The Vulcan

Hi NordicMan

Thank you for coming back to me.

Difficult to be more precise as to what I am struggling with. To me, the areas I've targeted are (seemingly) a lot more pixelated (?) than they should be. Hope that makes sense, as I said, difficult to be more precise.

The original image is indeed a 25Mb RAW at 4368 x 2912. The smaller file is as you suggest merely for posting purposes.

The Canon 5D has a B+W mode which loads as colour in Lightroom. I shoot everything in this mode as I prefer to review in monochrome. Also, I can dial in filtration to address the situation. i.e. Red, Orange, Yellow or Green

I'll try to send the original file at some point, but currently I'm travelling and using my mobile for internet connection! 25Mb just ain't on!

Thanks to both yourself and Canuckamuck for your input

I think I'd move house

Shot at a fairground stall maybe 25 years ago.

Flatbed scanned slide

Contax 159MM - 50mm Planar - Velvia at 100 ASA - available light.

Thanks Astral for the compliment but to be honest the shot looks horrible when printed!

Canuckamuck; I'll take your advice and keep on playing with the shot - good learning curve for sure but at my age I ain't so sure I got a lot of learning in me!

Happy New Year

Thanks for the response.

Looking at the original the areas I refer to are a very pale blue. I didn't mask; adjusted the total image.

Here it is in its lopsided untouched original

Your recent submissions and the excellent effects you applied intrigued me.

I have targeted two areas on the attached image which are challenging my ability to correct. As can be seen they are "fuzzy" and out of synch.

I achieved the image via Lightroom. De-saturating the colour, boosting the contrast, adjusting the red and blue channels and further adjusting the tonal curves.

Image shot in B+W with red filter applied - RAW - Canon 5D

What did I do wrong?

I like the second shot and the treatment applied to achieve the effect. Lots of drama and intrigue. A very striking image.

The first shot is a little too artificial for my taste. Superb composition, full of atmosphere and very chilling, but it lacks the "power" that full B+W may have produced.

Hats off to you though for Photoshop competency - arguably two of the best examples I've seen.

It's nice composition but I'd have moved around a little to the left to lose the emptiness in the lower right corner.

Being critical, it's not sharp and the highlights are horribly over exposed. This spoils it for me. Digital is more than capable of "revealing" shadow detail and the general rule of thumb is "expose for the highlights - the shadows will be there". Maybe a slower shutter speed also to give a milky flow to the water.

Composition is great, but screaming out for a bit of fill-in-flash.

Great shot CMA - superb composition and exposure.

In a recent thread a point was raised questioning whether image manipulation (via Photoshop etc) was actually "cheating".

The OP suggested that a doctored image was a fraud as it had been tampered with.

What do you think?

Scratches and hair on original removed - photoshop healing brush.

Didn't bother to do any other mods, just showing how easy scratch removal is

Canon EOS 1 - 80-200 L - Velvia pushed 1 stop - flatbed scanned at 4800 dpi

Yes but he did it all with the camera...........

A real work of art.

Not at all. Several negatives combined to achieve the image, masses of darkroom manipulation i.e. dodging, burning, holding back etc, and then hours printing.

Anyway; still the ultimate photographer in my eyes.

Thanks "TE". Glad to help.

Ansell Adams might have had an opinion on this topic!

You're dead right. Missed that one.

Better?

Well spotted. Lovely composition. I like it a little tighter and more saturated.

Photo adjustments are not cheating. take an artist, he paints perspectives that just don't exist. What he does paint is what he perceives.

I'm no artist but I follow this thought pattern. I always try to imagine the final outcome as I wish it to be. I'm not concerned with accurate colours and perspectives at the point of shooting. I know how I see an image, and I'll expose accordingly. This is merely me recording what "I see".

The best software without a doubt is Adobe Photoshop and Adobe Lightroom, but if you're new to image manipulation these modules may be a little of an overkill.

I haven't used other manipulation software but maybe other members may have some advise.

This one hasn't worked for me.

It's well exposed and the colours are good, but it's screaming for perspective correction in my opinion.

I'm sure a bit of work in Photoshop would vastly improve this.

Lovely shot "KW" = you saw this one for sure.

I guess the time taken was about 30 minutes or so prior to dark. If this is so, maybe had you waited another 10/15 minutes for the light to change then a lot more drama would have been introduced. Conversely, perhaps the train in the background would have disappeared then?

Excuse the pun, but the lanterns really lighten the shot up.

Overall I'd say that's as near a perfect shot that I've seen.

It appears to me that the flash either did not fire or was not switched on. As such it's an available light shot.

It's just a bit too dark for my taste but I can see why you like it.

Might be a thought to suggest how to upload your shots.

I re-size to 100 dpi and 800x600 pixels. This produces a 3/4 Mb file so I again use softtware (photoshop or the like) and "save for the web" at 150-250 Kb. This I then upload.

I feel this isize enough to evaluate and view quickly

Just a thought

Did you scan them out of prints with flatbed scanner or did you use film scanner?

I'm not familiar with Leica SL. Is that an rangefinder camera?

How did you like Leica and its lenses? Are they really worth the price?

Scanned at 4800 dpi from 35mm slide. Produces an 85Mb file! Downsized for TV.

Leica SL is a 35mm SLR - the SL2 version is regarded by many Leica experts as the finest model produced. The camera I had was c.1976 with lenses c. 1983.

Mechanical camera, useless meter so a handheld meter necessary, but blistering sharp lenses.

There's a "feel" about Leica shots that you'll never see from another camera.

I tested this theory with a Leica fanatical pro friend of mine once. I laid out 36 Velvia slides taken on 6 different cameras. 6 were from a Leica and he spotted them immediately!

The Leica legend is not a myth! I'd love an M7 but not at those prices!