Shelburne Museum - Engraving effect: Linda sort of guilted me into posting since I have not participated in quite a while. :sm02: This image is of a building at the Shelburne Museum in...

mwsilvers Loc: Central New Jersey

Linda sort of guilted me into posting since I have not participated in quite a while.

This image is of a building at the Shelburne Museum in Shelburne Vermont. The Shelburne Museum celebrates 19th century rural life. The image was processed to achieve a period engraved look in DXO PhotoLab Elite with DXO FilmPack integrated into it. I hope you enjoy it, but any comments positive or negative are welcome.

(Download)

Fotoartist Loc: Detroit, Michigan

The technique and vignette to white are very nicely done.

kpmac Loc: Ragley, La

I like it. Nice effect.

R.G. Loc: Scotland

The subject, composition and processing are all very good. To find something to criticise I'm reduced to the level of nit-picking, but the diffuse haloing along the treetops catches my eye. And I know that the sharpening was done for effect, but it's about as extreme as I'd want to go.

wham121736 Loc: Long Island, New York

This is beautiful. I would also like to see it with a black vignette so that my eye is drawn into the bright subject rather than the bright vignette.

Linda From Maine Loc: Yakima, Washington

mwsilvers wrote:

Linda sort of guilted me into posting since I have not participated in quite a while.

Well that was easy

Nicely done, Mark. Like the others who have commented so far, I feel that the technique - including the white vignette - suits the subject very well.

Many thanks!

mwsilvers Loc: Central New Jersey

R.G. wrote:

The subject, composition and processing are all very good. To find something to criticise I'm reduced to the level of nit-picking, but the diffuse haloing along the treetops catches my eye. And I know that the sharpening was done for effect, but it's about as extreme as I'd want to go.

Thanks for the feedback. The engraving process requires a lot of sharpening, and some of the other settings used to create this look tend to further emphasize and extend the extreme haloing. I personally like the effect it created, but understand that others may not. I'll see what I can do.

mwsilvers Loc: Central New Jersey

For comparison, here is my color version of the same image, also processed in PhotoLab Elite. Both versions have a lot of deep shadow detail recovery, especially on the porch under the overhang, inside the doorway and the adjacent wall of the main building. All three areas were extremely dark in the original, with far fewer details visible, due to strong shadows cast by the early afternoon brightness of a summer sun. I also removed a couple of distracting features, including an informational sign and a modern sewer grate, but I won't say exactly from where.

(Download)

Jim-Pops Loc: Granbury, Texas

After seeing the color version I realign like your B&W interpretation. The color looks like another picture of an older building on the side of the road. The B&W has a totally different time and place with a sense of history to it.
I like the white vignette but as seen here and other post it is defiantly not like by everyone. A dark vignette is not talked about much but if a picture is posted with a white vignette someone always makes a comment about it.

mwsilvers Loc: Central New Jersey

Jim-Pops wrote:

After seeing the color version I realign like your B&W interpretation. The color looks like another picture of an older building on the side of the road. The B&W has a totally different time and place with a sense of history to it.
I like the white vignette but as seen here and other post it is defiantly not like by everyone. A dark vignette is not talked about much but if a picture is posted with a white vignette someone always makes a comment about it.

Thanks for the feedback.

mwsilvers Loc: Central New Jersey

Thanks to everyone for their comments so far.

Linda From Maine Loc: Yakima, Washington

I enjoy comparisons, so thank you Mark for posting the color. My thoughts align with what Jim-Pops said as to impact and interest of the "engraved" version.

mwsilvers Loc: Central New Jersey

Linda From Maine wrote:

Well that was easy

Nicely done, Mark. Like the others who have commented so far, I feel that the technique - including the white vignette - suits the subject very well.

Many thanks!

mwsilvers Loc: Central New Jersey

Linda From Maine wrote:

I enjoy comparisons, so thank you Mark for posting the color. My thoughts align with what Jim-Pops said as to impact and interest of the "engraved" version.

That's why I chose that version for the main subject of this thread. Its a bit different and was fun to create. I saved my settings as PhotoLab preset so I wouldn't have to work so hard on the next one. Shortly after creating it, I found that someone else had also created a Engraving preset for PhotoLab, but I prefer my version more.

Linda From Maine Loc: Yakima, Washington

mwsilvers wrote:

That's why I chose that version for the main subject of this thread. Its a bit different and was fun to create. I saved my settings as PhotoLab preset so I wouldn't have to work so hard on the next one. Shortly after creating it, I found that someone else had also created a Engraving preset for PhotoLab, but I prefer my version more.

Excellent tip to save a favorite recipe for those whose software has the feature.