Bench...

[Bearface]

I saw this yesterday while I was shooting some location images for a design agency client. It'd been bright and sunny all day, but at this moment the sky became quite dramatic and imposing, and with the bench in the foreground I thought it framed rather nicely.

It's a single exposure which I've selectively adjusted using layers. Both the colours and contrast have been boosted using curves. Hopefully the slightly surreal and moody feel I was after comes across in the result, but if anyone has an opinion to offer, I'd be interested to hear it. Thanks

[Pol]

Re: Bench...

Well it's certainly surreal and moody - no doubt about that!!

I've recently been saying how this Summer feels "almost surreal" and how there seems to be a general feeling of impending doom and gloom, an end-of-the-world atmosphere of an approaching Armageddon. Admittedly I'm driving David nuts going on and on about it but that's how the strange and unpredictable weather and variable lighting is affecting me.

I feel you've encapsulated that mood in this particular image. A 'peaceful' place with a bench where we could normally sit and contemplate the surrounding scenery or watch the clouds go by - but the approaching storm threatens everything and heck knows if the bench, or any of us will still be around tomorrow.

Morbid in one sense but an overwhelming portrayal of the power of nature and the elements too.

It's a weird Summer. Spooky imho. Yep, you kinda summed up my overall mood with this picci.

Pol

[Autumn]

Re: Bench...

Hi Tim

I think the picture works well. There is such a lot in it but none is fighting for position.

The clarity is so good and sharp even to the skyline - and this is what I would like to ask you about.

When I do a selection I can usually see an obvious line between the earth and the sky - I can't on yours! Did you actually select right on the horizon, or did you do a loose selection for the sky? If so, how much did you feather it? Hope you don't mind me quizzing you, but I am not very good at selections and would like to improve.

[Tom]

Re: Bench...

Everything looks congested and compacted but it works a treat. There is incredible detail throughout and there's lots of evidence of your competence with the software. is this part of a bigger image?
That's my seat.

[Bearface]

Re: Bench...

... There is incredible detail throughout and there's lots of evidence of your competence with the software. is this part of a bigger image?

Thanks Tom. It's actually the original crop.

[Bearface]

Re: Bench...

Did you actually select right on the horizon, or did you do a loose selection for the sky? If so, how much did you feather it? Hope you don't mind me quizzing you, but I am not very good at selections and would like to improve.

When I'm working on single exposures to optimise the appearance of skies, I use loose selections - using the lasoo tool - to the very edges (where the sky meets the horizon) and then feather the full-res image by 100-200 pixels. Then, when I want to work on the lower image to enhance shadow detail etc., I don't simply invert the sky selection (coz that's how you get halos... ).......instead I make a loose selection with the lassoo tool well below the horizon line (by 3 or 4mm) and then feather that selection by around 80-120 pixels to ensure the adjustment will reach the edges without affecting the sky itself. I use multiple layers (up to three or four usually) so that I can recover some original detail either using the eraser tool or the opacity settings on each layer.

Obviously you need to experiment with the precise feather sizes for your camera's images, but a little trial and error should see you perfect it in no time.

[Bearface]

Re: Bench...

Morbid in one sense but an overwhelming portrayal of the power of nature and the elements too.

It's a weird Summer. Spooky imho. Yep, you kinda summed up my overall mood with this picci.

Thanks. I tend to take the dark route to most of the images I shoot

BTW, your comments made me think about this whole darkness thing...

There is very much a sense of foreboding and gloom around right now, but for me that's not necessarily something to fear or shy away from. The wind and the rains are rather like sadness and anger; they're just aspects of the climate which happen to be the polar opposites of gentle breezes and sunshine. Sure, if your house/village/town is flooded right now, you're going to be slightly upset and inconvenienced but if it hadn't happened, you'd appreciate normality of the pre-flood status-quo far less than you will in the future.

Thing is, good weather wouldn't be seen in such a positive way if that's all we ever had, in the same way that happiness and calmness would be meaningless as emotions if we didn't know sadness and anger............if that makes any sense..?

For me the extremes of climate are as critical to life as the extremes of emotion.......the bad weather (or in fact anything we perceive as negative or in some way unpleasant) merely provides us with something from which we can relate to, and then appreciate the positives; the contrasts are therefore fundamental to how we live.

[Caz]

Re: Bench...

The image is very striking, and I like it, but not sure why. I certainly don't have the know how to be able to edit a photo like that.

Did you darken the sky? When the sky is that dark round here there's no way there'd be such a light foreground. This is not a criticism, just trying to understand what you did - perhaps a bit late at night for me to be able to understand the ins and outs and editing software! I do have a very old version of Photoshop, just haven't got my head round it yet

[Pol]

Re: Bench...

Thanks. I tend to take the dark route to most of the images I shoot

BTW, your comments made me think about this whole darkness thing...

There is very much a sense of foreboding and gloom around right now, but for me that's not necessarily something to fear or shy away from. The wind and the rains are rather like sadness and anger; they're just aspects of the climate which happen to be the polar opposites of gentle breezes and sunshine. Sure, if your house/village/town is flooded right now, you're going to be slightly upset and inconvenienced but if it hadn't happened, you'd appreciate normality of the pre-flood status-quo far less than you will in the future.

Thing is, good weather wouldn't be seen in such a positive way if that's all we ever had, in the same way that happiness and calmness would be meaningless as emotions if we didn't know sadness and anger............if that makes any sense..?

For me the extremes of climate are as critical to life as the extremes of emotion.......the bad weather (or in fact anything we perceive as negative or in some way unpleasant) merely provides us with something from which we can relate to, and then appreciate the positives; the contrasts are therefore fundamental to how we live.

I know exactly what you mean - it's the same for me. I've more or less abandoned all thought of 'season' and Summer' and just accept each day as it comes. Spending time lying on the garden bench and watching the storms approach as I lie there flat on my back.



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Mind you - it was definitely the end of the world for about 200 slugs this week after we discovered they were eating the hedgehog food.

Pol

[Bearface]

Re: Bench...

The image is very striking, and I like it, but not sure why. I certainly don't have the know how to be able to edit a photo like that.

Did you darken the sky? When the sky is that dark round here there's no way there'd be such a light foreground. This is not a criticism, just trying to understand what you did - perhaps a bit late at night for me to be able to understand the ins and outs and editing software! I do have a very old version of Photoshop, just haven't got my head round it yet

The sky has had the contrast boosted (which darkens and lightens the shadows and paler tones), and the colours were altered in curves. You can do this in any version of Photoshop - even the early ones.

The sky was dark and foreboding in this direction, but behind me it was all fluffy white clouds and blue sky, so there was plenty of strong light still illuminating the foreground in the image. I've not lightened anything too much, although some detail has been brought up using the methods I described to Audrey earlier.

Thanks for your feedback

[Bearface]

Re: Bench...

Mind you - it was definitely the end of the world for about 200 slugs this week after we discovered they were eating the hedgehog food.

The end of this world, maybe. However many slugs are practising Buddhists and therefore go to their deaths in the knowledge that they'll be back as Siberian Tigers. Or clerks for Lambeth Council......

[Pol]

Re: Bench...

The end of this world, maybe. However many slugs are practising Buddhists and therefore go to their deaths in the knowledge that they'll be back as Siberian Tigers. Or clerks for Lambeth Council......

Well I'm about to go off and shovel up another dozen or so Council clerks that were daft enough to slither into the fallout from my salt sprinkler late last night.

They're horrible creatures - especially after being 'seasoned' so I'm sure you'll be pleased to know I won't be taking any pictures.

Pol

[Autumn]

Re: Bench...

When I'm working on single exposures to optimise the appearance of skies, I use loose selections - using the lasoo tool - to the very edges (where the sky meets the horizon) and then feather the full-res image by 100-200 pixels. Then, when I want to work on the lower image to enhance shadow detail etc., I don't simply invert the sky selection (coz that's how you get halos... ).......instead I make a loose selection with the lassoo tool well below the horizon line (by 3 or 4mm) and then feather that selection by around 80-120 pixels to ensure the adjustment will reach the edges without affecting the sky itself. I use multiple layers (up to three or four usually) so that I can recover some original detail either using the eraser tool or the opacity settings on each layer.

Obviously you need to experiment with the precise feather sizes for your camera's images, but a little trial and error should see you perfect it in no time.

Thanks so much for that. I have made a print and will have a go.

[Tinka]

Re: Bench...

Hi Bearface,
"Hopefully the slightly surreal and moody feel I was after comes across in the result" . It certainly does, you have succeeded in producing the image you envisaged. and I agree with the other sentiments posted.

[Jocelyn Walker]

Re: Bench...

The lovely summery, bright flowers & peaceful foreground are quite in contrast to the moody & forboding sky! I like that! Had you not had the bench in the foreground, the pic would've lost its appeal (IMHO) as there is so much Green! My eye is drawn to the very light meadow directly above the RHS of benchstrut, between trees & village, which I can imagine was in sunlight, therefore, I was expecting more darker areas elsewhere, where the ominous clouds had hidden the sun!