To things happened yesterday.
I got a chance to go out and shoot and an interesting sky at the same time. It is the little things in life that make you happy!
Yesterday after lunch with my son and a quick appointment I headed out to Dana Point for some sunset shots. Driving and looking into the sky to see how the clouds were going to set up is always an interesting endeavor. I am not sure why I do it because I am going to shoot anyway it really doesn't matter what the sky is doing once I am on my way. But I do it anyway. So there I am driving down the I5 and looking into the sky at 65mph. Everything was looking good and for once in the past few months when I have had a chance to shoot the sky was going to cooperate. Eventually the sky wasn't as dramatic as I hoped but there was texture there and that made all the difference.
The nice thing is getting down to this area to shoot is simple. The parking is close so it is a short walk. I decided to set up right by the stairs that lead down to the beach area. As I was setting up facing into the sun I noticed this area where the waves were hitting the break wall and causing a rushing of water through this inlet. I decided to turn my attention about 90 degrees to my left and take a few comps of this area as well. Once I set up, little did I know that what seemed like a small amount of water rushing through this area could turn into a rushing of water about 18 inches deep. But after the first wave of water hit and my boots and pants being soaked up to my shin's. I decided to stick with it and proceed with my comps.
This is a black card technique to keep detail in the sky as well as the foreground without any multi exposure techniques or HDR.
Lessons learned on this outing:
-Never leave your camera equipment where the waves can catch it. I usually put my camera bag on an area high enough where the water can't get to it or in this case strapped to my back. Man was I glad I did that!!
-No matter if you have the most water tight shoes on...if the water gets over the top your feet will get wet and you will squish the rest of the night.
-No matter the water, the cold, the wet feet. The shot is worth it all.
The Shot:
Single Exposure, ND 400 filter, F/22, 29 seconds, ISO 400, Sigma 10-20 lens @10mm
Post Processing:
>ACR-noise reduction entire image
Photoshop:
All post processing is done in color and then converted to Black and white
I have used this website for Post Processing information http://farbspiel.wordpress.com
>Topaz Adjust-Add color and detail to entire image
>Adjustment Layer-Curves for contrast
>Adjustment Layer-Levels to sharpen tones of black and white points
>Silver Efex Pro-Red filter for sky only (Darken clouds)
>Silver Efex Pro-Rest of entire image for Black and white
>Noise Ninja-Sky area only
>High Pass Sharpening
>Framed and sized for posting
http://en.flickeflu.com/photos/tony_d
Friday, February 18, 2011
Wednesday, February 16, 2011
Gorge & Rise
Gorge & Rise, originally uploaded by Tony DeSantis Photography.
I posted this shot about 10 months ago. This is the redone shot from that time I posted the original post in the first comments so you can take a look at both. (Click on photo to see both) This one maybe a tad overdone. The other maybe a little flat. Since then I have different post processing and I also have a different way I shoot as well which makes my photo's come out differently. What I would say as better. This I feel I had to do way more post processing. I really like doing less because I have learned more about taking the photo's to begin with so the comp's are better to start with in the camera. It really makes photography more fun.
Any questions on post processing:
Topaz Adjust
Color Efex Pro 3.0
Masks
Adjustment layers
Don't hesitate to email me!
I am not sure I can remember all the post processing because I went back and forth so much. Eventually I couldn't tone it down enough to my liking so I decided to stay with the over saturated look.
The Shot:
Standard 3 shot HDR ( +2, 0, -2), F/16, ISO 50, Canon 24-105L @24mm
Post Processing:
>Photomatix-Adjust
>Topaz Adjust-enhance color and detail
>Color Efex Pro 3.0
-Pro Contrast
-Tonal Contrast
-Brilliance and warmth
-Glamour Glow-Lower Opacity 20%
>Adjustment Layer-Curves increase overall contrast
>Adjustment Layer-Levels Blues in sky and enhance white in clouds
>High Pass Sharpening
>Size and Framed for posting
Sunday, February 13, 2011
Still
This is a redone photo from May 2010. I posted it then but I always felt I could process it better. With new techniques that I have read about and studied this is the 2nd attempt at processing.
A little back drop on the photo. This was taken in the morning in Balboa Bay. I really liked the way the sun was coming over the distant mountains. I didn't really want to blow out the sun as much as I did. I do like that I was able to pull the clarity and lighting out of the boats. I didn't realize it at the time but I am also happy with the background city scape that went with this as well. When I shot this I didn't notice the city in the background with the shining sun. The city gives this some depth and layers and it also came out decently clear. So that is always nice. Thanks for dropping by and taking a look.
The Shot:
6 Shot HDR, F/11, ISO 160, 1/320 to 1/20 sec, Processed in Photomatix (Fusion), Canon 24-105L @ 65mm.
Post Processing:
>Raw photos in ACR, Noise adjustment only, saved all as Tiffs
>Photomatix (Fusion)
>Topaz Adjust-Enhance overall color and detail
>Color Efex Pro 3.0
-Pro Contrast
-Tonal Contrast
>Brightening boats (Layers Dodge and Burn)
-Click Option and click on Create New Layer at the same time
-When New Layer comes up Mode Drop down screen/Overlay/Check box 50% Gray
-Brush tool Black to Burn, White to dodge in new layer (Non destructive)
>Adjustment Layer-Levels-Adjust White and Black sliders to Enhance overall contrast
>High Pass Sharpening
>Sized and Framed for posting
A little back drop on the photo. This was taken in the morning in Balboa Bay. I really liked the way the sun was coming over the distant mountains. I didn't really want to blow out the sun as much as I did. I do like that I was able to pull the clarity and lighting out of the boats. I didn't realize it at the time but I am also happy with the background city scape that went with this as well. When I shot this I didn't notice the city in the background with the shining sun. The city gives this some depth and layers and it also came out decently clear. So that is always nice. Thanks for dropping by and taking a look.
The Shot:
6 Shot HDR, F/11, ISO 160, 1/320 to 1/20 sec, Processed in Photomatix (Fusion), Canon 24-105L @ 65mm.
Post Processing:
>Raw photos in ACR, Noise adjustment only, saved all as Tiffs
>Photomatix (Fusion)
>Topaz Adjust-Enhance overall color and detail
>Color Efex Pro 3.0
-Pro Contrast
-Tonal Contrast
>Brightening boats (Layers Dodge and Burn)
-Click Option and click on Create New Layer at the same time
-When New Layer comes up Mode Drop down screen/Overlay/Check box 50% Gray
-Brush tool Black to Burn, White to dodge in new layer (Non destructive)
>Adjustment Layer-Levels-Adjust White and Black sliders to Enhance overall contrast
>High Pass Sharpening
>Sized and Framed for posting
Friday, February 11, 2011
Newport Pier
This was shot on the same night as the 2 previous. As you can tell the 2 previous were shot after this. I came down to shoot the sunset and pier as my original target. The previous structures came on pre scouting or walking back to the car.
I like the pier shot it came out good with the reflection of water and silhouette of the pier. But the other 2 were much more fun to process.
When scouting out a scene to shoot I enjoy looking around first and getting a feel for my surroundings. In this particular area I have been there many times before. But never with the intent to shoot. It seems like you see things a little different when you have your camera in hand and ready to go sun is setting so you need to set up for what you feel is the best location to capture what you see. I like to walk back and forth from one side of the subject to the other to find the best shot. Always to look back and opposite to make sure you aren't missing something totally away from what you have planned.
Eventually what caught my eye was the sun setting under the pier and the reflection in the water. After that it is just a matter of deciding to catch the pier as a silhouette or brighter. In the end it is all what you see on that given day. Tomorrow, clouds, clarity, colors will all be different. It might be the same pier but a total different set of circumstances to shoot a whole new scene.
The Shot:
Single Exposure, F/16, ISO 400, 1/45 seconds, Sigma 10-20mm Lens @ 20mm
Post Processing:
-Raw-Noise suppression only
CS-5:
>Topaz adjust- get back colors
>Color Efex Pro 3.0
-Glamour Glow-Enhance Water reflection (Glamour Glow entire photo, used masked and Gradient tool inside mask for just effect in water).
-Graduated Filter-Enhance Blue in sky
>Adjustment Layer-Curves for global contrast
>Adjustment Layer-Levels enhance blue in sky further
>Noise Ninja-Sky only
>High Pass sharpening
>Vignette, framed and sized for posting
I like the pier shot it came out good with the reflection of water and silhouette of the pier. But the other 2 were much more fun to process.
When scouting out a scene to shoot I enjoy looking around first and getting a feel for my surroundings. In this particular area I have been there many times before. But never with the intent to shoot. It seems like you see things a little different when you have your camera in hand and ready to go sun is setting so you need to set up for what you feel is the best location to capture what you see. I like to walk back and forth from one side of the subject to the other to find the best shot. Always to look back and opposite to make sure you aren't missing something totally away from what you have planned.
Eventually what caught my eye was the sun setting under the pier and the reflection in the water. After that it is just a matter of deciding to catch the pier as a silhouette or brighter. In the end it is all what you see on that given day. Tomorrow, clouds, clarity, colors will all be different. It might be the same pier but a total different set of circumstances to shoot a whole new scene.
The Shot:
Single Exposure, F/16, ISO 400, 1/45 seconds, Sigma 10-20mm Lens @ 20mm
Post Processing:
-Raw-Noise suppression only
CS-5:
>Topaz adjust- get back colors
>Color Efex Pro 3.0
-Glamour Glow-Enhance Water reflection (Glamour Glow entire photo, used masked and Gradient tool inside mask for just effect in water).
-Graduated Filter-Enhance Blue in sky
>Adjustment Layer-Curves for global contrast
>Adjustment Layer-Levels enhance blue in sky further
>Noise Ninja-Sky only
>High Pass sharpening
>Vignette, framed and sized for posting
Thursday, February 10, 2011
Dinner Time
This was taken on Wednesday night as well. As you can see I went for sunsets and ended with something totally different. I am very happy with the way this turned out. I am really working on my post processing. The standard post processing doesn't take long. My initial work flow takes 15 minutes or so. It is the experimentation that takes a little longer with Adjustment layers to bring out more color or less depending on the photo and what look you are going for.
About the shot:
This area is the Newport Beach Circle. Just to the left is the Newport Beach Pier. Down the walkway is Blackies and Mutt Lynches (2 very popular bars in this area). I originally came down for some sunset shots of the pier. Hoping for streaking skies and long exposures but the skies were plain. I did snap off a few comps around the pier with the intent to look for more around the area. I have eyeballed this comp for a while and finally decided to give it a shot. This building is 21 Ocean Front, it is a very swanky restaurant. Earlier in the evening there was a Ferrari parked out in front. I was hoping it was still there when I came around for the shot but alas it was gone. This is an HDR 9 exposures, 1 stop apart. Mostly because of the clock and front window along with the time of day it created for a wide range in exposure. Exposure times go from 13 seconds down to .5 seconds. I really watched my camera screen to make sure that I had a good amount of highlights as well as bringing it down enough for the clock and window.
Post Processing:
>9 Exposures brought into Raw, decrease in noise only and saved as Tiff's
>Photomatix-Detail Enhancer, manual settings and saved
Photoshop:
-Topaz Adjust-Replace overall color-increase selective exposure
>Color Efex Pro 3.0
-Pro Contrast
-Tonal Contrast
-Bleach Bypass (Lower opacity to 18%)
-Adjustment layer- Curves for contrast
-Adjustment Layer-Levels define of blacks and white area's
-Adjustment Layer-Hue/Sat-Increase reds in building
-Adjustment Layer-Hue/Sat-Increase greens in trees and plants
-Adjustment Layer-Hue/Sat-Increase blues in window
-Noise Ninja-Sky only
-High Pass Sharpening
-Cropped, framed and sized for posting
If you have questions on my processing, please email me through flickr.
About the shot:
This area is the Newport Beach Circle. Just to the left is the Newport Beach Pier. Down the walkway is Blackies and Mutt Lynches (2 very popular bars in this area). I originally came down for some sunset shots of the pier. Hoping for streaking skies and long exposures but the skies were plain. I did snap off a few comps around the pier with the intent to look for more around the area. I have eyeballed this comp for a while and finally decided to give it a shot. This building is 21 Ocean Front, it is a very swanky restaurant. Earlier in the evening there was a Ferrari parked out in front. I was hoping it was still there when I came around for the shot but alas it was gone. This is an HDR 9 exposures, 1 stop apart. Mostly because of the clock and front window along with the time of day it created for a wide range in exposure. Exposure times go from 13 seconds down to .5 seconds. I really watched my camera screen to make sure that I had a good amount of highlights as well as bringing it down enough for the clock and window.
Post Processing:
>9 Exposures brought into Raw, decrease in noise only and saved as Tiff's
>Photomatix-Detail Enhancer, manual settings and saved
Photoshop:
-Topaz Adjust-Replace overall color-increase selective exposure
>Color Efex Pro 3.0
-Pro Contrast
-Tonal Contrast
-Bleach Bypass (Lower opacity to 18%)
-Adjustment layer- Curves for contrast
-Adjustment Layer-Levels define of blacks and white area's
-Adjustment Layer-Hue/Sat-Increase reds in building
-Adjustment Layer-Hue/Sat-Increase greens in trees and plants
-Adjustment Layer-Hue/Sat-Increase blues in window
-Noise Ninja-Sky only
-High Pass Sharpening
-Cropped, framed and sized for posting
If you have questions on my processing, please email me through flickr.
Wednesday, February 9, 2011
Boundries
This is not what I intended to shoot tonight at all. After riding my bike down to Newport Pier on the weekend. I seemed to spot some good comps to shoot by the pier. So after heading to Long Beach on Monday and not seeing anything inspiring to shoot I decided to head out again tonight (Wednesday) to Newport Beach and see what I could possibly catch.
It was a beautiful sunset, very clear night, small amount of wind. I shot around the pier and on the walk back to the car I like to scout around for other comps that might be intriguing. Always looking for a doorway, porch, something inspiring. I came across this pathway between houses that was very interestingly lit. I set my tripod on the wall that separated the home from the beach and snapped off a few.
With this kind of lighting I automatically think HDR. So all of my comps are bracketed for a clean HDR.
Here is the process I used to shoot this in HDR:
The Shot:
7 Exposure HDR- I needed to put this in Bulb to get a +3 Exposure and then bracketed down from there. This is a +3 to -3 Exposure. F/8, ISO 400, Cannon 24-105L @84mm. Exposure time 44 sec all the way down to .8 sec.
Post Processing:
-7 photos into Adobe Raw-Noise reduction only and saved as Tiffs
-Photomatix (Detail Enhancer) Painterly preset with slight adjustments saved as Tiff
Photoshop:
>Nik Color Efex 3.0
-Pro Contrast
-Tonal Contrast
-Bleach Bypass
>Topaz Adjust
-Slight increase in overall color
-Adjustment Layer-Hue/Sat slight increase of Yellows
-Adjustment Layer-Curves slight increase in Contrast
-Vignette added
-Sharpened, sized and framed for posting
It was a beautiful sunset, very clear night, small amount of wind. I shot around the pier and on the walk back to the car I like to scout around for other comps that might be intriguing. Always looking for a doorway, porch, something inspiring. I came across this pathway between houses that was very interestingly lit. I set my tripod on the wall that separated the home from the beach and snapped off a few.
With this kind of lighting I automatically think HDR. So all of my comps are bracketed for a clean HDR.
Here is the process I used to shoot this in HDR:
The Shot:
7 Exposure HDR- I needed to put this in Bulb to get a +3 Exposure and then bracketed down from there. This is a +3 to -3 Exposure. F/8, ISO 400, Cannon 24-105L @84mm. Exposure time 44 sec all the way down to .8 sec.
Post Processing:
-7 photos into Adobe Raw-Noise reduction only and saved as Tiffs
-Photomatix (Detail Enhancer) Painterly preset with slight adjustments saved as Tiff
Photoshop:
>Nik Color Efex 3.0
-Pro Contrast
-Tonal Contrast
-Bleach Bypass
>Topaz Adjust
-Slight increase in overall color
-Adjustment Layer-Hue/Sat slight increase of Yellows
-Adjustment Layer-Curves slight increase in Contrast
-Vignette added
-Sharpened, sized and framed for posting
Tuesday, February 8, 2011
Marching Band
Didn't get a chance to get out last week so this is a reprocessed photo from last year. This year I reprocessed it with Silver Efex Pro. Which is a Software that converts color photo's to black and white. I am just starting to work with it. I really like the software and I am really excited about working with black and white photography. I find it very artistic.
I am liking the way this came out. Any comments would be greatly appreciated.
The Shot:
Single Exposure +1.33 EV, F/7.1. ISO 400, 24-105L @105mm
Post Processing:
-Adjustment Layer- Curves for contast
-Silver Efex Pro- Black and White Conversion
-High Pass Sharpening
I am liking the way this came out. Any comments would be greatly appreciated.
The Shot:
Single Exposure +1.33 EV, F/7.1. ISO 400, 24-105L @105mm
Post Processing:
-Adjustment Layer- Curves for contast
-Silver Efex Pro- Black and White Conversion
-High Pass Sharpening
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)