Blog 7 - Edit: Borders

Flexible Brushed-On Effect

Uncertainty - 2/5/12 – 4:15 PM - Rexburg, ID - f/4.5 - 1/1600 sec - Canon EOS DIGITAL REBEL XT

I used one of my Portrait photos as my victim for this first border effect. I tried a lot of different brushes before I settled on this one. I went through the listed steps and then began playing with things on my own. I tried different colors, different brush opacities, and eventually I came up with this. The border makes it feel a little morbid, but I still like the colors.

Double Fade Border

Movie Magic - 1/14/12 – 12:53 PM - Rexburg, ID - f/5.6 - 1/800 sec - Canon EOS DIGITAL REBEL XT

I used one of my Shallow Focus shots for this border effect. I didn't want to use just a square for this one, so I used one of the custom shapes. I really liked the idea of the filmstrip, mainly because of the relation between the Harry Potter books and the movies. I followed the instructions just as they were listed, I just used a slightly different shape and a different color.

Flexible Vignette

Target Practice - 2/11/12 – 2:56 PM - Bannack Ghost Town, Montana - f/4.5 - 1/50 sec - Canon EOS DIGITAL REBEL XT

I used a feathered marquee in black to achieve the Flexible Vignette border. The feathering was set to 20 pixels.

Fine Art Template

Fancy Fish - 1/28/12 – 4:34 PM - Rexburg, ID - f/5.0 - 1/125 sec - Canon EOS DIGITAL REBEL XT

I used my Fish Pano for this edit. I decided that since it was a pano, I needed more than 5 boxes. Eight felt more appropriate, and ended out working nicely for what I had in mind. I used the photo tag that I created for my Bannack Shootout shots and added a border stroke of the same color. It took a little bit of fenagling to get the fish pano the right size to work with, but I am really pleased with the result.

Blog 7 - Night & Light

Blurred Lights

Aurora Vehicularis - 2/21/12 - 8:25 PM - Rexburg, ID - f/11 - 30 sec - Canon EOS DIGITAL REBEL XT

All I did was go outside with my tripod and stand on the corner with my camera and watch the cars brave the snowy streets. This photo was originally overexposed, so I yanked the exposure down in Camera Raw and tweaked some of the color saturations.

Camera Motion

Peep Show - 2/21/12 - 8:20 PM - Rexburg, ID - f/4.0 - 30 sec - Canon EOS DIGITAL REBEL XT

I have a little Peep toy that blinks blue and red. I had my roommate hold it up and I focused the shot in the light. I set my camera for the 10 second timer and flipped off the lights. Then I moved my camera around a bunch to get this effect. No edits.

Light Painting

Confessions of a Bibliophile - 2/21/12 - 8:44 PM - Rexburg, ID - f/25 - 20 sec - Canon EOS DIGITAL REBEL XT

I LOVE books, if you can't tell.. I set this up on my kitchen table with a bunch of my books and decided that I wanted my glasses to be the focal point. In order to get this shot, I had to prop my tripod up on three chairs and use my roommates' step ladder to look through my camera to set up the shot. I focused in the light, turned on my timer and flicked off the lights. Then I used a little LED flashlight I bought to light everything from the side. It took a lot of tries to get this image, and at first it wasn't one of my favorites because it was too bright. So I took it into Camera Raw and played around with it. I got it to look the way it does by complete accident, and I'm pretty pleased with my first attempts at light painting.

Blog 6 - Bannack Best

Bannack Best

You Don't Wanna Meet Pa? - 2/11/12 – 2:57 PM - Bannack Ghost Town, Montana - f/4.0 - 1/60 - Canon EOS DIGITAL REBEL XT

I pulled this shot into Camera Raw for some adjustments and then opened it in Photoshop. I erased part of the side of her face and replaced it with more hair because the angle of her head made it a little unflattering. I cleaned up any blemishes and smoothed out her skin. I added a little pink to her cheeks and Color Dodged her eyes. Then I Dodged in some of the background to bring more of a focus to the model. Finally, I added a Levels layer for some final adjustments.


Beautiful Music - 2/11/12 – 2:19 PM - Bannack Ghost Town, Montana - f/5.6 - 1/15 - Canon EOS DIGITAL REBEL XT

I bracketed this photo in Photomatix and used the Enhancer - Painterly Filter with Medium Light. I adjusted the sliders to my liking and brought it into Photoshop. I added Levels and Vibrance Adjustment layers and masked out the piano keys in the Vibrance layer. I also used the Smart Sharpen Filter.



Bottles of Light - 2/11/12 – 3:17 PM - Bannack Ghost Town, Montana - f/4.0 - 1/250 - Canon EOS DIGITAL REBEL XT

I bracketed it in Photomatix using the Compressor - Default Filter. Then I took it into Photoshop and used the Smart Sharpen filter.



That's MY Chocolate! - 2/11/12 – 2:56 PM - Bannack Ghost Town, Montana - f/4.5 - 1/50 - Canon EOS DIGITAL REBEL XT

I took this shot during the Bannack Shootout and adjusted it in Camera Raw. Then I took it into Photoshop, smoothed out her face, Color Dodged her open eye and added a Levels Adjustment layer. Then I used a Vibrance Adjustment Layer to make it a Black and White image.



Turn the Wheel - 2/11/12 – 2:32 PM - Bannack Ghost Town, Montana - f/5.0 - 1/15 - Canon EOS DIGITAL REBEL XT

I adjusted this image in Camera Raw and then took it into Photoshop. I added Levels, Vibrance and Hue/Saturation Adjustment Layers to tweak the colors and then used a Sepia Photo Filter layer to give it that old time feel.

Blog 6 - Edit: HDR

HDR 3-shot

Dark Rust - 2/11/12 – 4:09 PM - Bannack Ghost Town, Montana - f/5.0 - 1/200 - Canon EOS DIGITAL REBEL XT

Normal Rust - 2/11/12 – 4:09 PM - Bannack Ghost Town, Montana - f/5.0 - 1/100 - Canon EOS DIGITAL REBEL XT

Light Rust - 2/11/12 – 4:09 PM - Bannack Ghost Town, Montana - f/5.0 - 1/25 - Canon EOS DIGITAL REBEL XT

I took this shot right outside of the Mill. I pulled my three images into Photomatix, and merged them together. I used the Compressor - Deep Filter and messed around with the settings until I liked it.

HDR 1-shot

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

I took this shot in the Saloon. I pulled my image into Photomatix, and used the Enhancer - Black and White Filter. I then pulled just the slightest bit of color back into the image.

Blog 6 - Bannack Ghost Town

Portraits

Lining Up the Shot - 2/11/12 – 12:57 PM - Bannack Ghost Town, Montana - f/5.6 - 1/200 - Canon EOS DIGITAL REBEL XT

I was standing around, trying to figure out what to do next, when I decided to take some pictures of my classmates across the way. This one was my favorite. I did some adjustments in Camera Raw and then took it into Photoshop. I added Levels and Vibrance Adjustment layers.

Leavin' Home - 2/11/12 – 3:13 PM - Bannack Ghost Town, Montana - f/5.6 - 1/250 - Canon EOS DIGITAL REBEL XT

This image was part of the Bannack Shootout hour. I really liked the emotion in this shot. I took it into Camera Raw and emphasized some of the cool light that was already there and then took it into Photoshop. I added Levels and Vibrance Adjustment layers. No enhancements.

Freeze Action

Off to Neverland! - 2/11/12 – 11:51 PM - Bannack Ghost Town, Montana - f/9.0 - 1/100 - Canon EOS DIGITAL REBEL XT

We were trying to figure out what we could do to capture freeze motion...so we started jumping off the back of the truck. I just happened to capture this image after a few tries. :) I edited it in Camera Raw, and then took it into Photoshop. There, I added only a Levels layer.

Blur Action

Regrets - 2/11/12 – 12:29 PM - Bannack Ghost Town, Montana - f/32 - 3.2 - Canon EOS DIGITAL REBEL XT

Dustin decided to pose as our "ghost" for a couple shots, and I captured this one quite by accident. I was trying to adjust my camera settings and accidentally pushed my trigger. But, I liked how it turned out, so I did some adjustments in Camera Raw.

Reverse Shallow Depth

Window - 2/11/12 – 1:44 PM - Bannack Ghost Town, Montana - f/5.0 - 1/100 - Canon EOS DIGITAL REBEL XT

Shack - 2/11/12 – 1:44 PM - Bannack Ghost Town, Montana - f/5.0 - 1/125 - Canon EOS DIGITAL REBEL XT

I was wandering around the hotel when I took these shots. I already had some Reverse Shallow Depth shots, but I figured taking a few more wouldn't hurt. No edits.

Macro Abstract

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

It itches - 2/11/12 – 1:03 PM - Bannack Ghost Town, Montana - f/5.0 - 1/25 - Canon EOS DIGITAL REBEL XT

I took a TON of texture shots for this category. I really liked this image of the wheelbarrow that I took, and I dressed it in several different textures before deciding on the battered wall above. I took both images into Photoshop, and dragged the Green Channel from the Texture onto my image. I added a dark gold color fill with Overlay above the wheelbarrow, and reduced my opacity to 40%. Then I copied the texture layer and masked out both layers so that the texture only appeared on the actual wheel. My texture layers were on Normal, at 40% and 15% respectively. Then I added two Levels layers on Hard Light, both at 60% opacity.

Blog 5 - Edit: Enhancements

Enhancement

"Forlorn" - 2/5/12 - 4:20 PM - Rexburg, ID - f/5.6 - 1/2000 - Canon EOS DIGITAL REBEL XT

After adjusting the temperature in Camera Raw and using some adjustment brushes on her hair, I pulled the image into Photoshop. I started with the spot healing brush, cleaning up her skin and removing the dark circles under her eyes. Then I used the paint brush technique we were shown in class to smooth out her skin tone. I used Color Dodge to brighten her eyes, put some eyeshadow on her and some highlights in her hair. I used Color Burn for her mascara and to darken bits of her hair. I used a normal paintbrush for her mascara, blush and lips. Then I adjusted it all with Levels and Channel Mixer layers.

Replace Color

"Fashionista" - 2/5/12 - 4:20 PM - Rexburg, ID - f/5.0 - 1/1600 - Canon EOS DIGITAL REBEL XT

I did no prior adjustments on this image. I used quick select in photoshop to select Kimberly's shirt and the diamond on her cheek. I turned the fuzziness up to 100% and selected my bright green color.

Match Color

"Srsly?" - 2/5/12 – 4:15 PM - Rexburg, ID - f/5.0 - 1/1600 - Canon EOS DIGITAL REBEL XT
"Wheels" - 2/6/12 - 3:06 PM - Rexburg, ID - f/4.0 - 1/1600 - Canon EOS DIGITAL REBEL XT

I opened the two images in photoshop, with no previous adjustments on either image. With the motorcycle image active, I used Match Color as shown in class, basing my color match on the image of Jenny and Brooke. Then I added a Levels and a Vibrance layer in photoshop, masking out the trees and the building in the Vibrance layer, and then masking the trees and the teal car in the Levels layer.

Challenge

"spAde" - 2/5/12 – 4:09 PM - Rexburg, ID - f/5.0 - 1/2000 - Canon EOS DIGITAL REBEL XT

I didn't do any prior adjustments to this image. I took it right into photoshop and applied the Corey Barker Luminosity Tutorial. I altered the Alpha Channel layer just as he described, painted out the background, feathering it around Brooke, and used a purple/blue noise Angle Gradient on Brooke and the lettering. The font I used for "Spade" was Caviar Dreams.

Blog 5 - Portraits

"Spades' smile" - 2/5/12 - 4:09 PM - Rexburg, ID - f/5.0 - 1/2000 - Canon EOS DIGITAL REBEL XT

So I convinced my friends to let me use them as my victims. I had them dress in red and black and drew card symbols on their faces. I took several different shots of each of them, but I really liked Brooke's expression in this one. I did do a little editing in Camera Raw and some Levels adjustments in Photoshop, but nothing drastic.



"Dramatic Diamond" - 2/5/12 - 4:20 PM - Rexburg, ID - f/5.0 - 1/1600 - Canon EOS DIGITAL REBEL XT

I realized for the first time during this photoshoot that my camera can tip on it's side when mounted on the tripod. I was way excited to discover this and started taking some "tipped" shots of my models. I did a little bit of Camera Raw editing, and added Exposure, Levels and Brightness/Contrast layers to this image.



"Holy Snow" - 2/5/12 - 4:31 PM - Rexburg, ID - f/4.0 - 1/4000 - Canon EOS DIGITAL REBEL XT

Once I ran out of ideas, the girls got bored and started kicking around bits of snow. I turned my multi-shot on and managed to catch this one during their antics. I love the way the shattered snow halos around her foot, and I was very happy with the pose as well. Definitely a lucky shot. A little editing in Camera Raw and a Color Balance layer in Photoshop.



"No Straighter Face" - 2/5/12 - 4:13 PM - Rexburg, ID - f/5.0 - 1/2500 - Canon EOS DIGITAL REBEL XT

I brought my wand and sonic screwdriver out and they all started goofing off with them. I tried getting some posed shots, but they kept giggling, and I caught this shot by accident because they started giggling again right as I pushed the button. Camera Raw editing, and Levels, Vibrance, Color Balance levels in Photoshop.



"Are you ready?" - 2/5/12 - 4:15 PM - Rexburg, ID - f/4.5 - 1/1600 - Canon EOS DIGITAL REBEL XT

When I finally managed to get them to stop giggling and hold still, I got a few good shots of them posing. This one was my favorite. I really liked their expressions and the lighting fit well. I did a little bit of Camera Raw editing and cleaned up the edges of Brooke's lipstick.



"I Hope They Call Me on a Mission" - 2/6/12 - 3:00 PM - Rexburg, ID - f/4.0 - 1/1600 - Canon EOS DIGITAL REBEL XT

I was walking home from work and happened to have my camera on me when I spotted these two. I can only assume it was a brother and sister taking pictures, and the fact that he was dressed up made me think mission. I thought the girl's body language added a fun element to the shot. I edited it a bit in Camera Raw and added a Levels layer in Photoshop.