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Not sure about posting this, but the following picture, taken on my old Optio 33lf, has had nothing added or taken away. However...
Some background. I wanted to do a silly picture, based on something I did a few years ago for another forum. The silliness being it's taken with a Pentax camera (eligible for this forum) of a camera from pre-Ricoh Imaging days (so not eligible) of a Ricoh building that had nothing, as far as I know, with the Imaging side of the company. Unfortunately, the images I managed to take (the building is no longer used by Ricoh) didn't quite make it, so...
And the fakery? Well, in the original image, the LCD screen was completely washed out, due to the direction the building faces and so on. So I took the top part of the image, shrank it and overlaid it on the LCD screen part. And the background was clear and in focus, so it got selected and blurred using the Blur/Lens Blur option.
There are three obvious giveaways - the image on the LCD is not quite right and is also a degree or so off. And there is one area that should be blurred but isn't. I left these in so that the fakery is not completely hidden. An expert could also probably tell from the EXIF data.
Sorry for going on about it but there is a serious point here, I think. Had I better PSE skills and/or spent more time on the image, I could possibly have passed it off as genuine. As I also found a simple way of replacing the EXIF data using PSE, I could even have passed it off as a K10D picture.
I suppose there may be a lot of this sort of thing going on in commercial photography, I just hope it doesn't in big competitions.
Some background. I wanted to do a silly picture, based on something I did a few years ago for another forum. The silliness being it's taken with a Pentax camera (eligible for this forum) of a camera from pre-Ricoh Imaging days (so not eligible) of a Ricoh building that had nothing, as far as I know, with the Imaging side of the company. Unfortunately, the images I managed to take (the building is no longer used by Ricoh) didn't quite make it, so...
And the fakery? Well, in the original image, the LCD screen was completely washed out, due to the direction the building faces and so on. So I took the top part of the image, shrank it and overlaid it on the LCD screen part. And the background was clear and in focus, so it got selected and blurred using the Blur/Lens Blur option.
There are three obvious giveaways - the image on the LCD is not quite right and is also a degree or so off. And there is one area that should be blurred but isn't. I left these in so that the fakery is not completely hidden. An expert could also probably tell from the EXIF data.
Sorry for going on about it but there is a serious point here, I think. Had I better PSE skills and/or spent more time on the image, I could possibly have passed it off as genuine. As I also found a simple way of replacing the EXIF data using PSE, I could even have passed it off as a K10D picture.
I suppose there may be a lot of this sort of thing going on in commercial photography, I just hope it doesn't in big competitions.
bforbes wrote:
Be careful with that. Herewith a cautionary tale from the old Guardian Unlimited forum:Gwyn wrote:
Oh hum. At least my online cake will last until next year!
Don't you have to but brandy or sherry or something over the top of the cake to keep it moist. That would be my excuse anyway Oh hum. At least my online cake will last until next year!
[quote="RoyJay - Oct 2006"]
Much more spectacular was uncle Vic's Christmas pudding.
He made it in about January, and faithfully topped it up with brandy throughout the year.
As he enjoyed a slurp as he "topped it up", he was sometimes "topping it up" three times a day.
On Christmas day the small, soggy looking pudding was brought to the table, and the guests physically recoiled from the eye-watering stench of alcohol.
He tried three times to light it, finally it caught just as he was blowing the match out.
In the resulting explosion a circular hole 2' across was burnt in the ceiling, a burning napkin set fire to the curtains and the special nylon "Happy XMAS" table cloth was welded to the table.
Vic lost his eyebrows, jaunty moustache, much of his hair and quite a lot of his tank-top.
The carbonicuous walnut that was the pudding smouldered in the garden for some hours.
[/quote]Of course, he may have been exaggerating a bit...
Comment by Aitch53 posted on Another pointless thread at 22/12/2019 - 11:04
Gwyn wrote:
I could, but I always forget!
No idea when I'll be over next but I shall try to remember then!
Amazon?I could, but I always forget!
No idea when I'll be over next but I shall try to remember then!
Comment by Aitch53 posted on Another pointless thread at 06/12/2019 - 16:20
A Fotga four-thirds to micro-four-thirds adapter. It won't get used much, I just wanted to see how my old Lumix 14-50mm four-thirds kit lens would work on my G5. Quite well, it turned out, but the combination is too unwieldy for regular use - the lens weighs more than the body and it's definitely not a well balanced combo!
Comment by Aitch53 posted on What's your latest acquisition? at 03/12/2019 - 14:41
What has Quebec done to offend the PPG?
Comment by Aitch53 posted on PPG Competition at 31/10/2019 - 07:43
RobL wrote:
I’m in a hotel with a cheesy blue Christmas tree in reception. Surely not time to dig out last year’s garden centre purchase of an accordion playing singing Santa yet?
There was a discussion on the Infinite Monkey Cage recently about how you mark dumps of really long lived radioactive waste, on the principle that thousands of years in the future, language may have changed so much that signs may be impenetrable for the inhabitants of the planet by then. Apparently, the decision was to mark them with something that looked totally unnatural, to give the a clue it was something dodgy - they chose a glowing blue tree, as something not found in nature. I’m in a hotel with a cheesy blue Christmas tree in reception. Surely not time to dig out last year’s garden centre purchase of an accordion playing singing Santa yet?
Is the hotel built over a suspicious concrete bunker?
Comment by Aitch53 posted on Another pointless thread at 24/10/2019 - 09:53
OldTaffy wrote:
Sippers or gulpers?
Martin
I'd say it was a sipper.Aitch53 wrote:
Unfortunately, I only have some Twin Barrel Aged, XO, Bajan Estate Rum.
Will that do?
Sounds better than what I have! If one has read James Norman Hall's "Doctor Dogbody's Leg", one would choose Old Port Royal.Unfortunately, I only have some Twin Barrel Aged, XO, Bajan Estate Rum.
Will that do?
Sippers or gulpers?
Martin
Very sweet though.
Comment by Aitch53 posted on Another pointless thread at 22/10/2019 - 09:57
OldTaffy wrote:
I've just woken up to the fact that it's Trafalgar Day today. Must go and pour myself a generous tot of Navy Rum and toast "The Immortal Memory". Anyone join me?
Martin
Unfortunately, I only have some Twin Barrel Aged, XO, Bajan Estate Rum.I've just woken up to the fact that it's Trafalgar Day today. Must go and pour myself a generous tot of Navy Rum and toast "The Immortal Memory". Anyone join me?
Martin
Will that do?
Comment by Aitch53 posted on Another pointless thread at 21/10/2019 - 19:54
Spent an age trying to find the right sort of small flat DIY cardboard boxes for the Weekly comp. Eventually found some, set things up and took a couple of pics. Then realised I was a week late!
Oh well, here's the pic anyway. Not brilliant but, I hope, has a bit of originality at least.
Oh well, here's the pic anyway. Not brilliant but, I hope, has a bit of originality at least.
It depends on the competition. Some insist on original unaltered images.
Remember the hoo ha about the fake that won a Nikon comp with a plane flying overhead?
Plenty of fakes in wildlife and landscape photography too, though none quite as blatant as the stuffed anteater one which didn't require much PS.
The winner of the Countryfile calendar comp was not all it seemed, but no PS there to alter the image ifaik.
Anyway it is a fun thing to do and passes a few hours, whilst improving your editing skills.
Is that the Ricoh office in Staines? A friend worked there for a while.
I must admit, I'm in two minds about photo editing and competitions . OK, cropping, straightening, removing colour casts, maybe a bit of work on brightness/contrast and removing spots and such, possibly the odd small distraction, a bit of sharpening after re-sizing. But further than that is, I think, iffy. To say the least.