I took this yesterday morning. Used Photoshop for HDR composition from two bracketed shots. Nothing much more than light level adjustments to highlight the San Gabriel Mountains.
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This product in development – somewhere, I hope!
No, I don’t want to adopt anything you found outside your virtual doorstep…
I wish my photos from the next day at the Grand Canyon had turned out as well as the ones from Zion National Park, but the haze settled in with the typical summer moisture in the canyon, allowing some nice, but not spectacular photography. This photo was taken mid-morning but the clouds were perfectly arranged.
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You know if you’ve tried shooting in low light and wanted to avoid washing out everything with harsh flash that you’re going to end up with either blurry photos or those reddish gold hues that come with pushing up the ISO toward that 1600 mark. Everything looks either pink or yellow or in between.
The information you saw when you took the shot is still there, but you need to use photoshop (or the free opensource Gimp) to extract it and suppress the reds.
Use plenty of layers and both tools, levels and curves to suppress the reds (curves) and bring out the light. Layers will allow you to accomplish much the same as HDR photography, adjusting separate portions of the photo to blend dark and light areas better.
Here’s a sample. In the original photo, the lights of the windows and areas near the outdoor lights are properly exposed but everything has that 1600 ISO red cast. The darker areas are invisible in the source photo but the information is there. After making adjustments in photoshop, the second version is produced. A free Dream Suite component by FX Studio renders the third version after making all the adjustments in photoshop for the second.
This shot is technically correct in most aspects. Good balance of flash and evening light, nice wide angle shot, timing is great with the wave just overtaking the subjects’ feet and a good proportional layout with the horizon perfectly positioned but even with all that… the shot didn’t make it into my portfolio. Why? I guess there’s just no real emotion- it could almost be a still life.
Better shots with less technical accuracy are on my Orange County Wedding Photographers site.
I also posted this because I’m in a writer’s block. This is where I head when I just need to break the hold. Maui is always a good topic to get me going again too. This shot was taken in Maui.
I’ve been working on SEO for everything from PGA National Homes for sale to Best Way to clean your BBQ (don’t- just get some Grill stones for it). I probably need a nap but I’m going to keep working. I think the BBQ Accessories angle is a good way to promote an un-heard of product like Grill Stones. They’re not technically cleaning accessories but they definitely have that effect. I still want one for my BBQ.
A test BBQ post for SEO purposes. Trying out some keywords on BBQ Accessories. Included is my cellphone video I made in August on cooking chicken. The method follows Ruth Chris Steakhouse’s approach to steaks. Start with a temperature as absolutely high as possible.
Regarding cleanup? I hate cleaning the BBQ Grill. I wish there was a BBQ grill accessory that did the job automatically. I know of a startup company I’m doing some work for, that sells perfect BBQ Accessories, actually just one. A grilling stone. (you can buy two) You can see from my video that my chicken is already trying to catch fire. The mess is inevitable. I sold a BBQ on craigslist two years ago and cleaned it with an electric drill with a wire brush attachment. That BBQ sold quick, but the cleanup took hours! A Grilling stone stops that whole process. I favor that. Easy BBQ cleanup.
I want one.
Easiest way to clean a BBQ Grill? Rinse it off! This is more practical if there isn’t stuff cooked on isn’t it?
I used the FX Dream Suite free plugin and a lot of layers, adjustments and filters in photoshop to end up with this BW version of what was originally a rejected photograph. William was blurry and the photograph was unremarkable. I think the cleanup was worth the effort.
more photos at the Orange County Photography website.
I place so much emphasis on optimization of websites and blogs that there needs to be at least one place that’s free-form for just posting when and what I feel like. This is that place. Step on in!
Photo taken in Florence, April, 2001.
I’ve been trying out a new plugin for photoshop by Auto FX, the “Dream Suite” which adds glow and blur effects, I think nicely, to your photos. Generally, you’ll want to perform this on a new layer so you can brush away the effect from details such as faces and important objects.
Here’s a sample that just took a few minutes to go from mundane to what I thought was a nice end result.
William Guards His Trains
More at Dave’s Orange County Photography blog.
Trying out a new photoshop filter by AutoFX. So Far, I’m pretty pleased. Saves some time on its “dream effects” over manual glow and blur adjustments. Photoshop adjustments to the layers were used to bring back clarity to faces, plus I used a high pass filter on eyes and teeth.
Orange County Photography by Dave Keys
