Is Photoshp cheating?
- RylstonLight
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Is Photoshp cheating?
Hi.
I find one of the most difficult things in capturing a realistic picture of a garden railway is the proportion of sky to background. Trees can be simulated by dwarf shrubs, but the sky is hard to capture.
Who thinks tasteful photo-shopping a sky-scape adds to a picture and who feels it detracts
Feel free to illustrate.
No2 "Tom" on heritage train at Little Weighton.
Andy S at the Rylston Light
also http://www.flickr.com/photos/rylston_light_railway/
I find one of the most difficult things in capturing a realistic picture of a garden railway is the proportion of sky to background. Trees can be simulated by dwarf shrubs, but the sky is hard to capture.
Who thinks tasteful photo-shopping a sky-scape adds to a picture and who feels it detracts
Feel free to illustrate.
No2 "Tom" on heritage train at Little Weighton.
Andy S at the Rylston Light
also http://www.flickr.com/photos/rylston_light_railway/
Andy S. at the Rylston Light Railway
- andymctractor
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Re: Is Photoshp cheating?
RylstonLight:92855 wrote:Hi.
I find one of the most difficult things in capturing a realistic picture of a garden railway is the proportion of sky to background. Trees can be simulated by dwarf shrubs, but the sky is hard to capture.
Who thinks tasteful photo-shopping a sky-scape adds to a picture and who feels it detracts
Feel free to illustrate.
Hi,
I feel tasteful photo-shopping would add to a garden railway photo in many cases.
Where there are sensitivities over this subject, e.g. when taking part in some photo competitions, perhaps these could be reduced if a photographer were to briefly explain the adaptations that have been carried out.
I personally think that use of photoshop and similar is part of modern digital photography, though it is another skill I have yet to master.
Regards
Andy McMahon
If it moves, salute it. If it doesn't move, paint it. (RN sailors basic skills course 1968)
Andy McMahon
If it moves, salute it. If it doesn't move, paint it. (RN sailors basic skills course 1968)
- tom_tom_go
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Must say that does look fantastic, adding in a different background really works to advantage where you've got a realistic scene in the foreground ruined by 12 inch/foot world at the back, a house or a garden shed etc
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- DolwyddelanLightRail
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When taking photos I normally don't tend to take the photo with then having to process it with anything in mind. The only thing I tend to do however is sometimes adjust the colour balance or crop it, which can sometimes bring out some details which may have been burnt out on the pixels if not looked at. However, that has been done very neatly! I personally wouldn't call it cheating, as I think it is up to yourself to decide whether it is or not
- MDLR
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I usually do that - I often don't get the subject where I want it in the frame!DolwyddelanLightRail:92890 wrote:The only thing I tend to do however is sometimes adjust the colour balance or crop it, which can sometimes bring out some details which may have been burnt out on the pixels if not looked at.
- RylstonLight
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I find that the "rotate image" feature is as important as "crop". Getting the camera down to eye-level means I cannot always precisely compose the photograph, and they are almost always skew-wiff (sp?).
I find a small bean bag (made of a latex glove filled with lentils) allows me to get to 16mm scale head height for shots.
The other trick is to make sure you match the real sunlight direction/time with a suitable donor sky-scape. In the example image the evening sun was low from the west. The Photoshopped donor skies I tried looked totally wrong until I found one that was of an evening sky looking west. Suddenly it "looked right" because it was right.
Also make your first attempt one with a real sky-line that is a smooth profile not say shrubs posing as trees as they are difficult to blend in.
Finally your real background will be slightly defocussed due to the depth of field effect of close-up photography. This looks odd: foreground slightly defocussed, train focussed, immediate real background defocussed again and then further background (the donor sky-scape) back in focus again.
This looks wrong until you deliberately blur the donor sky-scape to look slightly further out of focus than the (real) immediate background.
Sorry if there are some experts out there who are amused at my tentative attempts at photo manipulation; but if so share your tips too.
There are several other things I have learnt by trial and error that if the forum is interested I could chat about.
Andy S at the Rylston Light
I find a small bean bag (made of a latex glove filled with lentils) allows me to get to 16mm scale head height for shots.
The other trick is to make sure you match the real sunlight direction/time with a suitable donor sky-scape. In the example image the evening sun was low from the west. The Photoshopped donor skies I tried looked totally wrong until I found one that was of an evening sky looking west. Suddenly it "looked right" because it was right.
Also make your first attempt one with a real sky-line that is a smooth profile not say shrubs posing as trees as they are difficult to blend in.
Finally your real background will be slightly defocussed due to the depth of field effect of close-up photography. This looks odd: foreground slightly defocussed, train focussed, immediate real background defocussed again and then further background (the donor sky-scape) back in focus again.
This looks wrong until you deliberately blur the donor sky-scape to look slightly further out of focus than the (real) immediate background.
Sorry if there are some experts out there who are amused at my tentative attempts at photo manipulation; but if so share your tips too.
There are several other things I have learnt by trial and error that if the forum is interested I could chat about.
Andy S at the Rylston Light
Andy S. at the Rylston Light Railway
- DolwyddelanLightRail
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I'd tend to say it's not cheating, and the only reason it's not allowed in the GRF Photocomp is to keep a level playing field for those who haven't yet developed the skill.
There was a HUGE row (well, lively debate ) in the mainstream Steam Railway magazines some time ago about this, and in the end it boils down to whether the photo is meant to be "a historical record" or "artistic representation".
I think the row started over modern features being removed from photo's and extra "clag" being added
There was a HUGE row (well, lively debate ) in the mainstream Steam Railway magazines some time ago about this, and in the end it boils down to whether the photo is meant to be "a historical record" or "artistic representation".
I think the row started over modern features being removed from photo's and extra "clag" being added
- RylstonLight
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In addition to trying to match the angle and direction of the prevailing light in both the sky-scape donor photo and the model photograph, try to pay attention to the colour caste and intensity.
The donor sky-scape may benefit from altering the hue and saturation to make it less intense. Thinks about mountains getting paler and hazy and more blue in the distance.
Once you have combined the two image you might need to "dodge" in to make the transition a less defined edge.
One you have a tried straight edge false horizon then graduate onto a sky-line that has shrubs on.
I realise this is all a bit vague but just playing with a picture is the best way of learning.
Just for fun:
What if Terence Cuneo visited the RLR?
The donor sky-scape may benefit from altering the hue and saturation to make it less intense. Thinks about mountains getting paler and hazy and more blue in the distance.
Once you have combined the two image you might need to "dodge" in to make the transition a less defined edge.
One you have a tried straight edge false horizon then graduate onto a sky-line that has shrubs on.
I realise this is all a bit vague but just playing with a picture is the best way of learning.
Just for fun:
What if Terence Cuneo visited the RLR?
Andy S. at the Rylston Light Railway
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