Fortnight comp # 81: Crop & PoP

I recently became a first time DSLR owner/operator, but until 2 days ago only had one lens (a wide angle 18-55mm) to work, play and learn with. As a result Cropping and Post Processing became very important in order to produce a photo I was content with. I would like to see what others are doing between the click and the displayed product, so here are the rules....
-the picture may be of anything (this hopefully will encourage participation:!
-post it as it comes off your camera and then in its pp finished form.
-I will be judging on the improvement, and aesthetic appeal of the final product.
-feel free to be as creative as you wish. (surrealism welcome)
-B&W and Colour welcomed.
-The usual rules apply. Photo taken within this fortnight. Pentax and their samsung equivalents only. Comp runs until 6pm GMT Nov 30, 2011

When does this competition end please

Thanks Colin, change has been edited. Can't wait to see your entry. Any other comments can be made in the discussion form.
Cheers

Making Rocko "Rock"!

Finished Shot


Ruff Copy



That was sooooo fun.
1-I first begged Rocko to sit in my make sit studio.
2-In Picasa, I cropped and slightly darkened.
3-I transfered to "Picnic"
4-I used a wrinkle free tool to soften background.
5-I sharpened my photo.
6-I brightened Rockos's eyes
7-I cloned out dirt and hair from Rocko's face
8-I used a dodge tool to bring back Rocko's grey fur. (He is not brown)
9-I decreased red and increased blue to bring a true colour to Rocko
10-I framed my picture...and Taa-Daa...Here Is Rocko!

Pentax K10d
50-200mm Lens
Flash
F/8
time 1/6
ISO 400
Taken Today 17/11/2011

Good Morning Neighbours Before [img]http://farm7.staticflickr.com/6031/6382771015_f95f071723_z.jpg" class="comment_image" />

IMGP9970 - Version 2 by darlene Phillips deedee, on Flickr[/img]


After [img]http://farm7.staticflickr.com/6117/6382820539_4a956e3a8a_z.jpg" class="comment_image" />

IMGP9970 by darlene Phillips deedee, on Flickr
[/img]

Nov.22,2011
k-m
ISO 800
focal length 40mm
apeture f/4.5
flash not used

What I did
aperture
crop
white balance
sharpen
Picnik
exposure
frame

Watching the Lycra!

[IMG]http://i941.photobucket.com/albums/ad254/weldingblues/IMGP7309-Startimage-Resized.jpg[/IMG]

K-7 taken 20/11/2011 f14@1/50s ISO 200

[IMG]http://i941.photobucket.com/albums/ad254/weldingblues/IMGP7309-Edit-Resized.jpg[/IMG]

Process;
Removed unwanted
Pencil Sketch - Burn shadows - merge
burn midtones - adjust sharpness - flatten image

First one, just converted a RAW file to jpg, no processing.





Second one, white balance, saturation, a little sharpening etc etc, then a slight tweak!

Orchid Stack

I aspire to towards doing a minimum of post processing so for this competition I thought I would enter a focus stack.

To try and keep the size down I have made the original shots smaller, numbered them (front to back focus points) and tried to combine them together which was not a complete success because there were 5 of them :

[IMG]http://i172.photobucket.com/albums/w20/GlynM/Competition%20Entries/Orchid%20Stack/Stack-input_1-4-smallcopy.jpg[/IMG]

[IMG]http://i172.photobucket.com/albums/w20/GlynM/Competition%20Entries/Orchid%20Stack/Stack-input_5-smallcopy.jpg[/IMG]

The, non numbered, originals of these were then fed into CombineZp to process the focus stack with the following intermediate result:

[IMG]http://i172.photobucket.com/albums/w20/GlynM/Competition%20Entries/Orchid%20Stack/PyramidDoStack-small.jpg[/IMG]

Then I did a little tweak with the colour saturation and hue to try and bring out the yellow tones of the original flowers. I also did a little adjustment of the levels to make the background blacker. The image was then reduced in size and sharpened a little and here is the result:

[IMG]http://i172.photobucket.com/albums/w20/GlynM/Competition%20Entries/Orchid%20Stack/IMGP2322-27-C1s-small.jpg[/IMG]

Pentax K-5 with the Samsung equivalent of the DFA100 Macro
1/15sec, F8, ISO200 & -1 exposure comp.

All images shot on 26th November 2011.

Tinkering done with Lightroom3 & PSE10.

No cropping needed

Glyn

Finished Shot - Audrey

[IMG]http://i1098.photobucket.com/albums/g370/jimbo_609/IMGP6850copyBWbordercompresize.jpg[/IMG]

Original - Nearly Audrey

[IMG]http://i1098.photobucket.com/albums/g370/jimbo_609/IMGP6850.jpg[/IMG]

What I did, if I can remember it all

Open in PSE9 Raw editor
Open PSE 9
Crop and resize
Topaz re-mask for background
Smooth tone action
Black and White Studio conversion
A few minor tweaks like clone stamp etc

Taken Sat 19th Nov

ExposureTime - 1/60 seconds
FNumber - 2.40
ExposureProgram - Aperture priority
ISOSpeedRatings - 2500
DateTimeOriginal - 2011:11:19 18:27:15
DateTimeDigitized - 2011:11:19 18:27:15
ShutterSpeedValue - 1/60 seconds
ApertureValue - F 2.40
ExposureBiasValue - 0.00
MeteringMode - Multi-segment
Flash - Flash not fired, compulsory flash mode

Last of the Pelargoniums...................


[img]http://farm7.staticflickr.com/6236/6406555553_56c1b7172a_b.jpg" class="comment_image" />

IMGP1107A by Tozza27, on Flickr[/img]









Geranimo...................


[img]http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7167/6406616941_a4988d25f5_z.jpg" class="comment_image" />

IMGP1107 by Tozza27, on Flickr[/img]






Hope this works - one of the many Pelargoniums/Geraniums we love to have in the house as well as outdoors - this in the bathroom decided to flower yesterday and I took it as a sign to try for the comp.Pentax K20D 18-55 AL DA - hand held with camera flash - 1/45th sec @ f4 - centre weighted and ISO 100. Used Flickr Picnik to crop,zoom,balance and fiddle - don`t do a lot of this usually but here you are .............

Tony

Finished - Warp Speed Peacock

When I stand back and look at this one I can (kind of) see mr peacock travelling at light speed through the universe





Federation Headquarters back on earth




Exif
Model PENTAX K20D
ISO 100
Exposure 1/750 sec
Aperture 2.0
Focal Length 77mm

OLD AND NEW
Original
[IMG]http://i227.photobucket.com/albums/dd72/geordie2831/IMGP37251.jpg[/IMG]


[IMG]http://i227.photobucket.com/albums/dd72/geordie2831/wire_edited-1.jpg[/IMG]

Raw image converted in pse7
exported to Topaz B&W used a preset adjusted transparency
back into pse 7 and crop and slight clone stamp

Taken today
K-r
DA 55-300
F8
1/125 SEC
ISO 400
-0.3 EXP

This compitition is now closed. Results will be posted with in 2 hours. Thankyou to all who entered

I must begin by saying I was truly impressed by what the entrants could do with a little/alot of photo processing. Thankyou all for allowing me to critique your work, what a wonderful learning experience. As a novice I wish to state that I am by no means quaified to undertake this task, so don't take my opinions too much to heart, as with belly buttons, everybodies got one.
Now on with the show....
　
Judith Ann - Making Rocko "Rock"! : Ok JA, talk about setting the bar. Your treatment of this photo sure brought Rocko out of the dog house and into "Posh Pooch" status. This is defiantly the way to go vs. the trials of a true grooming. The Dog himself is sharp and the tones of his fur easy to appreciate. His dark eyes glisten with a loyal "yes sir", as he stands out with showmanship against the black velvety backdrop. This picture is a great example of how pp can bring the right photo up a few notches, from average to amazing. Thank you for posting the steps you took, it was like a free lesson in the "Crop and PoP" class
　
Darlene - Good Morning Neighbours : This photo should be gifted to your neighbours, and would be an excellent addition to an advert if they ever wanted to sell. The photo is sharply defined and well lit. I like the warmth of the finished product. The rounded corners, although not everyone's cup of tea, bring a softness to an image full of lines and angles. One small detail I would have changed would have been removing the shadow of the hydro pole on the roof, but that's just being picky.
　
CoDa - Watching the Lycra! : Awesome my first entry to defy the eye and add some art to the comp. It is always risky to add certain treatments in photos as what may compliment the subject/foreground may not always work for the background. I believe this to be the case here. The hard edge given to the bikers accentuates the extreme physicality of the sport and makes them seem to almost able to jump off my screen, LOVE IT. However the grass is so busy in its sketched, sharpened state that my eye seems to wonder from the main subject. I would like to see the rest of the observers removed, but this is minor. Thanks for your daring entry!
　
darkskies - Alice's School : Ok, I titled this one myself, for it struck me as a great novel cover for one of Lewis Carrols lost yet futuristic works. Where as the original shot is dark and overcast, I love the difference brought to the sky. this is a picture to truly fall into. Its lines are sharpe and consistent despite the dizzying twists. Maybe you could let us know what your secret tweak was? I would put thi picture in a principals office to give teens something to look at while waiting for the gauntlet to fall, it is a creation one could spend time with for sure. Lovely eye twister.
　
GlynM - Orchid Stack : Oh Glyn, WOW. This photo and its process makes me want to forget the kids x-mas budget and go buy myself some new pp toys. Each petal in the finished product is as clear as an eye would see it. One can almost feel texture of the blossoms along with seeing the veining of colour sharp and natural. Thank you for including the smaller snaps used in the final picture, it helps me truly appreciate what goes into an amazing final like this.
　
Sandinista - Audrey : DIVALICIOUS. I must say I never would have known this wasn't a studio shot without the pre-pp post. It does not look pasted as a few of my attempts to remove/change backgrounds have turned out. Your Audrys skin is smooth yet not over softened and her eyes darkened just enough to add some mystery to the slightly coy expression. A great Portrait. If I were to change one thing it would be to reduce the shadow her arms/hands make on her body,... not that I am sure quite how I would. Thanks for the rundown on your process, I love the FYIs.
　
TOZZA27 - Last of the Pelargoniums..... : Thanks for your participation, I know things have been a bit challenging as of late. This is a great example of what minor cropping and pp can do to improve a simple and well taken picture. Our lovely geranium is given a soft dreamlike quality that could adorn any small public waiting space. Its easy on the eyes and looks lovely with the soft hair on the unopened buds almost haloing the flowers to be. I would have liked to have seen the petals themselves a bit sharper but that in just MHO.
　
Sean282 - Warp Speed Peacock : Firstly, Great Title, very fitting for this otherworldly animal. The Colours are bright yet not oversaturated, and the crop does justice to the majestic plumage of this royal bird. It is just sharp enough to truly appreciate what nature and evolution are capable of without the need for James Camerons to go and avatar it all up. You have done well for this cocky guy, if there was online dating for peahens this photo would be sure to get its fair share of hits.
　
geordie01 - OLD AND NEW : Last but not least. I find this picture striking, and can see many captions adorning it. The focus is extremely placed and gives both a softness and a competing sharpness to this harsh tool of the fencing trade. This an other example of what fine tuning an already good picture can do. I may have left a bit of the rust colour in the older strand, but other than that this was well tweaked and also shows how a picture can be manipulated by more then one program for a final product. Thanks.
　
And now with all that said I pass the torch, or should I say flash to........
　
1st GlynM
2nd Judith Ann
3rd Sean282
4th Darkskies

and an HC for everyone else for humouring me by entering, and teaching me by example.

Thanks RPLSF for the prompt judging and congrats to GlynM