Fruit sections

[TonyW]

I took these about three years ago. The recent pictures of Mike Buckley prompted me to show them now. I did not attempt any artistic setting, just trying to show the texture. They were done outside in the shade with very diffuse light but from all directions. Perhaps more side lighting would remove those patches of specular reflection that I would have liked to avoid. I should try again now that I have a better understanding of lighting.

[Shadowman]

Nice sections.

[Wavelength]

Very sharp;a really nice set

[Mike Buckley]

It's great to see that you're interested in this stuff, Tony! For me, the best image overall is the first one. That's because it has the best overall combination of sharpness and punch.

First photo: Consider adjusting the white point so the histogram goes all the way to the right side and increasing the mid-tone contrast just a bit. I think you'll like the pop better without ruining the overall effect of what the kiwi looks like in reality.

Third photo: I'm really surprised that the little nooks and crannies in the meat of the apple show up so well considering the diffuse light. This looks very natural to me. However, the overall image looks flat and a review of the histogram explains why. Adjust the white and black points and then add some mid tone contrast but only if it's needed (it probably won't be needed). If you want to increase the distinction of the nooks and crannies, add just a touch of Local Contrast Enhancement but be very careful not to overdo it.

Second photo: My biggest complaint about this image is the one characteristic that probably can't be corrected during post-processing, which is why it's my biggest complaint: the top and bottom areas of the circumference of the orange aren't as sharp as the left and right portions when displayed even at this relatively small size. If the entire circumference was sharp, it's likely that the interior sections would have increased pop just due to the increased sharpness.

You mentioned the "patches of specular reflection" that bothered you and I assume you're referring to the orange. Keep in mind that specular reflection by definition is a mirror-like reflection of the light source. Outside diffuse lighting that you described is usually sunlight diffused by clouds and perhaps other materials, so that situation should have minimized the specular reflection on its own. My guess is that you could have used a polarizer to eliminate all but a small amount of the remaining specular reflection.

You suspected that the cure is to use side lighting. Remember that direct reflection is all about the family of angles and consider that there are a million families of angles in that orange. Using side lighting or really any particular setup in this situation is invariably going to produce at least some direct reflections. Again, that's why God invented a polarizer, which might eliminate all but a very small amount of them.

Even so, now that you've got the image, all is not lost with regard to direct reflections. You can select all of them and use a color picker to fill the selection with a suitable color taken from another part of the orange. You can also adjust the opacity of the fill and use the blending mode to fine tune everything so it looks natural. I don't know which parts of your image are direct reflections and which parts are simply the color of the surface of the orange, but I did the best I could in the version shown below not knowing that information. That process took only about two minutes, but that could be because I've used this technique to "cheat" lots and lots of times, though admittedly to attend to perhaps much fewer direct reflections. I used it most recently to attend to very tiny dots of specular reflection in the avocado skin in this photo.

[madcrow]

Very well done, nice images, for me it's the #1.

[John 2]

The best one for me is the last one mike. I just like the shape of the seed cups. It occurs to me that so far, your journey has treated us to the main course, the wine and the desert. I can't wait to see what you achieve with the soup. (Maybe a safer option would be the cheese?)

[Mike Buckley]

The best one for me is the last one mike.

If the changes I suggested are implemented, which would be really easy to do, that one would also be my favorite far and away for several reasons (the seed cups you mentioned, the sharpness and the detail in the bright area).

[bnnrcn]

Hi Tony, I like the kiwi shot