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DPChallenge Forums >> Tips, Tricks, and Q&A >> Learning Thread — Landscape Photography
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Showing posts 126 - 150 of 1229, (reverse)
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04/08/2006 01:46:18 AM · #126
Originally posted by Skyarcher:

Originally posted by Bear_Music:

Originally posted by justin_hewlett:

Foreground objects?


No, THIS image as it is captured; how can you improve it in post-processing? What are its strong points and weak points, and how can you emphasize the former and eliminate/downplay the latter?

R.


Maybe work on the blue channel in Levels?

If you bring the right slider in toward the histogram, it actually makes the 'golden' colors on the mountains brighter because there is a small definition between them and the sky. Then a smidge of neat image made the billowy (is that even a word?) mist/clouds seem ethereal almost.

**If you use Photoshop - click on your Histogram palette - then click the arrow to the right of it to open up your options. Then click on the ALL Channels View, it will show which channel needs a little work. :)**

-Christine

Thanks for the tips. The levels adjustment got rid of the yellowish/goldish cast of the entire image while leaving the important gold colors intact.

I'll upload a new edit when I'm finished. Thanks again.
04/08/2006 01:48:04 AM · #127
What we need is a Bear_Music all landscape postprocessing action ;)
04/08/2006 01:50:16 AM · #128
Originally posted by nshapiro:

What we need is a Bear_Music all landscape postprocessing action ;)


Post-processing I can do no problem, it's the photography part I screw up on. :P~~~~
04/08/2006 01:50:32 AM · #129
Originally posted by Skyarcher:

Maybe work on the blue channel in Levels?

If you bring the right slider in toward the histogram, it actually makes the 'golden' colors on the mountains brighter because there is a small definition between them and the sky. Then a smidge of neat image made the billowy (is that even a word?) mist/clouds seem ethereal almost.

**If you use Photoshop - click on your Histogram palette - then click the arrow to the right of it to open up your options. Then click on the ALL Channels View, it will show which channel needs a little work. :)**

-Christine


That's good advice. I'll leave Justin to work on this one, chime in when I see what he comes up with. I'll be signing off shortly, see y'all tomorrow.

R.
04/08/2006 01:51:36 AM · #130
Originally posted by nshapiro:

What we need is a Bear_Music all landscape postprocessing action ;)


There ain't no such thing... Every landscape is different. Much to my chagrin... I'd love to be able to click a magic action and be done with it, but no such luck :-)

R.
04/08/2006 02:07:04 AM · #131
Thanks! I'll work on it in the morning.
04/08/2006 02:15:37 AM · #132
Dang, I don't know if this photo qualifies for this exercise, but the weather's been lousy this week ... my alternative is a rain-soaked freeway full of cars. First is the resized original, followed by two treatments:

-Cropped a bit
-RGB Curve
-Blue/Yellow Curve (version 2 -- I like to mess around with the colors)
-Resize for DPC
-USM at 12%/64 dia/TH=0
-SaveAs JPEG at quality 9/10 = around 125-140kb



Message edited by author 2006-04-08 02:15:59.
04/08/2006 02:20:32 AM · #133
Originally posted by GeneralE:

Dang, I don't know if this photo qualifies for this exercise, but the weather's been lousy this week ...


It really doesn't qualify, nope... The ramp is very much a dominant subject. Nice work with dynamic range on the "straight" version, beautiful on the clouds, maybe a tad too dense in the shadows... The lemonade clouds version is just plain silly, but you know that :-)

Robt.
04/08/2006 02:26:25 AM · #134
Thanks, maybe there will be a break in the weather tomorrow. Now that you mention it, a mug of hot lemonade might be just the thing ...
04/08/2006 02:30:27 AM · #135
Originally posted by GeneralE:

Thanks, maybe there will be a break in the weather tomorrow. Now that you mention it, a mug of hot lemonade might be just the thing ...


With a slug of bourbon, perhaps?

R.
04/08/2006 02:36:07 AM · #136
Perhaps ... brandy works too : )
Actually, I think I'll make mulled wine instead since I have an open bottle, and only one lemon.
04/08/2006 02:38:49 AM · #137
Originally posted by GeneralE:

Perhaps ... brandy works too : )
Actually, I think I'll make mulled wine instead since I have an open bottle, and only one lemon.


That's very good: when life fails to give you lemons, mull some wine instead. I like your thinking when you're being mellow, sir.

Robt.
04/08/2006 02:59:13 AM · #138
Mellow ... yellow ... we're back to those darned clouds : )

I decided to take another look at my wet road ... I want to call it Long Day's Journey Into Night ...

Original: Processed:

Message edited by author 2006-04-08 02:59:41.
04/08/2006 11:12:24 AM · #139
Here's my go at it. Taken this am.. It sure was nicer being there than this shot shows. I seem to have a hard time "seeing" something and getting it to come across the same as a photograph. It's easy to take away via cropping (this is uncropped btw), but, not so easy adding what you wish you'd gotten, but didn't.

04/08/2006 11:55:58 AM · #140
Originally posted by error99:

Here's my go at it. Taken this am.. It sure was nicer being there than this shot shows. I seem to have a hard time "seeing" something and getting it to come across the same as a photograph. It's easy to take away via cropping (this is uncropped btw), but, not so easy adding what you wish you'd gotten, but didn't.



This is not really a "landscape without subject" as much as it's a "shot of 3 trees and their reflections in still water". It's a plesant shot, but it could use some PP work to give some more pop and definition to the several planes that comprise the image.

R.
04/08/2006 11:59:03 AM · #141
Apologies for jumping into this a few days late, but better late than never eh?

Flat
Shaping
Raking
Backlight

If these are OK, then its time for me to go through lesson 2...
04/08/2006 12:10:11 PM · #142
Originally posted by funkin:

If these are OK, then its time for me to go through lesson 2...


Those are just fine; onwards and upwards now :-)

R.
04/08/2006 12:14:38 PM · #143
Originally posted by Bear_Music:

Originally posted by error99:

Here's my go at it. Taken this am.. It sure was nicer being there than this shot shows. I seem to have a hard time "seeing" something and getting it to come across the same as a photograph. It's easy to take away via cropping (this is uncropped btw), but, not so easy adding what you wish you'd gotten, but didn't.



This is not really a "landscape without subject" as much as it's a "shot of 3 trees and their reflections in still water". It's a plesant shot, but it could use some PP work to give some more pop and definition to the several planes that comprise the image.

R.


Here's my quick 'n dirty stab at it.



1. Rotate .5 degrees CCW to make the leftmost tree/reflection vertical
2. crop left and right to eliminate edge-of-image treetops
3. contrast masking with shadow mask set to soft light and highlight mask to multiply (see earlier this thread for discussion)
4. create new layer and throw in a blue-to transparent gradient from the top and fade that
5. hue/saturation to saturate & lighten yellow channel, darken red channel, cool the blues and cyans down a tad
5. USM

This is a pretty pumped-up, exaggerated rendering of the scene, but it has more dynamic power now, the different elements each is doing a job so to speak...

R.
04/08/2006 12:17:53 PM · #144


Would this qualify as landscape w/o subject or is it one with several? The clouds are pretty dominant.

Here is my color version.


I used the Cntl-alt-~ to select highlights, invert select, dup layer set to screen at ~40%. Seems to lighten the sky too much with out the foreground detail improving.

Message edited by author 2006-04-08 12:33:08.
04/08/2006 01:02:02 PM · #145
Originally posted by mpeters:


I used the Cntl-alt-~ to select highlights, invert select, dup layer set to screen at ~40%. Seems to lighten the sky too much with out the foreground detail improving.


This is pretty much on topic, yeah. It's not coming across as a picture "of" clouds, anyway.

The contrast masking method is problematical when you have dramatically-lit clouds, because it robs the clouds of contrast at the same time as it works the foreground. Here's something you can try:

1. start with a fresh image, unaltered
2. make duplicate layer from BG and use "image/adjustments/levels" to lighten it up substantially (NOT a levels adjustment layer, do it right IN the layer)
3. Do your cntrl-alt-tilde thing on this lightened layer
4. make the lightened layer invisible
5. play with layer modes and opacity on the contrast masks now.
6. if necessary, toss the contrast masks, make the lightened layer visible again, and make further adjustments to the tonal range in it, then repeat above.

The idea is to get the dark part of the clouds light enough to show up on the highlights mask, not the shadows mask... Sometimes this works for me, sometimes not. I haven't done it a lot.

Robt.

Message edited by author 2006-04-08 13:02:42.
04/08/2006 01:15:12 PM · #146
Originally posted by Bear_Music:

Originally posted by Bear_Music:

Originally posted by error99:

Here's my go at it. Taken this am.. It sure was nicer being there than this shot shows. I seem to have a hard time "seeing" something and getting it to come across the same as a photograph. It's easy to take away via cropping (this is uncropped btw), but, not so easy adding what you wish you'd gotten, but didn't.



This is not really a "landscape without subject" as much as it's a "shot of 3 trees and their reflections in still water". It's a plesant shot, but it could use some PP work to give some more pop and definition to the several planes that comprise the image.

R.


Here's my quick 'n dirty stab at it.



1. Rotate .5 degrees CCW to make the leftmost tree/reflection vertical
2. crop left and right to eliminate edge-of-image treetops
3. contrast masking with shadow mask set to soft light and highlight mask to multiply (see earlier this thread for discussion)
4. create new layer and throw in a blue-to transparent gradient from the top and fade that
5. hue/saturation to saturate & lighten yellow channel, darken red channel, cool the blues and cyans down a tad
5. USM

This is a pretty pumped-up, exaggerated rendering of the scene, but it has more dynamic power now, the different elements each is doing a job so to speak...

R.


I have as much to learn about PS as I do composing a shot. Sheesh. :) That looks much better. Thanks.

Gonna head out later today. Will try and find a better example of "no subject".
04/08/2006 01:59:44 PM · #147
Robert,

Thanks for the idea. I worked with some layers/adjustments using your suggestions. Settled on;

1. Dup layer, levels adjustment to lighten dramatically.
2. Cnt/alt/~ to select highlights
3. INvert select
4. Dup layer set to screen
5. HIde dup layer from step 1.

Picture had very little contrast at this point so

6. added a cont/brightness adjustment layer to restore.

Here is new version. It has a little more foreground definition of the colors but the clouds are borderline.
04/08/2006 02:38:14 PM · #148
Originally posted by mpeters:

Robert,

Thanks for the idea. I worked with some layers/adjustments using your suggestions.


Can you show me the original?

R.
04/08/2006 04:12:54 PM · #149
Ok, here's my re-working of my Golden Light:

From to

In PSE 2:

1) levels adjustment layer overall - on Blue channel, brought white point in to 214 and black point in to 56.
2) levels adjustment layer sky - RGB channel only
3) levels adjustment layer land - RGB channel only
4) background layer duplicated twice, one set to "multiply" at 11% and the other "soft light" at 32%
5) land sharpened with radius of 1 and about 80% amount
6) local contrast enhancement overall with a radius of 50 and amount of 20%
7) local contrast enhancemnt sky with radius of 50 and amount of 10%
8) resize to 626 on longest side
9) sharpened land .3 radius and 110% amount
10) added 1-pixel white border and 6-pixel black border

04/08/2006 05:58:31 PM · #150
I've just joined, and this is great. Thanks so much. Won't post another lot of the completed exercises. I am a true sufferer of ending up with "grey" images when shooting in Auto mode that often lack that "wow" factor, and haven't really mastered all this layering/feathering stuff either, so I've got a lot to work on!
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