Friday afternoon, I got back to the house after a portrait session and started looking at the comments on Friday’s photo. All of them had some good suggestions; so thanks, to Barry, Larry, The Professor, Bob, Cindi, Steve, Anne and DHaass. I decided that this photo definitely could be improved using some, if not all, the ideas that my friend’s posted.
So, what did a do to the new improved version?
First, I cropped it—mostly from the top, but I did take a little off the bottom. Although the sky is very dramatic, there was just too much of it. The photo needed more balance between the three elements.
Next, I made a conversion to black and white. This conversion greatly simplified the image. And, it removed the non-complementary colors. Finally, black and white established the photo more as a “mood” photo than a seascape photo. Again, it helped unify the components of the scene.
I then did some selective dodging and burning to: darken the water and beach; lighten some of the clouds in the sky; and darken the foreground and reduce the contrast in the brush.
Finally, I used onOne PhotoFrame to burn the edges to help contain the movement of the viewer’s eyes.
Is this the final version? Not sure. I do know that thanks to my friends’ suggestion, I like this version better than the one I posted on Friday. I think I will let it be for a while and see how it grows on me.
What do you think of the changes?
Enjoy.
Larry, I agree that you improved the image. To get the real feel of the darkened picture, I suggest that you print it in a larger size.
ReplyDeleteIt is too dark for me...You have lost so much detail in the water and the rocks and the foreground. I do like the crop, but much prefer the color version. I guess it just depends on the feeling you are trying to convey to the viewer. The black and white version is even more brooding and stormy and dramatic.
ReplyDeleteIt looks dark on my monitor as well but I would definitely like to have an opportuity to see a print; my guess is that all the drama isn't translating to 72 dpi viewing!
ReplyDeleteWell done!
Barry
I might be missing something, but I thought that you wanted the photo to be somewhat doomy. If so, shouldn't it be darker than a normal photo? I like your first one, but I think this one is better.
ReplyDeleteDebbie
I think it's a bit dark too. But I do like the new crop and black and white.
ReplyDeleteIt looks like you concluded that the sky should be the driving force in the photo. I think you were trying to emphasize a dark or treating mood of the sky in this version. To me, it would be inconsistent with your intent to make the photo brighter. I think the dark, contrast pushes the image in the direction you seem to want to take.
ReplyDeleteUntil I saw this version, I had not realized that the bright, warm beach in the original photo was inconsistent withe the threatening skies. This version seem to make the two more consistent.
Anne