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Colorado San Juan Mountains from 2 falls ago. Last year the colors didn't show like this.
If you don't use Smart Objects, especially with colorful content, there is a great benefit with non-destructive layers, effects... Without smart objects all is linear and history is lost when you close the file. With Smart Object, you can have a light/dark layer, even a dust removal layer (and it's not destructive), so if your dust removing technique changes in the future, you can re-do just the layer, not the whole image, and the 50 unrelated steps you did to get there. The PSD file may be 100mb or 1000mb instead of 40mb, but if it's your 20 best of the year, that may be worth it.
Even dodging/burning can be done on a single dedicated layer with only that single action. It will effect the other layers below it. So if you change your mind tomorrow about dodging/burning, you can redo parts of it, or remove it all.
Wow, Robert, just wow. Would love to learn more about your workflow. Is there anyone you could suggest that would give me an idea about how you go about incorporating smart objects into the workflow? I have tried an undirected/uneducated approach and it doesn't work all that well for me. Inquiring minds want to know.....
I know what you mean Jim, even when watching a video, your 5 questions get answered, but you come up with 5 more and still have your other original 5. Then you can spend an hour on your own photo and have more questions still. So you may shelf the "too hard" topic for future and there is no time or desire to go through the struggle again (until years later when your new photo motivates you). There are 101 pitfalls, such as you want to remove noise as one of the first steps, not last. And in Adobe Raw, not in the 16/8bit image (which you didn't even know you're using 8bit).
Best is hands on (single teacher, single student, your image) approach, and I do lessons through Skype, I will PM you now...
I saw this image and thought: is it that time again, so soon?
Then I read "2 years ago". Haha.
Great image. The purple on that peak and the great autumn colors make this a powerful image. Love it.
gordon l wrote:
I saw this image and thought: is it that time again, so soon?
Then I read "2 years ago". Haha.
Great image. The purple on that peak and the great autumn colors make this a powerful image. Love it.
It's almost that time again.... this was 3 weeks in the future kind of time.... depending on the location, and depending on the weather it can be over in a day or so
Yes, 2 stop hard ND filter, but you could achieve this (and a little better) with Luminosity Masks. If you don't have 3 images as source, you could make 3 layers of the same (smart objects perhaps), and some cameras will give you great great results (like D810, D850, other recent ones). Then with automatically generated Luminosity Masks (which you can manually adjust) you can just use a part of the darker image (like for the sky, maybe water) and get a more even exposure overall. And get highlights and detail in the trees from the brighter source image.
Some images can show you clues that graduated ND was used. Some people prefer them because you get close to the final look in camera. Whatever motivates you more.
The first image was probably with 2 stop soft ND.
or so