I'm so excited about this (not the frame) I had to post it...it's not weddings, but I'm still really excited about it and this is what I was working on at the time. The reason I posted this is to see what you guys think about the post-processing, because I'm going to apply it to my wedding stuff. I FINALLY figured out the missing ingredient in my photos in PPing (contrast and depth in background). Rip it apart:

the first one is nice, the angle actually works well IMO. i'd bump the contrast up a little and add some saturation.

I do! Much better. Your second processing shot is excellent. My only nitpick on the first is that he doesn't seem to be looking at the camera, and yet he's facing you.

That's funny. I remember exactly the photos where I figured that out for myself. It was an exciting moment. (this gallery: http://images.tonyschreiber.com/gallery/616910_9Y7pu )

I'd say the first image could use more contrast (always room for more black!) - but the biggest problem for me is that the eyes aren't sharp - the bricks behind him (or his shirt collar) stole your focus (not unusual, given the high contrast edges of the bricks).

Forgive my ignorance but what exactly did you work out apart from adding a little contrast and a little brightness adjustment...Let us in on the secret ?

neridah wrote:
Forgive my ignorance but what exactly did you work out apart from adding a little contrast and a little brightness adjustment...Let us in on the secret ?

Looks like a bump in black level, saturation, and a little exposure?

They do look nice though...a little PP can go a long way.

I actually didn't mess with the saturation at all
All I did was do some corrections in ACR (contrast, luminance, and blacks) and rendered the JPG file.
I pulled it into PS and did some tonal corrections on the background with layers (adjustment-contrast). I use a really neat technique I read about online using "refine edge" under the "Select" menu.

Edited by Cathy Yount on Mar 28, 2008 at 08:34 AM GMT

Tony,
That little girl is precious! Is she your daughter? She's a natural little model. I love kids like that. I got the opportunity to photograph a little girl like that in February and she was the same...she loved the camera (which is rare in kids!) and I enjoyed photographing her so much.

Cathy,
I'm glad you figured it out and it does look great. I'm going to apologize. I was hoping that those of us that have been in FM for a while had let you and others know that you could pm us for questions. I would have been glad to share some info with you.

I can remember when I figured out how to get my black and white images to where I wanted them. The lab actually told me how to do selective coloring and I bring up the black to make the difference. Feel free to ask me anything at any time. I may not always have the answer, but if I do I will be glad to help. Yvette

Not your fault!!! I've learned so much from being in this forum and my work has really done a 180 since I've been paying attention to the advice in here. I've been doing photography all my life, but I've never been this driven to find a challenge to constantly improve. I love your work...I'm just up the road from you in Catawba County, NC (30 minutes from Gastonia up 321). You're in Greenville, SC, right?

You've been a riot lately with all of your posts! I loved the "Can I have your attention, please" post...I think all of us can relate to that, especially the females with quiet voices.

Cathy Yount wrote:
Not your fault!!! I've learned so much from being in this forum and my work has really done a 180 since I've been paying attention to the advice in here. I've been doing photography all my life, but I've never been this driven to find a challenge to constantly improve. I love your work...I'm just up the road from you in Catawba County, NC (30 minutes from Gastonia up 321). You're in Greenville, SC, right?

You've been a riot lately with all of your posts! I loved the "Can I have your attention, please" post...I think all of us can relate to that, especially the females with quiet voices.

Yes, I'm in Greenville SC. Melanie, is just about you near Raleigh/Durham I think. We'll have to do a girls visit sometime. Yeah, when we all have time next Jan!

i think it would help to see what you were doing before...and see what you are doing now.

I'll post something tonight if I can remember...I'll post process it globally like I used to.

For those of you looking for a "secret," it's simple, but it's not really a specific set of steps. My problem is that I was looking at everything globally and PPing that way, and forgetting about the power of layers. The reason I did this is because I don't want to extensively PP 300 or so photos twice (once in ACR and then once in PS with layers) from a wedding, which is very overwhelming to me, so I just never bothered doing specific "local" edits (i.e. using selections and adjustment layers). It was easier in my mind to edit very well in ACR or Lightroom and be done with it. But as we all know, it's often not that easy. In order to set yourself apart from the rest, you have to be willing to go the extra mile in certain situations. Even though this is a small way you can do that, it still makes a difference.

Moral of the story: Don't always edit globally; find ways to edit specific colors, blacks, contrasts, etc. for individual elements. I edit for the subject in ACR, and then edit the background with layers in PS.

Edited by Cathy Yount on Mar 28, 2008 at 09:50 AM GMT

We'll have to do a girls visit sometime. Yeah, when we all have time next Jan!

Sounds like a plan; just don't let me forget!

I might still be buried in albums I need to design...

Seems to me the focus was on the slate behind the gentleman on the first shot, but then again his shirt and jeans seem in focus. Second shot really shows quite a difference. i like it. Frame works a lot better also.

~Sam

I agree, a little more saturation on the first one....and possibly burn (darken) the rocks just a tiny bit. A small amount of vignetting might look good to. All in all, and awesome improvement!

here's a little NV Outdoor Color pop action on the right side of the photo... Too much?