Ice and Tree Reflection
Image 1. Initial RAW file before Photoshop work.
Image 2. Optimized Image after RAW processing and Photoshop.
We have had quite a bit of cold weather in West Virginia so I took the opportunity to explore the edges of the Potomac River in search of ice. Due to a bit of a warming trend most of the ice had dissipated but several areas were still intact. In this image the stillness of the river allowed the trees to reflect against a sheet of ice. It was a wonderful study in contrast.
The image was exposed with a Heliopan Circular Warming Polarizer. I stopped the polarizer down just a bit to allow some of the river bottom to show through. This gave me just a bit of warm color to contrast with the blue of the ice and river. Lens focus was directed on the sheet of ice and the trees were allowed to blur slightly.
Image 1 shows the file after RAW conversion in Adobe Lightroom. The white balance was adjusted and initial capture sharpening was applied.
Image 2 shows the file after work in Photoshop. The intent was to process the image the way I initially saw it which required applying a series of adjustment layer curves to separate the sheet of ice from the river. The river adjustment also equalized the contrast in the river allowing the ice to stand out.
I have several more images from this day which I will put up in a later post.
Bob
Robert H. Clark Photography Blog 
Hey Bob, nice shot. I like these multi-plane, multi-dimentional, multi-reality images.
Just bought a 120mm smc Pentax 645 macro lens (will be in later this week). Wanna shoot this weekend?
Mark: Thanks. I did not quite get the post finished as I had to add another image. I am showing the before and after processing. The first image is the initial RAW file and the second was my optimization in PS. I think the result works well. Check it out if you get a chance.