This iconic cabin is located in the unique Dolomites mountain range in Italy. Inspired by autumn, I knew that visiting the mountains during this season would be magical. If you have autumn images in your archive that you want to edit, here is a breakdown of my workflow for you to learn from.
Step 1) Timing
I aimed for the cabin to be gently illuminated by the sunrise, preserving its details and natural colors without being overwhelmed by golden light. Sunrises and sunsets at their zenith can often cast harsh red or orange hues that complicate editing and stray from the original vision.
Step 2) Composition
There’s no greater satisfaction than achieving your vision directly through the camera. In this instance, I positioned myself low to the ground, shooting from a slight upward angle. My goal was to accurately capture the cabin, highlighting its angles and textures while maintaining a clean image. It’s crucial to consider your foreground, middle ground, and background when composing your shots.
Step 3) Camera settings
35MM, 1/80 shutter speed, f/2.8, ISO 100.
Step 4) Basic adjustments
In general, I aim to leverage colors and light effectively. In this instance, I aimed to maintain a natural edit while enhancing the richness and dreamy atmosphere of the image. For instance, I reduced clarity settings (-24) and increased dehaze (+37) to deepen the tones of browns and yellows. Adjusting saturation and hues of specific colors can enhance their tones effectively.
4.1) White balance
Temperature 11,308
Tint +4
4.2) Tone
Exposure +0.20
Contrast +22
Highlights -73
Shadows +80
Whites +1
Blacks +12
4.3) Presence
Texture +3
Clarity -24
Dehaze +37
Vibrance -9
Saturation +35
Step 5) S curve
I applied four points to my curve, as seen in the image, to adjust the highlights and shadows to my liking.
Step 6) Color mixer
6.1) RAW
The color palette from the RAW file features a very light gray (F4F7FA), a dark brown (403929), a very dark gray (1E1C16), a medium gray (53585B), and a light brown (AD8B5A).
Thus, I applied the following adjustments to get closer to my vision:
6.2) Hue
Red +24
Orange +8
Yellow -24
Aqua -4
Blue -15
6.3) Saturation
Red -39
Orange -61
Yellow -72
Green -62
Aqua -25
Blue -74
6.4) Luminance
Red -20
Orange -20
Yellow +3
Green +1
Aqua +12
Blue +53
6.5) Edited colors
The edited color palette includes light beige (D6CFC4) for the sky – one of the most significant changes in color in the image, medium brown (765231), muted taupe (9D876E), dark brown (35291C), and dark taupe (645747). All these colors are close to each other on the color wheel within the brown/earth tone spectrum, making this an analogous palette that helps create a harmonious and cohesive look.
Step 7) Masking
You can easily over-edit this step, so you need to make micro-adjustments. I tend to desaturate my skies and bring down the whites as well as bring down clarity and dehaze to soften the look, giving it that dreamy feel.
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