C&C requested - color film emulation

[tameigh]

I did my current best on this one, I think, and I am curious what suggestions others may have.

I did the film emulation with Alien Skin Exposure3, it is Fuji Velvia 100F, but I did a lot of layering and adjusting of the bright sunlight exposure above the rock face, and the shadow below. Plus mucked about with a color filter and did some desaturation....

[Black Pearl]

Not sure it reminds me of shooting with film and Velvia always had a rich colour content.

[MiniChris]

I was thinking the same thing and wondered why you would desaturate if you wanted to emulate Velvia. It's just overdone to the desaturated side...go back to the original and work it slowly, first for white balance, next for color balance and last for tonal control...do it easy, a little at a time. If you find you are ahving to add lots and lots of layering to get an image just right, then rethink your shooting modes, aperture/shutter combinations. It is possible your camera is shooting a tad underexposed and if so, give it a +1 EV and see if that helps get you closer to what you are really seeing.
Also, just an aside...before using all the fancy alien this that and the other, learn to do it the old fashion, straight forward way...as Mikey always said..."Tricks are for kids." The reality is that tricks are for those who understand what the tricks are acting upon, rather than using them to try and circumvent good photography technique.
You've got a good eye for composition but I fear a heavy forefinger on the camera and on the computer...be gentle, be gentle.

[tameigh]

Here is one where the only PP was sharpening and Exposure 3 Velvia

[MiniChris]

And, this is one where you should have worked the glare off the duck and snow, first. Try setting your white and black points first and bring the entire scene under tonal control before doing anything else.

[tameigh]

I suppose you are right. I could have fixed the WB in the duck first. The other one, I went with velvia to bring out colors that were there, but it became to garish to my eye, so I backed it down a little. Plus there was the issue of direct sun above, and shade below.

Which I used adjustment layers as masks to handle. It also got a bit pixilated in the process of downsizing and sharpening for this forum, in my defense. I will get there, but I do plead guilty to caring more about the color harmony and composition than proper photographic technique, but I recognize that I will never have complete control over either until I get my basic skills down.

[MiniChris]

The important aspect of what you are doing is what most of us on here are doing simulataneously...you're learning. Don't be too hard on yourself, yet don't give in to "I can't," either...you can, and you will.

[tameigh]

By "tonal control," do you mean the way that the duck's underside appears pure white and without texture in places?

[ScoutR]

Hi Tim, I like the composition on this shot and it's certainly worth working on. I don't what all the Velvia and filters and all are that you were talking about, but I think maybe I see what you are trying to do. However, it has become too drab looking to my eye anyway - it's your shot so you get to convey what pleases you, but below is a QUICK example of where I would try to head with it.

In Elements I selected a couple colours in the trunk and darkened and saturated them. On the bank I selected the Reds on the bank and lightened and desaturated. That's basically it. This is a pretty quick rework, but just thought I'd post to give you some ideas.
Nice shot, Very bleak and lonely, typical of this time of year. I really like it but think the trunk of the tree especially needs to stand out more.

Anyway here is my feeble attempt at a rework.

Wendy

[Wirefox]

Tim

The shot below has a Velvia50 filter applied. A couple of other golden oldie film type processing are shown HERE so you can compare the differences. These may well fall into the category of 'tricks' but as Chris says if you know when and why you are applying them go for it. You need to be very careful with any other P&P that you apply so as not to remove or overdo components of the 'film' filter itself (as your original image). Its best to stick to moderate tonal curve adjustment. If possible do the other adjustments before applying the film filter - except for sharpening - You can always apply some very gentle adjustments after the film filter to get the final image to taste if that proves necessary.

[tameigh]

Steve,
I have seen that picture before here and I really like it.

I think where I go wrong on this one, and others I took on this outing, is scaling it down, it becomes a different picture.

Here is a bit of it at 100%



The detail will never translate to 700 x 700.

[Wirefox]

I think one of the issues here is subject matter rather than the nuances of scaling. The application of a film filter will be apparent in the overall effect rather than in the detail. There simply is not enough variance in the colours for the filter to make a detectable/recognisable change to the image. Wendy is a master (or should that be mistress) of shooting subjects against white or scenes that comprise of varying tones of similar colours. What Wendy has done above is taken advantage of the contrast and accentuated it very effectively. The film type processing becomes irrelevant and to a large extent so does the scaling down.

One thing to be aware of and that is for faithful reproduction (forensics) viewing at 100% may help achieve an objective but when applying PP for effect viewing at 100% will not help and may actually cause you to make the wrong decisions about the presentation of the image.

[tameigh]

I think I need to take Chris's curmudgeonly advice, and reshoot the picture. This time with varying degrees of exposure compensation, and a tripod. Even if the island is a 25 min snowmobile ride from here.

Raw file, if anybody is interested:

_MG_0099.CR2 - 9.7 MB

[MiniChris]

I can't get the download to work properly.

[MiniChris]

Curmudgeonly, I applied 4 multiply layers at 50%, 40%, 30% and 20%, one screen layer at 30% and one luminosity layer at 15%. On each of the multiply layers, I either did a midtone darker, or midtone brighter secondary adjustment and in screen went to darken.
Your images, while compositionally good, lack a depth that could push the focal poit to the foreground. You are relying too much on the main object to carry the day when in reality, it is all the players that make the show a hit.

Keep in mind, I was working from your reduced print and not the raw file.

[tameigh]

wow.

I get your point though about thinking before I shoot.