Category: Photoshop

Experimenting with Photomatix and HDR

Jason7 Comments

For a while now I’ve been meaning to devote some time to experimenting with HDR – specifically comparing Photomatix and Photoshop in their production of HDR photographs.  The industry preference toward the former is there for a very good reason.  Photomatix produces much better results.  Just look at this final shot (be sure to click the image for a larger view – the blog restrictions on size really don’t do it justice):

final_hdr_blog

Now, in the interests of full disclosure, I did do some additional post processing work even after the HDR processing to get the above results.  But Photomatix was superior for a number of reasons.    For starters – Photomatix gives you options in what type of output you want.  Here are the two results, side-by-side, that I got from Photomatix:

sidebyside

The first was the result of  processing from the Tone Compressor tab and the latter of Details Enhancer tab processing.  As you can see, the first produced a smoother sky, but left the foreground a little flat, while the latter had more texture and, well… dynamic range to it.  So, I decided to go with the latter in my post processing.  The Photoshop alternative, however, produced something even less desirable than either of the above.  Take a look:

ps_hdr

Not only are the luminosity levels less interesting, but there’s literally no tone curve application.  No color, no tone curve mapping, and decidedly no interest when you consider the options from Photomatix.  I am in the process of putting together a tutorial of how I got the final result, so be on the lookout for that in the next few days.  In the meantime though, I’d like to take a moment to say “Thanks” to fellow NAPP member,  Elizabeth Gast (a.k.a. Firgs,) for the kind thoughts she has over on her blog – Design by Firgs – where she talks up a shot I took a while ago that is premiering on hew new series “Accidentally Awesome” today, so be sure to stop over there and give her a shout-out!  Until tomorrow – Happy Shooting!

The train rides again (take two)…

Jason7 Comments

For today’s post you’ve got a special treat coming, because the train rides again!  If you recall, earlier this week I posted the results of a little miniature project where I tried some varying depth of field, angles, and such on a model train.  The project results didn’t yield anything breath-taking in picture, but I did learn where the best areas for focusing are on trains.  I found out what appealed to me, what appealed to others, and filed it away.

Then, as luck would have it – I had my camera with me today on the way home from work (there were some other trains I wanted to capture on my way in – but the clouds and lighting weren’t as conducive as I’d hoped – plus I would have been late…).  A now-defunct set of boxcars were sitting on an unused rail near the house, and as I was driving down the access road, I saw this scene with new appreciation. I felt compelled to stop and try my hand at a life-sized model!

The results are much better in my opinion.  The new problem – post processing.  As I always try to keep an open mind, after a little post work on exposure, sharpness and levels I said to myself “Wonder how this would look as a black and white…”  How is this a problem, you ask?  I like both!  So, it’s the new poll here – which do you like?

bwtrain

colortrain

Feel free to share your thoughts on which should be the “keeper” and why in the comments!  Meanwhile, enjoy my latest choice from WTD as we head into the weekend…

Happy Friday and Happy shooting!  We’ll see y’all back here on Monday! 🙂

How do you like to sound?

Jason1 Comment

In preparation for the next podcast, due in no small part to a technical difficulty with Garage Band, I’ve set up a dedicated computer and recording space (call it my dedicated recording studio) and the audio quality is off the charts better than anything I’ve done before.  Ironically, the new topic for this weeks podcast is also about sound – the sound of shutters and how they can impact the feel of the camera, and how they can effect a moment is significant enough to warrant consideration.  Make sure you tune in for this one from the good folks over at Personal Life Media to get all the news, info, and latest from Learning Digital Photography!

Here’s the rest of the show notes:

Here’s the links from news items I talked about:

Listener Questions

  • How do you fix the Canon 99 Error?
  • What does the term “sync speed” mean?
  • What does kerning refer to in typography?

Listen in to the podcast over at Personal Life Media for the answers and full details on all the show segments.  In the meantime, what does your shutter sound like?   It doesn’t even have to be a Canon camera, listen to your camera whether it’s Canon Nikon, Olympus, Sony, Pentax, Panasonic, Leica, Hasselblad, etc! Find out why in the podcast up now over at Personal Life Media!  Thanks for stopping by the blog, and for all your kind words during the flu bug bout.  Enjoy the podcast, then go out and do y’all some shootin’!  See you back here tomorrow!

Black and White Conversion Options

Jason4 Comments

About a year ago, I put together a list of my top five favorite ways to convert images to black and white.  As technology has advanced though, more options have become available, and I have learned a lot more.  So, in the spirit of keeping the blog topics up-to-date and current, I would like to re-visit this here today.  (This is also coming on the heels of the Black-and-White issue I finally finished of Rangefinder Magazine!)

  1. Camera Raw Conversion – If you aren’t working in camera raw, here is a big reason to think about it – converting images to black and white in camera raw allows you to make a conversion while retaining access and malleability to all image data. The camera raw dialogs that you should use to make conversions here include the saturation slider, then exposure and shadow sliders, followed by the Brightness slider. Don’t forget to play with the contrast slider a little to enhance the effect as desired. Last but not least, for advanced adjustments, the calibration tab can have effects similar to the Channel Mixer.
  2. Black and White Conversion – With Photoshop CS3 and now in CS4, the good folks over at Adobe have added a Black and White conversion  option in the image adjustments menu.  This is pure gold because you can duplicate the image before making adjustments and apply the effect to it’s own layer.  You can also add back in tonal values for specific b/w effects that previously were pretty much out of reach without many many edits, layer adjustments, masks and much much more.
  3. Channel Mixer – with your image open in Photoshop (7.0 or higher), you can select a specific color set you want to remove from or add emphasis to in an image. The traditional color sets or red, green and blue are available, as well as a constant (think brightness), and a check box for monochrome.
  4. Hue/Saturation Adjustment – whether as a dedicated layer, or directly to an image, the Hue/Saturation allows you to account for different intensity levels of a wide range of colors, from Red, Yellow, Green, Cyan, Blue, and Magenta. You can also adjust the range of color within one of the default ranges for each set by adjusting the left and right limiters of the color wheel at the bottom of the dialog window.
  5. Grayscale Conversions – most black-and-white images aren’t true black and whites, because a little color from a specific range is added back in for emphasis. To make an image truly a b/w, it would only have a range of black and white. This can be done using the grayscale option in Photoshop. Often, this is used as the last step in a digital approach to black and white photography so that saturation and brightness level loss is minimized.

So, what have I added and what have I removed?  The Black and White conversion method is the latest addition, and I jettisoned in-camera conversions.  While pretty much all cameras have the in-camera option to take images in black-and-white, as I have crawled my way up the learning curve, I am cognizant of the fact that if you lose image data in-camera, there is no getting it back afterward.

Well, that’s it – the new and improved post on Black and White conversion options!  If you’d like to read the original post, that can be pulled up from the archives here.  In the meantime, feel free to share your favorite techniques for black and white conversions here in the comments or via email.  As always, Happy Shooting and we’ll see you back here again tomorrow!

Too much time in Photoshop?

Jason2 Comments

(Courtesy of the NAPP forums) You know you are spending too much time in Photoshop when:

  1. You go into a sandwich shop and order a Gallery Wrap
  2. You wonder whether “Reduce Noise” will work on the kids
  3. You look for the healing brush to fix your drywall
  4. Your idea of hitting the snooze button involves cloning the digits because it’s quicker
  5. When accused of gaining weight, you say it’s layers you choose not to discard
  6. When “Vanishing Point” becomes something you hope can be applied to your in-laws
  7. When “Sharpen More” is something you wish you could beat your students with
  8. You hear about a stimulus plan on the news and wish it had a “Auto-Enhance” or “More Accurate” option attached to it
  9. Your write-in candidate for the last presidential election was “A Configurator Panel”
  10. You try to move something by just putting your hand in front of it and dragging…

I know this is just a tip of the iceberg – let your creativity and originality shine through in the comments!  Until tomorrow – Happy Shooting!

HDR, Web links, and a podcast!

Jason3 Comments

fissure2

So, this last weekend I went on the photo meetup group outing for the month of February into Eldorado State Park, south of Boulder, and had many an opportunity to capture some landscape and macro work. Some great views were had and I only hope that they all come out as well as this one did. While hiking up a trail of slippery snow and ice (it was cold out Saturday morning), I saw this fissure that was pretty intense looking because it was only partially lit. I thought about it for a second and decided to bracket some exposures to see if it would turn out with some HDR massaging. Not only did it turn out better than I would have thought, I was also very pleased with how Photomatix did with this. I would highly recommend this software to anyone interested in HDR work. Not only is it more intuitive than Photoshop, the results were much more gratifying! You can buy Photomatix for PS, Lightroom and for either Windows or a Mac over at www.HDRsoft.com.

Some other web links I learned about recently also include www.fotoblur.com and www.usefilm.com Both are much more cognizant and respective of photography copyright than other social and photo networking sites like Flickr and Facebook (we all know about the Facebook Terms of Service fiasco, right?). One thing I like about both Fotoblur and Flickr is that you are limited in how many images you can upload daily. This requires you to be more careful about what you publish, and as a result, you are more thoughtful and objective of what work is worth posting and sharing online.

Last but not least, the podcast that I had intended to put out last week was delayed for a few days as I put the finishing touches up on a home improvement project. (We finished out one of the basement rooms – expect to see some photos on that makeover forthcoming!) The good news is that not only is the basement room on the verge of completion, but that the podcast is up for this week. Naturally, the title of the podcast will match the blog post title, as the show notes follow closely to todays content. Stop on over to Personal Life Media for the show, or pick it up in iTunes! (Don’t forget to leave your thoughts in the review section of iTunes too…the more the merrier!)

Until tomorrow, when I’ll have some more HDR shots to share, keep on shooting – hope all your shots are good ones!

Podcast: Play in new window | Download

License Lockout

Jason4 Comments

First off, a bit of quick news about the blog in general:  the layout has changed.  Can anyone tell the difference?  It’s a rather significant one, so hopefully it won’t go unnoticed! 🙂  Chime in and that’s your chance at winning the Think Tank Photo Streetwalker bag I reviewed a few weeks ago right here on the blog!

So, back on today’s post topic, as part of my maintenance routine that I recently posted, last evening I was doing some of my extended “IT” maintenance on my Windows computer.  As a part of that maintenance, I was trying to optimize my hard drive performance, and thus resorted to cleaning out temp files, cache files, history files, restore points, and other sundry stuff.  A defrag procedure on the hard drive, and I was back up to some pretty screaming speeds again.  Puffing out the chest at getting a 5 year old Dell running a 2.4 Ghz Celeron processor, Windows XP, and 2 GB of RAM to move that fast without over-clocking, I checked off on what I thought was a job well done.

Then I opened Photoshop:

CS3 Error

Uh oh – it seems I cleaned things out a little too much.  Well, since I have diligently kept all my media, documentation, license#’s and other information in multiple places, I was easily able to find the needed materials to re-install.  But, here’s the thing – that would require importing all my actions again, re-installing other elements like Noise Ninja, and then also go in and customize all the features I like (scrolling with my mouse to zoom in and out of the image, curves menu with more lines, etc.)  Who wants to do all that?  Well, not me!  So, off to Google I went.

That five minutes on Google doing some research saved me probably two hours of software maintenance time.  Adobe has a neat little utility that can be downloaded and run when things like this happen to restore your licensing info without having to go through the entire re-installation.  Not sure what it does or how it does it, but the utility is very handy, so I thought to share it with the reading audience today.  Here’s the download link, and supporting reading materials.

Licensing Service Update

The underlying point here though, is that even the extensive maintenance I itemized the other day does not cover everything.  Go into Photoshop, copy your preferences down via image pastes into a Word doc or other such format.  Make a copy of your plugins folder external to PS – the same goes for Actions, noise removal, automation tasks, brushes, etc., etc., etc.!  With as advanced and complex has an application like Photoshop has become – you can save a ton of time if you take some proactive measures.

What do you save from your Photoshop configuration settings?  Share your ideas in the comments!  As always, thanks for tuning in, keep on shooting, and we’ll see you back here tomorrow – Thursday Thoughts returns again with Chris Breedlove!

The Meat is in the Maintenance

Jason7 Comments

With another week come to a close, I got a late start in recording and putting together the podcast for today, so it’s going up a tad late.  However, as the old saying goes, good things come to those who wait.  This week, I look at some of the photo news, relevant to Canon users, photographers, and just some good old news tidbits.  In the “meat and potatoes”of the week, I look at what should be included in an extensive maintenance schedule for any photographer, including cleaning, software, firmware, batteries, data, backups – literally the whole schmear!  It’s quite the meaty helping on maintenance, so be sure to bookmark, download, listen, and whatever it is others do when enjoying podcasts as this is sure to be useful info for lots of people!

I also remind everyone of how you can win a Think Tank Photo Streetwalker!  This is a $150 value bag, and there are still a few opportunities left to participate in the random drawing.  Make sure you tune into the third segment to find out how (sorry, but only domestic US residents are eligible…) this can be yours for a simple song!  (Hint:  Make a post to the blog and you will probably be entered to win!)

Finally, I take a few listener questions from Josh and LaRae (thanks for the comments and email), as well as your weekly photo tip.  I made same changes to the recording process that I think have cleaned it up quite a bit, so I’d really like to hear some feedback on what people think of the difference in audio quality this go around!  Please don’t be shy, and make sure you let iTunes know they’ve dropped the feed!

Have a good weekend everyone.  Happy shootin, and we’ll see you back here Monday morning!

Podcast: Play in new window | Download

Thursday Thoughts with…Jeff Revell

Jason3 Comments

Recently, I had the honor of sitting down (well, emailing, but you get the idea) with none other than Jeff Revell.  As most of you probably know, Jeff is a pretty well-established photographer and recently has been enjoying some notariety for his blog on Photowalking, appropriately titled Photowalk Pro (definitely one for your feed aggregators).  He gave some great thoughts and insights on the state of digital photography.  Thanks in advance to Jeff for taking the time to participate in the Thursday Thoughts sereies here at CB!

Q:  Everyone always wants to know some of the basics, so let’s get a few things out of the way at once here…1. How long have you been a photographer?

A:  I have been into photography for over 25 years.  I first began taking an interest in high school and have been in love with photography ever since.  I think it had something to do with all that fixer I inhaled.

Q:  Canon, Nikon, Olympus, Sony, or some other brand?

A:  I see you changed the question to include other camera brands.  I started off learning with a Pentax K1000, the king of old school photography classes.  From there I moved to a Minolta, a Canon, and finally Nikon for the past 20 years or so.  I have recently been working with some Canon models, specifically the 50D and I have to admit that the more I use it, the more I love it.

Q:  Heh, yeah, that’s thanks to Andy Smith of Virtual Realia.  To that end, let’s cover all the computer options:  Mac, PC, or Linux?

A:  I had been a PC user since the DOS days and then migrated to Windows from there.  I’m just a big techno-nerd at heart and love building my own systems.  I got a Mac notebook about 3 years ago and now it is my predominate platform – Not a fanboy but I do love my MacBook Pro.

Q:  Sounds a lot like the path I’ve been taking – although I do find myself bouncing back and forth between Mac and PC a lot these days.  Anyway, moving on:  Chocolate, Vanilla, or Strawberry?

A:  Definitely a chocolate person.

Q:  Excellent taste!  Moving into a little more granularity, photographers often enjoy hearing helpful and constructive critiques of their work, as we are aware of how much we can grow from it.  What was the singular most useful critique or comment you’ve ever had on work you’ve shared publicly?

A:  This one is easy.  The best advice I ever received about my work was to only show your best stuff. Everyone shoots lame shots; it’s part of the process of getting the image that you want.  The key is to not show all the ducks and simply show your swans.

Q:  Who said it?

A:  My buddy Scott Kelby

Q:  I think I’ve heard of him before!  🙂  Isn’t he into photography too or something like that?  Just kidding of course…  Anyway, back to the subject of critiquing work:  If someone was asking you for an honest critique of their work, what 3 factors would you look at most (excluding friendships or family relatives, we’re talking professional or fellow photographer-types here)?

A:  Wow, that’s a tough one.  I’m much harder on myself than I ever would be on someone else.  I think the first thing I look for in a shot is the composition.  How did the photographer use the elements in the image to convey their intent?  Second would be their processing.  Is it done with a scalpel or a chainsaw?  Finally, did they use sound technique when taking the image, things like proper aperture, shutter speed, lens selection, things along those lines.
All I can say is that I am so glad that I have never been asked to critique the work of others for fear of crushing their spirit and enthusiasm.

Q:  I guess that means I shouldn’t ask for a critique or anything on that vein then, eh?  How about war stories?  Got any from field shoots or outings that you can or would be willing to share?

A:  This one time, in band camp…  oops, wrong story.  I am recalling a trip I took to Arizona with my buddies Scott and Dave.  We covered some serious ground in just 3 day, traveling from Phoenix to Page, to Monument Valley, to the Grand Canyon, and back to Phoenix.  It was one of the best shooting trips I have ever taken, thanks in large part to having my friends along to share the experience.  One outing in Page took us on a 3-mile hike in the high desert to photograph the Wave.  This was in August mind you and it was HOT!  We climbed steep sandy hills and rocky outcrops along the way but it was so worth it once we finally reached our destination.  One of the shots that came from that hike ended up gracing Scott’s 7-Point System book.  If there is a moral in there somewhere, I think it would be that hard work and a lot of sweating can really pay off.

Q:  Hey, I own that book!  Cool, I didn’t know that was your shot!  Guess I should read the credits more carefully, eh?  Sorry, I tend to ramble…  Moving right along, with Photoshop becoming so powerful as a way to even create amazing digital imagery, it could almost be said that the camera could eventually not even be a needed component to create imagery.   With that pre-text in mind, if you had to choose between the camera or the software as the only way to create, which would it be and why?

A:  Well, since I don’t have near the creative/artistic abilities like Fay Sirkis, Bert Monroy,  or Cory Barker, I would have to go with the camera.  Those folks have some seriously crazy skills and create beautiful images from a blank canvas using illustrative software.  I, on the other hand require a piece of glass and a shutter button to create.

Q:  Well, I don’t know about that – I’ve read some of your HDR tutorials, which indicate you are pretty skilled with Photoshop!  Anyway, do you have any final thoughts you’d like to share about the state of photography or any catch phrases that you keep in mind when shooting?

A:  I believe that we are living in renaissance period for photography.  Not since the invention of the process has so much changed so rapidly.  With the introduction of powerful software tools like Photoshop and the development of the digital camera, the average person has more creative tools at their disposal than ever before.  The only problem is that tools don’t make pictures, people do.  My advice for those that are just starting out is to not get caught up in all of the technical wizardry but rather learn the craft from the ground up.  Because even though there have been a multitude of advancements in the technical realm of photography, they aren’t worth squat unless you learn how to leverage them to your advantage.  Never stop learning.

Great advice and insights from Jeff Revell.  Please take a moment to stop over at his blog, Photowalk Pro, to check out everything he has to offer.  Thanks again Jeff for taking the time to participate in the Thursday Thoughts series here.  Until tomorrow all, Happy Shooting!  Hope all your shots are good ones!

The creative versus the communicative process

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The latest podcast episode has been published and in this week’s episode I talk about a new podcast to hit the airwaves – Digital Photography Life, hosted by none other than Scott Sherman and Michael Stein.  If these names sound familiar it’s because I have talked about them and their podcast before when they used to host The Digital Photography Life.  Tune in to the podcast here to listen to the details  Their show notes are posted on Scott’s blog, which can be found here, and of course, their press release announcing the show, can be read here.

The podcast also raises an interesting question about the disconnect between creative thinking versus communicative thinking and looks at the disconnect that often occurs between these two mindsets.  I’ve not heard anyone talk about this specifically before, so would be interested especially in reader thoughts on this particular subject!

Last but not least, I also look at some of the more exciting things that were a part of Photoshop User Magazine’s latest issue (December 2008) including the Gonzo Gear Guide from Scott Kelby, and the 100 Greatest Photoshop tips!  Of course the show, as always, is rounded out with a few Q&A, and a Road Tip for you.  So, download the latest to your iPod, MP3 player or listen on your commutes…

In the meantime, Happy Shooting, and we’ll see you back here tomorrow!

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