Although photo impressions are a very old technique to create brush stroked painting like images on film, it does require a lot of experimentation. Though the techniques have not changed much, when done on film, you can never be certain of the final outcome. That incidentally is also the thrill that compels photographers to try these images.
This image is of a fantastic tree that I found, about an hour’s drive from Memphis. I kept seeing this tree over a month from the highway till I found the way to it. Winter left the tree bare, revealing some of the most fascinating curves created by nature.
Though this image looks like a proper impressionistic photograph, it is actually a mistake! I did not realize that I had the camera set on double exposure and took two images of the tree from two different positions, without the intent of creating an impression through super-imposition.
I think what made this image stand out in spite of it being in error is the fact that the only thing I changed in between these two shots is the camera elevation on the tripod. That created a shadow area. The fantastic colors of the setting sun and the fog & mist that started to roll in also added to the drama of this mistake.
After I realized my mistake, and fixed the multi-exposure value, this is what the actual image looked like. The tree was huge and even with my 12-24mm lens I had to be t least around 30 feet away from the tree to get the whole skeleton in the frame. The low angle helped me to get the clouds in the right perspective. You can see the last rays of the sun grazing over the cotton fields and the thin film of fog & mist slowing crawling up on me.