I realize that the final result of any image is not just PP and especially in Annie's case that all influencing factors: light, set-up, equipment etc are micro managed.
However, for a long time I have been very curious to hear comments from other people what influence PP plays in Annie L.'s photography and what technique is used to achieve the color balance.
To illustrate, for me this is a typical Annie Leibowitz image:
Being the famous Annie L., she probably has lots of retouch/edit pros PPing her work, or maybe she even does it herself..who knows.
That pic you posted looks very similar to Joey L's older style of PPing.
Definitely lots of burning & dodging.
I asked a similar question a few weeks back on how to get dark/dirty/muddy contrast similar to some film & if anyone had tips to do this.
There are many ways to do this I would expect with slightly different results. I am trying to figure out new ways to maybe muddy up the pixels using hi-pass filters (maybe inverted afterwards), instead of just straight up desaturated blending modes with duplicate layers (like joey l). Still no luck. I notice lab colorspace richens up tones and microcontrast (and also saturation, so might want to unsaturate after) when using diff blending modes.
The problem here is that FM Forum rules prohibit embedding someone else's work in the forum without their expressed permission. You can post a link to the image, but embedding is not allowed.
"Do not violate copyright laws, or misrepresent someone else's work as your own (link the images, do not embed them in your post). You may not use or publish any of the photographs displayed on these pages without express permission from the original photographer. No exceptions."
The rule doesn't actually prohibit embedding someone else's images.
Posting someone else's work to comment on it certainly doesn't violate copyright laws, and there's clearly no one attempting to represent this seemingly ubiquitous shot as their own.
I really like some of AL's stuff, though her vogue covers have gone from really cool to very boring. I'd love to see not only the PP on this shot, but also the lighting setup. I watched the video of the setup when she was shooting the queen, and that was extremely interesting.
The rule is in place to protect unauthorized use of any photographer's image. That is why it specifies "link the images, do not embed them in your post".
jerryrock wrote:
The rule is in place to protect unauthorized use of any photographer's image. That is why it specifies "link the images, do not embed them in your post".
ajkessler wrote:
Or are you gathering this rule from somewhere other than the "Forum Rules" link at the top of the page?
It is spelled out in the FAQ section, "What are the FM forum rules?" here (Second bullet under item 1).
Embedding someone else's image, apart from potentially giving a reader the impression that it is your image, is also considered "leeching" (using content from an author's site without helping drive traffic to the site; you are pulling content from the site instead of encouraging others to visit it).
My apologies for not having followed rules properly but I thought - perhaps naively so - that posting a link to a site was allowed (it directs traffic which is good right?). I did not copy and paste.
Sorry to have provoked the discussion - in the spirit of ajkessler - anyone more thoughts on AL PP?
caribrob wrote:
However, for a long time I have been very curious to hear comments from other people what influence PP plays in Annie L.'s photography and what technique is used to achieve the color balance.
I love this shot, and Annie's work in general. But damn, the world's a bit askew when Keith Richards is advertising for Louis Vuitton, don't ya think?!
I think she uses PP to further intensify, mold, and shape the lighting she has designed. It works together with her lighting vision.
For example, in this shot, I think her processing just further dramatizes the original lighting. Basically, it's just dodging/burning, and some color tweaks. She also sometimes composites shots, as in the one of the Queen with the brooding sky in the background. She may have composited some of the lighting here. For example, maybe the suitcase was lit apart, then composited into the final version.
Dodge/burn/color tweak sounds a bit flip, but really, that's all it comes down to. The trick is to become well enough acquainted with your tools to know which one to pick for what area. When I say, "dodge/burn", there are several methods that can be used. For me, I use most of them when I dodge/burn. Each one has it's own personality and character.
I did something a bit similar (dodge/burn/color tweaks) not too long ago on Tanglefoot47's image. Granted, it didn't start with the dramatic lighting Annie's has, but it's the same concept, just to give you an example of what I mean by "dodge/burn/color tweaks":
[removed by Hendrik, because of complaints. Did the copyright owner gave permission to post the images on another (this) thread?]
Hmmm..interesting. Yes, he did give me permission for the previous thread. And no, I didn't ask him for permission for this thread since I was just using it as an example of the technique.
So....here are another couple of examples to illustrate:
Apart from the dodging and burning I think they must have used a merge of different exposures in RAW conversion. Because the ambient light is so bright in the final picture and the background is sharp, suggesting a high f-stop. Or maybe she was dragging the shutter? Looking at the video his face was mostly in the dark and lit only by the strobe so that might be it.
-Anna
annayu wrote:
Apart from the dodging and burning I think they must have used a merge of different exposures in RAW conversion.
Yeah, that's also a possibility.
Here's a quick grab of the final shot in the video compared to the final processed image. You can definitely see that the suitcase and sheet have been composited, arms removed from the chair in the rear, perspective adjusted, light removed from the top of frame, etc. But the lighting is pretty much the same, taking into account the brightness of the monitor. "Rembrandt-ish", as Keith says
? care to elaborate