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The Trouble With Daisy
The Trouble With Daisy
Rebecca


Photograph Information Photographer's Comments
Challenge: Self Portrait IV (Advanced Editing IV*)
Camera: Nikon Coolpix 5400
Location: Lakewood, Colorado
Date: May 13, 2006
Aperture: 2.8
ISO: 85
Shutter: 1/4 sec
Galleries: Portraiture, Self Portrait
Date Uploaded: May 13, 2006

 You would think that with as many self-portraits as I take on a regular basis that this challenge would be a snap. Hah, right! What's good enough for a few virtual catcalls in Blog Land isn't going to pass muster over here, not by a long shot! I had a few ideas. First I decided to play with a really fuzzy scarf my sister knitted for me a few years ago, never got a result I liked. Next I drove up to one of my favorite spots for shooting aspens and tried to look like a sort of relaxed hippie girl, but the lighting and shadows were all completely wrong. Finally, I curled up the hair, grabbed the one remaining gerbera daisy from the Dr. Pepper still life, and did a series with the daisy. In all, it went something like this:

3 locations
184 photos
2 laptop crashes due to overheating
2 relocations - one to the balcony where said laptop was better ventilated, one back inside when it started sprinkling
3 hours in PhotoShop, picking through 184 photos and experimenting with various Advanced Editing ideas before settling on a final product.

The hair was a two hour ordeal, as it is normally stick straight and so ultra-fine that it doesn't take curl well at all, but it turned out perfectly for the photo I wanted to take. The daisies were wired to keep them upright, so I cut the wire quite a bit longer than the stem and looped it so I had something to bite that didn't taste so damn nasty.

I'm wondering if I'll get points for looking nekkid, even though I'm actually dressed just out of frame. And yes, my eyes really are green, though the shade is a little more earthy than it shows here. ;-)

Crop
Contrast
Saturation
Selective Color Balance, Saturation and Contrast on iris
Unsharp mask
Blur tool on stray hair
Neat Image
Blur tool under eye to catch what NI did not
Clone out stray hair, flower pollen, light reflection in eye
Add border
Save for Web

EDIT: 2/25/07
Re-edited this shot, since I hate several things about the first version.

Statistics
Place: 55 out of 236
Avg (all users): 6.3505
Avg (commenters): 7.2353
Avg (participants): 6.2180
Avg (non-participants): 6.4620
Views since voting: 3063
Views during voting: 550
Votes: 291
Comments: 28
Favorites: 9 (view)

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AuthorThread
 06/02/2006 12:49:47 AM
Cool shot! I love the vibrant colors. This would make a great movie poster.
  Photographer found comment helpful.
 05/30/2006 08:09:47 AM
Hi Rebecca, I had this in my top 3 and gave it a 10...I cannot believe the voting... this shot was the most robbed shot in this challenge...if not top 3 at least top 10, but 55th...it makes me so mad that voters vote the way they do. This shot was perfection for me...I don't know you, but your face oozes personality...stunning!
  Photographer found comment helpful.
 05/27/2006 06:20:53 PM
CTCP2 Gunnsi
First impression: Beautiful picture, lovely colours, perfect focus, crisp and clear.
What can you do better?
Stand a bit further from the wall to skip the shadow, the wall could be whiter in the left (your right).
I gave highest 8 in this challenge. Three pictures and this was one of them. IMO this picture should have scored better.
  Photographer found comment helpful.
 05/26/2006 03:53:38 AM
Hi Rebecca!

There is that gerbera again!! I really like this one! The red and your eyes complement eachother beautifully! The hair looks very pretty! It is a good pic (I think it could be a good movie poster as well)

well done!!!!
Edit: spelling

Message edited by author 2006-05-30 14:59:08.
  Photographer found comment helpful.
 05/26/2006 01:09:16 AM
this may be peculiar, but I have never seen green eyes before. stunning. and congrats on a new high score.
  Photographer found comment helpful.
 05/26/2006 12:47:05 AM
HEE HEE - great description. What a fun shot. Not a bad finish, considering the entries!!! Congrats.
  Photographer found comment helpful.
 05/26/2006 12:20:28 AM
hey there from ctp2:
Love this shot! I love how you worked a flower into it! Love the curly hair. Are your eyes really that green?
Congrats on the PB! Way to go, and nice to see you!
  Photographer found comment helpful.
 Comments Made During the Challenge
05/25/2006 08:45:12 PM
Nice vibrant shot. Not too fond about the border though ;) 7
  Photographer found comment helpful.
 05/23/2006 07:30:33 AM
Vibrant, beautiful colors. Great use of the prop(very imaginative)
  Photographer found comment helpful.
 05/23/2006 06:56:18 AM
Cute!!
  Photographer found comment helpful.
 05/22/2006 08:05:53 PM
Really appealing! love it, i think u'll do great with this one! good luck!
  Photographer found comment helpful.
 05/22/2006 12:47:39 PM
creative, wow that green eye is amazing
  Photographer found comment helpful.
 05/21/2006 09:39:32 PM
Great personality and the composition works perfectly. The only real problem I have is with the background. It's just not clean enough. There's coloration blotches (lower left corner) and hot spots (along the edges of your hair) that hurts the image somewhat. Overall, I liked it. Good luck!
  Photographer found comment helpful.
 05/21/2006 08:30:54 PM
Very cool image! Hope you're scoring well!
  Photographer found comment helpful.
 05/21/2006 10:06:00 AM
very creative, nicely done
  Photographer found comment helpful.
 05/21/2006 03:55:20 AM
very cute
  Photographer found comment helpful.
 05/20/2006 06:18:20 PM
amazing eyes!
  Photographer found comment helpful.
 05/20/2006 01:34:55 PM
LMAOO, wacky and imaginative! This should do well, my only nit-pick is the slight yellow cast in the background here and there.
  Photographer found comment helpful.
 05/20/2006 12:16:13 PM
Great colors, beautiful eye (that sounds weird, in the singular form). Nice image.
  Photographer found comment helpful.
 05/19/2006 07:07:13 PM
Cool effect, the color of your eyes, the flower and your hair work well together.
  Photographer found comment helpful.
 05/19/2006 03:39:39 PM
Very cute. You've got such great eyes it's a shame we only see one of them!
  Photographer found comment helpful.
 05/19/2006 10:38:46 AM
one of my favorites
  Photographer found comment helpful.
 05/19/2006 09:51:34 AM
oh your eyes are amazing! I love this shot, I love everything about it and I hope you ribbon...10
  Photographer found comment helpful.
 05/19/2006 09:01:53 AM
This is fun. Wow - love that green eye. Great curls too. The daisy seems just a touch oversaturated to me. This is such a cute image though.
  Photographer found comment helpful.
 05/19/2006 08:00:41 AM
Yup - the trouble is that I can't see all of you! :)

Nice shot with great lighting - 8 from me
  Photographer found comment helpful.
 05/19/2006 05:23:16 AM
The detail in the hair has come out so well.
  Photographer found comment helpful.
 05/19/2006 02:36:24 AM
..is that she's KWAZEE! ;-)
  Photographer found comment helpful.
 05/19/2006 12:24:26 AM
I love the photo and title. Great colors...even the border complements the photo. Good luck.
  Photographer found comment helpful.


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