Assignment #32: Save your worst shot

[Nikolai]

We have learned how to take different angles (http://www.dgrin.com/showthread.php?t=58785) of the same object.

Now let's think: what if we got only one shot and it's bad? I mean - B.A.D... :deal

Well, it's not allways the lost case. With the decent amount of post processing one can turn a lousy shot into a wall hanger. Or a cute avatar (http://www.dgrin.com/showthread.php?t=59123) at least... :rofl

Your entry should consist of two pictures. One: your original bad shot. Two: your pulitzer-prize worthy treatment of it. in addition, to be a valid entry, the first should be bad enough and the second should be good enough.

For the extra credit, try to verbalize your thoughts on what's wrong with the original and what were the general steps you took to improve it and why.

Remember: this time we're not looking for improving a decent shot. We want to salvage a truly bad one, and come back with the bang while we're at it.

This time only: not necessarily fresh pictures (yet yours only, please), but fresh post-processing. And you can photoshop your heart out!

For the rest of the basic rules and index please check out this sticky (http://www.dgrin.com/showthread.php?t=41800).

Let's turn the trash material into the challenge winners!

[pyroPrints.com]

OK, so some questions. Bad shot means ugly subject? Shaky? OOF? Under/Over-Exposed?

[Swartzy]

I suppose "worst shot" is relative as some you can't do anything with so here's a shot taken out my patio window the other day.

http://Swartzy.smugmug.com/photos/145274957-L.jpg

Then, did some things in PS to make it interesting. There are prolly 1 million ways to make this better but I went this direction.

http://Swartzy.smugmug.com/photos/145274961-L.jpg

[RogersDA]

Nikolai,

In the spirit of this assignment it might be useful to also list, at least in general terms, what the person did to go from B.A.D. to G.O.O.D. It's one thing to see the improvement, but it would also help others learn of the different techniques used to get there.:deal




http://darphotos.smugmug.com/photos/145282159-O.png

[Nikolai]

OK, so some questions. Bad shot means ugly subject? Shaky? OOF? Under/Over-Exposed?

It may mean great many things, but mostly we're talking photographer's mistakes. OOF, shaky handses, wrong exposure/dof, bad compo, subject in an awkward position, bad back/foreground, or simply very lame snapshot - you name it.

Ugly subject - probably not, though.

HTH

[Nikolai]

Nikolai,

In the spirit of this assignment it might be useful to also list, at least in general terms, what the person did to go from B.A.D. to G.O.O.D. It's one thing to see the improvement, but it would also help others learn of the different techniques used to get there.:deal



OK, good idea, I will, gimme a day or so.. :thumb

[Nikolai]

I suppose "worst shot" is relative as some you can't do anything with so here's a shot taken out my patio window the other day.

Then, did some things in PS to make it interesting. There are prolly 1 million ways to make this better but I went this direction.



Good entry!

I'd like actually to see more dramatic improvement, but it's a good way to start.
In this case we have an initial bad compo and some blurriness.
Tight crop removed the compo issue and the added motion blur made the original one look like an intentional decision, not a faux-pas.:deal

Actually, guys, it would help us all if we try to verbalize our thoughts on what's wrong with the original and what were the general steps you took to improve and why. :deal I will add this to the assignment.

[pyroPrints.com]

I just saw that you can use old shots. I got plenty of bad shots saved up so i just gotta go look =c)

[Swartzy]

I hope many participate as we are all at different levels of expertise in PS. Nik, you certainly know your way around the program so ideas from you are appreciated.

This shot of my grandson bothers me because of the motion blur, the background busyness, and the goofy colors throughout. I love his smile here and wanted to do something. Here's the shot:

http://Swartzy.smugmug.com/photos/145337721-L.jpg

I color corrected to begin, then thought better to simply extract and place him on a new black background. Yes, I could have smoothed the extraction a bit but this was a workflow that went as it went if you catch my meaning. The end with selective high pass sharpening. It still isn't perfect and there are most likely other approaches to save this shot....this is simply one such direction:

http://Swartzy.smugmug.com/photos/145341257-L.jpg

[pyroPrints.com]

Ya missed the part under his arm. you may also want to soften the mask around the edges so it doesn't look cut out

[pyroPrints.com]

Well what can I say about this shot. I drive&shoot a lot. I know it's not safe and most pics tend to be unusable but it's fun =c) This particular shot has quite a few things that ruin it. We got lens blur, underexposure, it's crooked, bad composure, and last but not least a big-ass light pole in the middle of the picture.

http://athena.divshare.com/athena2/files/2007/04/20/444962/_P1040771_original_resize.JPG

Started with the pole. Cloning, masking, grabbing neighboring areas, healing and all that fun stuff. Now that the pole's gone. Straighten the picture. Then the crop. Once I have that, I applied a few different treatments to it

Eve:
http://apollo.divshare.com/apollo2/files/2007/04/20/444914/_P1040771_eve_resize.jpg

Twilight:
http://apollo.divshare.com/apollo2/files/2007/04/20/444917/_P1040771_twighlight_resize.jpg

Retro:
http://apollo.divshare.com/apollo2/files/2007/04/20/444916/_P1040771_retro_resize.jpg

[Antonio Correia]

I have been looking for my lauziest shot.
I do have many. But I am no expert in Photoshop at all.
So, my only chance was to present what I can do in a "not so lauzy" picture.

I present 2 shots.
In the 1.st one - which came right from RAW - the problem was that the people were too dark and the background was too light.

I opened 2 shots with different values: one for the background and another for the foreground.
Then, I duplicated the layer, made a mask and erased the unwanted areas.
I changed to LAB, apply curves at will, selected the Lightness channel and applied Smart Sharpen.

The result is the second shot.
I croped with for 24 * 36 because when I shot I was already doing my best composition.

Now that I saw both on the preview before posting, I can say that the difference is not a large one, is it ? :dunno
http://antoniocorreia.smugmug.com/photos/145586871-M.jpg http://antoniocorreia.smugmug.com/photos/145587140-M.jpg

[Nikolai]

I have been looking for my lauziest shot.
I do have many. But I am no expert in Photoshop at all.
So, my only chance was to present what I can do in a "not so lauzy" picture.


Sorry, my friend, this won't cut it. :dunno
Yes, 1st one is not bad enough, and yes, 2d one is not much different. :deal
Time to become an expert, no? :wink

[Antonio Correia]

Sorry, my friend, this won't cut it. :dunno
Yes, 1st one is not bad enough, and yes, 2d one is not much different. :deal
Time to learn some PP, no? :wink
I thought so.
:thumb

[pyroPrints.com]

Hey teach, where is my response :wink

[Nikolai]

Hey teach, where is my response :wink

Oops, sorry, my bad, dog ate it...:rofl

I think is a very good example. :thumb
I like the twilight version the most. Cloned lamppost clears the field, drastic change in the exposure hides the softness of the image and brings "da mood".

[pyroPrints.com]

Oops, sorry, my bad, dog ate it...:rofl

I think is a very good example. :thumb
I like the twilight version the most. Cloned lamppost clears the field, drastic change in the exposure hides the softness of the image and brings "da mood".

Don't make me sic my cats on your dog =c)

Yeah I like the twighlight the best as well visually. But on the other hand I feel like it's a lazy edit. Easiest way to hide flaws is to darken something, which is why when I do heavy PS jobs, I always boost up the brightness to see if any flaws exists. It's a pretty good technique, if I do say so myself.

[Nikolai]

I apologize, this does not count: the original is not mine, and the PP has been done long ago. However, I think it serves its purpose. Both treatments were done for the "optimize this" challenge at a different forum.

Here's a link to the "original":
http://static.flickr.com/97/244508267_f0ea062be3_o.jpg

As it's easy to see, the image is soft, the cute bunny is tiny and almost lost behind all the additional "noise" (leaves, etc), van ruines the mood... well, you can count your own points, it was enough for me...

I got two versions.

First one took me less than five minutes. I cropped the shot, thus making the bunny more prominent, and made it an illustration to the kid's book, by adding the white canvas, some text and applying some artistic filter (don't remember which one, sorry, maybe as simple as posterize...):

http://nik.smugmug.com/photos/96575755-O.jpg

Next I decided to spend a little bit;-) more time, and came out with the "Sin City" version (I think I posted it here, too, under different context):

http://nik.smugmug.com/photos/96625985-1024x1024.jpg

Weirdest curves, a dozen of layers, colorization - you name it.

HTH

[Nikolai]

...Easiest way to hide flaws is to darken something...
:agree.
And yet it's a very powerful "improvement" technique, since it can get you "from zero to hero" in no time.. :deal

[Swartzy]

Something like this?

http://Swartzy.smugmug.com/photos/145620818-L.jpg

[Nikolai]

Something like this?

I'm not sure if posterization is a right tool for this particular kind of shot, but if it makes *you* like it - sure, why not... :wink
However, I don't think your original is bad enough :rofl

[Antonio Correia]

Nikolai.
How about this ? It looks like this is what you have in mind ...
http://antoniocorreia.smugmug.com/photos/145806052-M.jpg http://antoniocorreia.smugmug.com/photos/145805781-M.jpg

[Antonio Correia]

But... This is better, is it not ?
Colored Pencil + Glowing Edges + Background Layer + Blending modes + Curves in LAB + Smart Sharpen + Crop + Text + Save As
The original picture was to be erased !
http://antoniocorreia.smugmug.com/photos/145811461-M.jpg http://antoniocorreia.smugmug.com/photos/145812173-M.jpg

[Antonio Correia]

Mirror (I like better this way) + Glowing Edges + LAB + Curves + Smart Sharpen + Save As
This one was not to be erased ! Just is just a variation, a version !
http://antoniocorreia.smugmug.com/photos/145126916-M.jpg http://antoniocorreia.smugmug.com/photos/145818214-M.jpg

[Nikolai]

:clap

My only grind is: only the first shot can be called bad enough.... :-(

Again: we're not looking at the general improvement/fiddling. We're talking about wreck-salvaging...

[Antonio Correia]

:clap

My only grind is: only the first shot can be called bad enough.... :-(

Again: we're not looking at the general improvement/fiddling. We're talking about wreck-salvaging...

This time I understool since the beginning.:D

The second shot I was going to erase it because it lacks interest.

But I thought the third shot would work fine with this treatment.

As it really does !

[Antonio Correia]

Filter Gallery + Curves in LAB + Blendings + Smart Sharpen
From
http://antoniocorreia.smugmug.com/photos/145893837-M.jpg http://antoniocorreia.smugmug.com/photos/145895321-M.jpg http://antoniocorreia.smugmug.com/photos/145898813-M.jpg http://antoniocorreia.smugmug.com/photos/145899688-M.jpg

Done. Next one please ! :clap Something "serious" ! :rofl

[Nikolai]

Filter Gallery + Curves in LAB + Blendings + Smart Sharpen
From
Done. Next one please ! :clap Something "serious" ! :rofl

I have to congratulate you. If this is your worst shot ever....:bow
Mine used to be so bad I'm ashamed to show them...:rolleyes

[Antonio Correia]

I have to congratulate you. If this is your worst shot ever....:bow
Mine used to be so bad I'm ashamed to show them...:rolleyes
This is not my worst shot ever but is one of them.

As I told you before: I do have many. A big lot of them.

But do you think I was going to show them to you all ?

No way ! You would pull my leg from now on and I don't want that :rofl:rofl:rofl
But this was it OK ? :D

I saw my shot again: but that is lauzy Nikolai. Lauzy

[Antonio Correia]

I don't want you to be un-happy, man.
Is it worst enought ?
http://antoniocorreia.smugmug.com/photos/145928169-M.jpg http://antoniocorreia.smugmug.com/photos/145929578-M.jpg

[Nikolai]

Rather old year 2000 shot, taken with my first then digital camera Ricoh RDC-300. Built-in memory for 40 shots (640x480 at 72 dpi, no less), it went through 4 AA batteries in under 30 minutes. Argh...

01: Family trip tp Mosquito Ridge Sequoia Park (Tahoe National Forest):

http://nik.smugmug.com/photos/145932541-L.jpg

Today's edition. PS CS3, curves, linear burn, b/w, masking

02: Groethen in the night:

http://nik.smugmug.com/photos/145932558-L.jpg

[Nikolai]

I don't want you to be un-happy, man.
Is it worst enought ?

I still am :-( :cry
First is not bad enough, second is not interesting enough... :dunno

[Antonio Correia]

I still am :-( :cry
First is not bad enough, second is not interesting enough... :dunno

:rofl:rofl:rofl

[dlscott56]

Before :
http://4scotts.smugmug.com/photos/145962146-M.jpg
And after editing levels, sharpenning, desaturation, cropping, and opening the left eye a little.
http://4scotts.smugmug.com/photos/145962109-M.jpg
What do you think?

Also, posted with permission of the subject since he would kill me if I didn't ask first.

[Nikolai]

Before :

And after editing levels, sharpening, desaturation, cropping, and opening the left eye a little.

What do you think?

Also, posted with permission of the subject since he would kill me if I didn't ask first.

You're missing the point... :cry
Bad shots cannot be just improved (although yours can, which means you're missing the "B.A.D" criteria :deal :wink ). They have to be mangled, ripped apart and reassembled from scratch. Forget about your original intention and composition, they are as good as gone.

You need something like this:

[richtersl]

Apparently I completed this assignment before I even knew what it was...LOL.


Here's the original (YUCK! :sick )

http://lrichters.smugmug.com/photos/146304458-L.jpg



Here's the original with a crop + diffuse glow/grain filter in PS:
http://lrichters.smugmug.com/photos/146304553-L.jpg

[dlscott56]

Ok, is this more like what you were looking for?

http://4scotts.smugmug.com/photos/146319803-M.jpg

And after :
http://4scotts.smugmug.com/photos/146355226-M.jpg
http://4scotts.smugmug.com/photos/146320706-M.jpg

[Antonio Correia]

As a matter of fact not only lauzy pictures can become nice ones as this example demonstrates.:thumb
After all I don't have that many bad pictures...:rofl
http://antoniocorreia.smugmug.com/photos/146187979-L.jpg (http://antoniocorreia.smugmug.com/gallery/1587711#146187979-L-LB) http://antoniocorreia.smugmug.com/photos/146189960-L.jpg (http://antoniocorreia.smugmug.com/gallery/1587711#146189960-L-LB)

Please, click on the picture to see it in it's gallery.

[Nikolai]

Apparently I completed this assignment before I even knew what it was...LOL.
Here's the original (YUCK! :sick )
Here's the original with a crop + diffuse glow/grain filter in PS:


Sorry, looks like you've got same syndrome: original is not bad enough, treatment is not bold enough... :dunno

Care to try again? :wink

[Nikolai]

Ok, is this more like what you were looking for?
And after :

Yes, definitely! :thumb
Original is still pretty decent, but I like the treatment! :clap

[Nikolai]

After all I don't have that many bad pictures...:rofl

I know the feeling:-) I delete all my baddies, too :wink

[richtersl]

Sorry, looks like you've got same syndrome: original is not bad enough, treatment is not bold enough... :dunno

Care to try again? :wink
OK, but you've asked for it now...:rofl

[Antonio Correia]

The day is rather cloudy today.
It does not matter.
It was necessary to shoot a lauzy picture.
Then here they go.
All have been treated with Filters + UM + Glowing Edges + Blend mode + etc
I shot them for you Nikolai. :D
http://antoniocorreia.smugmug.com/photos/146487303-M.jpg http://antoniocorreia.smugmug.com/photos/146488584-M.jpg http://antoniocorreia.smugmug.com/photos/146487273-M.jpg http://antoniocorreia.smugmug.com/photos/146489875-M.jpg http://antoniocorreia.smugmug.com/photos/146492193-M.jpg http://antoniocorreia.smugmug.com/photos/146492229-M.jpg http://antoniocorreia.smugmug.com/photos/146490781-M.jpg http://antoniocorreia.smugmug.com/photos/146490360-M.jpg

[Antonio Correia]

http://antoniocorreia.smugmug.com/photos/146489953-L-4.jpg http://antoniocorreia.smugmug.com/photos/146490816-L.jpg

[Antonio Correia]

By the way:
I shot this in Paris.
The building is in works behind this scenario.
Great ideia. :thumb
This is in a street near the Champs Elysées.
I tried to recreat this fluidity ( Liquify ) in the Photoshop but I could not. :dunno

http://antoniocorreia.smugmug.com/photos/141573999-L.jpg

[Antonio Correia]

http://antoniocorreia.smugmug.com/photos/146496935-L.jpg http://antoniocorreia.smugmug.com/photos/146497159-L.jpg
http://antoniocorreia.smugmug.com/photos/146497229-M.jpg http://antoniocorreia.smugmug.com/photos/146497876-M.jpg

[Antonio Correia]

http://antoniocorreia.smugmug.com/photos/146613337-M.jpg http://www.antoniocorreia.com/photos/146581433-M.jpg

and it came out very nice...
Almost streight up ...:dunno

[Antonio Correia]

2 photos melted with different blends.
Some filters + SS + etc

http://antoniocorreia.smugmug.com/photos/146606780-S.jpg + http://antoniocorreia.smugmug.com/photos/146609205-S.jpg =
http://antoniocorreia.smugmug.com/photos/146608152-L.jpg

[Antonio Correia]

Curves + Posterize + Flaten Image + Craquelure + Glowing Edges + Saturation
http://antoniocorreia.smugmug.com/photos/146622088-M.jpg http://antoniocorreia.smugmug.com/photos/146626218-M.jpg

[Nikolai]

I really like the cathedral and window shatters treatment. :thumb

As to the rest: I'm really glad you're having fun with it, but don't you think that different shots may call for different treatments? Too much of the same stuff gets old fast, even if it's very good... :dunno

[CookieS]

When did this assignment turn into How many horrible filter renditions can we make. Im not sure that was the direction, becaus i think most of the edge filters and posterizations look awful . They hardly make a poor photo better. :dunno

saying that here are mine. as soon as I resize.

[CookieS]

OK, here is the before, bad indoor show at night. ICK , crooked , horse is on the forhand, terrible noise and dark , white balance off.

[CookieS]

heres as much of a save as i could make

[RogersDA]

Well, Nik, since I inspired you to do this assignment I guess I might as well participate. No "smilies" today. But, how's this go?

http://darphotos.smugmug.com/photos/146690160-L.jpg

http://darphotos.smugmug.com/photos/146690347-L.jpghttp://darphotos.smugmug.com/photos/146702404-L.jpghttp://darphotos.smugmug.com/photos/146718009-L.jpg

http://darphotos.smugmug.com/photos/146709504-L.jpg

A lot of clone/heal brushing to remove the dirt, bad spots, fuzzies, etc. Extracted the flower and added a filter (angled strokes) and a light render effect. Merged layers and ran a softness action. The second adds some more lighting, a gradient map layer, and a curves layer.

[Antonio Correia]

When did this assignment turn into How many horrible filter renditions can we make. Im not sure that was the direction, becaus i think most of the edge filters and posterizations look awful . They hardly make a poor photo better. :dunno

saying that here are mine. as soon as I resize.
May be you mean something like this ?
http://antoniocorreia.smugmug.com/photos/146791953-M.jpg http://antoniocorreia.smugmug.com/photos/146793297-M.jpg

[Antonio Correia]

When did this assignment turn into How many horrible filter renditions can we make. Im not sure that was the direction, becaus i think most of the edge filters and posterizations look awful . They hardly make a poor photo better. :dunno

saying that here are mine. as soon as I resize.
Or even this ? :dunno
http://antoniocorreia.smugmug.com/photos/146798081-L.jpg http://antoniocorreia.smugmug.com/photos/146789445-L.jpg

[pyroPrints.com]

I don't see a difference between the monkey photos. About the second post: I'm not sure the first shot is bad enough. But your fix of that one is pretty good.

[Antonio Correia]

I don't see a difference between the monkey photos. About the second post: I'm not sure the first shot is bad enough. But your fix of that one is pretty good.
Hello,

The monkey is out of focus and I applied nothing but Smart Sharp. Poor picture after all ...

The girl was not that bad, but wasn't good either. But it is better now.

But and these here ?
The treatment gave the picture much more drama.
It still is a lauzy picture ! :cry
The subject is not looking at us, the buses are back there with no connection with them or us, not sharp. It was a bang: I mean: I saw put the camera in the eye and bang.

We were moving back to the car and for these kind of picture I'm a lauzy photographer.
Fot others I may be considered a little better.

The treatment in this one was: new layer (I always do this because when I apply Blending mode Multiply I love the results) + LAB (not merging the layers) + SS on the layer + another layer from the one in the bottom + Lens Blur (hard) + mask (erase and smooth certain areas)
Any ideias, please ? :dunno

http://antoniocorreia.smugmug.com/photos/146622088-M.jpg http://antoniocorreia.smugmug.com/photos/146799935-M.jpg

Oh I forgot: Thank you for commenting ! :wink

[pyroPrints.com]

My non-professional 2 cents:
I think you can do better on the blur. Blur the background slightly more then the people in the background. And I don't know maybe it's just me but I usually use Gaussian blur when I do this.


Another really small fix is i would slightly darken the child's right eye. It stands out a little and distracts the viewer.

Another technique I learned is darkening the area that's not the subject. You can do this 2 ways. You can darken the area where the blur is or you can just darken the corners (almost creating a spot light effect). The trick is to make it subtle enough. The way I do this is I create a blank layer. Then i choose a very soft (usually round) brush and brush in the areas I want darkened. then I lower the opacity, based on taste, to 5-25%.

This is a quick and dirty psd file that shows what I mean. BTW my blur isn't at it's best here since it was quick. But I wanted to show what I mean by the darkening.
DivShare File - ac_darken.psd (http://www.divshare.com/download/482594-d09)

[Antonio Correia]

My non-professional 2 cents:
I think you can do better on the blur. Blur the background slightly more then the people in the background. And I don't know maybe it's just me but I usually use Gaussian blur when I do this.


Another really small fix is i would slightly darken the child's right eye. It stands out a little and distracts the viewer.

Another technique I learned is darkening the area that's not the subject. You can do this 2 ways. You can darken the area where the blur is or you can just darken the corners (almost creating a spot light effect). The trick is to make it subtle enough. The way I do this is I create a blank layer. Then i choose a very soft (usually round) brush and brush in the areas I want darkened. then I lower the opacity, based on taste, to 5-25%.

This is a quick and dirty psd file that shows what I mean. BTW my blur isn't at it's best here since it was quick. But I wanted to show what I mean by the darkening.
DivShare File - ac_darken.psd (http://www.divshare.com/download/482594-d09)

Thank you for commenting.
I'll try your suggestion !
:D:thumb

[Nikolai]

heres as much of a save as i could make

Welcome to the Class and thank you for an entry! :clap
Nice salvation job! :thumb

[Nikolai]

Well, Nik, since I inspired you to do this assignment I guess I might as well participate. No "smilies" today. But, how's this go?

A lot of clone/heal brushing to remove the dirt, bad spots, fuzzies, etc. Extracted the flower and added a filter (angled strokes) and a light render effect. Merged layers and ran a softness action. The second adds some more lighting, a gradient map layer, and a curves layer.

I like the treatment, esp. the last one, but I really can't see your original as a bad, let alone B.A.D, image... :huh

[RogersDA]

...but I really can't see your original as a bad, let alone B.A.D, image... :huh

Geeez...It's hard to suck sometimes!!

[Nikolai]

Geeez...It's hard to suck sometimes!!
That's why for this WA you don't have to use a fresh shot, only a fresh treatment... Dig out your backup CDs, don't you have ANY garbage there? :wink

[seeker]

That's why for this WA you don't have to use a fresh shot, only a fresh treatment... Dig out your backup CDs, don't you have ANY garbage there? :wink

This may be asking a silly question, but I want to make sure I understand the spirit of the rule, not just the letter.

I have a picture I shot back at Christmas, that I applied a fix to soon after the fact. I would love to go back and apply a different fix to it, and post it here, but I am not sure whether that fits within the spirit of what you are asking us to do.

Could you clarify this for me?

Thanks!

- Brian

[pyroPrints.com]

This may be asking a silly question, but I want to make sure I understand the spirit of the rule, not just the letter.

I have a picture I shot back at Christmas, that I applied a fix to soon after the fact. I would love to go back and apply a different fix to it, and post it here, but I am not sure whether that fits within the spirit of what you are asking us to do.

Could you clarify this for me?

Thanks!

- Brian

I think it would if you're applying the fix to the orgiinal image. Unless your original fix was bad :wink

[Nikolai]

This may be asking a silly question, but I want to make sure I understand the spirit of the rule, not just the letter.

I have a picture I shot back at Christmas, that I applied a fix to soon after the fact. I would love to go back and apply a different fix to it, and post it here, but I am not sure whether that fits within the spirit of what you are asking us to do.

Could you clarify this for me?

Thanks!

- Brian

"Fresh" simply means "done now, after the particular subject was announced".
In most cases I ask for "fresh pictures", i.e. they should be taken now, not 6 months ago.
Since this one is mostly pp assingment, I decided to allow older pictures but the post processing should be performed now.
The idea is also to look back at your own work and see whether you have improved and, heck, maybe even bring the new life to some of those rookie pictures one's taken a few years back :wink

HTH

[RogersDA]

That's why for this WA you don't have to use a fresh shot, only a fresh treatment... Dig out your backup CDs, don't you have ANY garbage there? :wink

O.k. I can't call this "garbage" as it is my daughter. Shot when she was but 1 day old with a Sony Mavixa with a flash that didn't work. Aside: that evenually led me to go with the 20D.
http://darphotos.smugmug.com/photos/147132783-L.jpg

http://darphotos.smugmug.com/photos/147132720-L.jpg

duplicating layer - blured - hide all mask and painting to reveal only the slightly blurred face
coloring of the face and burning in the hair. Ran it though an action for "dreamy" type of effect -very slight convert using this
I2E for some skin tone correction - i still suck at sking tones.

[Nikolai]

O.k. I can't call this "garbage" as it is my daughter. Shot when she was but 1 day old with a Sony Mavixa with a flash that didn't work. Aside: that evenually led me to go with the 20D.
---
duplicating layer - blured - hide all mask and painting to reveal only the slightly blurred face
coloring of the face and burning in the hair. Ran it though an action for "dreamy" type of effect -very slight convert using this
I2E for some skin tone correction - i still suck at sking tones.
I agree, original is not too bad under the circumtances, yet I like the treatment:-) :thumb

[seeker]

This is a shot I took last Christmas at a family gathering.

Here is the "before" image:

http://enumics.smugmug.com/photos/147170219-L.jpg

This has lots of problems :D

- out of focus
- white balance not correct
- poor composition
- not a good mix of colors

Here is what I did to fix it:

- Auto-levels in Photoshop
- Converted to Black and White using a Gradient and the Channel Mixer to deal with color problems
- Cropped and painted out the switch plate to deal with bad composition
- Applied the "Dry Brush" fillter to deal with the focus problem
- Applied a duo-tone to make it more interesting

Here is the "after" image:

http://enumics.smugmug.com/photos/147170267-L.jpg

- Brian

[Nikolai]

This is a shot I took last Christmas at a family gathering.
Here is the "before" image:
Here is the "after" image:
- Brian

Brian,
in this assignment we're not looking for a mild improvement of a sub-par photo. We're looking for turning a total trash into wall-worthy material. In your case I can't see either...:dunno

[richtersl]

Original stinky photo:

http://lrichters.smugmug.com/photos/147182184-M.jpg



Revision:

http://lrichters.smugmug.com/photos/147182174-L.jpg

[Nikolai]

Original stinky photo:
Revision:


Nice! Crop, liquify, grangy bw - WTG!:thumb

[seeker]

Brian,
in this assignment we're not looking for a mild improvement of a sub-par photo. We're looking for turning a total trash into wall-worthy material. In your case I can't see either...:dunno

Apparently you think more highly of my original than I do.

Oh well! :scratch

- Brian

[SDJames]

Before...
http://seaviewphotography.smugmug.com/photos/147230299-M.jpg
after...
http://seaviewphotography.smugmug.com/photos/147230302-M.jpg
Talented Post Proc, eh? :rofl :rofl
Couldn't resist.:wink

[SDJames]

Tough finding recent pics I haven't deleted. How about...
before...
http://seaviewphotography.smugmug.com/photos/147240489-M.jpg
and after...
http://seaviewphotography.smugmug.com/photos/147240486-M.jpg
since it was already blurred, I added some smart blur to hide the fence a little. Then, I added the radial blur from the center of the torches.
Eh, not my best before/after. I'll have to see what else I can dig up.

[Nikolai]

Tough finding recent pics I haven't deleted. How about...
before...
and after...
since it was already blurred, I added some smart blur to hide the fence a little. Then, I added the radial blur from the center of the torches.
Eh, not my best before/after. I'll have to see what else I can dig up.
I like the direction you're going. :thumb And yes, I think too, more can be done to it :deal

[pyroPrints.com]

Hey Nik, i just had a semi-brilliant idea. You should grab some of your old bad shots, and then ppl can choose one they like and try to fix it =c)

[Nikolai]

Hey Nik, i just had a semi-brilliant idea. You should grab some of your old bad shots, and then ppl can choose one they like and try to fix it =c)

You want ME to be an everybody's scapegoat? :wink I'll pass, thanks... :rofl

The thing is - it's gotta be your own shot for this thing to work. Why? Because of the mental reservation. Manglingh somebody else's work is always easy. But your won - you always have some extra memories associated with it, so you always "see" what others may (and often do) not. You need to learn to block this feelings, look at the shot AS IF it was somebody else's.
Anyway, it's Friday, time for the new theme!

[Swartzy]

My classic WA 32 material :rofl

http://Swartzy.smugmug.com/photos/147163712-L.jpg

http://Swartzy.smugmug.com/photos/148399670-L.jpg

[Nikolai]

My classic WA 32 material :rofl

:lol3
I knew it woud come back and bite me in the a...trunk...:-)

Good job on the treatment! :thumb

[pyroPrints.com]

My classic WA 32 material :rofl


OK, someone has to explain to me what the assignment on Week 32 was... :huh

[RogersDA]

OK, someone has to explain to me what the assignment on Week 32 was... :huh

You're reading it:deal:D:D

[leaforte]

Playing Catch Up

I took alot of pictures on my last hike, and thought this picture of a root and water element would come out nice. It was a beautiful feature. But alas, it just wasn't the same when I got it home, and turned out to be the worse of the bunch. It just wasn't the same without the whole tree. But it looked so nice in real time, that I wanted to salvage a piece of it, and thus tried this crop, and BW conversion.

Original as shot

http://tonymcguiness.smugmug.com/photos/173480247-L.jpg

The cropped version

http://tonymcguiness.smugmug.com/photos/173480276-L.jpg

I'm not real experienced with the nuances of curves and levels, but my fixes should get better with practice.

[Nikolai]

Playing Catch Up

I took alot of pictures on my last hike, and thought this picture of a root and water element would come out nice. It was a beautiful feature. But alas, it just wasn't the same when I got it home, and turned out to be the worse of the bunch. It just wasn't the same without the whole tree. But it looked so nice in real time, that I wanted to salvage a piece of it, and thus tried this crop, and BW conversion.

I'm not real experienced with the nuances of curves and levels, but my fixes should get better with practice.

It's a nice crop and conversion, but it seems that even your original wasn't that bad :wink

[emmalou]

The original photo

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v299/emmaloudawg/bull.jpg

The new photo.......
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v299/emmaloudawg/cropcrosshatch.jpg

[Nikolai]

The original photo
The new photo.......


Thank you for playing!
However,

First shot is not nearly bad enough, many of us would be thrilled to take it just as it is.
Second image is not that much different. :dunnoPlease remember, this assignment is not about a slight improvement. :deal
It's about turning the a Pauper into a Prince, an Ugly Duckling into a Swan and a Beast into a Beauty.

Let's try again, shall we? :wink

[emmalou]

Lol.ok........I had a feeling .
Editing for a new try...
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v299/emmaloudawg/eld.jpg Pretty much blown , alot of noise?
More detail , cropped and darkened the blown areas........I hope........
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v299/emmaloudawg/posteredge.jpg

[Nikolai]

Lol.ok........I had a feeling .
Editing for a new try...
Pretty much blown , alot of noise?
More detail , cropped and darkened the blown areas........I hope........

I think this one is a bit better. But you apparently have a much higher standard, since I noticed neither noise nor blownout areas (at least in IE).
I like the new crop though.

[emmalou]

I think this one is a bit better. But you apparently have a much higher standard, since I noticed neither noise nor blownout areas (at least in IE).
I like the new crop though.
Higher standards.....not even close.....lol.but on my screen the left side is really glaring, as well as the doorway on the shed, and the blue pool to the right side.....

[MarkR]

www.deletedimages.com (http://www.deletedimages.com)
It's similar to this challenge, except for the whole "try to make something new out of a bad shot" part. Taken out of context, some (many) of the deleted images are wicked cool.

[Nikolai]

www.deletedimages.com (http://www.deletedimages.com)
It's similar to this challenge, except for the whole "try to make something new out of a bad shot" part. Taken out of context, some (many) of the deleted images are wicked cool.

Thanks for the link! :thumb
This is exactly the kind of images I'd like to see as a starting point for this assignment! :deal :D

[MarkR]

Here's my attempt:
Original:
http://Hobbyist.smugmug.com/photos/173746961-L.jpg

And Psychedelic.

http://Hobbyist.smugmug.com/photos/176309239-L.jpg

[Nikolai]

Here's my attempt:
Original:
And Psychedelic.

Thank you!

Original is definitely bad enough:-) :thumb
However, the processed version is just a bit bolder. I'd say you'd have to fare a bit farther to bring it into a whole new dimension... :deal

[Clickr_Grl]

here's the original
20470

[Clickr_Grl]

here's altered
20471

[Nikolai]

here's altered
I like the removal of the powerboats. :thumb
However, the idea of this assignment is to create some bold statement, not just get from F to B-... :dunno

[Clickr_Grl]

I like the removal of the powerboats. :thumb
However, the idea of this assignment is to create some bold statement, not just get from F to B-... :dunno
I thought I did make a bold statement. I'm not really into that completely altering an image to change it into something else. to me that's not photography.

[Nikolai]

I thought I did make a bold statement. I'm not really into that completely altering an image to change it into something else. to me that's not photography.
That's why you were supposed to start from some real trash material in the first place, so you wouldn't think of it as of a salvageable photograph anymore :deal :wink

[Clickr_Grl]

That's why you were supposed to start from some real trash material in the first place, so you wouldn't think of it as of a salvageable photograph anymore :deal :wink
everything is salvagable if you look hard enough. I might just use a little corner of one shot and layer it as the backround for another but all this negative image crap and saturating color, doesn't work for me. It's ok, I'll move on to the next one....:click

[FlashPhotoBoy]

I have two fairly recent ones, both shot about a month ago at a dance rehersal my daughter was in. A few of the mothers missed picture day at the studio and asked me if I could take some pictures for them at the rehersal. Very hard to get a decent picture, it was a school auditorium with very poor lighting, the dance instructors would not let us get close or use a flash. Glad I at least had a monopod with me to steady it somewhat on the long exposure. I added lighting and watercolor filters to both pictures. The Mother of the 1st girl loved it so much she ordered a 16x19 mural on canvas, came out great!

Before:

http://i184.photobucket.com/albums/x66/flash_photo_boy/IMG_0119.jpg

After:

http://i184.photobucket.com/albums/x66/flash_photo_boy/IMG_0119_1.jpg

[FlashPhotoBoy]

Before:

http://i184.photobucket.com/albums/x66/flash_photo_boy/IMG_0117.jpg

After:

http://i184.photobucket.com/albums/x66/flash_photo_boy/IMG_0117paint.jpg

[Nikolai]

Before:
After:

Honestly, I don't know.. The originals are not bad enough and the "after"-versions are not convincing enough. I'd rather stay with "before" ones in this case :dunno

[Felicia]

Okay, after I cried my eyes out :cry because you didn't like my door handle shot and suggested it was in the my "worst shot" category, I gave it a try. Have I come close? :):
http://lvcaiques.smugmug.com/photos/187080307-M.jpg
Date Modified 2007-08-23 09:54:33
Date Taken 2007-08-19 17:10:11
Camera Canon EOS DIGITAL REBEL XTi

[Nikolai]

Okay, after I cried my eyes out :cry because you didn't like my door handle shot and suggested it was in the my "worst shot" category, I gave it a try. Have I come close? :):

Date Modified 2007-08-23 09:54:33
Date Taken 2007-08-19 17:10:11
Camera Canon EOS DIGITAL REBEL XTi
It looks MUCH better here :thumb
I would add even more of the neon and titled it somehow in the 50-s pinup style..:deal

[Moni]

I took this pic from the streetcar to get the cute vintage shop.
But it was all wrong - there was a car in front, it was too dark, it was too cool and it was too busy.
http://monicarooney.smugmug.com/photos/225301779-M.jpg

I cropped, cloned the car out of the bottom.

http://monicarooney.smugmug.com/photos/225301929-M.jpg

Having trouble with my computer...I'll post what I did later.

What do you think?

[Moni]

...
Having trouble with my computer...I'll post what I did later.

What do you think?

Ok...
first I cropped and cloned out the car.
I made a copy of the layer and posterized, layer opacity 62%
Layer copy of original again, smart blur at 34% opacity
Then the right side of the pic was too dark so I used a gradient mask and used the levels to lighten
Then I used the channel mixer to warm it up
Then I used the levels again...
Then I toned down the colour and the brightness of the reflection in the glass....it was way too bright
then I copied the original layer again and used the dreamy setting on the Virtual Photographer plugin - this layer is at 26% opacity

Then I wanted to create a diagonal light shaft so I used the gradient mask again and used levels to darken the corners and lighten the middle

[Nikolai]

Vintage shop
Moni,
thank you very much, great save! :thumb
Unless this person entering the shop is utterly important to you for some other reason, I would crop her out (going portrait), too. Other than that I like the treatment very much! :clap

[entropysedge]

Now its my turn :D (I actually still have some real stinkers!)

http://www.entropysedge.com/abad1.jpg

and after ...

http://www.entropysedge.com/abad1copy.jpg

first I cropped it, then used curves on the eyes, Artistic - watercolor , then curves again.

[Nikolai]

Now its my turn :D (I actually still have some real stinkers!)
and after ...
first I cropped it, then used curves on the eyes, Artistic - watercolor , then curves again.
Nice, thank you! :thumb

[Moni]

Moni,
thank you very much, great save! :thumb
Unless this person entering the shop is utterly important to you for some other reason, I would crop her out (going portrait), too. Other than that I like the treatment very much! :clap

I tried the crop and I'm not sure if I like it better or not. The other one has the woman where my eyes stop.
I don't know if there is anywhere for my eyes to rest in the new one.
It might be personal preference.
http://monicarooney.smugmug.com/photos/225302385-M.jpg

[Nikolai]

I tried the crop and I'm not sure if I like it better or not. The other one has the woman where my eyes stop.
I don't know if there is anywhere for my eyes to rest in the new one.
It might be personal preference.

I agree, it's the eye of the beholder... but I like the path your original snapshot made into a what could be half-page magazine add :wink :thumb

[Chrissiebeez_NL]

This is a total wreck photo of our cat taken back in april, certainly not something i would brag with :D. it was shot in jpeg so couldnt even use my RAW software. I tried to create a looming, creepy mood. tell me what you think!

before:
http://chris-en-hils.smugmug.com/photos/229958067-L-1.jpg

after:
http://chris-en-hils.smugmug.com/photos/229957162-L-1.jpg

I used these steps in photoshop:
1) cropped
1) levels to boost the contrast
2) dark strokes filter
3) very big unsharpmask
4) lighting effect - spotlight
5) saturated the eyes
6) posted here! :D

[Nikolai]

This is a total wreck photo of our cat taken back in april, certainly not something i would brag with :D. it was shot in jpeg so couldnt even use my RAW software. I tried to create a looming, creepy mood. tell me what you think!
before:
after:
I used these steps in photoshop:
1) cropped
1) levels to boost the contrast
2) dark strokes filter
3) very big unsharpmask
4) lighting effect - spotlight
5) saturated the eyes
6) posted here! :D

Nice work! WTG!:thumb
I'd even crop it more, concentrating on the eyes only, maybe used some "barby" technique to make them bigger/greener!

[Chrissiebeez_NL]

Nice work! WTG!:thumb
I'd even crop it more, concentrating on the eyes only, maybe used some "barby" technique to make them bigger/greener!
Hi all!

here's my second attempt
hope it creeps you out! :yikes

http://chris-en-hils.smugmug.com/photos/230827715-L-1.jpg

[Nikolai]

Hi all!

here's my second attempt
hope it creeps you out! :yikes

I like it even better! :thumb

[Chrissiebeez_NL]

I like it even better! :thumb

thanks, i feel the same way about it! :D

what simple fun to try to find your worst image and fixing it. :rofl gotta love it. anyone else have any opinions/projects? :clap

[rwdfresno]

Ok this sounds kind of fun. Here is some of my recycled garbage. I wanted to give it sort of an oversaturated oil painting type look.

Before:
http://www.eaglefield.net/pictures/misc/20071010-DSC08119.jpg

After:
http://www.eaglefield.net/pictures/misc/20071010-DSC08119-Edit-Edit-2.jpg

Ryan

[Nikolai]

Ok this sounds kind of fun. Here is some of my recycled garbage. I wanted to give it sort of an oversaturated oil painting type look.
Before:
After:
Ryan
Thank you for the entry, I like the effect! :thumb
My only complaint is that original is not bad enough :-):wink

[rwdfresno]

Thank you for the entry, I like the effect! :thumb
My only complaint is that original is not bad enough :-):wink

Well thanks. you know I used to be one of those "save everything" kind of people but once I got to the point where I was shooting 2-4 GB on an outing it just got ot be too much. Now days I run them through Lightroom, x out the ones that look like total horse pucky and just delete the rejects. Now that I am painstakingly cataloging my last 4 years of pictures as I catalog each set I do the same and just get rid of junk(which there is a lot of). I am erroring on the side of saving though still and keeping anything that I think could ever be salvaged. Maybe in my cataloging I will come up with some real first class crapola that you will be prood of and I can try this again :D.

Ryan