Syringe II (An Experiment Combining HDR and Focus Stacking) C&C Invitied

[conkerwood]

Last week I posted a rather sad pic of an area behind a disused factory which was clearly used for shooting up by some of the local addicts. It was suggested and I completely agreed, that it might have even more impact if I got much lower and closer to the syringe which is the focal point of the pic. DOF was obviously going to be a problem as I wanted the whole area to be in focus so that all the details could be seen, squalid though they were. So I tried something new for me. I used my laptop to remotely control my camera so there would be absolutely no movement. I took 7 brackets of shots at various focus points with 5 shots in each bracket. (-2 ev to +2 ev) This gave me 35 shots in all. I tried stacking followed by HDR and then I tried the reverse order ie HDR first followed by stacking. Stacking first produced sharper results with more tightly controlled tones. A bit of tweeking and this is what I came up with. I know I have loads more work to get this technique right so I am really interested in any feedback and suggestions.
Hope you like it

Peter

[Mike Buckley]

This is exactly the concept I was thinking of and I'm glad to see that, at least for me, it tells your story more effectively than the first photo. However, I wish the syringe was positioned as in the first photo. That's because it seems to stand out more (notwithstanding it's smaller size) in that one because of how it reflects the light and/or because it is laid mostly perpendicular to the other foreground objects.

[CLK]

I think they both tell a sad story, and as a nurse hope you wore gloves. However, comparing the two I like the first one better. I am partial to big old buildings, they have their own stories and histories, generally of building things, and the fact that this space has been hijacked for such individual destruction or group destruction adds to the irony?, poignancy? tragedy?

[Polar01]

Peter: interesting with the stacking and than HDR, you have gotten me thinking, and that can be a bad thing, but a good thing. I hope that I can come up with something in the future.

Cheers:

Allan

[ajohnw]

To be honest I didn't notice the syringe and just found I was looking at the entire thing as there is nothing to draw the eye. Out of curiosity I sharpened the cans and syringe part, tone mapped that area some more and lightened it as well. Too much probably as I was viewing it at screen size and did it quickly. Normally a shot like that might use focus to draw the eye but that's out from what you are trying to do.



John
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[splashy]

I'm no fan of HDR because often it's to much, like you see here on the wood, the focus stacking turned out good and I like the picture very much.

[conkerwood]

This is exactly the concept I was thinking of and I'm glad to see that, at least for me, it tells your story more effectively than the first photo. However, I wish the syringe was positioned as in the first photo. That's because it seems to stand out more (notwithstanding it's smaller size) in that one because of how it reflects the light and/or because it is laid mostly perpendicular to the other foreground objects.

Yeah you are right about the syringe but when I returned the site had obviously been used and the syringe had been disturbed so I put it back as I thought I remembered it, but the position in the original pic was certainly better. But for me the main success of the pic came from following advice and getting lower and closer and consequently, using the laptop has completely changed the way I think about taking pics. So many thanks for the feedback, it was a big help.

Peter

[umanemo]

Peter,

Great composition!

If you are still receiving notifications from this topic would you please tell me how you automated your slices through your PC?

I am a beginner with this technique and wish to know everything concerning it! I love the way that the final image of a well done focus stack forces your eye to re-focus on regions of the composition just like your eyes do in everyday vision. I prefer giving the viewers eye the freedom to "Look Around" rather than using "Bokeh" to imprision the viewers eye on what the photographer found most interesting. The sadly over-used Bokeh presents a rather shallow view (and shallow DOF!) versus the infinite universe offered in focus stacking. It works well within my body of work in Landscape and Architecture!

Thanks for any advice you can offer.

[Bobobird]

I must have missed this.

3 things.

1 - if you go back make sure you are wearing thick boots. Syringes have a bad habit of pointing in the wrong directions.

2 - do not handle anything especially anything pointy or sharp edged.

3 - This is a great shot. I like how you have brought out everything of the place. The cans right at the bottom brings out in me at least an ohoh, people still use this place? The position of the syringe is brilliant - inconspicuous yet not that so that bring about the realisation that there is more to the place then meets the eye.

[Karm Redland]

Peter, compelling composition.

Karm

[kdoc856]

Peter,

I'm fascinated by the whole process. I presume you shot tethered, which is not something I've given any real consideration. I'd be indebted if you could elaborate on how this changed your shooting process.

I like John's crop to place more emphasis on the foreground elements. When I first looked at your shot, one of my first responses was to wonder if a 1:1 crop would be helpful. All elements seem to fit into the desperation of the context except the roof, which could be anywhere. And, one side effect of the focus stacking is that your focus transition is not going to lead your viewers' eye-line as we are accustomed to, and I think this heightens the necessity for a really tight subject context.

Great job- I think you're onto something very useful here.