Blog 10 - Photo Contest

Looking for Work - 2/11/12 – 3:29 PM - Bannack Ghost Town, Montana - f/5.6 - 1/800 - Canon EOS DIGITAL REBEL XT

I took my Macro Abstract entry from the Bannack shots, and removed the texture. I sized it down so the longest side was 2000px, uploaded it to ViewBug and then entered it in the "Things on Wheels" Photo Contest.

I chose this contest because of the theme. The whole contest is devoted to, as it says, "Things On Wheels." I really loved my wheelbarrow shot from our trip to Bannack, and it fit the parameters. Plus, it was a free contest, and seeing as I'm broke, it seemed like a good choice.

http://www.viewbug.com/contests/things-on-wheels-photo-contest

Entry submitted on March 23rd, 2012

"Kinetic Ooze" - 1/23/12 – 3:13 PM - Rexburg, ID - f/4.5 - 1/25 - Canon EOS DIGITAL REBEL XT

I used my lava lamp image from the Adjustment Layers assignment. I sized it down so the longest side was 2000px, uploaded it to ViewBug and then entered it in the "All That Is Interesting" Photo Contest.

I chose this contest because of the theme. It was a bit of an "anything goes" sort of photo contest, and I was curious to see how far I might get doing it. Plus, it was a free contest, and seeing as I'm broke, it seemed like a good choice.

http://www.viewbug.com/contests/all-that-is-interesting

Entry submitted on March 23rd, 2012

Lay of the Land - 2/11/12 – 1:36 PM - Bannack Ghost Town, Montana - f/5.6 - 1/1000 - Canon EOS DIGITAL REBEL XT

I had this image from my Bannack shots, and I really liked it, but I wasn't sure I could use it for anything. I figured it wouldn't hurt to mess with it a bit and see. So I copied the image and sharpened it, and added two identical Levels Adjustment layers, masking out the tower and the bird. This still wasn't enough, so I added two identical Vibrace layers, masking out the sky and set the second Vibrance layer at 50% opacity to bring down the intensity. Then I topped it off with a Brightness/Contrast layer. I sized it down so the longest side was 2000px, uploaded it to ViewBug and then entered it in the "Abstract" Photo Contest.

I chose this contest because of the theme. It is a conceptual photo contest, which intrigued me because the focus was not on the literal image, but the "image behind the image," as it were. Plus, it was a free contest, and seeing as I'm broke, it seemed like a good choice.

http://www.viewbug.com/contests/abstract-photo-contest

Entry submitted on March 24th, 2012

Blog 9 - Extra! Extra!

Aurora Express - 1/28/12 – 3:05 PM - Rexburg, ID - f/7.1 - 1/4000 - Canon EOS DIGITAL REBEL XT

Believe it or not, this is a vertical panoramic shot. I used photomerge in Photoshop and then Content Aware Fill to spruce up the gaps. Then I added a Levels layer. I put a Brightness Contrast layer on top of that, but I masked out some of the effect on the tracks and the ground area. Then I added Hue/Saturation and Vibrance layers.

A Little Bit off the Top - 2/11/12 – 12:37 PM - Bannack Ghost Town, Montana - f/4.0 - 1/40 - Canon EOS DIGITAL REBEL XT

This was one of my single shot HDRs. This was another victim of the Photomatix watermark, so I pulled it into the Nic software and messed around with it. I really liked how it turned out with the HDR program, and so all I did afterwards was add a Levels layer.

I Put a Spell on You - Spring 2010 - Rexburg, ID - Black and White Film camera

I originally took this picture as part of my self-portrait assignment for my Intro to Photography class. It wasn't one of my best pictures, so I didn't end up picking it. But, I was messing around on my computer one day and ended up with this. I cropped the image, color dodged some blue into my eyes, and painted pink onto my lips. I added some purple accents to the black fur and a Levels layer. Voila! Instant "I can turn you into a newt" exotic witch look.

Let Me Out! - 1/23/12 – 3:13 PM - Rexburg, ID - f/4.5 - 1/25 - Canon EOS DIGITAL REBEL XT

I love this shot of the Romney lava lamp. It looks like a hand. But I wanted to make it different, so I added two Levels layers and a Hue/Saturation layer to make it purple. I like my purple hand-lava.

Lady Greensleeves - 1/17/12 – 8:05 AM - Ricks Gardens, Rexburg, ID - f/4.0 - 1/20 - Canon EOS DIGITAL REBEL XT

I coerced my friend into doing a photoshoot with me. We took all sorts of pictures all over the Gardens, but this one was one of my favorites. It was her idea, really. She pulled the bench over and laid across it, propping her foot on the siding of the little house thing we were at. I really liked the expression, and the whole pose. I took it into photoshop, and the first thing I did was lower the exposure a bit to bring back some of the details in the blanket. Then I sharpened her eyes and color dodged some green into them. Then I added a Hue/Saturation layer, masking out my friend, so it only affected the background. I wanted the background to have a little more green in it. Then I added Levels, Brightness/Contrast and Vibrance.

Welcome Home - 1/28/12 – 3:34 PM - Rexburg, ID - f/11 - 1/500 - Canon EOS DIGITAL REBEL XT

This was one of many pictures I took during my lengthy amble around Rexburg. I really liked how it turned out, so I figured I'd spruce it up. I added a Levels layer with Soft Light, and then a Normal Brightness/Contrast layer. On top of that, I added an 85 Warming Photo Filter. The first one was set to Multiply at 50% opacity, and then I copied it and set it at Normal 50% opacity.

Old School Wheels - 2/11/12 – 11:39 AM - Bannack Ghost Town, Montana - f/9.0 - 1/80 - Canon EOS DIGITAL REBEL XT

I took some close-up bracketed shots of the wagon wheel and merged them together in Photomatix. Then I took it into Photoshop and added Levels and Vibrance adjustment layers. I duplicated the image and masked a sharpened image, only revealing the added sharpness on the hub of the wheel. Then I duplicated the image again and blurred out the background a bit, to further emphasize the sharpened hub.

Every Kind of Shine - 2/11/12 – 3:17 PM - Bannack Ghost Town, Montana - f/4.0 - Varies - Canon EOS DIGITAL REBEL XT

This was an HDR merge of three different shots of these bottles. I really liked how the HDR turned out in Photomatix, but I kept getting the watermark plastered all over it. So I downloaded the Nic HDR trial. After twiddling around with that, I found an effect that I liked and started editing it in Photoshop. I copied the image and added some sharpening, and then topped it off with Levels and Vibrance layers.