Distorted

I think this is a branch of a willow tree. There are a couple of trees along the inlet with huge trunks and missing limbs. Maybe because it's a struggle to get to and I feel like I'm on an adventure, but the twisted branches strike me as mythical and tolkienian. I can picture giant claws and dragons' heads and snakes, etc.

Still struggling to get a nice exposure balance and yet recover shadow detail. At the moment I'm using brushes to lighten the darkest shadow areas and then burn and dodge to emphasize form. Also, I'm trying out different sharpening techniques. Learning by trial and error - should be an acronym for that.