winter day C&C please

[tbob]

This is a middle of the day shot of farms and snowy fields just north of my town. I have a problem in winter with the snow reflecting the blue sky. If I get the snow white then everything else looks weird. There is also some ice fog (basically frozen water vapour) hanging about so detail in buildings and trees can be a little fuzzy. As well everything is very flat due to light diffraction. Is there any hope for conditions like this? I hope so because we get a lot of days like this and it has always been a problem as three or four months of the year can be a virtual wasteland for taking scenery shots

I would appreciate any input and opinions. All critique and comment welcome.

The first is my conversion.



And this is out of camera. The histogram is pushed to the right, avoiding blowing out the whites, to get the majority of shadow detail. I knew I could pull back the highlights in postprocessing.

[tbob]

I thought I might add in the computers version using autocorrect on the Red/Blue/Green levels in Aperture on my version. Better?

[Bobobird]

Cool winter countryside shot. Perhaps lose a bit of the sky?

[pnodrog]

What effect does a polarizing filter have? I refer to taking the photograph.

[Lon Howard]

I thought I might add in the computers version using autocorrect on the Red/Blue/Green levels in Aperture on my version. Better?

Definitely better, Trevor! Much more pleasing contrast. I concur with Bobo, maybe a little less sky would do. I don't know if I'm misinterpreting but if you want the snow white and make it that way then you could mask out the part that looks weird.

Speaking of weird, my eye wants to go down the road to the buildings at the upper left but it keeps getting derailed by the small white dot (a building I think) to the right of the tree line on the horizon. Maybe you could zap it with a spot healing brush or something?

[tbob]

Cool winter countryside shot. Perhaps lose a bit of the sky?

Good point; I was so obsessed with the colour and processing I neglected the composition and cropping. Shameful.

[tbob]

What effect does a polarizing filter have? I refer to taking the photograph.

The next time the sun comes out, and I have a day off, I will try this. The current forecast is cloudy for the next week.

The sun was directly behind me but it may help with the light scatter back off the snow. Inquiring minds need to know.

[tbob]

Definitely better, Trevor! Much more pleasing contrast. I concur with Bobo, maybe a little less sky would do. I don't know if I'm misinterpreting but if you want the snow white and make it that way then you could mask out the part that looks weird.

Speaking of weird, my eye wants to go down the road to the buildings at the upper left but it keeps getting derailed by the small white dot (a building I think) to the right of the tree line on the horizon. Maybe you could zap it with a spot healing brush or something?

The building must die. Thanks for the advice.

I am one of those unfortunate souls who doesn't have photoshop so I can't do masks, or layers. It would be a good idea but I have to find a work around that doesn't involve these techniques. I may have to live with it, it may be one of those things that bothers me more than anyone else viewing the image

[Lon Howard]

I am one of those unfortunate souls who doesn't have photoshop so I can't do masks, or layers. It would be a good idea but I have to find a work around that doesn't involve these techniques. I may have to live with it, it may be one of those things that bothers me more than anyone else viewing the image

I apologize in advance if you've already looked into it, Trevor; but for a reasonable outlay, Photoshop Elements at least has layers, and has a workaround to employ layer masks as well.

[tbob]

I really appreciate the advice and your recommendation, but I actually have Elements, 8 I believe, on my computer at home. I just do the vast majority of my processing at work during slack time or lunch and use Aperture on the mac. I have gotten really comfortable using Aperture and have gotten so rusty on Elements that it seems more effort than it is worth to remember to process, and how to, one or two images a month that may need the Elements additional tools. A combo of mental laziness, free time and the lack of desire to do more than the basic stuff I can do with Aperture leads me to only use Aperture.

No bad feelings about the program and I have no moralistic or philosophic stance on the merits versus sin of image manipulation, I envy people who can do the great stuff that Photoshop can do, just ain't my thing.