Paper White

[Nancy Bell]

I have these beautiful Paper Whites blooming and I want to convey the bright whiteness of the flowers while still retaining texture and a softness.[ I used a bit of Shadowhouse texture and Nik Effex Pro 4 Lighten/darken center and levels. Would really appreciate comments as I struggled with this.

[Jay Sheinfield]

Hi Nancy, I also struggle with pure whites. I've looked at this a number of times, as I wanted to get a consistent impression. The whites appear a bit "dirty", which may be in part due to the texture you chose. You might experiment with a few different blending modes to see it that helps. Or do the Select Color/whites in PS and reduce the black. I like the image comp and that it is sharp where it needs to be. The touch of orange adds interest. I may fool around with it a bit for another view, hoping you don't mind.

[Mitch Carucci]

I think you held just the right amount of detail in the high tones. Not easy.

[Jay Sheinfield]

Here is a shot at it.............Please keep in mind, that this a matter personal taste and your vision for the image may have been completely different from mine............ just as an idea here you go. I think I have a similar texture from shadowhosue. I used the the divide blending mode at 30% opacity. Did a mall crop from the left, reverse S curve to lighten shadows and reverse tonal contrast setting to soften it a bit. Just an idea for you to consider........................BTW, you can use Tonal Contrast to adjust the details/structure to your taste.

[Jay Sheinfield]

:S3:
Here is a shot at it.............Please keep in mind, that this a matter personal taste and your vision for the image may have been completely different from mine............ just as an idea here you go. I think I have a similar texture from shadowhosue. I used the the divide blending mode at 30% opacity. Did a mall crop from the left, reverse S curve to lighten shadows and reverse tonal contrast setting to soften it a bit. Just an idea for you to consider........................BTW, you can use Tonal Contrast to adjust the details/structure to your taste. Whoops, sorry got deleted by mistake........having problems on my end.....

[Jay Sheinfield]

Very sorry about this.........here it is with the texture re-applied in multiply mode and then masked off............... just trying to help:S3: BTW, whatever you decide on the final image, I think the image design is terrific, lots of possibilities.

[Nancy Bell]

Hi Jay, since I read your first comment I have been playing around with Paper White images for hours, and having lots of fun! Thanks for your advice and inspiration. I'll post some more. And thank you, Mitch, for your comment about the high tones. I have tried to keep those as that is what I like best about the flower.

[Mark Fuge]

Very nice image and application, Nancy.

Remember your image ... your vision. That said, I also have used the Selective Color in PS4 to adjust the white area in some of my images where I wanted to soften it a little or whatever. It's a slider adjustment, so you have latitude with a short learning curve... Important to me! :e3 :w3

But I like the image you presented here.

[denise ippolito]

Nancy, I love the depth in your image and the "dirty" whites in the background petals don't bother me it helps define the center and the texture adds some interest. The color almost looks silver. I do like the original and the repost by Jay. Sometimes with white flowers I create a new layer and fill it with white then reduce the opacity by using the opacity slider and then also by using a layer mask and selectively reducing it more in certain areas. It adds a nice softness.

[Nancy Bell]

Thanks, Mark. And Denise, that's a great suggestion about using a white fill layer.