Photographers Notes My wife is a jewelry maker and uses these tools to shape the metals she works with. The set weighs about 30 pounds. The block they rest in is about 9 x 9 inches. Ive wanted to photograph this for some time, and I will probably return to the subject from time to time.
I have no studio, so I set these on the kitchen counter with black paper behind them. The reflections are from the under-the-cabnet lights, and of course, from the other spheres.
Post Processing Convert from RAW (PSCS3)
Straighten (God forbid we have a tilt!)
Crop
Darken Background (Curves layer)
Remove Distracting Bits (Clone Tool)
Adjust Colors (Curves Layer)
Resize (Bicubic Sharper)
Dodge & Burn (Overlay Layer)
Sharpen (USM)
Save for Web
Camera Data Camera: Nikon D3
Lens: 105 mm f/2.8
Date: 2008-02-07
ISO: 640
Aperture: f/18
Shutter: 1/5
Statistics
Place: 126 out of 188 Avg (all users): 5.3257 Avg (commenters): 7.0000 Avg (participants): 5.3117 Avg (non-participants): 5.3367 Views since voting: 783 Views during voting: 340 Votes: 175 Comments: 3 Favorites: 0
I gave this image a 5 during voting. And to explain why...
I think this is an interesting, funky image, which meets the challenge. I had no idea what the tools were until I read the description, but they certainly looked intriguing.
However, what I personally don't like about the image is the almost-but-not symmetry. Even though it's perfectly straight, I get this feeling of tilting to the right when looking at the image because of the arrangement of the tools.
I think with relatively simple images (objects on dark background), probably the most crucial thing to focus on is the composition, and for me it doesn't quite work here. It almost does... I think rearrange them very slightly and it would.
Another thing you could play with is the lighting. I actually really like the light you used here, I think it works really well, but it's another possibility to play with - try different types of directional light, and a variety of reflections, and see what works best.
The focus seems a bit soft in places, no idea if that's intentional (wow, at f18 it really shouldn't be). I like the post-processing, I think you brought out the image nicely.
Anyway, hope that helps. Cool image, well done :)
Any questions, just PM me.
Jelena
Good to know I successfully messed with your mind!
I gave this image a 5 during voting. And to explain why...
I think this is an interesting, funky image, which meets the challenge. I had no idea what the tools were until I read the description, but they certainly looked intriguing.
However, what I personally don't like about the image is the almost-but-not symmetry. Even though it's perfectly straight, I get this feeling of tilting to the right when looking at the image because of the arrangement of the tools.
I think with relatively simple images (objects on dark background), probably the most crucial thing to focus on is the composition, and for me it doesn't quite work here. It almost does... I think rearrange them very slightly and it would.
Another thing you could play with is the lighting. I actually really like the light you used here, I think it works really well, but it's another possibility to play with - try different types of directional light, and a variety of reflections, and see what works best.
The focus seems a bit soft in places, no idea if that's intentional (wow, at f18 it really shouldn't be). I like the post-processing, I think you brought out the image nicely.
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