From The Junk Pile....

[Arthur Morris]

Came across this from the Hooptie Deux last winter while attempting to get 150gbs of pix off of the laptop and into the collection :).

Canon 800mm f/5.6L IS lens with the EOS-1D Mark IV. ISO 200. Evaluative metering +1 1/3 stops: 1/4 sec. at f/13.

Don't be shy; all comments welcome.

[John Storjohann]

Hi Artie;

For me, the dark blue band is a distraction; I'd crop to just below the band, creating almost a pano from the shot...as is, it has a really nice pastel quality to the color...an almost dream like quality to the image that is very appealing...I just find myself wanting a wee bit more form or color to the image. Maybe a low-opacity layer of NIK's tonal contrast using the "Balanced" pre-set? Interesting to see your take on blurs!

[Indranil Sircar]

Beautiful composition, Artie. I like how the pink is reflected on water and those upright spoonbills with the heads turned upward as if at a concert!

[Andrew McLachlan]

Hi Arthur, just love the amount of blur in the spoonbills. I can't decide on the dark blue bands across the top so I would make two versions here...one with and one without Spoonbills are such interesting looking birds. I hope to shoot them one day.

[denise ippolito]

Artie, I love the Spoonbills and the softness that the blur created. I like the bands but I would lighten them a little as they contrast too much with the softer color tones and draw the eye too much. A great find for sure!!

[Arthur Morris]

Hi Artie; For me, the dark blue band is a distraction; I'd crop to just below the band, creating almost a pano from the shot...as is, it has a really nice pastel quality to the color...an almost dream like quality to the image that is very appealing...I just find myself wanting a wee bit more form or color to the image. Maybe a low-opacity layer of NIK's tonal contrast using the "Balanced" pre-set? Interesting to see your take on blurs!

Artie, I love the Spoonbills and the softness that the blur created. I like the bands but I would lighten them a little as they contrast too much with the softer color tones and draw the eye too much. A great find for sure!!

Thanks John and Denise, I struggled with the mangrove strips.... I already lightened them five stops :). So I got rid of them, added canvas bottom, used Robert O'Toole's APTATS II tricks to drag the main image down and reveal the BKGR. Needed to erase the edge using a Layer Mask and then created seven additional layers and dragged each down a bit. Now I have two versions .

Jay, I'd love to see you do a repost with your NIK color suggestions!

[Arthur Morris]

ps: Good suggestion Andrew. I think I like the NO MANGROVES version better . I guess it's a case of "try it, you might like it."

[Dan Brown]

ps: Good suggestion Andrew. I think I like the NO MANGROVES version better . I guess it's a case of "try it, you might like it."

Nice "junk" Artie! I too prefer the "no mangroves" version but I would clone the top dark edge with the paste blue band that is just below it, or try CA on it. And then smooth the whole thing out a bit with something?

Here's a try - I cloned the upper edge with the blue below it, applied Topaz clean-flatstyle to a bg copy, reduced the opacity to about 50% then erased selectively down to the bg over the spoonies, flattened, then to add some color, I applied Topaz simplify-watercolor, on a layer, then reduced the opacity to about 75%. Just another look.

[John Storjohann]

Hi Artie;

Love the repost...I went in and added a layer of NIK Tonal Contrast and left the layer at 100% opacity. Lowering the opacity might have been another option...it's all a matter of personal taste and vision...I have to say though, NIK Tonal Contrast, particularly in version 4, has become a favorite of mine. I also added a layer of Topaz Clean.

[Andrew McLachlan]

Love it without the mangroves! Pane #6 is my favorite

[denise ippolito]

Artie, The crop works really well and makes the whole image more cohesive.

[Arthur Morris]

Hi Artie;

Love the repost...I went in and added a layer of NIK Tonal Contrast and left the layer at 100% opacity. Lowering the opacity might have been another option...it's all a matter of personal taste and vision...I have to say though, NIK Tonal Contrast, particularly in version 4, has become a favorite of mine. I also added a layer of Topaz Clean.

Thanks John. I love your version. What added the patterned watercolor look to the water?

[Arthur Morris]

Nice "junk" Artie! I too prefer the "no mangroves" version but I would clone the top dark edge with the paste blue band that is just below it, or try CA on it. And then smooth the whole thing out a bit with something?

Here's a try - I cloned the upper edge with the blue below it, applied Topaz clean-flatstyle to a bg copy, reduced the opacity to about 50% then erased selectively down to the bg over the spoonies, flattened, then to add some color, I applied Topaz simplify-watercolor, on a layer, then reduced the opacity to about 75%. Just another look.

Thanks Dan, I like it all but not the eviction of the faint vertical bands. What is CA?

[Arthur Morris]

Artie, The crop works really well and makes the whole image more cohesive.

Thanks Lady D.

[John Storjohann]

Thanks John. I love your version. What added the patterned watercolor look to the water?

Good morning, Artie. Topaz->Clean->Stylize Details added the watercolor effect...I added it after apply NIK Color Efex->Tonal Contrast->Balanced. The tonal contrast helped bring out the patterns a bit more with some deeper color separation Topaz Clean gave it that smooth, water color effect. I probably use those two filter sets NIK's Color Efex 4.0 and Topaz's Bundle more than any other plug-in for PS, with the possible exception of OnOne's Phototool's Pro. I highly recommend any or all of them, not only for OOTB but for image correction/enhancement when use on layers with a low opacity. Take care.

[Bob Miller]

My favorite is #9- John's repost....I love the feather detail and the water
Artie....Thanks for sharing....i now know how careful I must be when deleting

[Arthur Morris]

My favorite is #9- John's repost....I love the feather detail and the water Artie....Thanks for sharing....i now know how careful I must be when deleting

Thanks Bob, I am with you on Pane 9. The image was always a keeper just not one that I had processed....

[Cheryl Slechta]

Late again, but I think I like Pane #9 the best - I like the more subtle colors and added texture