Post Dark Photography

[Polar01]

Steve: when you say BIG you mean "Big", you do not fool around. Love the detail and how you did it with the camera above your head (how did you bracket the 6 shots?). If I get this straight you bracketed 6 shots put them into a folder, then HDR'd them into 1 image, this was done 3 more times (total 24 shots divided into 4 folders) then took the HDR shot from each folder and stitched them together. Had not thought of doing it that way, but love the over the head camera placement. I really need to learn how to auto bracket shots instead of always manually doing it. Going to post another one I did in Montreal this one was done differently.

Cheers:

Allan

[Polar01]

This is the other image I took in Montreal back in the 1st of May, it is St. Andrew and St. Paul's Presbyterian Church. In side is all natural light as they turned on the lights for me (but forgot they are on a timer 15 minutes), they asked me if I wanted them back on and I said no as once use to the natural light coming in I liked it. It was not very bright as there was a light rain at that time, so here is what I did. I took a 5 shot pan of the insides from where the minister stands to get a different look, each of those 5 shots required 4 images (1 was the inside and the other 3 images were different exposures of the stain glass to get the best exposure as glass is very hard to get right and no going back). I found that the best exposure for the glass windows was 1 sec and the inside was 6 seconds long, I opened all 5 inside shots in RAW did one image to how I liked it and then syn'd the other 4 images to it so they would be all the same, same was done for the glass once done all were saved as PSD files. I then opened the 1st window shot (dark image), then placed the inside image on top of it as a new layer, then slowly removed the blowen glass from the inside shot to allow the properly exposed glass from the bottom image to come through. Once this was done this combine image was saved as 'combined image 1", this was also done for the other 4 combined images. now it takes a long time to carefully remove the upper image so the lower one shows through properly estimated time total over 2 hours, I do sometimes get very pickie about things. Once done I then stitched the 5 images together in Photoshop merge, then had fun using the warp tool to get it to look right. After some time and I mean some time this is what I finally ended up with, not to bad, but the warp is still not right, but what the heck I can always do it again when I have nothing better to do (may that time never come)

PS: The church is also the Regimental Church of the Black Watch of Canada (R.H.R.) Royal Highland Regiment

Cheers:

Allan

[arith]

That is an excellent shot Allan I like how you did the windows.

Nowadays I use auto bracket but in the distant past I didn't and the Cathedral was done using a remote trigger, the sort that attach by a wire.

The gate was an iron gate and I could set up at ground level taking note of the orientation of the panning handle. The camera was vertically oriented and the speed wheel at the bottom was turned very very carefully two clicks or 1 stop each, and the tripod had a lot of weight suspended under it.

I must have been very lucky and I doubt if I will go to that amount of trouble again, especially since I had to clone out the top of the gate and tonemap all four images simultaneously.

However, it is worth it I keep telling myself, I really like stained glass and really like what you've done with yours.

[JohnMB]

Hi

I have enjoyed this thread because one of my main interests has been architectural photography, and in this context I have photographed regularly within churches and cathedrals. I have been interested to read the different techniques used and to look at the pictures.

I had a LF camera which was enjoyable to use and perfect for correcting perspective etc. However, I bought a digital camera and was amazed it could equal the LF for landscapes. When I bought a shift lens and saw the results I knew the film cameras' days were numbered. They have all now gone but I still enjoy architectural photography and the ability to use layer masks and HDR means that I get results I may not have been able to achieve with film.

I usually make several exposures at different settings and merge in HDR. I don't use a light meter any more and make trial exposures to get an image which shows good detail in the shadow areas. I then make a series of exposures reducing exposure by 2 stops each time until I get one with no "flashing" highlights.

The picture of Norwich Cathedral was made from 5 exposures blended in HDR and then a layer mask utilizing the darkest exposure to reinforce the highlights. The blending needs to be done with care and at a much reduced opacity. It was taken with a Canon 5Dii and a 24mm shift lens. I used ISO 200, f16 and the longest exposure was 120 seconds.

It was taken in February. I find winter to be a good time for interior photography. Visitor numbers are lower and if the day is overcast there are no difficult highlight areas caused by sun.

Regards
John

[arith]

That is one amazingly intricate image John. It is fantastic

[doomed forever]

awesome shot, allan. i like the one from steve, too. very good. John, great b/w image.

regards
marc

[arith]

For someting slightly different and departure from HDR;

Dr Johnson's birthplace:

17mm 0.6 sec f4 400iso on a monopod.

[Polar01]

John that is just a stunning B&W image of Norwich Cathedral, I have been thinking of getting a shift but have never seen the results of one used that I know that it was used on. I hope that makes some sense. the image has the feel of an old time print I can not for the world remember the name for it, it was like a fine etching. I may just have to get me one of those lens.
Steve interesting image really a red caste to it, is it coming rom that one light as there is also a bright red glow from under the table. As I am from as you say the other side of the pond who is Dr. Johnson.

[Quinn]

John, what a wonderful image. Beautifully suited to the sharp B&W conversion you have given it.
I have tried shooting church interiors, but not been happy with the results. This has been a Great thread ! Im defiantly revisiting this genre with a renewed enthusiasm!
Phil

[arith]

Thanks Allan; the red glow comes from a red light unfortunately and no windows or speedlight.

Dr Johnson

[arith]

I'm having a lot of bother with this one. So far I haven't been able to print it and has cost a fortune in ink and paper doing test printouts.

It is a panorama of 2 HDR's consisting of 5 frames each one stop apart but with one missing from 1/4 secs to 8 secs, 28mm and f8 taken in November 2009 using a Canon 10D.

We have a problem with colour and no grey card was used; but it is Christmas and out of shot is Christmas lights. So far I get a horrible blue in shadows which I tried to remove using the printer settings, but failed, and so I removed blue from the image using the Hue control in PSE10, but obviously this means I have to remove yellow.

The reds look a bit too deep, but that is the problem with a red light out of shot. Auto colour correction just goes too yellow for my liking.

Just to illustrate that it doesn't always go to plan, I increase brightness from 5% to 50% in the printer to get close to what I see on my moniter and these are 50% brighter

[Polar01]

Steve: I am going to suggest something, but you probably thought of it already. What is the brightness setting on your monitor and how is the brightness in your work area. If you have a system that causes the monitor it become brighter as the room lightens up and down as the room darkens then maybe the the monitor is just to bright and the printer is printing correctly. I have had the odd one do that, then checking the monitor brightness found it had gotten brighter over time. At this time of year in my work area even with the shades down I can not do any work in my room from about 6-8:30 pm as the light is just to strong to get accurate colours. Hope that my be of some help, than again sometimes things just are what they are.

Cheers:

Allan

[arith]

I know there is something to do with power saving that adjusts light output Allan. Actually I never expected an answer so I'm gobsmacked because it could be right.


Looking at the histogram for the image above;





The last is for the first image of a dark street above in post #1, and this printed more or less the same so it isn't much to do with how dark the histogram is.

But I read somewhere that my monitor uses power saving according to the image being displayed.

[Cantab]

John,
An amazing photo of Norwich Cathedral! And thanks for explaining the details of how you did it.

[Polar01]

Marc thank-you for the postive comment, Steve I Googled Dr. Johnson however I love the Blackadder better than Google. Hope you can get your monitor-printer problem sorted out.
I am going to post an image that is dark and would give the appearance of a late evening shot, but is not. It was a skyline shot of Toronto from the islands, taken about 5:30 pm about 2-1/2 before sunset. The sky had a kind of a sliver shimmer to it as there must have been some haze, I was with a group, off to one side, they were shooting more 90 degress to the sun and I was shooting tighter to the sun. I decided to knock down the light so I added a 4 stop ND filter, as the sky was still brighter than the forground by 1-1/3 stops, I thought what the heck and added a 3 stop hard GND filter to the top stopping at the water line. Took the shot looked on the viewer and liked what I saw. I processed in CS5 and opened the Raw file as a smart layer, then did a copy as a smart layer, this allowed me to return to Raw and work the lower water part of the image to get that golden glow in the water, then added a layer mask to the copy and reworked that part of the image that was above the skyline. The reason you see not lights on in the city is it is not dark enough to see them. So I called the image "Darken City"

Cheers:

Allan

[arith]

It is the boat and that shimmer on the water that does it for me, I like everything;; including the way you can just make out the city.

[arith]

Hi Allan; just printed the bottom image in post 31 but chose perceptual colorimetric instead of relative and with settings from a test print c9 m0 y-9 brightness 25 relative intent and thought it was worth a try because I've run out of paper, BUT it looks like a watercolour.

I give up now, maybe it will dry ok sometimes they do.

Colour Gamut is difficult and I only understand that;

relative intent reduces the gamut in the image to fit the printer and

perceptual intent makes the closest colour from the edges of the gamut.

So I didn't expect as much difference.

[Polar01]

Steve: are you using a laptop or a desktop and is the monitor separate? If a laptop with its own screen could it be the viewing angle as if you are not right on 90 degrees when looking at the screen than it can give incorrect brightness. If the screen is tilled back or forward it may appear brighter or darker than it really is viewing angle is very important. I now use a monitor mounted to the wall right at my correct viewing height, sometimes with the laptop I would work away then print and wonder where the heck that came from, my viewing angle was wrong, but the print was correct when view at the proper angle. Maybe something like that here.

Cheers:

Allan

[arith]

Hi Allan; it is an IPS on a desktop that is calibrated. It doesn't matter though because anything taken in normal light and processed normally prints as it looks on the screen.

It is only the dark stuff that is hard; and then only because I like dark bits too look dark, sky to look black ect.

What you said before about adjusting for ambient light, I have something to inform me when light is wrong, but I know that one selling point of the moniter is intelligent adjustment of backlight to suit the image.

However I had this same problem with my other monitor and think it is just because dark images are challenging to print, and in fact the last one I did appears to be looking better and better as the hours pass.

Only time will tell.

Update: It has dried ok and looks like a brighter version of the second post 31. So to correct it I bet I only have to reduce brightness and it was the rendering intent that must have been wrong. Cheers

[arith]

Another HDR; this time 3 images 1/2, 1 , 2 seconds 28mm f8 @ 200 iso and this one isn't printed. It is an alley in central Lichfield and very busy with racing teenage cyclists from the local state school.

Converted to B+W using free software