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denise ippolito
01-07-2009, 11:46 PM
Canon 5D
24-105mm
ISO 400
1/50 sec. at f/9.0
HH

I wasn't sure if this shot worked since my subjects are a little roughed -up. Then I thought that they are at the end of their lives and should look a little spent-so I present them as they are/were:p Comments appreciated

Bruce Murden
01-08-2009, 04:41 PM
Denise, I like where you're going here, but I have mixed feelings about the roughed up leaves. Probably the perfectionist in me wanting them earlier in their color cycle. More importantly, I think you would have done a little better with the camera higher, so that the bright sky wasn't right at the top edge of the leaves. A more even BG like you have elsewhere would make the leaves pop better. Also, the stem bothers me a bit -- it should have grown on the other side of the leaves :) I know if you went around the other side, lighting and BG lighting would have been quite different. I'd also like to see a touch more BG above, and a touch less below the leaves. Not enough to center them, but just a bit for better balance.

Keep up the good work!

denise ippolito
01-08-2009, 05:24 PM
So basically what you're saying is comp. is bad, angle is bad, subject is bad and lighting is bad. I think what bothers me is that I didn't see this the way I should have. Thankyou Bruce for your time and input-it's much appreciated.

Bruce Murden
01-08-2009, 08:18 PM
Denise, you may have had said that tongue-in-cheek (I hope so!), but I want you to know I wasn't trying to be harsh. The image isn't bad -- just things that I think could be a small bit different that would make a big improvement in the final image. My personal taste is for a cleaner leaf -- but that's just a difference of taste. The basic tweaks that I think will improve this image are where you place the leaves against the BG, to not have the brightest sunny spots at the edge of the leaves, and to have the leaves move down in the frame a bit -- but just a bit. Just some things to look for next time photographing.

I didn't cover the things I like (should have): the amount of OOF in BG is lovely, as is the overlap of the leaves and their lovely red.

denise ippolito
01-08-2009, 08:31 PM
Bruce, I was not hurt by your comments at all. I was glad for the guidance.I was just summing up your critique, I never thought for a moment you were being harsh, Honest, but not harsh! I truly appreciate your honesty. That is how I'll learn, and I am learning(maybe a little slower than I'd like)

Ed Vatza
01-09-2009, 04:08 PM
Hi Denise,

I think I would prefer to think of it as "could be better" instead of "bad". Most images can stand improvement. Few around here are "bad". I do agree that I would have liked to be on the other side of the leaves but I know that sometimes that is not possible. And the background seems to have so much potential. Most of it is in such pleasant pastel tones. If only we could have worked around the white spots. Sometimes you (I know I) don't see them until you get home though.

BTW, did you ever get to Kaya's Kitchen?

Mike Moats
01-09-2009, 06:35 PM
Hey Denise, every one to his or her own taste, and for my taste I like it as is. I always teach that two subject comps are the best as they are easy for most to digest when viewing. A good main subject with a interesting and complimentary BG. I think you did that here. The comp works well as you have a nice pair of main subjects and an intersting BG with all the little orbs in different shades of color. I do admit the stem would have been better on the back side, but its not a deal breaker. I like the bright highlights behind each leaf as it shows the light filtering through the BG to backlight the leaves as it enhance their texture. As far as the dark blotches on the leaves I would clone them out. Well done.

denise ippolito
01-09-2009, 07:37 PM
Thankyou everyone for your help!

Ed, Haven't had time to try out Kaya's but I can't wait to! Shot at Lake Como today-Hooded Mergansers,Mallards Canadian Geese and Gulls. Mergansers stayed in center, hard to get a good shot, wind was whipping didn't help!

Julie Kenward
01-10-2009, 09:32 AM
Denise, I used your original, read what the others had to say and tried to improve upon it in Photoshop. There is still a lot you could do in pp if you choose to do so...remember, it is your image and your vision!

What I did here was to clone over the brightest spots (beautiful bokeh, by the way!) using areas that were similar in color and did so with the opacity around 35-40% so it doesn't cover them completely but helps them to blend in with the BG just a bit more.

Next, I made a duplicate layer and changed that layer to screen mode to lighten up the BG just a bit. You took the image during a beautifully sunny day - let's show that off more! I lowered the opacity of the screen layer to about 20% - just enough to give the BG a good boost. I added a mask and set the FG in Photoshop to black and used the adjustment brush to paint the deeper tones back into the leaves.

I then selected the leaves, added a bit of saturation to the red to really help them pop against that beautifully lit BG. Finally, I did a round of selective sharpening to give those leaves one last punch.

Look at this compared to the original and see what you think. I find that I often think an image is "perfect" SOOC (straight out of camrea) until I get it into Photoshop and really take a look at it. Digital cameras do a nice job of capturing beautiful light but often leave an image needing just a touch of contrast, a touch of clarity and a bit of sharpening.

For everyone here in the macro forum, I hope you can see the difference that subtle changes in pp can make. I would highly suggest to anyone who has Photoshop Elements or the full version that you use it on almost every single image in one way or another. Even when you think the image is perfect and right where you want it you never really know unless you try a few things. Contrast (using levels and curves), blending modes & masking, and sharpening are almost always part of my post-processing (at the very least). I look for distractions and try to tone them down while looking at the focal point to try to bring it up. Keeping that in mind, use a light touch and keep the original vision of your image in your mind. You almost can't go wrong!

denise ippolito
01-10-2009, 10:09 AM
Jules, Thanks for fixing my bokeh and not getting rid of it.I think that's what attracted me to this image when I saw it on my monitor, I liked the backlit leaves and your saturation boost helped w/o taking away their age! I know nobody likes the flaws in the leaves but I have hundreds of shots of "perfect" leaves and only a handful of spotted aging leaves-I kinda like the flaws. I think the lighter BG helps as it looks less mudddy. After re-visiting this I think I will implement your changes and crop a litle tighter. Jules thankyou for your time and help on this! I really do appreciate it!

Gus Cobos
01-11-2009, 06:37 PM
Hi Lady Denise,
I like the image and capture. I like the soft multi-colored pastel background which compliments your subject very well. I would have liked to have seen the leaves just a tad further down in the frame, and in an ideal situation, the stem on the back side of the leaf...:) A pretty lady such as this, has to wear makeup before going out and looking her best...well this lady just did her face, and covered up her blemishes and dark spots...ready for the party...see if this presents best to you...:D:cool:

denise ippolito
01-11-2009, 06:42 PM
Gus, You're so sweet-Thankyou!