yosemite ps fun

[Andy]

steve c posted this most excellent ir shot from yosemite in another thread

http://freezeframephotography.smugmug.com/photos/21646389-L.jpg

and i thought it could benefit from some more "in-post" work...

if you'd like to see the original look of the file, it's here (http://FreezeFramePhotography.smugmug.com/photos/21783306-M.jpg)

so, here's what i did:

* new adj layer>channel mixer>50/50/0 and check monochrome box
* image>mode>lab
* new adj layer>curves
* upped the L (lightness) curve significantly
* masked away the clouds so they went back to normal
* flattened
* image>mode>rgb
* worked a standard curves layer to gain some nice new contrast
* cloned some of the cloud features to give a little more interest to the sky
* flattened
* select all>edit>transform>distort>straightened out the trees
* ctrl-alt-~ to select the highlights
* new color layer
* selected a really dark brown color
* change image mode to "color"
* set opacity to 9%
* inverted the color (cmd-i, or ctrl-i on a pc)
* cropped to 800x800 square (as steve had done)
* small amount of usm

ir is a genre that affords great lattitude - and personally, i prefer my irs very contrasty, very punchy. as we didn't have exactly great ir lighting conditions at yosemite, to get the desired result from these pics isn't easy, but it's doable. anyhow, steve (and anyone else)... what do you think?

(photo by steve cavigliano)

http://williams.smugmug.com/photos/21790530-L-0.jpg

[DavidTO]

Nice.

When I do that color layer thing, I use multiply instead of color for the mode. I'll have to try color, see what the difference is.

[Andy]

Nice.

When I do that color layer thing, I use multiply instead of color for the mode. I'll have to try color, see what the difference is.

cool. becuase of the not-so-perfect lighting, i had to really work to get the pine needles to be white. that's what makes these pics in my mind, the white leaves, contrasty rock, dramatic clouds :D

[DavidTO]

cool. becuase of the not-so-perfect lighting, i had to really work to get the pine needles to be white. that's what makes these pics in my mind, the white leaves, contrasty rock, dramatic clouds :D


You did a great job with that, they were gray, for sure. Why do the leaves turn white in the first place? Can you explain the physics behind that? Does IR do well in the too strong and flat for color midday light?

[devbobo]

Andy...

way COOL !!! http://dgrin.com/images/smilies/thumb.gif

Can you provide a screenshot on how you 'upped' the L channel ?

have a quick play with the small image. very vert interested in trying this with some of my IRs.

Thanks,

David

[David_S85]

You did a great job with that, they were gray, for sure. Why do the leaves turn white in the first place? Can you explain the physics behind that? Does IR do well in the too strong and flat for color midday light?For lack of a better term, IR "brilliance" is better achieved when the sun is strong, is behind you, and lighting a subject in front of you. Midday light is OK, but it is usually best in mid-morning or mid-early afternoon (sun is at an angle). The effect on clouds and blue sky also seems better at these times.

Light leafy green leaves (especially broad leaves) reflect more wavelengths at near IR, making them appear brighter. When processed for B&W, this leads to a powdery/light-grey or whitish tone. Blue tends to absorb that end of the spectrum better, leading to the dark skies behind the clouds. Water also gets pretty dark. Shadows stay dark, but some other colors that we might tend to see at a certain and accepted shade of grey can do weird things in IR, which makes it an interesting medium to work with.

Skintones, well...... they turn into a horrible cement-like shade. Quite unattractive, IMO. IR portraiture is very subjective - moreso than landscape IR's.

[Andy]

here's another one that i re-worked with the same techniques...
http://williams.smugmug.com/photos/21825407-L.jpg

and below is my first edit attempt...
http://williams.smugmug.com/photos/21584846-L-0.jpg

[Shay Stephens]

This photo takes the cake man, stunning!

here's another one that i re-worked with the same techniques...
http://williams.smugmug.com/photos/21825407-L.jpg

[Andy]

This photo takes the cake man, stunning!

thanks shay - you have good taste my man ... dear wife nancy took a look at my shots and she had the exact same reaction. you can stare at this for a long time, going deeeep into the shot. i can't take all the credit though, yosemite is a wonderful subject to shoot :D

can't wait to print this one tonight, big, 13x19. shay - with the dslr ir-modification, there is *zero* noise in the sky! i'm so jazzed about this :lust

[Steve Cavigliano]

Andy,
Thanks for taking the time to post this helpful info :clap It works great :thumb

Here's another before and after example.

Desaturated IR image, no post. Pretty flat and zero "POP" :rolleyes
http://freezeframephotography.smugmug.com/photos/21837384-L.jpg

After running it through the steps you listed.

http://freezeframephotography.smugmug.com/photos/21837382-L.jpg

Flatness gone and much more "POP" :thumb


Thanks again Andy :clap and if anyone wants some original sized IR's to work this technique on, let me know and I'll post some for ya :D


Steve

[David_S85]

Holy Moly! .... what Shay said! And who put that tree there just for this shot? Perfectly composed. :clap


here's another one that i re-worked with the same techniques...
http://williams.smugmug.com/photos/21825407-L.jpg

[Andy]

Andy...

way COOL !!! http://dgrin.com/images/smilies/thumb.gif

Can you provide a screenshot on how you 'upped' the L channel ?

have a quick play with the small image. very vert interested in trying this with some of my IRs.

Thanks,

David

hiya david - i don't have it, but basically i bulged the L curve upwards to the left... then made localised contrast changes afterwards. i'm really diggin' the modded rebel for ir!

[Andy]

Holy Moly! .... what Shay said! And who put that tree there just for this shot? Perfectly composed. :clap

:lol3 i nearly had a heart attack after grabbing this shot. gubbsy and kept walking down and down and down this plateau... in search of the perfect shot... well, i found the "tree" and did this shot. after a short while, it was time to :uhoh head back up, like, a looooooong way up this rock hill, what me with three cameras, tripod, backpack... :huh well, it was worth it and when i got to the top ole 'gus had a cherry ripe for me :lol3

thanks for the compliment, david!

[Andy]

For lack of a better term, IR "brilliance" is better achieved when the sun is strong, is behind you, and lighting a subject in front of you. Midday light is OK, but it is usually best in mid-morning or mid-early afternoon (sun is at an angle). The effect on clouds and blue sky also seems better at these times.

Light leafy green leaves (especially broad leaves) reflect more wavelengths at near IR, making them appear brighter. When processed for B&W, this leads to a powdery/light-grey or whitish tone. Blue tends to absorb that end of the spectrum better, leading to the dark skies behind the clouds. Water also gets pretty dark. Shadows stay dark, but some other colors that we might tend to see at a certain and accepted shade of grey can do weird things in IR, which makes it an interesting medium to work with.

Skintones, well...... they turn into a horrible cement-like shade. Quite unattractive, IMO. IR portraiture is very subjective - moreso than landscape IR's.

david, as usual you nailed it! thanks for the most excellent explanation. i've only managed one ir portrait that was any good, it was the shot of my wife that made kpotd for her birthday....

some folks use ir for portraiture in studio - for certain effects - it has the ability to conceal/hide skin blemishes in a huge way....