B&W/MONOCHROME
Mar 7, 2013 10:50:26 #
One of my interest in B&W.Monochrome, I have read many articles and watched many tutorials but it seems that I have not gotten it right. i am attaching an image of a Tuskegee Airmen that captured last July, please comment on what you think is wrong with my post processing. I used Photoshop CS6 and Nix Silver Exef Pro2.
Mar 7, 2013 10:52:23 #
There is a lot of character in that face, though what appears direct flash has made it hard lighting
Mar 7, 2013 11:00:58 #
JR1 wrote:
I tend to agree. A softer light from the side (off camera and diffused) would have enhanced the character that is clearly there.There is a lot of character in that face, though what appears direct flash has made it hard lighting
Mar 7, 2013 11:30:43 #
Yep. Great face, but the on-camera flash does it no justice. Few things can turn a potential great portrait into a mediocre snapshot faster than the flash on the camera.
Mar 7, 2013 11:46:40 #
Festina Lente wrote:
JR1 wrote:
I tend to agree. A softer light from the side (off camera and diffused) would have enhanced the character that is clearly there.There is a lot of character in that face, though what appears direct flash has made it hard lighting
100% agree
Mar 7, 2013 11:46:56 #
CaptainC wrote:
Yep. Great face, but the on-camera flash does it no justice. Few things can turn a potential great portrait into a mediocre snapshot faster than the flash on the camera.
100% agree
Mar 7, 2013 11:54:42 #
Since you are using Silver EFex Pro, have you experimented with some of the other presets to see if they might give you a more pleasant effect? There are some free presets for portraits available on the web;you might also search for and download a few to see if they can provide the look you are after.
Mar 7, 2013 12:03:19 #
That is a good point, but if it is not lit properly to start with, well...you just have a different preset on a snapshot.
Mar 7, 2013 12:12:15 #
The front light takes off the 3rd dimension. If you frequently shoot portraits, you may try to use a portable LED light (a 160-bulb unit would do) with a diffusor and hold it on the side of the subject.
Mar 7, 2013 12:22:17 #
Captain C and Festina Lente have clearly hit the nail on the head. I'm thinking there could have been added value to your post had you specified where you thought you went wrong.
Still a good post. Thanks!
Still a good post. Thanks!
Mar 7, 2013 12:46:30 #
Nik can create some pretty good black and whites, provided that your subject is lit well(Notice I did not say correct). I personally seldom use any flash for my black and whites. B&W images give you a wider range of post processing light manipulation than color. (At least it's easier)
Using the NIK presets for conversion does not take advantage of light manipulations(aka Dodging and burning) necessary for superb natural light portraits. You can use points in NIK to manipulate luminance. Most people who use NIK do not do this. They just want a click and it's done thing.
There is no substitute for a "Well" dodged and burned B&W portrait using a brush in Photoshop. To do this you have to spend a lot of time practicing. It doesn't come in a bottle.
Depending on how much you use Photoshop you may eventually get away from Portrait plugins and B&W plugins. Neither will give you the finest detail and quality that a manual conversion will.
That being said I still use NIK Silver EFX and color EFX sometimes. At the moment I am using NIK SIlver EFX with blend modes on color portraits.
One final point. A subject that is lit ok and post processed by a well executed conversion to B&W will look better than the best lit subject where the B&W conversion technique is average.
There is no substitute for dodging and burning to create a superior B&W image.
Your image suffers from flat light with a high contrast NIK filter.
NIK will never know how and where an artist wants to add contrast.
The point controls in NIK do not give you the flexibility that a PS brush does for adding contrast.
Using the NIK presets for conversion does not take advantage of light manipulations(aka Dodging and burning) necessary for superb natural light portraits. You can use points in NIK to manipulate luminance. Most people who use NIK do not do this. They just want a click and it's done thing.
There is no substitute for a "Well" dodged and burned B&W portrait using a brush in Photoshop. To do this you have to spend a lot of time practicing. It doesn't come in a bottle.
Depending on how much you use Photoshop you may eventually get away from Portrait plugins and B&W plugins. Neither will give you the finest detail and quality that a manual conversion will.
That being said I still use NIK Silver EFX and color EFX sometimes. At the moment I am using NIK SIlver EFX with blend modes on color portraits.
One final point. A subject that is lit ok and post processed by a well executed conversion to B&W will look better than the best lit subject where the B&W conversion technique is average.
There is no substitute for dodging and burning to create a superior B&W image.
Your image suffers from flat light with a high contrast NIK filter.
NIK will never know how and where an artist wants to add contrast.
The point controls in NIK do not give you the flexibility that a PS brush does for adding contrast.
Mar 8, 2013 06:21:00 #
SPYBALL-1
Loc: Montréal
Whenever I forget to point my flash BACKWARDS and inadvertently overexpose a face, I need to go into NIK and fix it using an overexposure cover-up. Here is an attempt.
Mar 8, 2013 07:05:05 #
erniehatt
Loc: Queensland Australia
For me, though the comments given are correct, the image has that plastic appearance, this shows on both posted images. Ernie
Mar 8, 2013 10:38:39 #
erniehatt wrote:
I agree. For me, though the comments given are correct, the image has that plastic appearance, this shows on both posted images. Ernie
While one can make improvements in PP, it is hard to recover from direct flash on a face without an undue amount of digital manipulation.
But sometimes that is all you can get...
Mar 8, 2013 10:44:02 #
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