Elk

[jamn4ex]

I find the elk in bright sunlight, and I am having a hard time with very bright spots or glares is there a filter to prevent that? It seems like I do ok if I get some clouds or can wait for sun to drop below trees. Shot this one with a low sun getting ready to set. 50D 200mm ss 1/500 av 2.8 ISO 400




any and all c&c apreciated

[Designer]

A polarizing filter will help with glare. You can lower your ISO and close the aperture more to compensate for too much light.

[Digital]

This is a nice photo of the elk. Taken at a good time of the day.


Bruce

[Brownbear]

Wow.. James that is a stunningly beautiful image.. I think it is an absolutely gorgeous shot and perfect as is, ie; a wall hanger as everyone seems to say...

[rpcrowe]

I played with this in Photoshop CS6 and reducing the brightness and increasing the contrast (while reducing the saturation a TAD) and doing a little sharpening seems like it helps quite a bit...

[jamn4ex]

Ty Jim, Bruce, and Christina. Wow Richard that just shows how retarded my post skills are. Thank you Sir.

[Digital]

I played with this in Photoshop CS6 and reducing the brightness and increasing the contrast (while reducing the saturation a TAD) and doing a little sharpening seems like it helps quite a bit...

Richard, if it is not to much trouble, how did you sharpen James' photograph in PS CS6.


Bruce

[Brownbear]

Yes, I adore James photo but Richard's edit brings it to another level... Now, I know what glare is/does... takes away from the deep rich tones?

[jamn4ex]

Yes my colors seemed washed out.... I have to learn to fix that with elements.

[Brownbear]

Hi James,

I have Lightroom 4 and Elements 9, and although I know one day I will have to learn how to use everything Elements offers, learning Lightroom has been relatively easy and intuitive, and is helping me understand Elements... So if you don't have LR I would recommend it for its simplicity.

[Digital]

Hi James,

I have Lightroom 4 and Elements 9, and although I know one day I will have to learn how to use everything Elements offers, learning Lightroom has been relatively easy and intuitive, and is helping me understand Elements... So if you don't have LR I would recommend it for its simplicity.

IMHO LR is easier to learn than Elements.

Bruce

[Mike Buckley]

how retarded my post skills are

I'd like to correct that. I would be willing to bet that it's Richard's confidence in knowing what he wants the image to look like that is the primary difference, not his post-processing skills so to speak. Richard had an absolutely fascinating photography career in the U.S. Navy, so he has been envisioning images for decades.

I remember when I first began digital post-processing. I would spend 20-30 minutes on each photo, partly because I didn't know how to effectively use the software but mostly because I didn't know how I wanted it to look. Once I developed a taste for knowing how I wanted a particular image to look, learning how to use the software to make it happen was comparatively easy.

Perhaps the most exciting aspect of photography for me is that it's a lifelong process of getting excited about learning something new. The year 2012 is the year that I discovered using a vignette that isn't noticeable as a vignette. A couple months ago I discovered the importance of using post-processing to vary the light throughout the image to lead the viewer's attention to a particular part of the image. Who knows what next year will bring? I can't wait to find out!

[jamn4ex]

Thanks for correcting me Mike and feel free to do so at any time. I didn't mean to make light of Richards skillset cause I have admired his and yours and far to many members here to list, for a couple of years now.
I am not disappointed in my image as I presented it, I just knew it could have been better.
I am going to try a polarizer to see if I can cut out some of that glare. I have a 400 and a 200. What do people think about buying one for the 400 and using a stepdown ring for my 200?

[Designer]

Rings are much cheaper than a second filter. Get a really good circular polarizer. You should need to use it only for glare conditions, most often noticed on water, snow, and ice.

Speaking of filters, if you can't stop down enough to compensate for too much light, or if you simply want to take longer exposures, you can get neutral-density filters in many different opacities, and even graduated ones for cutting the light from the sky when taking photos of landscapes.

[rpcrowe]

The sharpening can be done with either the Unsharp Filter or the Smart Sharpen filter (reduced somewhat from the default).

Another method of sharpening that I use most often these days is the Output Sharpening Filter of NIK Software.

However, I sometimes don't use a sharpening filter at all but, rather use NIK Viveza's Structure slider.

I am using NIK for post processing more and more often lately because it seems easier for me to use and it seems to give me more control...

I edited the image in NIK Viveza with this result. I think that this is better and it was certainly easier...



Brightness = -25 I placed a control point over the elk's face reducing the impact of the global -25 brightness reduction
Contrast = +12
Saturation -10
Structure = 50% Note: I did not sharpen the image at all but, instead used the structure slider in Viveza which increases detail within the subject rather than at the edges of the subject. I think that you can get a sharper subject in this way but, avoid th edge artifacts which can be apparent when sharpening in PS or PSE... If I needed more sharpening, I could rely in NIK Sharpener pro. This allows me to sharpen an image based on its final output; such as inkjet print, monitor display or other product...
I also used a -10 green slider setting. Often a subject shot in foliage will have a slightly green tint because of the reflected green light from the leaves.
If I were wanting to work on this image even more, I could use some control points to select tree leaves and or the grass and play with the brightness. I might even use the "darken/brighten center filter" which gives the very slightest impression of a vignette...

NOTE: I am convinced that everything possible in most plug-ins such as NIK is also possible (and perhaps with more control) for a Photoshop guru to accomplish. However, although I have been working with Photoshop for several years, I certainly don't consider myself to have the necessary expertise to exceed the NIK capabilities. NIK is so easy to use (not to mention fun to use) that it has replaced much of what I used to do in Photoshop. And, I am learning more about this program virtually every day. My learning comes primarily through the wealth of NIK tutorial videos although I have downloaded a Kindle verson of a Viveza book...

[Digital]

Richard, thank you so much for the information.



Bruce

[Brownbear]

Yes, truly appreciated Richard... Very helpful

PS the leaves in Vancouver are starting to turn colour... So I think in a few weeks the foliage will be brilliant... If I recall correctly you asked, if not, hopefully the other person will read this.

[rpcrowe]

That was not me asking about Vancouver's foliage. However, your area is one of my favorite in the entire world for photography...

[Brownbear]

Thank you for letting me know... Eventually I will remember the persons name... It is beautiful here, and this Fall I will try taking colourful landscape photos.

That was not me asking about Vancouver's foliage. However, your area is one of my favorite in the entire world for photography...