Project 52 by John B. Harle

[Goldcoastgolfer]

Thanks, Mal. I'm not seeing the sloping tombstone. It could be an artifact due to the lens angle. Or the tombstone is actually sloping :-0 Again, thanks for the C&C.

I suspect it's just an illusion

[Geoff F]

For me that re edit with a bit of LCE has worked well. Still a good sombre graveyard scene but with just a little bit more contrast now.

I'm not sure of the science but LCE adds extra contrast as well as sharpness. Just remember that it can sometimes push the highlights just a little bit too far and cause over exposure in places.

If faced with that problem, I usually work on a duplicate layer then add a mask and edit it to remove the effect from just any problem spots.

[johnbharle]

I'm not sure of the science but LCE adds extra contrast as well as sharpness. Just remember that it can sometimes push the highlights just a little bit too far and cause over exposure in places.

If faced with that problem, I usually work on a duplicate layer then add a mask and edit it to remove the effect from just any problem spots.

I saw that in the tutorial. I'll have to sit down and actually work through the process. Looks very interesting. Thanks!

[johnbharle]

This week, instead of working the software, I got out the macro lens to look at the bridal wreath, which is just starting to bloom. Inevitably, when I start shooting something closeup, the wind comes up But this one seems somewhat in focus. I've done minimal editing here, but I like what I see so far...

[Ricco]

John - I reckon you could do with a touch more on the exposure slider to make it pop a bit more. As it is, it seems a little flat.

Otherwise focus seems good and sharp where it needs to be.

[johnbharle]

John - I reckon you could do with a touch more on the exposure slider to make it pop a bit more. As it is, it seems a little flat.

Otherwise focus seems good and sharp where it needs to be.

I'll try that. Thanks. I just kinda threw that one up so I could have a post for the week. Here is one more from the session. I took a little more time with this one.

[Goldcoastgolfer]

I agree with Peter on the exposure of the first one. Not sure that so much negative space is needed on the right either but good sharpness and DoF over all.

I'm still thinking about the second one The B&W finish for me works very well - just wondering about the crop but I'm not sure so I'll come back later.

[johnbharle]

I agree with Peter on the exposure of the first one. Not sure that so much negative space is needed on the right either but good sharpness and DoF over all.

I'm still thinking about the second one The B&W finish for me works very well - just wondering about the crop but I'm not sure so I'll come back later.

I don't naturally crop. I'm having to learn to put it into my workflow. But both of you were right about the cropping on both. I also took the first one up a half stop. However, it seems to lose some detail. I'll have to work on that. Here's how they look at this point.

[Goldcoastgolfer]

I think both of those crops look much better John. To be honest, cropping is the first part of my workflow. The unwanted areas of the photo can skew the histogram when it comes to focussing on particular areas of a photo. I often take a photo with a bit more room to crop, as it's easier to cut out unwanted bits than it is to include bits that I didn't take in the first place.

[Geoff F]

I always try to allow a bit of cropping space. Besides being able to remove something which I failed to notice, it also allows for a bit of image rotation without the result looking too cramped.

[johnbharle]

Well, cropping seems to be at the top of my workflow now thanks to all you guys. I took this one today as part of a "rust" theme in a facebook group. The first thing I did was crop :-@ This is the woodstove in my mother's studio. It was right around sunset, so I had a strong western light. 1/15 sec @ f3.5, ISO 400; 85mm lens.

[Goldcoastgolfer]

I like the lighting here and the detail in the rust looks pretty sharp in the middle ground but I think there's probably a bit too much of a loss of sharpness in the foreground. That first object in the foreground, because it's a bit out of focus is also a bit distracting for me. It just pulls my eye from the object that's in focus above it - probably because of the silver handle which actually contrasts with the rest of the scene and I think makes it a point of focus for your photo.

Composition wise, I'm finding that the edge of the stove takes me out of the photo. My eyes scan from left to right across your photo, eventually, hit that edge, and then I follow the line up to the top and out of the photo instead of running into something that holds my interest to keep me in the photo. Not sure if that makes sense or not

[johnbharle]

I like the lighting here and the detail in the rust looks pretty sharp in the middle ground but I think there's probably a bit too much of a loss of sharpness in the foreground. That first object in the foreground, because it's a bit out of focus is also a bit distracting for me. It just pulls my eye from the object that's in focus above it - probably because of the silver handle which actually contrasts with the rest of the scene and I think makes it a point of focus for your photo.

Composition wise, I'm finding that the edge of the stove takes me out of the photo. My eyes scan from left to right across your photo, eventually, hit that edge, and then I follow the line up to the top and out of the photo instead of running into something that holds my interest to keep me in the photo. Not sure if that makes sense or not

I think you're right about the silver object. This was taken with the 85mm macro lens. There always seems to be a shallow DoF. Maybe I can sharpen that up in Photoshop, though. As to the line of the stove, it kind of makes the picture for me. However, I can see that if the line went more into the corner of the photo that it might be more soothing to the eye.

I do like the coloring. I like how the blue light coming in through the window reflects in both the dark steel and silver letter opener.

Thanks for giving me your opinions. They are really helpful.

[johnbharle]

This week has been sort of busy with both work and trying to keep up with the lawn (and having to repair the lawnmower in the middle of doing the lawn...sigh). Still, I managed to get out and take some pictures down by the tank (what we Texans call a pond). These two seem to have caught what I was seeing. The water was very still and there was enough of a cloud in the eastern sky to catch some color from the sun as it began to set.

[johnbharle]

Composition wise, I'm finding that the edge of the stove takes me out of the photo. My eyes scan from left to right across your photo, eventually, hit that edge, and then I follow the line up to the top and out of the photo instead of running into something that holds my interest to keep me in the photo. Not sure if that makes sense or not

I accidentally figured out today how to rotate the photos in crop mode and tried to move the stove edge more towards the corner of the photo. I like it better. Everything seems now to be pointing to that corner. Don't think I can do anything about the letter opener. It's a victim of my depth of field

[Goldcoastgolfer]

This week has been sort of busy with both work and trying to keep up with the lawn (and having to repair the lawnmower in the middle of doing the lawn...sigh). Still, I managed to get out and take some pictures down by the tank (what we Texans call a pond). These two seem to have caught what I was seeing. The water was very still and there was enough of a cloud in the eastern sky to catch some color from the sun as it began to set.

Lovely captures - I could just imagine sitting out on an outdoor lounge chair and enjoying the serenity of the place. I think the first one could do with a bit more exposure but I prefer it from a composition perspective to the second one. My eye follows the grasses along the water to the spot where the clouds and other reflections are highlighted.

[Goldcoastgolfer]

I accidentally figured out today how to rotate the photos in crop mode and tried to move the stove edge more towards the corner of the photo. I like it better. Everything seems now to be pointing to that corner. Don't think I can do anything about the letter opener. It's a victim of my depth of field

I agree - I think that seems to frame the elements in your photo better. It's always tough to get a good Depth of Field with macros but with the rotation, for some reason the silver handle is less prominent.

[johnbharle]

Spring is springing, which means yard work. And now I'm in lawnmower hell. Spent all weekend trying to get the lawnmower to work. Finally gave up and called the repair place today. So I didn't get much done in the way of photography. Therefore, today is somewhat of a throwdown photo. Not great by any means. But I at least cropped it a little . This little (well, not so little) guy showed up in my yard and I found him when I went out to see why the dogs were barking so much. Glad I didn't put my finger anywhere near his mouth!

[johnbharle]

Lovely captures - I could just imagine sitting out on an outdoor lounge chair and enjoying the serenity of the place. I think the first one could do with a bit more exposure but I prefer it from a composition perspective to the second one. My eye follows the grasses along the water to the spot where the clouds and other reflections are highlighted.

I did try a little more exposure on the first one, but then the sunlighted cloud started to blow out. So this was the compromise exposure. Maybe if I took it into Viveza or ColorEfex... Thanks for the encouragement, though.

[johnbharle]

...I think the first one could do with a bit more exposure...

I took it into Viveza and lightened up the clouds. As I said, it is a fine balancing act to get the dark clouds lighted without blowing out the lighted cloud. The blue sky may be a bit much, but this isn't bad.