Project 52(late start!) by Gary (oldgreygary)

[oldgreygary]

It looks to me like the cloning was done well enough so that it is not noticed which, unless you compare it to the original, is good enough in most cases. I like the action in the water and although this is not a common scene and therefore more up to personal taste rather than right or wrong, I like the way it turned out. Make me feel like jumping in barefoot and letting the water caress my toes!

Frank,

This is the original with only the exposure 'tweaked' no other adjustments. It might be interesting for comparing against my finished version.

Cheers for now

Gary

[Goldcoastgolfer]

I think you've done some good work with your PP to really make the image work Gary - nice job there. It looks like a challenging scene to have captured all the necessary detail in the photo with the contrast of light in the pipes and the scene itself.

[oldgreygary]

I like looking for different view and angles of things which maybe are not necessarily photogenic but make interesting images. This I think is one that comes under that category. It's been raining a lot recently and I thought that I would make a quick trip down to the multi-storey car park in town and if see there was anything of interest. Anyway, I came across this on the top deck which to be honest I still don't know it's purpose. I guess it's to stop people from climbing round. Just to the right is a mobile phone mast so perhaps its partly to protect this. Anyway, I am sure it won't be everyone's cup of tea but to me it makes an interesting image to look at and wonder, what the heck is that!? Any thoughts and comments, as ever always welcome.

Cheers for now

Gary

[FrankMi]

Hi Gary. I think you're on the right track but what do you think of the roofline and vertical brick wall in the background?

I find that my attention is drawn off the composition and to these elements as they are not level and yet are not far enough from level to look intentional. The uncomfortable result for me is that it feels like a mistake. I think I would go either more tilted or go the level. Each approach would produce a different feeling but either, I suspect, would be more appropriate.

Hope this helps!

[Geoff F]

And I also find that bit of green metalwork distracting.

Do you have space for a rotation and crop?

Certainly an unusual shot which could work well.

[oldgreygary]

Thanks Geoff and Frank for your replies.

I think that there are a number of ways at looking at the background. When I started to do the PP work I felt that the most important aspect was to get the cold, metallic look to the barrier. Once, I did that I also found the background was a bit of a distraction. I have a couple of comments about it now. Firstly, is it important? Could I get a shallow depth of field and get the 'bokeh' effect so the entire focus is on the barrier? Or, does it add to the image by giving some sort of perspective in particular height? I did try cropping out the green fence but it's quite a significant chunk of the image so I thought it didn't work. The problem is that the green barrier is the edge of the multi-storey so there is not a lot of room for moving about. When I went out to make image(s) I just had in mind to set the camera on aperture priority take a shot then move on.

I think that from my own thoughts and comments it is something that I will have to re-visit and explore other options/angles/compositions that could work. The way the weather is going round here at the moment opportunities are limited! But I will play around with the image in PP software which should help to decide on a better composition.

Cheers for now

Gary

[Geoff F]

Opening up the aperture to blur the background is certainly something worth trying. If it hadn't been such an interesting looking house I would have suggested that.

Possibly a candidate for two shots at different focus points then combining them. But can you use a tripod there, and do you now have suitable software?

As far as the green metalwork is concerned. Would you like to borrow a hacksaw.

I think you need to find an angle without it though.

And looking at the advance UK weather forecast. It seems to be cold and damp for the next week! Certainly not perfect photography weather. Possibly time to find some indoor subjects.

[oldgreygary]

Being up on the top deck of the car park does give a different perspective on things. This image is just at the end of the car park just beyond from where I made the image with the barrier.

I must admit it's not one of the most comfortable places to make images. As with most places in the UK we have to put up with CCTV. I get the distinct impression and uncomfortable feeling that I am being watched as I move around the car park.




As for software I use. Well, its a mish-mash of free and trial software. So, I keep changing to whatever is available! Not ideal but cash is pretty tight so I cannot go beyond having just the camera.


Cheers for now

Gary

[Goldcoastgolfer]

Perhaps the best strategy for your software is to try and stick to one and learn it really well. I know a couple of people swear by Gimp which is free. I liked your first shot, perhaps with the exception of the fence part on the bottom right and the rotation that I think it needs to get the horizontal and vertical lines aligned. Certainly an interesting perspective. I'd actually be interested to see that shot in bright day light as and then convert it to a B&W.

[oldgreygary]

Re:software, since switching to making images using RAW I found that the trial version of Lightroom I used seemed to cope best with processing RAW. Gimp, I think has got some basic RAW processing but I have to admit I haven't used it to a great extent. My plan at the moment is to get a book from the library on Photoshop and then see if the techniques can be applied in other software.
The one thing with Adobe software is that it is extensively covered with numerous websites and books (the library system stocks a wide range of books). Whereas GIMP and other software are relatively poorly covered. I must admit as I might have mentioned elsewhere my preference is to read and digest offline, then apply what I learn that way.

Anyway, at the moment I am able to do enough processing to get half decent images so that will have to do for the moment.

Cheers for now

Gary

[oldgreygary]

The weather continues to be unsettled here in the UK so, I resurrected an idea that I had been trying on and off for the last few weeks. I wanted to try and make images of the results of water drops splashing onto a water surface. I couldn't do it initially it was always underexposing, camera not focusing, not catching drops etc. Anyway, this last attempt was done in the kitchen with the tap dripping into a bowl of shallow water. I couldn't get the Canon G2 to focus so, I put a lid from an opened tin underneath and it seemed to do the trick. I used natural lighting (from the window). The speed was 1/400 and 1/500 on shutter priority. I also had to use ISO 400 the max. available on the G2. I had to do quite a bit of work in PP as the image was still underexposed but by accident I found that it worked better in B+W. So while not great I sort of achieved what I was trying to do. I think this is probably stretching the good 'ol G2 as far as it wants to go but it's good fun trying to find its limits! The following two images are the results, Any comment or thoughts welcomed!

Cheers for now

Gary

[Geoff F]

For sharp exposures of water drops, Gary, we are talking about serious shutter speeds.

I don't know what the experts use but I would suspect that 1/2000 would be the minimum; and possibly twice that. Which means some special lighting for indoor shots.

However, as an alternative, those ripples radiating from a centre point shot at a slower speed certainly look like something which might be worth more experimentation.

Maybe just touch the surface with a finger and shoot the water disturbance.

Returning to your comments about software. Most programmes, at least those which will be suitable for you, work on the same basic principles as Photoshop so most techniques which are advised for Photoshop should be adaptable for other software.

You don't have to use a Raw converter which is 'supplied' by the software provider. For instance when I was unsatisfied with the results from a previous programme I converted with Raw Therapee into Tiff format which was stored in a suitable folder then imported into my editing software.

Scarab Labs also produce a reasonable free converter.

[oldgreygary]

For me the issues related to the G2 for these shots were 2. Firstly, lighting and secondly ability to be able to fire off continuous shots.

I think that possibly using the onboard flash might help. This is a new learning opportunity as I haven't used flash before. I gather an external flash is better but for the moment I will have to use the onboard. As well as trying to add some more localised lighting. Would have to be domestic type lighting, desktop lighting for example. The G2 has a function to be able to do continuous shooting but it just hasn't got the necessary processing 'oomph' to do it quick enough. The G2 can go upto 1/1000 shutter speed but that is only available with f/8, although 1/500 does seem to capture the moment ok. But, I understand that a slower shutter speed can be used with flash?

I have found some other posts on the subject which go from simple to quite sophisticated setups. With an auto drip system at the the top end! I didn't realise it was so popular doing this type of image. Lots of examples of imaginative ideas.

With limited resources it makes me think around problems and look for possible solutions to still be able to get a half decent shot. I guess that's the main thing with the G2 it's not a case of thinking what if, it's more about what can I achieve with the options that it offers.

Cheers for now

Gary

[oldgreygary]

I tried changing the setup. I used a clear mixing bowl, half filled with water. There was an empty yoghurt pot overhead with a hole created with a needle. When filled with water it gave a constant drip. I put a blue plastic bag under the bowl. On the G2 I set the onboard flash to on, used shutter priority at 1/125 and switched the macro mode on as well.

It still requires refining in settting up as I needed to do a fairly large crop. I think that initially this starts out as a technical exercise but when you get that part sorted. You can then start to think about creative options. It's interesting that with things available around the house you can get quite a good result.

I didn't do too much in PP but added a vignette to cover for the flaws in the setup. Further thoughts/comments welcomed.

Cheers for now

Gary

[Geoff F]

That is much better all round.

I can't remember what is the maximum shutter speed for that camera when using flash, but I would assume it is 1/200, approx.

It might be worth trying the method I use for insects etc. Manually set the shutter speed and aperture to suit the scene, but not beyond the max flash speed, choose a suitable Iso then let the flash auto set itself as required.

A bit of flash compensation is usually required.

[oldgreygary]

Geoff, thanks for your thoughts on this weeks effort. By the way max. speed is 1/250 for flash. Weather actually looks good this weekend so hopefully it's back to the great outdoors this week! Doing these indoor shots does give another option where I am able to make images without having to worry about doing much travel. Its an ideal evening task for the week. It also broadens my own knowledge which might flow into other areas.

Cheers for now

Gary

[oldgreygary]

This week more indoor photos as the weather in the UK is being persistently cold and miserable. Even the olympic organisers are having last minute thoughts and thinking of renaming to the Winter Olympics! Anyway, back to the images. They are of a Vegetable (Runner Bean) in its infant stage. Accidentally, I had left the flash on. As a backrop I had a white board as can be seen it produced a strong shadow. In the second one I removed the white board with a softer background. A sort of plastic/nylon. This produced a much softer shadow. Lastly, the final image was produced with natural light with a halogen head torch shining through a tracing paper barrier(all of the images had this barrier). Ok, not the greatest compositions but I am interested in any feedback. I have also got Photoshop on a 30 day trial. Really, I just want to look at its capabilities and see whats possible with it. Only 30 days and its seems to double skip some of them. To guide me through I got a book out of my local library by Mark Galer which seem quite comprehensive. It does have an accompanying DVD which walks through some of the process's. It does seem to be a very powerful tool. One that needs more than 30 days to master. But, it should have the side effect of seeing whats possible.

Cheers for now

Gary


1st Image with flash, one side tracing paper barrier (reflector?), other side white board(reflector?).




2nd Image with flash, one side tracing paper barrier (reflector?), other side plastic/nylon(reflector?).




3rd Image natural light, one side tracing paper barrier with halogen head torch (reflector?), other side plastic/nylon(reflector?).

[Geoff F]

Well the first one certainly has the best detail, but at the expense of too strong a shadow. Sometimes it is possible to arrange the angles so the shadow falls clear of the shot.

The second one still has a bit of shadow and lacks the 'punch' of the first one.

The last is starting to get somewhere with regards to lighting but the white balance seems very yellow, which is probably due to your ambient light source.

I sometimes find that doing a Custom White Balance does help. Even when shooting Raw, where the WB is adjustable, I find that getting fairly close straight from camera helps to reduce the 'which way do I move these sliders' confusion.

If you don't have a proper white balance card, try using a sheet of slightly off white paper and see if it helps. I know, the 'use a proper WB grey card' lobby will be groaning at that, but it is a quick free method of checking whether better WB control will prove helpful.

Also, are you shooting with a tripod? Essential for those longer exposures. And even then, using a cable release or the self timer will help to reduce mirror shake and produce sharper results. Does the G2 have a mirror lock up option? I can't remember.

Which version of Photoshop?

You are a little ahead of me with your runner beans this year. Because of the cold wet weather, I have delayed a lot of planting and planted my first couple of bean seeds this week. The mange tout are starting to flower in the greenhouse but the outdoor crop is struggling. And only a couple of climbing beans have shown up so far, so I've replanted more.

[oldgreygary]

This image is known as the Stepping Stones. Used the trial version of Photoshop CS6(20 days to go) to do PP work.

Cheers for now

Gary

[gregj1763]

I like the photo Gary, the curve of the stepping stones works well, but I'm sitting here looking, wanting to know what is beyond where the steps end!!!
Maybe thats what makes it interesting.
PS, if it's cropped, make it bigger so I can see the rest
Cheers Greg