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Dodge & Burn

Posted: Fri 01 Dec 2017, 09:05
by davidb
I have two versions of the same image here. I will be entering one into the next round of the PDI competition but I'm not sure which one I prefer.

The image was taken on the recent trip to Brighton to experiment with long exposures.

The first is a straight shot whilst the second I've burned the photographer to make him stand out a bit more. What do you think?

Re: Dodge & Burn

Posted: Fri 01 Dec 2017, 10:35
by Mike Farley
I don't know about dodge and burn, for me the shot is in need of more contrast. Here is a very rough and ready version, processed in Silver Efex Pro 2, based on your "as shot" image.

Re: Dodge & Burn

Posted: Fri 01 Dec 2017, 18:40
by davidb
Thanks Mike. I've used one of the presets of Silver Efex. It doesn't come back to your adjustments but then I'm a novice with these filters!

I wanted to get the photographer to stand out a bit more than the basic unprocessed image and I felt the burn was just a step too far. The SFX does the job as well as give the rest of the scene more detail.

Re: Dodge & Burn

Posted: Fri 01 Dec 2017, 23:29
by Mike Farley
davidb wrote:I've used one of the presets of Silver Efex. It doesn't come back to your adjustments but then I'm a novice with these filters!

I used one of my own presets which I have created and saved. It is worthwhile doing that once you get an effect which you like. Once you have built up a few different ones, very often you will have something which is a good starting point.

davidb wrote:I wanted to get the photographer to stand out a bit more than the basic unprocessed image and I felt the burn was just a step too far. The SFX does the job as well as give the rest of the scene more detail.

OK. Not knowing what you wanted, I did use a control point to boost the photographer. I quite like that he is faded, gives a sense of mystery. I cannot vouch that the judge will agree. ;)

Re: Dodge & Burn

Posted: Sat 02 Dec 2017, 00:12
by davidb
Round 3 of the PDI isn't open yet but when it is it will be loaded as "The Phantom Photographer".

Re: Dodge & Burn

Posted: Sat 02 Dec 2017, 10:06
by Mike Farley
davidb wrote:Round 3 of the PDI isn't open yet but when it is it will be loaded as "The Phantom Photographer".

I will open it when I close the second round of the print competition. The last date for print competition entries is midnight on 12 December, so it will be a few hours after that.

In the meantime, you might find this monochrome workflow based on SEP2 helpful. It forms the basis of some of my conversions. Follow the link below:

http://giannigalassi.typepad.com/blog/2 ... kflow.html