Flaming autumn tree-- too intense??

[dmartinc]

Camera Canon EOS 5D Mark II
Exposure 0.008 sec (1/125)
Aperture f/7.1
Focal Length 30 mm
ISO Speed 250
Exposure Bias -1/3 EV

This looks almost too intense, as if the color saturation were increased too far. But, in fact, this is almost exactly as it looked. I used RAW mode, but only increased the contrast a touch and toned down the highlights. The sky really was that blue. Should I tone it down anyway? (I used a polarizing filter). Thanks for looking.

[EOBeav]

One purpose of a polarizing filter is to bring out colors like blue skies and autumn trees. To answer your question, I don't think the colors are over the top, but it would be interesting to see what would have happened had you taken this a little closer to sunset. As it is, I'm guessing you took this midday sometime.