I really like this, and am glad to see someone else venturing into the fun world of textures. You learned a lot quickly! My first efforts were far less appealing than yours! And I still consider myself a novice at it. No, it isn’t for everyone, but it is certainly a valid approach to taking some of our images in a more artistic direction. I hope you’ll share more of your work in their vein, and your tips/strategies.

Old barns/structures against a plain backdrop make some of the very best subjects for texture work. For me, simpler compositions like this hold up better for this kind of effect, so you made an excellent choice in the image itself. As far as the texture, that’s my favorite type, so I like that too. The great thing about it is that you can go back and adjust later if you kept your layers intact, which I strongly recommend. When I first started, I was quite heavy-handed (new toys make me a little crazy) and I’ve improved some of those by dialing back the texture or leveling off the boundary between the texture and the masked area by painting back in a little more texture across the subject area.

Like you, I am retaking the course I took last year. Some of what was in the course went over my head last year, but with what I’ve learned, I may retain a few more things this time. Lifetime access is great for old folks like me! I also participate in a facebook group that does a 52 project involving textures, just to make sure I keep at it!

I look forward to seeing more images like this!

Hi, Walt,

I very much like the character of the decrepit dsuetude of the old corn crib. I see it, however, as simply a grey day with no sense of fog enveloping or softening the distinct details of the crib. The subject, to me, is the corn crib independent of any distant fog, so IMO, a closer crop of the old structure, so slowly on it path to recycling, would be an improvement.

Not being a fan of the “texturing movement”, I’ll steer clear of that part of the discussion.

Dave