Menir da Meada, a photo from Portalegre, South

Photographer's Note

Some months ago I posted another photo of this pre-historic monument with the humorous title 'Gift of Obelix to Alentejo'. When I posted it, I had already returned to the place hoping to get some more interesting views. While the earlier post was shot in Spring, when the fields were still green, this one was shot in the Summer, when the grass had already dried.

This is the tallest menhir of Iberian Peninsula. It is more than 7 meters tall and weights over 18 tonnes.

Menhirs are pre-historic megalithic monuments several thousands years old. I have read somewhere that some archaeological research done near this one puts its construction on the 5 millennium BC.

I grouped all my posts of megalithic monuments under this theme. At the time I am writing this these lines, all the monuments shown in that theme are pretty close to each other (less than 10 Km), but I have plans to posts some more one of these days.

Note about the PP: I hope it is not apparent, but what you see here resulted from the blending of 3 different images, produced applying different exposure adjustments on the original raw file. This is a very effective way of avoiding too dark shadows and burnt out highlights in subjects with high contrast that it isn't so complicated once you are familiar with layers and layers masks. However, it happens often that it's very tricky to adjust the mask so the interfaces between dark and light areas don't look unnatural and/or the contrast looks strange (see WS#1).

WS's: #1 presents a slightly different POV/framing and is a good example of the strange contrast that may result from the blending of images with different exposures; #2 is a view with a closer low POV.

You can browse all my posts of megalithic monuments in this theme.

Location (latitude, longitude): 39.496,-7.4457

wautersw, Jardim, wishlist, AiresSantos, feather, lucasgalodoido, paura, gneufeld, Docarmo, Truja, Gerrit, COSTANTINO, Didi, cobbydale, xuaxo, Bluejeans, Tue, riclopes, ruisc_pt, JCG, maloutim heeft deze opmerking als nuttig gemarkeerd

Critiques | Translate

wautersw (3647) 2008-03-17 15:27

Hi Jose,

excellent composition with great colours and light, a very remarkable place. The clouds add extra depth to the scene. TFS

Wolf

danyy (0) 2008-03-17 15:37

Bonjour Jose,
des allures de savane africaines dans cette partie du Portugal.
De très belles lumières au sol, pas trop dures et un ciel qui n'a pas l'air d'être celui qui les laisse passer.
Excellent monument sur les cultures anciennes.
Regards.
Daniel.

wishlist (4133) 2008-03-17 15:39

Hello Jose,
the cloudy sky allowed you to create a good depth, enhancing the simple but effective compo. With the pp you achieved a remarkable result, the picture looks well balanced both in the shadow and highlight.
Well done!
Thanks for sharing it.
Regards,

Igor

Jardim (3243) 2008-03-17 15:41

Olá José,

Este menir fálico é mesmo grande... Fora de brincadeiras a foto está com uma boa composição, em que jogas bem com a sombra na parte inferior a luz na parte central e o céu na parte superior.
Júlio Jardim

denisn72 (8314) 2008-03-17 17:44

Hello Jose
Nice view of that monument. the point of view and colours are excellent. Great note and really instructive. Thanks for sharing.
Best regards
Denis!

crckt (7222) 2008-03-17 19:27

Bonjour Jose,
This is brilliant stuff! I like the way you've composed this. The light conditions were ideal for this kind of a shot.
WEll done,
SHaeri

japiey (10163) 2008-03-17 21:40

Hi Jose,

Good composition.
The giant monument looks amazing..
Thank you for this share, a lesson.
All the best, dear friend.

jp

AiresSantos (56155) 2008-03-17 23:55

Ola Jose
Nao conheco este Menir mas tem semelhancas com outro perto de Guadalupe. O ceu deu uma ajudinha a esta excelente composicao. A definicao e a luminosidade estao magnificas
Um abraço Amigo
Aires

Cara (2059) 2008-03-18 1:37

Olá José,
Bonita imagem, as cores estão bonitas a composição cuidada e a luz muito boa, realmente só é pena essa sombra que avançava em direcção ao menir.
Abraço, Daniel

UnTrained (0) 2008-03-18 4:25

Olá José,
well realised PP on a simple but fascinating subject in challenging light conditions. I like the pointing rock with the light and shadow divided by it. Good balancing with the tree.
Lieben Gruss, Ulf

toto (0) 2008-03-18 5:59

Bonjour,
belle photo de ce menhir, les WS sont beaux aussi, je suis impressionné rien qu' a penser a leur ingéniosité pour relever ces gros blocs de pierre.
Jolies couleurs d' ensemble, bonne luminosité et bonne netteté.

Amitiés Thomas
Je reviens

feather (51130) 2008-03-18 8:12

Did I read that correctly!? You used RAW!? Sorry - couldn't resist! ;D We won't have that debate again.
Very well composed image with the menhir perfectly placed in the frame. The trees testify to the large size of the stone, the one on the right providing balance to the composition. You did an admirable job with the blending and it looks very natural. I can see the similar one in the WS hasn't worked so well, but I doubt we would have noticed much without having this to compare with.
Very good work
Kath

lucasgalodoido (27698) 2008-03-18 8:54

Olá José,
bem interessante esse monumento antigo, vai saber o que ele significa, mas sua foto ficou ótima, com uma iluminação bem suave e agradável.
Parabéns e Abraço!

pboehringer (770) 2008-03-18 9:26

Jose,
reading through your technicalities regarding this image was a quite interesting education. I'm still struggeling with that or shall I say, to lazy to jump into this matter?
Not quite sure, but I have the impression of a soft image with a slight lack of sharpness. Is that an effect of overlaying three images?
The light and shadow balance is perfect! Looks very natural and the composition with the menhir off center couldn't be better.
Peter

paura (25802) 2008-03-18 14:19

J.Pires,
Interessante a pedra. Deve ter dado muito trabalho colocá-la em pé. Boa fotografia, pena a sombra ter atralalhado um pouco.

Abração

Paulo

parbo (11092) 2008-03-18 17:37

Olá José,

You managed the lights very well here. I like your lower POV also WS posts, but here the textures of monuments and its surround is really in harmony and you captured them excellently. Green trees under summer dust and of course cloudy sky are wonderful.

Parabéns e Abraço!

Ertugrul

gneufeld (15890) 2008-03-18 18:11

Hi Jose,
A most unusual rock formation in the middle of a rather flat plane. Good composition using the rule of thirds and the colors and details are exceptional. Well done and TFS. Gerald

emilbo (22616) 2008-03-18 18:56

Olà Jose!
Très intéressante la photo de ce monolithe pré-historique qu'on dirait perdu dans un champs. La composition est excellente et j'aime bien les poteaux qui bordent l'allée en avant-plan. Bon éclairage et bonne note.
Bravo!...
Emilius

Docarmo (9767) 2008-03-18 21:50

Olá José,
Impressionantes estes monumentos pré-históricos - não é de hoje que o ser humano gosta de erigir construções enormes, apontando para o céu.
O resultado do seu trabalho com estas exposições diferentes no formato original RAW está estupendo - estou começando a engatinhar nessa matéria - obrigada por partilhar a técnica conosco, em sua nota.
MCV

Truja (4953) 2008-03-19 1:30

Olá Jose,
una composición excelente, muy bien pensada y muy bien realizada!!
La imagen tiene una fuerza cromática excelente y una luz intensa genial.
El menhir se alza poderoso hacia ese cielo magnífico, con las nubes moviéndose por la fuerza del viento y dando dinamismo a la imagen. Es un interesante POV.
El impacto directo del sol sobre el menhir y su entorno de vegetación da más vida y brillo a la fotografía.
Gran trabajo los WS's, aunque creo que elegiste muy bien esta fotografía como principal!

Parabéns, salut, Jordi

Gerrit (62042) 2008-03-19 1:36

Hi José,
Realy an outstanding object in this landscape. Fine composition and great colours and light.
Regards, gerrit

rodgerg (55767) 2008-03-19 11:22

Olà José,

Magnifica composiçao. A predra vertical è bem situado no sem ambiente.
A beautiful sky of ..... the North of Europa!!!!!

Good evening,

Roger

Didi (61589) 2008-03-19 11:43

Olà José
Intéressante lumière spot sur ce menhir qui le met bien en valeur.
La grandeur est étonnante car en Bretagne les menhirs sont plus petits.
Amitiés.

ribeiroantonio (22730) 2008-03-19 16:11

Primeiro, tens de me dizer como é que se juntam três fotos numa só. É uma técnica que eu ainda não experimentei porque, é simples, não sei.
Quanto à foto, está muito boa, com uma luz bonita e cores agradáveis.
António

adores (46979) 2008-03-19 19:28

Olá José!
Vejo que continuas a mostrar os megaliticos alentejanos.
Mais uma vez isto deve ter dado uma trabalheira mas conseguiste um bom resultado. Gosto do sol a realçar o menir e o céu está muito bom.

cobbydale (1958) 2008-03-21 4:15

Hi José,
this is a wonderful shot and a great example of the HDR technique of combining images. I really like megalithic picturs and this one is superb!
cheers, and have a great weekend
Leon

xuaxo (6854) 2008-03-21 15:24

Olá José,
Tecnicamente perfeita; se há dúvidas sobre isso, vejamos o WS #1 (que também quem dera a muitos de nós conseguir tão bom).
Gosto da composição do maior falo da Ibéria ao lado das "arvorezinhas".
Um abraço,
F

COSTANTINO (116518) 2008-03-22 1:02

Hi JOse,
Nice panorama of those clouds,beautiful
natural colours,a great view of the skyline
INTERESTING AND NICE SHOT
Greetings
BUONA PASQUA
Costantino

Bluejeans (64251) 2008-03-22 7:17

Oi José,
Estas pedras são intrigantes , porque colocar umas pedras deste tamanho em pé seriam lugares de ofertas aos deuses , ficou muito interessante a zona de lua e a outra zona de sombra , o céu ficou muito bonito,parabéns!!!
Boa Pascoa
Um abraço Gonçalo

Tue (92370) 2008-03-22 15:27

Hi José,
Great capture of this impressive menhir! Really well placed on the left hand side of the composition. The low evening sunlight adds a lovely warm hue and the clouds in the sky are a great background. What a great PP-technique too, the result is excellent. Thanks for sharing!
Regards,
Lars

riclopes (35577) 2008-03-23 3:58

Bom dia José, gosto bastante desta, assim como já gostava da outra com o teu filho. É um menir poderoso e super fálico. Tecnicamente está excelente e não lhe noto artificalismos nenhuns. Gostaria era de comparar com uma foto minha tirada na mesma altura, para perceber bem os benefícios desta técnica. O céu está bonito, mas em termos de cores gosto mais de ver os tons quentes do WS1 - percebe-se mais a luz de final de tarde do que aqui.
Bom Domingo de Páscoa,
ricardo

ruisc_pt (11594) 2008-03-24 11:09

Uma Mega (menir) .
De facto é impressionte a dimensão e o peso
Bem posicionado assim no terço esquerdo até parece mais leve do que é.
Um Ab
R

JCG (35153) 2008-03-29 7:21

Hi José,

With its 7 meters, this Portuguese menhir exceeds our Breton menhirs!!! At least I do not know any also high. Beautiful and interesting photograph on this stone monument. I appreciate this sky which gives a beautiful relief to the image. I like much also that in complementary photograph where I am allowed a small WS, I hope that you will like. Beautiful work and thank you for the note.

With all my friendships and a very good WE,

Jean-Charles

[workshop] [compare] +

mark_mk (266) 2008-04-08 8:30

Hi Jose,
what a nice shot, never seen that before, very nice. It looks so unreal! Your picture has great sharpness, colors and a beautiful sky, which makes it absolutely fantastic! Nice shot, very well done, TFS.

Greetings
Mark

tomorrow...

jmdias (115186) 2008-04-25 17:40

josé

para mim estas memórias milenares nos fazem pensar em nossas raízes ou imaginar histórias do povo que ergueu tais pedras. Quanta coisa esta pedra deve ter presenciado.. gostei muito do pov, da luz e da compo em si. Pena que o céu estivesse um tanto nublado. Quem sabe uma imagem em B&P poderia resultar em algo ainda mais dramático já que as cores não são o forte aqui. de qualquer forma gostei da foto

abraços

jorge

Photo Information

Copyright: Jose Pires (stego) (24132)
Genre: Plaatsen
Medium: Kleur
Date Taken: 2007-06-09
Categories: Natuur, Kunst
Camera: Olympus E-300, 14-45 mm Zuiko Digital, Polariser
Belichting: f/22, 1/13 Seconden
Details: Tripod: Yes
More Photo Info: view
Map: view
Fotoversie: Originele versie, Workshop
Thema's: old stone, !Norte Alentejano, !Megalithic monuments, !Stitched images [view contributor(s)]
Date Submitted: 2008-03-17 15:14

Viewed: 9854

Points: 68

Discussions

To Jardim: Fálico (1)
by stego, last updated 2008-03-17 03:47
To feather: RAW (1)
by stego, last updated 2008-03-18 09:59
To pboehringer: Contrast and sharpness (2)
by stego, last updated 2008-03-18 10:22
To Cara: Sombra (1)
by stego, last updated 2008-03-18 03:24
To paura: Sombra (1)
by stego, last updated 2008-03-18 03:24
To ribeiroantonio: Blending images (1)
by stego, last updated 2008-03-19 04:29
To rodgerg: Europe du Nord (1)
by stego, last updated 2008-03-19 04:43
To xuaxo: Arvorezinhas não! (3)
by stego, last updated 2008-03-23 03:32
To JCG: WS (1)
by stego, last updated 2008-03-30 05:18

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Additional Photos by Jose Pires (stego) (24132)

Nevsehir photo
Languedoc-Roussillon photo
Hania photo

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Foto's

::: Menir da Meada by stego (24132)

Photographer's Note

Critiques | Translate

Photo Information

Discussions

Additional Photos by Jose Pires (stego) (24132)

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