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Archive 2015 · Something missing?

  
 
Prevelige
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p.1 #1 · p.1 #1 · Something missing?


I shot this image last spring in South Africa. When I saw it unfold I was thrilled. When I saw it at home on my monitor, I was only pleased. I feel like it needs something, but I don't know what. Maybe I should clone out the branches right near the giraffe's mouth? Other thoughts or alternatives?







Sep 02, 2015 at 07:36 AM
sbeme
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p.1 #2 · p.1 #2 · Something missing?


Jambo, jambo!

Worth the effort. I would clone out some of the branches closest to the mouth and head.
I would also recrop to reduce the mass of the dark background, taking from the right just to the right of the more open tree on the right and from the bottom to rebalance.
You might also experiment with a bit of curves to bring up the lighter tones a litter for a bit more pop, at the expense of a quieter mood
Nice capture and great experience for sure.

Scott



Sep 02, 2015 at 07:45 AM
beavens
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p.1 #3 · p.1 #3 · Something missing?


+1 @ Scott.

Love me some South Africa (looking to go back in 2016!) for sure, and I've got a similar giraffe shot that I dig.

Here's a quick rework with some branches removed and the crop slightly changed.

NOTE: I have been seeing colors get wonky when I edit in GIMP, so if it seems supersaturated or anything just know that it wasn't intentional.

Cheers!

Jeff







Sep 02, 2015 at 08:37 AM
Prevelige
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p.1 #4 · p.1 #4 · Something missing?


sbeme wrote:
Jambo, jambo!

Worth the effort. I would clone out some of the branches closest to the mouth and head.
I would also recrop to reduce the mass of the dark background, taking from the right just to the right of the more open tree on the right and from the bottom to rebalance.
You might also experiment with a bit of curves to bring up the lighter tones a litter for a bit more pop, at the expense of a quieter mood
Nice capture and great experience for sure.

Scott


Scott, thanks for the feedback. I'll play with the suggestions you made, and post the resulting images here.

Bob



Sep 02, 2015 at 08:49 AM
Prevelige
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p.1 #5 · p.1 #5 · Something missing?


beavens wrote:
+1 @ Scott.

Love me some South Africa (looking to go back in 2016!) for sure, and I've got a similar giraffe shot that I dig.

Here's a quick rework with some branches removed and the crop slightly changed.

NOTE: I have been seeing colors get wonky when I edit in GIMP, so if it seems supersaturated or anything just know that it wasn't intentional.

Cheers!

Jeff


Jeff,

Thanks for the quick edit! I like the image much more with some of the branches cloned out. I'll play some with it, and post the results. Thanks again.

Bob



Sep 02, 2015 at 08:51 AM
beavens
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p.1 #6 · p.1 #6 · Something missing?


Prevelige wrote:
Jeff,

Thanks for the quick edit! I like the image much more with some of the branches cloned out. I'll play some with it, and post the results. Thanks again.

Bob


No prob, Bob!

Don't hesitate to post more Africa pics - Scotty and I have a soft spot in our hearts for that place.

Jeff



Sep 02, 2015 at 08:54 AM
lighthound
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p.1 #7 · p.1 #7 · Something missing?


Ha! Jeff and I were playing at the same time.

I really dig this shot. Love the warmth and calm mood you captured.

Hope you don't mind but I wanted to take a swing at this as well. I might have pushed the Blue and Green down a little too much for some folks taste and I do have a color issue so don't trust any of my edit.

Lot's of goodness in this image. I see no reason you won't be able to get it right where you want it.

Dave







Sep 02, 2015 at 08:55 AM
Prevelige
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p.1 #8 · p.1 #8 · Something missing?


lighthound wrote:
Ha! Jeff and I were playing at the same time.

I really dig this shot. Love the warmth and calm mood you captured.

Hope you don't mind but I wanted to take a swing at this as well. I might have pushed the Blue and Green down a little too much for some folks taste and I do have a color issue so don't trust any of my edit.

Lot's of goodness in this image. I see no reason you won't be able to get it right where you want it.

Dave


Dave,

I like it That color scheme certainly pops! It's funny, I actually looked at the edit and said "Wow" out loud. Don't hesitate to try stuff, that's why I threw the image up here...for other people's creative eye to collaborate with me.

Bob



Sep 02, 2015 at 08:59 AM
ben egbert
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p.1 #9 · p.1 #9 · Something missing?


My guess is that the giraffe was eating and those branches look like a natural interaction to me. I do like the crop and added saturations of the reworks.


Sep 02, 2015 at 09:04 AM
lighthound
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p.1 #10 · p.1 #10 · Something missing?


Prevelige wrote:
Dave,

I like it That color scheme certainly pops! It's funny, I actually looked at the edit and said "Wow" out loud. Don't hesitate to try stuff, that's why I threw the image up here...for other people's creative eye to collaborate with me.

Bob



I hope it was a wow in a good way and not a "Wow! what the hell is he thinking" kinda thing.

I actually just dropped the blue and green down a little and didn't increase the saturation. I think what made it pop like that was a curves adjustment to increase the highlights and drop the shadows. Also hit it with a little neg. gamma and USM.

This shot as well as Scott's and Jeff's images they have shared makes me want to go there someday.

You got a keeper here for sure. Very nice shot indeed.
You just need to push and pull things around to get it to where YOU like it.

Dave



Sep 02, 2015 at 09:15 AM
beavens
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p.1 #11 · p.1 #11 · Something missing?


Definitely liking the boost in exposure/color that Dave put up.

Jeff



Sep 02, 2015 at 09:35 AM
beavens
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p.1 #12 · p.1 #12 · Something missing?


*** edit: removed pic - after seeing it on the home monitor it's not looking how it was intended ****

Edited on Sep 02, 2015 at 03:28 PM · View previous versions



Sep 02, 2015 at 09:39 AM
lighthound
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p.1 #13 · p.1 #13 · Something missing?


Ha! This is an addictive shot! I reworked it again myself for my own pleasure.

Wish this was mine Bob! I'd print this puppy BIG!

Dave



Sep 02, 2015 at 09:43 AM
Prevelige
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p.1 #14 · p.1 #14 · Something missing?


Dave,

Funny thing. I just said when I get mine to look more like yours, I'll be printing it big!

Bob



Sep 02, 2015 at 09:48 AM
RustyBug
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p.1 #15 · p.1 #15 · Something missing?


+1 @ much of the others (Scott, I thought I was reading some of my own writing ).

But, the nuance of Ben's point is one that you might consider with regard to clone removal of the branches. One one hand, the removal reveals / frames the head better, otoh, it changes the story / message of the image. Retaining "just enough" of the "right" branches to keep the story intact might be worth considering. You'll likely have to play around a bit to figure out what the right combination is, but I think it'll be worth the effort.

A few tweaks on the branches (i.e. 1/2 effort) and a diff crop.






Edited on Sep 02, 2015 at 07:47 PM · View previous versions



Sep 02, 2015 at 09:59 AM
Prevelige
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p.1 #16 · p.1 #16 · Something missing?


I totally agree with the sentiment that Ben expressed, and of course he was right in that the giraffe WAS eating. It seems that a minor "pruning" may be in order, and I would certainly retain more branches had I captured an image with the giraffe's mouth open, even a touch.

Bob



Sep 02, 2015 at 10:10 AM
lighthound
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p.1 #17 · p.1 #17 · Something missing?


ben egbert wrote:
My guess is that the giraffe was eating and those branches look like a natural interaction to me. I do like the crop and added saturations of the reworks.


---------------------------------------------

RustyBug wrote:
+1 @ much of the others (Scott, I thought I was reading some of my own writing ).

But, the nuance of Ben's point is one that you might consider with regard to clone removal of the branches. One one hand, the removal reveals / frames the head better, otoh, it changes the story / message of the image. Retaining "just enough" of the "right" branches to keep the story intact might be worth considering.



+100 on what Ben and Kent are saying.
Looking at the edits (mine included) it does look rather artificial. Kent's suggestion at maybe a partial clean-up is a great idea I think.

Bob, you didn't mention it but based on the gear you are shooting with I'm guessing you shot this in raw so you should have no problem nudging things around a little to where you want them. Your OP image is very close as it is, it just needs some small nudges here and there.

Dave





Sep 02, 2015 at 10:16 AM
Greg Campbell
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p.1 #18 · p.1 #18 · Something missing?


I dunnow about the Saturation Slider to Eleven color suggestions, but IMO the original really needs a good cropping. The entire right third or so does nothing but diffuse the viewer's interest. You might take a hair off the bottom as well, depending on how your 'eye' weighs the dark vs. light ratio.


Sep 02, 2015 at 02:32 PM
lighthound
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p.1 #19 · p.1 #19 · Something missing?


Greg Campbell wrote:
I dunnow about the Saturation Slider to Eleven color suggestions,


Actually I used a -23 Blue and a -23 Green (or something close to that) and left the Red where it was to be free like a pretty butterfly.

That must be some of that "Common Core" type math they're teaching the kids now-a-days. (-23B + -23G = +11 Sat)

In all honesty though, if I could see colors like the rest of you can, I'd probably say the same thing or worse.
Which is why I had put that disclaimer to my original post.

Dave




Sep 02, 2015 at 03:05 PM
beavens
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p.1 #20 · p.1 #20 · Something missing?


Greg Campbell wrote:
I dunnow about the Saturation Slider to Eleven color suggestions, but IMO the original really needs a good cropping. The entire right third or so does nothing but diffuse the viewer's interest. You might take a hair off the bottom as well, depending on how your 'eye' weighs the dark vs. light ratio.


+1 to both points - I don't think I'm gonna be able to edit anything at work with how that saturation came out.




Sep 02, 2015 at 03:29 PM
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