Stairs to Wonderland

Posted by
Jen (Alpharetta, United States) on 17 April 2007 in Architecture and Portfolio.

These are the stairs that led to the Wonderland Hotel in the Smoky Mountains near Elkmont. I did some work in ps to try and pull out the details of the stone stairs, the moss and the surrounding trees.

The hotel itself is no longer standing a fire destroyed most of it and then it was dismantled back in 2005. I will post some shots of what is left standing.

KODAK Z650 ZOOM 1/30 second F/2.8 ISO 125 38 mm (35mm equiv.)

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Comments (26)

Art Monkey from Salt Spring Island, Canada

very lovely shot Jen - I love the tones and the light and the subdued colours.... :)

17 Apr 2007 6:34am

@Art Monkey: I thought the stairs were way to cool to not post so I just had to enhance thier beauty!!

Yvon from Meerkerk, Netherlands

Like a fairytale, anything is possible after climbing the stairs....... I love the composition and colours.

17 Apr 2007 8:04am

@Yvon: I love your description!! Thank you!!

Rui Borges from Sintra, Portugal

What's at the top of the stairs?...
That is the question... :-)

17 Apr 2007 8:10am

Anne from White Rock, Canada

Those old stone stairs make a wonderful picture now that you are through with it - I've an idea what you did in PS to bring out some detail in the steps - but whatever it was, it was a nice pp job. Nice composition as well! :-)

17 Apr 2007 9:33am

@Anne: Thank Anne...I kept playing with different layers until I got the effect.
The original was kind of blah, and I really wanted to post the stairs so to ps I went : )

Kheoh Yee Wei from Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia

Lovely !

17 Apr 2007 10:30am

Nick Passantino from Bronx, United States

Great subject and processing.. the right side of the stairs is a little bright for me but i'm sure you worked a lot with the original

17 Apr 2007 1:16pm

@Nick Passantino: Yes I did...but you are probably right that one section is a little bright.
Thanks for the visit Nick!

alla from Toronto, Canada

Great work in PS to bring the details. Interesting composition!

17 Apr 2007 1:24pm

@alla: Thank you Alla!

Craiger from Vacaville, California, United States

You captured the feeling here very well. You did a great job in bringing out the detail of the stairs and the light! You should try to avoid those hot spots like in the lower right. But, I know your learning and doing a great job! I think you did an excellent job here!

17 Apr 2007 2:10pm

@Craiger: Yeah I think I pushed the light a bit much...live and learn right?
Thanks Craig for the daily comments, and I really truly appreciate any suggestions you have!! : )

amy from Rocky Mountain House, Canada

Really like the perspective Jen... but then again that's your wonderful eye!! Really like what you did with it!!

17 Apr 2007 2:10pm

@amy: This is a little different for me...I like to change it up from time to time : )
Thank you Amy I really appreciate your very, very kind comments!!!

objectif-plume from Belgium

j'aime beaucoup la simplicité de cette photo. grande et belle!

17 Apr 2007 2:21pm

@objectif-plume: Thank you!!

Laurie from New Jersey, United States

Those are great rugged rustic stairs. I want to see what's at the top. Nice one.

17 Apr 2007 2:31pm

@Laurie: Thanks Laurie! You will see tomorrow : )

Rahul from Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia

Lovely, looks more like stairs to heaven Jen. Great angle, can't wait to see whats on top tomorrow. ;-)

17 Apr 2007 3:03pm

@Rahul: Thanks Rahul!

Dan Meyers from Macomb, United States

The lighting and detail looks great. Nice work Jen!

17 Apr 2007 3:06pm

@Dan Meyers: Thanks Dan!

DTW from Orlando, United States

Very nice shot!

17 Apr 2007 4:11pm

Sarah from Gainesville, United States

very cool shot, jen.

17 Apr 2007 4:24pm

Vahid from Bø, Norway

It seems it's really wonderland! Nice name for this hotel!

17 Apr 2007 6:34pm

Richard_Irwin from Belper, United Kingdom

Great processing, the technique has worked wonders, and you have created a lovely image.

17 Apr 2007 8:02pm

@Richard_Irwin: Thank you Richard...my processing skills are quite novice and I appreciate your comments!!

kaveh from TEHRAN, Iran

so lovely shot Jen!!

17 Apr 2007 8:49pm

@kaveh: Thank you Kaveh

Dornbrau from Colorado Springs, United States

Awesome!

17 Apr 2007 11:56pm

@Dornbrau: Wow...thank you so much!

Poppycock from Easton, United States

Your pictures constantly make me jealous of you... wherever you were.

Nice shot.

18 Apr 2007 12:32am

@Poppycock: Thanks! and don't be jealous...go take more pix to make me jealous of you ; D
It's not where you are, it's what you see!
Thanks for your visit and comment!

miu* from GA, United States

The most favorite person should have waited when I went up these stairs.....

18 Apr 2007 12:42am

@miu*: awwww...yes he should!!!

M.E. from Encino, United States

great ps work!

18 Apr 2007 2:44am

@M.E.: Hi M.E.
Thank you so much!!

Titto from Chennai, India

Thanks jen, waiting for your next pic :)

18 Apr 2007 3:22am

bronzebilly u.k. from cardiff, United Kingdom

hey ho Jen--I like this type of shot--great colours,very rich--great perspective--just enough sharpness--and a great story--the work you did on it paid off--top of the class--billy

18 Apr 2007 10:23pm

@bronzebilly u.k.: Billy Billy Billy...where you been?
I thought the stairs deserved a little work before posting!
Nice to hear from you again!

Roberta Murray from Rocky Mountain House, Canada

Nice work on this one. There's a bit of mystery in the stairs.

20 Apr 2007 1:55am

@Roberta Murray: Thank you!

Mike Cash from Kiryu, Japan

Very nicely done photo of a beautiful and intriguing scene. I think about going to the top and starting back down again and can almost induce vertigo just sitting here.

22 Apr 2007 10:26am

@Mike Cash: It was a bit steep...but well worth the trip : )

next day →

KODAK Z650 ZOOM
1/30 second
F/2.8
ISO 125
38 mm (35mm equiv.)