Patchy Fog

First posting - invited by MinnieV, whom I've known (virtually) for years. Very much looking forward to participating regularly. Will be grateful for your impressions and feedback on this recent photo of ground fog rising from a narrow canyon. Thank you!

My crazy interpretation of this photo :)

If the title didn't say fog, I might think I was seeing smoke coming from somewhere deep inside. But what is that church doing there at the edge of the cliff?
Hmm... maybe at the bottom is hell! and that church is the last chance for redemption for the sinners who are about to fall there.
The title could be "The Last Chance".

Well, it's after midnight here, I have to go to sleep, I think I'm already dreaming :)

It's a very nice scene and I am a little bit with Manuel here in that if it wasn't for the title my first impression would most likely have been that it was smoke from a grassfire coming up the hill from underneath.

I'm also wondering if adding a bit more contrast would give the image a bit more punch. The tones look a little flat on my screen.

Maybe a colour version would tell more of a story?

In any case, a very interesting scene.

Thank you for sharing 🙂

LOL, I don't think I'll be driving past that location again anytime soon with your vivid description still in my brain :) Thanks so much for your comments, Manuel. I'm posting a color version, processed quite differently, for Danno below.

Your feedback is much appreciated, Danno. Here is a color version, processed very differently. Now I'm wondering why I ever went down the Topaz "Dramatic HDR" route because this softer fog is more to my liking. Regarding punch, with flat lighting and the time of year where much is still gray or brown, this version is more the mood that caught my eye. I understand now why patchy fog could be easily mistaken for smoke, so I'll be thinking about that for future endeavors.

Thank you Linda.

I like the color version better. It tells more of a story imo.

I like the B&W one more, especially that you still see some trees in the distance through the fog. My gripe, but I'm a bit of a stickler regarding this, is that the image is slightly tilted to the right; the verticals of the chapel are not straight up.

Thank you for rekindling my interest in working with the color version!

Thanks so much for your time. I usually spot slightly crooked horizon lines - more often in other people's work, ha - but never noticed the leaning chapel. I appreciate your keen eye and your comments about the b&w.

I agree the tilt is annoying, but in general I like this, especially the color version. I find little to recommend but perhaps a bit more contrast and color saturation in the foreground would contrast and even enhance the foggy appearance in the mid and background.

Many thanks for your time and interest. I'm looking forward to working on this further, applying the recommendations offered.