastic shot.
Congratulations
Rui

dta (98848) 2010-09-10 5:39

Hello Iain ,
This is really one of the most fascinating landscape that i've seen on TE ! Of course , your framing is for something in the feeling provided by this view . It loos a little like an abstract painting .
Congratulations , and thanks for the share .
Regards

michelleknight (112) 2010-09-10 14:56

Wonderful landscape.
It was worth posting it even if you are not totally happy with it. I didn't know about those hills & I think it is still a great shot.
Thanks for sharing.
Michelle

dip (21408) 2010-09-11 10:10

Hello Iain,
what an impressive view of these multicolored mountains!
indeed an amazing image,very well done,
greetings,
Dimitris!

Bournazel (0) 2010-09-13 12:40

Hello Lain
the kind of landscape I am looking for !! I put it in my collection of unbelievable landscapes
Thanks for visiting my gallery and to add me as one of your favorites
Vincent

sorry no more smileys for today....

s_lush (16602) 2010-09-15 7:02

Hello Iain,
I have never seen such colorful and multicolored terrain before. Thanks for showing such a wonderful scene captured perfectly! Absolutely incredible place and fantastic capture!
Best regards,
Sergiy

Juzo (2151) 2010-09-16 8:36

Hi Iain,
This was hard to make out what it was from the thumbnail, and when I took a closer look I was stunned at the incredible natural colours of these hills. Quite a sight. Your tight crop gives this an artful and collage style effect.
Cheers
Justin

yeln (11516) 2010-09-28 9:53

hi Lain
izjemno zanimiva pokrajina. prvič vidim tako zelo barvito pokrajino. čudovite barve, tako zelo nenavadne.
zelo lepo in hvala, da nam to prikažeš.
čestitam! TFS!
lep večer želim, vojko

yquem46 (38752) 2010-10-04 14:00

Hi lain
This one is really incredible !
Such an entanglement of colors on neighbor mountains
certainly deserves a UNESCO World Heritage area
Quality will improve as you get used to your digital outfit
have a nice day
Best regards
patrick

AKITA (15125) 2010-10-04 19:16

dear Iain,
wow,
the nature is always beyond our imagination...
these various colors are amazing,
every mountains and every layers look wonder original colors, and whole combined view is heavenly,
and figures of slopes and valleys are splendid too, especially layered composition from your POV is artistic,
I can find gold and silver in this scene, those are never seen in the rainbow,
thank you for your excellent shot,
Akihisa

Waylim (25436) 2010-10-04 22:07

Hi,
There certainly a lot more to Argentina than I ever know and I thought I know a lot more than other. Some that I talked to here, don't know where Patagonia is they thought Iguacu falls is in Brazil only, when more than half of it is actually in Argentina. Well here you just show a side that I totally have no clue about. Such a fantastic and amazing landscape, so many colors all in one place, there is some similarity to the U.S. deserts landscape yet different. Quality not the best but still better than many on this site. I enjoyed it very much. Thanks.
Way

CLODO (45116) 2010-10-05 1:26

Hello Iain

Surprising nature with all the warm hues of the rocks!
Good tight framing to discover the mountains.
Congratulations
CLODO

Longroute (19600) 2010-10-06 13:59

Waw! This is a great photo!
Does a place like this exist? unbelievable!
The colour palette, the textures, the patterns of the different layers of the rocks and soil, the shapes and profiles of the hills: all is fantastic and contribute to create a unique and very appealing landscape and image.
Well captured, crisp and clear and awfully well framed.
Compliments,
Donato

clic (76) 2010-10-09 16:20

Hello Iain
This is not a picture but......a splendid tapestry work hung on a wall, photographed with a long lens for a compression effect that creates the illusion of a simple plan of fantastic shapes and colors.
Many compliments for this piece of art.
Cheers.
Robert

jmdias (114384) 2010-10-18 16:40

Iain

amazing this place. I knew lots of places in south-america and this one is waiting for me, I hope to visit it soon as possible.
amazing texture, colors and shapes. you did a fabulous work, we can enjoy the magic of the moment and the place here. TFS

hugs

jorge

danasam (1075) 2010-10-18 21:14

Hi Lain, I like the harmony of all natural colors, the POV is perfect. I like the fact that there is no shadows added a lot of value. very nice shot.

Sam.

romanaa (8430) 2010-10-20 4:46

Hello Iain,

this is amazing that I searched the gallery for another image to see whether it is true... and, of course, it is. An absolute wonder of nature.

Bravo, thanks for sharing

Adding this as a favourite

Romana

Angshu (56760) 2010-10-27 1:13

Hello Iain
A natural progression for me to check this picture out! I've seen pictures of the Painted Valley in US...lots of them, but I think, what you show here is much better in terms of nature's art! Less, hyped, less publisized, this composition looks like an abstract piece of art! I would belive, it would be difficult to compose in such a place, but you've done wonderfully well!
Best Regards
Angshuman
PS : There seems to be a website problem in TE! This website & the older beta website are not 'talking’ to each other!

schumanng (0) 2011-10-27 9:46

Hi,
these are incredible colours in an incredible light. Don't matter about technics, the shot is fantastic.
Bye,
Giorgio

wolf38 (30) 2011-11-11 7:56

Hello lain. Truly a picture of artistic quality. In addition, very beautiful and full of gorgeous colors. Nature is just a great master. Nice that you have seen this fantastic scene and realized. Rgds, Wolfgang.

chanteuse (210) 2012-02-22 5:12

My first thought was, is that a real place? Astonishing shapes and colors! And yes, it pays to get up early even if the brain is muzzy then. Even when not muzzy, my brain does not quite understand the technical issue you are discussing, but maybe in several years it will, and by that time I will get back to the Grand Canyon and have a chance to put this knowledge to use. This is an amazing place and thanks for sharing!

sacimar (38173) 2012-02-28 5:55

Hello Iain,

good image of this impressive place, I like the combination of colors and tones here, I understand the name of this hill watching your picture, well done,

Best regards,

Sergio

maloutim (13617) 2012-04-11 1:56

Hi Iain,
This is absolutely out of this world ! We all know Nature is a great artist, but it's still a wonder to admire such a palette of colours on a geological site !
As you mention, the rising sun has done its part too, but the combination of diagonal lines is also a great advantage in the POV.
Congratulations for making the effort to get up so early in order to photograph this marvel and thanks for sharing.
Marie-Louise.

No_One (4) 2017-01-16 10:51

Hi Iain
This photo makes me smile broadly, such a variety and fun mixing of colors in nature. If I have a drawing of the mountains to a kid and asked them to color it in as they like, this could be the result. It's hard to say much about a scene like this, I just smile and shake my head. Class photo and a new place for me.
Cheers
Noel