Dodge and Burn
Jul 30, 2012 14:11:54 #
Love this photograph, but the whites seem too hot. Want to "burn" those areas, but having trouble working on the settings (both brush and strength). Using PSE10.
Jul 30, 2012 18:08:30 #
It would appear that the hot areas are blown out to 255 on all three channels. That being the case, there is no recovery possible. We cannot increase the density of date that does not exist.
Any attempt to darken those areas will simply result in a flat tone gray - worse than what you have now.
Any attempt to darken those areas will simply result in a flat tone gray - worse than what you have now.
Jul 31, 2012 09:11:38 #
Jul 31, 2012 09:14:32 #
Lucian
Loc: From Wales, living in Ohio
If it is burnt out, it is burnt out and with no data available, there is nothing to recover. Using shadow and highlight will do nothing for you. Empty is empty and that is all that can be said.
Jul 31, 2012 10:22:55 #
Croce
Loc: Earth
As the song goes, "Nothin from nothin leaves nothin." Captain C and Lucien are absolutely correct. Ya gotta have somethin if ya want somethin to see. Don't frustrate yourself trying to do what can't be done. Chalk it up to experience. Throw that take away and start over and ... make sure not to clip the highlights on the right side of your histogram. Use the histogram and believe it. Do not trust what you see on the camera's preview screen.
Jul 31, 2012 19:06:47 #
My settings were: ISO 200, 1/250, f/6.3, 67mm. What should I have done differently to not get the whites blown out?
Jul 31, 2012 20:22:59 #
Croce
Loc: Earth
pinkycat wrote:
My settings were: ISO 200, 1/250, f/6.3, 67mm. What should I have done differently to not get the whites blown out?
Pinkycat,
Answering your question as posed would not serve you well. Any of your parameters could have been altered before the shot to darken the image by about 2 stops, just my poor guess at how far you overshot the mark. Google how to read a histogram and go from there. Then read up on proper metering methods. Your manual may well have this information. You need to do this for yourself and gain a basis for basic knowledge. I can tell from your question that you will be extremely difficult to help until you tough it out a bit and become better grounded in the basics. Wish it were simpler but ...
Jul 31, 2012 20:31:41 #
I agree with you 100%. I definitely need more of a foundation. I'm working with online courses, Bryan Peterson books, and what I learn on UHH. I appreciate your encouragement and I have to continue with my course on Exposure by Ben Long.
Jul 31, 2012 20:42:46 #
Lucian
Loc: From Wales, living in Ohio
You asked what you could have done differently well you could have chosen a more neutral coloured cat and shot the image in even lighting! Simple right? :-)
To be honest what you chose to work with was a bit of a work out for any photographer. You had a mostly black and white cat then had very contrasty light that it was set into. All difficult situations to handle and come out with a perfect exposure.
You did well with what you had so don't beat yourself up on that point. The only way you could have gotten a properly exposed image with all the parameters you had to work with, would be to have taken several exposures at different settings, then blended them into an HDR image to reap the best parts of each exposure.
Had you exposed correctly for the white in the cat, the darks would have been too dark, exposing for the darks in the cat you still had darks in the background too dark and of course the white in the cat was washed out completely. No easy fix or possibly any way to get a good shot without using HDR or a flash.
One thing you could have done would have been to get down onto the cats level and shot along the floor, rather than down on top of the cat. That would have helped you out with all the contrasting areas you had in your image from the vantage point you took the photo.
Shoot the cat again would be the best advice.
To be honest what you chose to work with was a bit of a work out for any photographer. You had a mostly black and white cat then had very contrasty light that it was set into. All difficult situations to handle and come out with a perfect exposure.
You did well with what you had so don't beat yourself up on that point. The only way you could have gotten a properly exposed image with all the parameters you had to work with, would be to have taken several exposures at different settings, then blended them into an HDR image to reap the best parts of each exposure.
Had you exposed correctly for the white in the cat, the darks would have been too dark, exposing for the darks in the cat you still had darks in the background too dark and of course the white in the cat was washed out completely. No easy fix or possibly any way to get a good shot without using HDR or a flash.
One thing you could have done would have been to get down onto the cats level and shot along the floor, rather than down on top of the cat. That would have helped you out with all the contrasting areas you had in your image from the vantage point you took the photo.
Shoot the cat again would be the best advice.
Jul 31, 2012 21:07:26 #
Thanks, Lucian! I guess that's my lot since Harley-Davidson, my cat, is black and white. I'll keep trying!
Jul 31, 2012 22:37:38 #
http://www.uglyhedgehog.com/t-46292-19.html
Page 19
I used Aperture priority, full Auto and Manual settings to take these 3 photos. It may give you an idea of what is needed.
My cat's name is Genghis Khan and he is black and white. I fight with the light on him all the time. Hope you can do better than I did. :)
Page 19
I used Aperture priority, full Auto and Manual settings to take these 3 photos. It may give you an idea of what is needed.
My cat's name is Genghis Khan and he is black and white. I fight with the light on him all the time. Hope you can do better than I did. :)
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