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Editing Challenge--Can this photo be saved?
Apr 24, 2019 13:51:11   #
artBob Loc: Near Chicago
 
We know that good focus and exposure are the goal. Being human and such, my photos sometimes are poor, but the shot intrigues me. Can this photo be saved? Assume my interest does not matter Either technical fixes or personal interpretations and emphases are fine.


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Apr 24, 2019 13:59:54   #
jeep_daddy Loc: Prescott AZ
 
Nope. It's way too pixelated.

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Apr 24, 2019 14:38:52   #
Dngallagher Loc: Wilmington De.
 
artBob wrote:
We know that good focus and exposure are the goal. Being human and such, my photos sometimes are poor, but the shot intrigues me. Can this photo be saved? Assume my interest does not matter Either technical fixes or personal interpretations and emphases are fine.


I would guess only by applying textures and turning it into an abstract would help.

Quick edit in Topaz Studio.....


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Apr 24, 2019 15:41:12   #
artBob Loc: Near Chicago
 
Dngallagher wrote:
I would guess only by applying textures and turning it into an abstract would help.

Quick edit in Topaz Studio.....


That fits a mood. Works for me.

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Apr 25, 2019 10:17:51   #
rborud Loc: Minnesota
 
ArtBob Here is a thought that you might consider. RBorud


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Apr 25, 2019 11:30:37   #
artBob Loc: Near Chicago
 
rborud wrote:
ArtBob Here is a thought that you might consider. RBorud


Well, that does bring it out more—painterly. Definitely works.

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Apr 25, 2019 12:31:04   #
R.G. Loc: Scotland
 
I would say the biggest obstacle to doing a realistic save is the loss of detail. That leaves a painterly effect as one of the best options. I don't have painterly filters so I did some home brew stuff with the light, colour and negative Clarity.

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Apr 25, 2019 14:40:19   #
artBob Loc: Near Chicago
 
R.G. wrote:
I would say the biggest obstacle to doing a realistic save is the loss of detail. That leaves a painterly effect as one of the best options. I don't have painterly filters so I did some home brew stuff with the light, colour and negative Clarity.

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An amazing fix. I put the photo up for any and all solutions, creative and/or technical. I didn't know if the photo could be made clearer. I thought I and others might learn something if it could. Yours does that. Perhaps, if you feel like it, sharing what you did with a bit more detail would benefit us.

After an early poster said it couldn't be done, I thought, "Well then, I've just discovered a challenge." (I thought most, like you, would ignore the poor detail and get "creative".) Here is my "realistic" "save", using mostly the polygon tool to define some edges (front of chair and light) and then cloning out the blur. Kinda works, but still have to leave a lot undefined, for time, with the excuse of "mood."


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Apr 25, 2019 15:12:58   #
R.G. Loc: Scotland
 
artBob wrote:
.....Perhaps, if you feel like it, sharing what you did with a bit more detail would benefit us.....


Most of what I did was run-of-the-mill stuff. I wanted to brighten it a touch, and since most of the shot is dark, nudging the shadows up a bit was enough to lighten all that needed lightening.

Negative Clarity adds diffuseness without weakening shapes and edges (unless it's extreme), but it does reduce the contrast somewhat, mainly in the mid-tones. A generous amount of contrast counteracts that, which probably accounts for most of the clarity that you mention (that and seeing more in the shadows). And as you yourself did, I went for edge-strengthening. I did it using Masking in the Sharpen tool. I used lots of Sharpen and lots of Masking with a boost to Radius. With paintings the edges are typically strong whereas the fine detail tends to be lost or minimised.

I didn't use much luminance denoise but I did use a fair amount of colour denoise to clean up the colours. This seemed OK because with paintings there is typically a tendency towards simplicity and uniformity with the colours. Subtle gradations and fine colour texture are both possible with paint, but compared to reality the colours tend to be cleaner.

I used split toning to add orange to the highlights (to enhance the ambient light coming from the lamp), and added blue-green to the shadows which not only balances the warmth of the highlights tint with something cooler, it also affects the mood or feel of the scene in an appropriate way. And because the tints are roughly complementary and applied to opposite ends of the luminosity spectrum, the split toning enhances the contrast - which may be another reason for the enhanced clarity.

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Apr 25, 2019 15:48:33   #
artBob Loc: Near Chicago
 
R.G. wrote:
Most of what I did was run-of-the-mill stuff. I wanted to brighten it a touch, and since most of the shot is dark, nudging the shadows up a bit was enough to lighten all that needed lightening.

Negative Clarity adds diffuseness without weakening shapes and edges (unless it's extreme), but it does reduce the contrast somewhat, mainly in the mid-tones. A generous amount of contrast counteracts that, which probably accounts for most of the clarity that you mention (that and seeing more in the shadows). And as you yourself did, I went for edge-strengthening. I did it using Masking in the Sharpen tool. I used lots of Sharpen and lots of Masking with a boost to Radius. With paintings the edges are typically strong whereas the fine detail tends to be lost or minimised.

I didn't use much luminance denoise but I did use a fair amount of colour denoise to clean up the colours. This seemed OK because with paintings there is typically a tendency towards simplicity and uniformity with the colours. Subtle gradations and fine colour texture are both possible with paint, but compared to reality the colours tend to be cleaner.

I used split toning to add orange to the highlights (to enhance the ambient light coming from the lamp), and added blue-green to the shadows which not only balances the warmth of the highlights tint with something cooler, it also affects the mood or feel of the scene in an appropriate way. And because the tints are roughly complementary and applied to opposite ends of the luminosity spectrum, the split toning enhances the contrast - which may be another reason for the enhanced clarity.
Most of what I did was run-of-the-mill stuff. I w... (show quote)


Very informative. Thank you.

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Apr 25, 2019 19:32:10   #
E.L.. Shapiro Loc: Ottawa, Ontario Canada
 
Great old chair!


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Apr 25, 2019 20:00:56   #
L-Fox
 
Not exactly a save....

Maybe useful at Halloween.


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Apr 25, 2019 20:04:49   #
artBob Loc: Near Chicago
 
Creative, SOLID solutions. I enjoyed them a lot.

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Apr 25, 2019 22:28:41   #
Howard5252 Loc: New York / Florida (now)
 
By "Saved", if you meant brought back to look like a really nice photograph … No it can't be saved. It can be used as the basis for all sorts of manipulation that will change/hide the original defects, and that is what has been done. The last image looks like it could be the basis for an interesting ghost story.

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