Another experiment in processing dark photos

[drwex]

An A/B pair this time. Maybe more clear than the stair picture...

The unretouched image:


Not bad, says I. But wait, those terrace layers are awfully bright. What happens if I darken things down a bit?




Thoughts and comments always welcome.

Comments

[coraline]

i like the first one better -- the second one doesn't get you any more detail on the tower, it just loses the detail on the bottom.
really, you want to play with "recovery" in darkroom to retrieve more data from the overexposed areas, or at least play around with curves... or possibly try a different exposure (i know, too late for that).

I've been playing with curves

[drwex]

But it's hard not to color-distort with curves (at least in P'shop). I don't know what recovery function you mean, sad to say.

As for the original... yeah, I had the 'pod set up and meant to take a couple pix with different exposures but this was the moment when the clouds moved in and lightning started to flash on the horizon and I said "hmm, how about I go close the car windows now". Pragmatics wins out over practice I suppose.

Re: I've been playing with curves

[coraline]

ah, i'm using lightroom pretty much exclusively now -- i'm not sure if there's something equivalent in PS but it may be a LR only thing.

i do like the first picture though, lack of detail and all.

Re: I've been playing with curves

[meadmaker.livejournal.com]

But it's hard not to color-distort with curves

Using levels instead affects brightness without color distortion.

I don't know what recovery function you mean, sad to say.

I think in Photoshop proper, you can find it either in the Bridge application, or as part of Adobe Camera Raw (which can be used on either raw .NEF files or on JPEGs, despite its name).

Like coraline, I'd like to pick and choose among them if I could. For instance, I like the molding and the incandescent-lit windows better in the darker one, but I like the sky much better in the lighter one.

One of the interesting effects of the darker one is that the building tower becomes much more prominent, since its brightness contrasts much more with everything around it. In the lighter one, there's more balance to the picture as a whole. Either could be a desired effect.

[surrealestate.livejournal.com]

I have nothing technical to say, but I also like the first one better and agree with this assessment.

thank you

[drwex]

I value the feedback from my non-technical friends as well.

[ahf.livejournal.com]

I like what the change does both to the terrace lighting and to the light on the right.

[mangosteen]

I have to say that I like the first one better.

There was no detail to be gained by darkening, and while the terrace lights were blown out before, it's more obvious once you darken everything else.

Also, what coraline said.

[darxus.livejournal.com]

Have you seen this? http://www.chaosreigns.com/hdr/photography/

No I had not seen that

[drwex]

Or at least I didn't remember seeing it. The technique is familiar on reading; I just have to remember to try it in the field.