A Challenge to the Expert Post Processors
Aug 13, 2020 15:53:51 #
On the morning after Hurricane Isaias blew through the Wilmington NC area, I traveled out to the Oceana Pier on Wrightsville Beach to see how big the surf was. We were delayed by a tree blocking our exit road, so the sun was higher than I would have preferred.
There was a strong off shore breeze that was catching the crest of the waves and blowing them into a million droplets.
This was my favorite capture. But it has been a PP challenge for sure. I have used my tricks to take it to this point. The sun was blowing out the droplets' whites. The appearance of noise is really just the airborne droplets. And the disturbance to the water on the back of the wave is due to the droplets hitting the surface.
I have included the NEF and hope some of UHH's great PPers will take the challenge and come up with a better shot. Many thanks to those that do.
There was a strong off shore breeze that was catching the crest of the waves and blowing them into a million droplets.
This was my favorite capture. But it has been a PP challenge for sure. I have used my tricks to take it to this point. The sun was blowing out the droplets' whites. The appearance of noise is really just the airborne droplets. And the disturbance to the water on the back of the wave is due to the droplets hitting the surface.
I have included the NEF and hope some of UHH's great PPers will take the challenge and come up with a better shot. Many thanks to those that do.
Aug 13, 2020 16:30:41 #
I am no expert and your posted shot is very impressive. I do attach, however, a version that is lightened to allow more of the sun you captured to show.
Aug 13, 2020 16:41:26 #
Wrong photo! When I did my work on the original shot, I did not remember you had already done some good work. Here is my final offer.
Aug 13, 2020 18:25:25 #
davefales wrote:
On the morning after Hurricane Isaias blew through... (show quote)
Not claiming anything, just a few tricks of my own
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Aug 13, 2020 18:32:46 #
Aug 13, 2020 19:31:27 #
Aug 14, 2020 07:43:22 #
davefales wrote:
On the morning after Hurricane Isaias blew through... (show quote)
PP can do lots of things. Your photo is primarily about recording and interpreting movement - which is better left to the camera and the photographer. IMHO you did not quite get that right. The exposure is spot on - but the subject is not alive - PP cannot put that right. Freeze it or Cream it - neither approach will work either. Somehow you have to get in the middle - I don't think I could have done it - and I did say IMHO.
Aug 14, 2020 10:43:23 #
Thanks for giving it a go, Mike, Wallen and ecobin. I think we are proving it to be quite a challenge, possibly undoable. Your efforts using the entire image have me rethinking my crop.
Aug 14, 2020 10:45:42 #
Delderby wrote:
Freeze it or Cream it - neither approach will work either. Somehow you have to get in the middle - I don't think I could have done it - and I did say IMHO.
Thanks for your comment. I am unfamiliar with "Freeze It or Cream It". Could you please explain? (Possibly a British colloquialism?)
Aug 14, 2020 11:56:08 #
Lucian
Loc: From Wales, living in Ohio
High shutter speed to freeze it, slow shutter speed to cream it, the water that is.
Aug 14, 2020 12:03:36 #
davefales wrote:
Thanks for your comment. I am unfamiliar with "Freeze It or Cream It". Could you please explain? (Possibly a British colloquialism?)
With moving water, a fast shutter speed will "freeze" the water which is what I see in your picture - which actually makes it appear to be frozen, without the appearance of movement. The opposite thing to do is to use a quite slow shutter speed, which will blur movement of waves or waterfalls, and if overdone, will give the appearance of frozen milk (creamy) rather than water. There are those who applaud this effect, and those who don't (I'm one of those who don't). Where you have lots of spray and or droplets, a fast shutter speed does not give the same frozen appearance, as drops in the air don't come over as frozen. There were certainly improvements attached to the replies you received - but I still think that the best effect would have to come from the camera (although that is just my thoughts)
Aug 14, 2020 16:11:10 #
Delderby wrote:
Where you have lots of spray and or droplets, a fast shutter speed does not give the same frozen appearance, as drops in the air don't come over as frozen.
I am uncertain what you are suggesting. Is the fast shutter speed (1/4000)I used good or not?
Aug 14, 2020 22:06:49 #
Well, I tried to bring up the detail in the shadows, put an HDR effect filter and cranked up the compression. Tried to bring up the sun being refracted out of the wave and struggled to get more detail in the shadows without blowing everything out.
The specular highlights make this an interesting challenge!
Keep up the good work!
The specular highlights make this an interesting challenge!
Keep up the good work!
Aug 14, 2020 22:27:37 #
A high shutter speed "freezes" the motion. The "creamy" effect we see in some waterfall, river and seascapes is created by using a low shutter speed. Your photo may have given you the effect that you were seeing with a slower shutter speed - don't forget that there is persistence of vision in the human eye, we see continuous motion in video shot at 24fps. I think that you would have had to add a 6 stop ND filter and shoot at 1/100s or less at 100 ISO and f11 or f16 to get the "flowing" or "creamier" look. I did that calculation in my head, so it may not be quite right, but would be a starting point to get more implied motion in the wave. The droplets would no longer be "frozen at 1/100s though... Considering all of the constraints, I think you did a great job of capturing the image!
Keep up the good work and keep your sharp eyes open!
Keep up the good work and keep your sharp eyes open!
Aug 15, 2020 04:40:23 #
Ourspolair wrote:
A high shutter speed "freezes" the motio... (show quote)
Thank you Ourspolair for clarifying how i was about to reply to the OP.
The offerings have got better and better culminating in yours just above with more illusion of movement.
The attached was with the help of Smart Edit - not better - just different, perhaps creamier?
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