Mini Challenge #105 -- A Post-Processing Challenge

ghinson

Thrilled to have won the Pink Floyd challenge. It won me some points with the wife, who is the Pink Floyd fan in the house.

I am also happy because I have been hoping to try something new in these Mini Challenges. Pursuant to the discussions in the following two threads, I want to see if a Post-Processing challenge will work in this format:

Here,

and HERE.

Here's how I am going to do this. I have chosen two of my images, as below, with links to a hidden page on my smugmug site where you can download the full-resolution original. You can use either and/or both images. Your task, should you choose to accept it, is to take these images and work some magic on them. You can do whatever you want with them. No limitations, except, I need to at least recognize the original image in your final product. You can play it straight and simply perfect the image using the typical tools such as curves, contrast, noise reduction, etc. Or you can use the image (or part of the image) as a part of an entirely new digital collage involving your own images (use your own images, not images from the internet).

Extra credit for clearly explaining what you did and how you did it.

Here are the images, along with what I did to them back when I took them:

1. Great Point Light -- original


Go HERE to download a working copy.

2. Great Point Light -- edited


3. Brant Point Light -- original


Go HERE to download a working copy.

4. Brant Point Light -- edited


As per usual, here are the rules. You can enter 1 to 3 versions of your editing exercises. Do a "plain jane" one, and a "get crazy with it" version, if you like.

Mini-Challenge #105 will end Sun, Sept 19th 2010 at Midnight (EST).

racer

I will give this a try, not sure if I totally understand though? Pretty much anything that includes part of your shot?


Might have went a little overboard by adding the red-tailed hawk .
1st step, created new file, 6000x4243pix.
Layer 1, lighthouse, used magic wand to select the sky (hold down shift key to make multiple selections), then I used the magic eraser to erase each selection. To erase the grass, I used a wacom tablet and roughly erased with the eraser tool.
Layer 2, the ground, I erased the sky by using the magic wand, eraser, and tablet. Next, I used the move tool to position the lighthouse
Layer 3, the sky, just positioned it behind everything
Layers 4,5,6 are the three hay bales, opend image as a separate file, individually selected the bales and used edit-copy, then paste
Layer 7, magic wand to select the hawk, copy and paste
Next, I adjusted brightness and contrast individually to each layer, then layers-flatten image to flatten everything, next was the b&w action (downloaded for free online), then a hefty amount of sharpening


2nd, just changed the sky on this one (and that little spec is a eagle, lol)


I will sneak in my last one here, thought I would give the second image a try, everything I added I painted with pen and tablet. I used 6 layers for the stars, each layer I painted some stars, then cloned them into bigger patchs. I got a bit crazy, not sure how many layers I used

ghinson

racer wrote: »

I will give this a try, not sure if I totally understand though? Pretty much anything that includes part of your shot?[/IMG]

Nice start. You have the idea. You can use as much or as little of these shots you want, though the ultimate goal is to enhance the original images.

tinamarie52

Thank you greg!!
I'm so excited to see this mini. When I proposed this to Sean last Spring, it got polar responses. Someone suggested that it be done in the mini challenge and here it is.

To add to what Greg has posted for rules,... it would help those of us who are just starting to build their PP skils if you would tell us how you approached the make-over. If you used 5 images, what tools did you use to combine them? Did the order make a difference. It is your nuances that will help everyone out.

I can't wait to join in! I hope some of our more seasoned PP'ers will come out to play.

Thanks Greg!

Chris

JAG

Ok....you didn't state how much pp is allowed so if I crossed the threshold here please let me know. Here is my first entry and the process (to the best that I can remember) using psp2x but can be done in PS or CS4 with modifications.

duplicate original layer,
on layer 2... effects>line effects>find all,
layer 2... adjust>brightness/contrast>threshold, adjust this so that you get the most lines without being too dark.
layer 2 fade layer to let original show through
layer 1 (original)...adjust saturation to be brighter then run the standard pointalist script that comes with the program(psp2x).
create a new raster layer which will be layer 3 but be between 1 and 2. Clone new cloud image from a different image onto this layer.
layer 3...clarify and saturate color. effects>artistic effects>polerize
create a new raster that will be on top of layer 2 which we will call layer 4.
Layer 4 clone on girl and dog and saturate and clarify. Remove any unwanted pixels using the eraser brush. In this case the image was of a large woman in a very skimpy sundress...I resized her to be more child like and lengthened the dress and removed the cell phone from her hand and drew in a stick.
Layer 1 using the burn brush I put shadows benieth the images of the girl and dog.
layer 2 I used a eraser brush that had a marble texture and erased areas to bring out more saturated color from the layer 1 while giving the image texture like a painting.
merge all layers. then drew in the birds using my wacom tablet pen (although it can be done with a mouse and some talent).
added a mask layer that had smudged edges. merged all layers again.
Added a canvas texture that came with the program.
1. The Brewing Storm...



2.End of the day...

ghinson

Very nice. I can see that for sale in local stores!

travelways

2 fantastic entries already, but JAG's is a real beauty!!! clap

SeascapeS

Oh cool! I hope I can get to this one. I'm nuts with the Mega.

dlscott56

racer, I now understand how you got that screen name! Gorgeous entry in record time.

JAG

thank you greg and tatiana for your comments! I have added my second entry to my original post.

travelways

JAG wrote: »

thank you greg and tatiana for your comments! I have added my second entry to my original post.

:jawdrop


* I never used this symbol (above) before, but I feel that this is the only way to express your incredible second entry:D

JAG

Unfortunately I realized too late that I got over exuberant on that last entry as awesome as it might of been. The stellar image was not mine but one that I had as wall paper on my computer. Some reason I just got over excited about adding something spectacular. For those who would like to see the image you can view it at this LINK . Again..sorry I forgot which forum I was on. I use to do composit competitions years ago using anything I had a right to use, but in keeping with the challenges here on dgrin, we should only use that in which we shot...with the exception of Gregs images above for this challenge only.

slpollett

Wow, JAG, that second entry was (is) totally awesome. (I like the first one you posted also.)

I'm impressed with your creativity--something I definitely lack. That plus my minimal ps skills will cause me to sit out this round, but I'm really loving what you and the others are doing with Greg's photos.

Keep 'em coming!!

Sherry

brancaleone

Mini challenge #105
Sorry, and I might be wrong but I would have called this mini challenge "show me how good you are with Photoshop." And I believe that pp should help to correct minor blemishes and slightly refine the image as whole but not turning a picture upside down, the sun becoming the moon and the day the night.

Sorry, again.

ghinson

Gabriele, I do not entirely disagree with you. In my opinion, how much or how little you do to a photo in editing depends entirely on what the image is meant to do. If you're taking a picture for journalistic or editorial reasons, then very little should be altered, maybe even less than the corrections you mentioned. If your goal is to create a piece of art that someone may want to hang on their wall, then the only thing that matters is what the outcome is. Sure, call it something else besides a photograph if you like, digital composite, digital art.

I would suggest you take these photos, which were imperfect out of the camera, and edit them as you would your own. I am completely open to the idea of someone taking these and simply, elegantly, making them better photographs.

No need to apologize.

racer

brancaleone wrote: »

Sorry, and I might be wrong but I would have called this mini challenge "show me how good you are with Photoshop." And I believe that pp should help to correct minor blemishes and slightly refine the image as whole but not turning a picture upside down, the sun becoming the moon and the day the night.

I was under the impression that this was just all for fun I wouldnt normally make such changes to a image, but was just having some fun with it.
I think JAG image can very well be considered art, and wouldnt look out of place beside a bunch of paintings. I am waiting for someone else to jump in here with a photo to top it

JAG

slpollett wrote: »

Wow, JAG, that second entry was (is) totally awesome. (I like the first one you posted also.)

I'm impressed with your creativity--something I definitely lack. That plus my minimal ps skills will cause me to sit out this round, but I'm really loving what you and the others are doing with Greg's photos.

Keep 'em coming!!

Sherry

Thank you Sherry. I wish you wouldn't sit out. I can withdraw my images if they keep people from trying. The point is to play with what you have. That is how I learned to do this. I never took a class or anything. Just bought a psp 9 back in 2004 and played with settings and all. Most of the stuff that I create is by accident. But I am not afraid of trying because the best creations come from playing. Its quite relaxing for me.

brancaleone...I agree with what Greg has written. Not all will see the images the same way. My editing and composing of images actually make larger sales for me than my actual photographs. Someday when I ever get ambitious enough I will have a collection of my work up somewhere in one place for sale vs the auctions and 'gifts' that they are now being bought for. Its all good!

SeascapeS

Yes - fun! I've been having fun for the past hour and a half playing with the lighthouse. It's taken me a very long time (years) to get the hang of some PS components, so if any of you are not that familiar with it, use this as a good excuse to play. The best way to get better is to mess around with it. It's a challenge - challenge yourself. There is nothing at stake here.

brancaleone

Mini Challenge #105

ghinson wrote: »

Gabriele, I do not entirely disagree with you. In my opinion, how much or how little you do to a photo in editing depends entirely on what the image is meant to do. If you're taking a picture for journalistic or editorial reasons, then very little should be altered, maybe even less than the corrections you mentioned. If your goal is to create a piece of art that someone may want to hang on their wall, then the only thing that matters is what the outcome is. Sure, call it something else besides a photograph if you like, digital composite, digital art.

I would suggest you take these photos, which were imperfect out of the camera, and edit them as you would your own. I am completely open to the idea of someone taking these and simply, elegantly, making them better photographs.

No need to apologize.

Greg,
Its not the amount of work you do to a picture but rather the idea of working on someone else original work that do not convince me. Do you understand what I mean?
I can't imagine a Master Photographer or even a Sunday Photographer having some body else have his/her images manipulated by another photographer.

Just my personal opinion.

Good night.

slpollett

I can withdraw my images if they keep people from trying.

Don't you dare!!

I am totally loving what you and the others are doing with Greg's images. I am in awe! Don't let me (or anyone else) stop you from displaying your awesomeness.

I probably won't enter this mini because: a) I have zero creativity and you really have to have an idea to start with, b) I have minimal ps skills even if I had any ideas, and c) I have very little time right now to play. I probably won't get to the main dss challenge this time either unless I am accidentally lucky, lol. :cry

I really like this idea of everyone taking one picture and working some ps magic on it to see the results. This is a really cool challenge theme and I'm glad to see it.

Sherry

aj986s

This challenge is pretty cool. I'm still trying to learn PS, and how to do more & better things with it. I'm always intrigued by the design ideas that pop up now & then, like OOB, miniaturization, and tiny planets. I know this is a lame example, but it was the first idea that popped into my head.

I tried doing the tiny planet idea. Here's a list of what I tried to do:

1. Cropped the original image to get a square size.
2. Inverted the image (in accord with instructions for making a tiny planet).
3. Used Polar Coordinates filter to make the circular image. However, discovered that the lighthouse got too distorted in the process. So ended up cropping a copy of the original lighthouse onto the sphere.
4. Used a sky background behind the tiny planet.
5. Erased the glass areas at the top of the lighthouse.
6. Cloned a star burst and inserted it behind the lighthouse, to appear as though emanating from the lighthouse.

I call it: Outpost.


I don't know if this meets the original intent of the Post Processing challenge, but I thought it was a fun exercise.

gecko0

brancaleone wrote: »

Greg,
Its not the amount of work you do to a picture but rather the idea of working on someone else original work that do not convince me. Do you understand what I mean?
I can't imagine a Master Photographer or even a Sunday Photographer having some body else have his/her images manipulated by another photographer.

Just my personal opinion.

Good night.

The discussion has valid points on both sides, but not in the context of this mini-challenge. The OP specifically stated entries can have an much or as little modification as desired, as long as the original image is still a part of the finished product. It's all in fun and allows people to learn advanced PP techniques. If you can master some of the crazy, heavy-handed PP, the "regular" photo editing becomes simple (and possibly improved).

I think the discussion of how much or how little PP should be done is for another thread and this one should be left to the OP's discretion.

liflander

This is a cool challenge! I agree that in this context its all about fun, learning, and creating great images. Nothing wrong with that!
Also, it may give the original photographer new ideas for their own work.
In fact, doing a mini where there is a mass exchange (buddies?) Could be very cool.

LiflanderPhotography.com

PupWeb

brancaleone wrote: »

Greg,
Its not the amount of work you do to a picture but rather the idea of working on someone else original work that do not convince me. Do you understand what I mean?
I can't imagine a Master Photographer or even a Sunday Photographer having some body else have his/her images manipulated by another photographer.

Just my personal opinion.

Good night.

If you're good enough you can call yourself a Photoshop Wizard & there are forums and groups setup to better your skills at this art.

Having a Photoshop wizard manipulate other photographers original photograph is common place in the "big time". Every major publication does this and a lot of big name photographers have full time PS wizards on staff. Anne Geddes doesn't do her PS, however the final image is according to her artistic vision. Besides editing an original photo is nothing new it has been done ever since photography began. The main thing here is everybody in photography has an interpretation of what makes a good image be it photoshop'd or not as can be said about every viewer. Why not open your horizons to the wonderful possibilities of your imagination using these digital tools

As long as you have the permission of the original photographer of course.

WhatSheSaw

Cool challenge! Excellent entries so far! I am looking forward to participating, but first I've got to come up with something for my first Mega. And I already have an idea for this one.

SeascapeS

Okay, here's one...a bit bizarre, but I'm in a mood:

Outta This World





5 layers

jwear

brancaleone wrote: »

Sorry, and I might be wrong but I would have called this mini challenge "show me how good you are with Photoshop." And I believe that pp should help to correct minor blemishes and slightly refine the image as whole but not turning a picture upside down, the sun becoming the moon and the day the night.

Not to be sorry , Photoshop and photography the same ---NO! Do those pictures look like a photograph or a painting dunno that is what I thought. I do mostly wildlife so doing this would be for me wrong . I am sure that the playing with this for a lot of folks is fun but for me I love being outside with my camera and hate sitting a computer ,maybe it is just my age

lizzard_nyc

Some seriously awesome entries already--lovin the crazy pp work .

Ok here is my contribution.
Edited on Picnik.

Some steps--I process like I cook (which isn't always a good thing).

Cropped square
Desaturated completely
Converted to B&W
Cloned out the moon
Played with the adjustable threshhold
Framed



I might have missed a step or two--I did this two days ago, but smugmug was blocked at work yesterday:( and then my picknik was down lastnight--so here I am now.

Thanks for the challenge!

Adding another one. I didn't know we could add textures.
So pretty basic editing.
cropped square
desaturated some
added a filter (slight sepia) played with the tones
added the texture, played with the tones on that.

dlscott56

Recently purchased some NIK software and thought this was a perfect opportunity to try and learn how to use it. Added structure to the clouds and grassy areas, some contrast adjustments to try and define the clouds a bit, and warmed it up some. I'll have to work on this a bit more as a tool to learn some new techniques. Also a slight crop.

StueveShots

Wow, some great fun stuff! Well done, everyone!

Okay, here's my first take--and don't worry...I know it might go way too far for the competition, but it is fun to play around and learn more about layers and masks and blending modes. And I just wanted to share!

This is inspired by the old 1930s WPA posters advertising natural wonders and good virtues. (Clouds from one of my photos.)

Ah...and forgive the words...it just doesn't look like a WPA poster to me without words...I made them up, of course. I don't know if the picture is really from Nantucket, but that what google suggested!



Okay. Second experiment. Liz's photograph reminded me of a really old postcard and I was inspired. So I thought I'd try for a really old (really stained) picture. Layers included the great lighthouse, a cloud and sea picture of mine, desaturated and filtered images, as well as textures and stains, all layered together (with selective masks) with hard light and screen blending modes.



Hey...I'm having fun! I hope everyone else is too!

StueveShots

Oh, and Liz, I forgot to say...I love the treatment you developed. Reminds me of some of the really old postcards I used to collect..