So, on Instagram I ran across a photographer that decided to post some images and have an editing contest. Chris Burkard is a Sony Ambassador, so I thought I'd take a few of the RAW files and see what I could do. Here are the SOOC (rendered by LR) images followed by my version. I don't have much experience taking someone else's work (aside from 5 minute edits to illustrate a point) and "fixing" it so I would appreciate any feedback or comments re: hit or miss.
I was rather surprised at how blurry the originals are. I'm guessing these were throw-aways.
Got to love RAW files and the information you have access too. I think you did a great job on these. #1 and #3 I would easily say jump out the most to me.
When the last candle has been blown out
and the last glass of champagne has been drunk
All that you are left with are the memories and the images-David Cooke.
Gary, I'm a fan of number 3. Do you have a link to these raws?
When the last candle has been blown out
and the last glass of champagne has been drunk
All that you are left with are the memories and the images-David Cooke.
I think you can get to them
here
without subscribing to his FB page or newsletter. The link leads to a page that was a bit too clever for me; look for the download icon at the top get the images downloaded.
I think I liked #3 the most even though the focus is off. Both it & #1 suffer from camera shake. #2 doesn't have any foreground interest, there's no texture to the clouds, and the whole thing is rather monotonal. It was the biggest challenge for me.
#1 could be a great image if not for the blown-out sky and rampant blur. I can only conclude these were throwaway images. A fun exercise nonetheless.
I agree there seems to be some shake/blur or something going on, and the exposures seem off. I'm thinking the camera's meter was reading the light in the background not what was being photographed (which can be tricky). I think the edits ended up looking somewhat over sharpened or overdone trying to correct for all of that. It's one thing to edit to enhance a photo, but if there's a need to edit to salvage a photo then it would help to get a proper exposure (and not so much blur or shake etc.) to have to fix later.
icepics wrote: I agree there seems to be some shake/blur or something going on, and the exposures seem off. I'm thinking the camera's meter was reading the light in the background not what was being photographed (which can be tricky). I think the edits ended up looking somewhat over sharpened or overdone trying to correct for all of that. It's one thing to edit to enhance a photo, but if there's a need to edit to salvage a photo then it would help to get a proper exposure (and not so much blur or shake etc.) to have to fix later.
Well, salvaging wasn't really the point of the exercise, AFAIK. And the exposure doesn't "seem" off, it is off. That's why I said these were probably throwaways.
As for sharpening, what I call crisp others think is over-sharpened. What others celebrate as "the look of film" I find soft and uninteresting. What others seem to call "moody" I find obfuscating. TEHO.
Here is my version so far. I'm not happy with the sky. I put extra green stuff in for adrian to go nuts over. I'll do a more serious attempt when i'm on my workstation (on my laptop right now). Tried to go for a more natural look over the topaz adjust look. Go to town.
When the last candle has been blown out
and the last glass of champagne has been drunk
All that you are left with are the memories and the images-David Cooke.
When the last candle has been blown out
and the last glass of champagne has been drunk
All that you are left with are the memories and the images-David Cooke.
Stealthy Ninja wrote: What's with the green tint in your edits?! Freakin' Nikon users love their green tint.
That would be the crappy Sony RAW file. One does the best one can with what one is given.
OK, now that I got that out of my system. (The files are from a Sony camera, really.)
I did have too much green/yellow while in LR adjusting WB, and tried to pull it back. Obviously not far enough, now that I look at it with some distance.
For my version of the "surfboard guy" it's actually a composite. I used 3 copies in LR to deal with the sky, the man, and everything else. Then I masked and combined them in PS, and did some dodging and burning. Finally, I added a tiny bit of Topas Detail (the smallest amount of fine detail possible, essentially). No Adjust. Everything you see processing-wise was done in LR.
Admission: I do own Adjust, I just didn't use it for this. My vision was satisfied with basic tools.
Here is my version so far. I'm not happy with the sky. I put extra green stuff in for adrian to go nuts over. I'll do a more serious attempt when i'm on my workstation (on my laptop right now). Tried to go for a more natural look over the topaz adjust look. Go to town.
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