Local Contrast enhancement For C&C and feedback please

[ucci]

My sincerest apologies to anyone who opens this post and finds it simply tedious, boring and a total waste of their time. But what else did you expect from the likes of me?
But cutting to the chase for the rest of us camera toting masochists, thanks to advice from Mr Donald, after I came back from my morning walk with the dogs and the sheep I have been playing with this technique of LCM to try and improve the "oomph" in black and white rendered colour shots
There are two sets with the originals posted for comparison. For all of the series of rendered photos the unsharp mask settings used were, amount 20%, radius 100 pixels ( My drop down setting menu does not give this setting in %. So I used 100 pixels as being about 50 % of the maximum value available on its scale) Threshold was left at 0.

In each of the series, #1 is basically using the channel mixer filter, selecting monochrome, changing the ratios in each channel to red 30% green 60% blue 10%, changing mode to grey scale and applying the unsharp mask filter.

Series#2 is based on going through the Lab mode and channel lightness, changing back to grey scale and applying the unsharp mask settings given above.

Then we come to series #4 which I have deemed 'ucci's folly.' This is something I worked out on the fly using the very well tried and true scientific method of, "Let's suck it and see how it all pans out." Without boring you with too many details, which I am more than happy to share with those interested enough, it is based on duplicating a channel ( red seems to be best), chucking out the rest and keeping only the magenta channel which seems to appear when you start throwing the other channels overboard with gay abandon. Then it is just a case of making sure you are in grey scale and applying the filter. In the pile series #3 used this procedure but duplicated the green channel and and kept the cyan channel which apppeared during the channel deletions. What prompted me to do this rather odd bit of PP? Dunno really. Certainly not a soundly based scientific methodological approach, that's for sure! But it was fun and I liked what happened to the train. Looks good on the screen. Of course print outs may in fact be quite hideous. That is next on the list to check.
Anyway, comments on which seems the best screen outcome would be most helpful. I really am trying to get my B&W to sparkle and have some PP oomph! Then again, maybe I just need to get a life, hey?
Cheers to all
old ucci

[JohnC]

Can't help Ken..I have LR not Photoshop and this is out of my comfort zone (where we should be sometimes)

[Geoff F]

For me, Ken, in each case the first of the monochrome conversions has the greatest tonal range. Which is particularly noticeable with the sky of the train photo.

Although, possibly the greys are a little 'cleaner' in the second alternative.

One alternative which I sometimes use is to place a Hue/Sat Adjustment Layer between the original colour image and the Channel Mixer Layer. After converting to B&W with the Mixer Layer, adjusting the Hue Layer can make some interesting additions. It doesn't always work but can sometimes produce great skies.

I don't normally go beyond Radius 50 with the Unsharp Mask but I suppose you can get away with a bit more in B&W. And of course, you can always do a bit of selective adjustment by sharpening on a layer with mask then editing the mask a little.

I keep intending to do more monochrome work but at the moment my insect work, including identification, is taking up so much time. Perhaps when winter returns.

[ucci]

Hi John

Can't help Ken..I have LR not Photoshop and this is out of my comfort zone (where we should be sometimes)

Thanks for commenting. I am often out of my comfort zone and need assistance. It can be a great way to learn.

K

[ucci]

For me, Ken, in each case the first of the monochrome conversions has the greatest tonal range. Which is particularly noticeable with the sky of the train photo.

Although, possibly the greys are a little 'cleaner' in the second alternative.

Hi Geoff
Thank you for your comments and helpful advice. I agree with your comments about restricting radius values, especially when dealing with colour. I only went so high as I estimated this to be the 50% value recommended for use with this technique. My interest in monochrome is that people around town keep bringing me these old family photos taken when their grandpappy and great grandpappy were knee eye to a grasshopper and expect me to turn them into 'keepers'. Many of them are keepers in their state of decay as in ' Keep it in the nearest rubbish bin!" But I do my best. But as I don't get paid for this work I might have to scale back a bit. It is starting to cost me too much from my own pocket. Gratitude can only go so far to meeting one's costs. "I try to pay my bills with a smile. But the buggers always seem to want money!"

Best of luck with the insect identification project
Cheers
Ken

[Geoff F]

I know what you mean about dealing with old material.

One of my, mostly winter time, occupations concerns a recently formed Local History Society. We have a town museum but they tend to stop with the Victorians.

A group of local people realised that there is a lot of material 'out there' which ranges from around the 1930's to quite recently and there is a serious risk that this could be lost to future generations unless it is recorded now.

The web site is still partially in the process of completion but here is what is currently on offer. http://www.salcombehistorysociety.co.uk/

Apart from scanning and restoring photos, there is a lot of documents, etc, which need saving. For instance, I have managed to copy and reprint a number of Regatta Programmes from the 1930's and they are now on sale to aid the society's funds.

One hidden gem from the 1850's was a handwritten account by a local gentleman, and judge, of a tour around the area which lasted four days and covered several means of transport.

Besides copying his original text, I retyped, rather slowly, his fascinating account and produced a little booklet.

One non paying job which I had to do a few years ago was converting an album of those 2.5 ins square prints into slides for an 'illustrated talk'. They were firmly stuck inside the album so I had to photograph them in situ with my old film camera.

[Radu Dinu Cordeanu]

With "lasso tool" and "levels" you could modify the contrast then with "remove colour"You may pass at b&w.I presumed that this is the problem because Your English is too complex for me




Of course after pp a kind of mist covers the image so unsharp mask with amount 20-35% and radius around 80 pixels(more or less as Your taste said)
If the problem was not that, excuse me

[ucci]

With "lasso tool" and "levels" you could modify the contrast then with "remove colour"You may pass at b&w.I presumed that this is the problem because Your English is too complex for me




Of course after pp a kind of mist covers the image so unsharp mask with amount 20-35% and radius around 80 pixels(more or less as Your taste said)
If the problem was not that, excuse me

Hi Radu
Thanks for viewing and helpful comment. Much appreciated. No need to apologize. I need all the advice I can get. As for your English, hey it is far, far better than my Rumanian!
Cheers
Ken

[ucci]

[QUOTE=Geoff F;126666]I know what you mean about dealing with old material.

One of my, mostly winter time, occupations concerns a recently formed Local History Society. We have a town museum but they tend to stop with the Victorians. ........


Seems like we follow very similar paths in this in what we are required to do to support our Historical Societies
K

[Radu Dinu Cordeanu]

Of course,if no moving objects are in, the hdr could be the solution.Many of my images, You saw,are 5 handheld shots hdr.