Really Old School
Jan 30, 2019 20:13:58 #
As a Navy pilot cruising around Asia "in support of the Vietnam conflict", I had the opportunity to collect a lot of Nikon gear at bargain prices. The Navy gave us a beach cabin near Pearl Harbor to live in. I set up a B&W darkroom in the second bathroom and subscribed to all the magazines. I tripped over a technique called "Posterization Processing" where the idea is to reduce tone levels. Ultimately, down to two! If "cooking" can be applied to bad HDR processing, this might be the origin.
I shot a fabulously dull picture of a Mallard duck sharing the takeoff experience with me. I followed the article, cooked it down to monotone and made a print. This is serious "Post Processing" to manipulate an exposure into something it was not intended to be.
The really weird part is that this is one of only four photos people ever paid me for. A fellow Navy pilot came over and offered me $20 for the print I had on the wall. In 1972 you could actually buy something with $20!
Attached here, for your entertainment, is an (automatically exposed!!) JPEG of a forty year old "Post Processed" print I dug out of my files. Is it worth $20?
Long live manipulative, creative Post Processing!
I shot a fabulously dull picture of a Mallard duck sharing the takeoff experience with me. I followed the article, cooked it down to monotone and made a print. This is serious "Post Processing" to manipulate an exposure into something it was not intended to be.
The really weird part is that this is one of only four photos people ever paid me for. A fellow Navy pilot came over and offered me $20 for the print I had on the wall. In 1972 you could actually buy something with $20!
Attached here, for your entertainment, is an (automatically exposed!!) JPEG of a forty year old "Post Processed" print I dug out of my files. Is it worth $20?
Long live manipulative, creative Post Processing!
Jan 30, 2019 20:21:55 #
Thank you for reminding us that creative processing of captured photographs has been going on a long time. And for sharing your top selling image! (See, sharing gets easier as you do it, just like using a camera or cloning out errant tourists).
It's worth $20 to the guy who paid it! I once had someone pay me to go take a picture of a funeral home. It was a very homely little building, and he had no connection to it emotionally but for whatever reason, he wanted a framed image of it. Art, like beauty, is in the eye of the beholder.
It's worth $20 to the guy who paid it! I once had someone pay me to go take a picture of a funeral home. It was a very homely little building, and he had no connection to it emotionally but for whatever reason, he wanted a framed image of it. Art, like beauty, is in the eye of the beholder.
Jan 30, 2019 20:41:23 #
Nice! I wish I could remember the name of the HC Kodak film I used to use in those days...
Andy
Andy
Jan 30, 2019 21:01:29 #
AndyH wrote:
Nice! I wish I could remember the name of the HC Kodak film I used to use in those days...
Andy
Andy
Kodalith?
Jan 30, 2019 21:11:39 #
bsprague wrote:
As a Navy pilot cruising around Asia "in supp... (show quote)
That’s a great history to a great image! Have you digitized it? It’s part of your photographic journey, and you should be proud of it.
Jan 30, 2019 21:26:10 #
brucewells wrote:
That’s a great history to a great image! Have you digitized it? It’s part of your photographic journey, and you should be proud of it.
I have enjoyed the image for a long time. I'm not sure it is "great" but certainly fun for me.
Digitize is not possible other than taking a digital image of the print. The process was in the print development. The actual negative (if I could find it!) would be of the duck.
Jan 30, 2019 21:30:00 #
minniev wrote:
Thank you for reminding us that creative processin... (show quote)
Thank you for the encouragement. If I don't procrastinate too much, I'll post my all time favorite, heavily PPed selfie.
Jan 30, 2019 22:52:20 #
Jan 31, 2019 05:48:49 #
bsprague wrote:
As a Navy pilot cruising around Asia "in supp... (show quote)
Bill - i'm not sure what i like more - the way you write or the pics your post! Delightful both! Thank you for sharing this.
Marylea
Jan 31, 2019 08:14:46 #
The result looks like the "threshold" slider step when making our own brushes
https://www.uglyhedgehog.com/t-552238-1.html
Fun story, Bruce!
https://www.uglyhedgehog.com/t-552238-1.html
Fun story, Bruce!
Jan 31, 2019 13:52:46 #
To the OP- Thank you for your service. I did two tours in-country in Viet Nam and the air support was vital!
When I came back to civilization, special photographic effects like posterization, solarization and high contrast renditions were the rage. So, of course, I stocked up on Kodalith film and developer and 3-M Color Key material so I could also do some of those special effects in color. I made solarization light sources out of old safelight fixtures. There were many steps- inter-positives and inter-negatives, opaquing, solarized films an paper, matrix printing- lotsa work! It is "old school" but back in the day, it was the only school for that kind of production.
If you would like to get back into that kinda imagery, post-processing is the way to go. You can work up images from regular continuous tone files or old negatives or slides that are scanned for digital processing. You can control contrast in Lightroom, PhotoShop, there are many plug-in programs, Topaz and many apps that can be accessed on an Android tablet. Creating line drop-outs are easy. I'll attach a couple of examples.
It's time to bring the "old school" back and show the young whippersnappers a bit of inspiration. Besides, it's FUN!
When I came back to civilization, special photographic effects like posterization, solarization and high contrast renditions were the rage. So, of course, I stocked up on Kodalith film and developer and 3-M Color Key material so I could also do some of those special effects in color. I made solarization light sources out of old safelight fixtures. There were many steps- inter-positives and inter-negatives, opaquing, solarized films an paper, matrix printing- lotsa work! It is "old school" but back in the day, it was the only school for that kind of production.
If you would like to get back into that kinda imagery, post-processing is the way to go. You can work up images from regular continuous tone files or old negatives or slides that are scanned for digital processing. You can control contrast in Lightroom, PhotoShop, there are many plug-in programs, Topaz and many apps that can be accessed on an Android tablet. Creating line drop-outs are easy. I'll attach a couple of examples.
It's time to bring the "old school" back and show the young whippersnappers a bit of inspiration. Besides, it's FUN!
Jan 31, 2019 14:11:30 #
My turn to thank you for your very difficult and dangerous service.
You are welcome for my service. More importantly, thank you and the rest of America for letting me do it. I'm one of the Vietnam vets that never faced danger or discomfort. The only exception was sleep deprivation on the overnight missions. Even then, there were bunks in the airplane and enough pilots to take turns. For the record, I was guarding against submarines and ships that might be sneaking around and doing things we didn't want them to do inside the war zone.
I particularly like the first one. In my neighborhood the Canadian Goose is an unwanted, filthy pest that ruins parks and playgrounds. You make one look good! That said, can you briefly mention what software you used to get the monotone image?
I have all my slides and negatives from those years in Asia. They are carefully filed and in great condition.
You are welcome for my service. More importantly, thank you and the rest of America for letting me do it. I'm one of the Vietnam vets that never faced danger or discomfort. The only exception was sleep deprivation on the overnight missions. Even then, there were bunks in the airplane and enough pilots to take turns. For the record, I was guarding against submarines and ships that might be sneaking around and doing things we didn't want them to do inside the war zone.
I particularly like the first one. In my neighborhood the Canadian Goose is an unwanted, filthy pest that ruins parks and playgrounds. You make one look good! That said, can you briefly mention what software you used to get the monotone image?
I have all my slides and negatives from those years in Asia. They are carefully filed and in great condition.
Jan 31, 2019 14:14:54 #
melueth wrote:
Thank you Marylea!Bill - i'm not sure what i like more - the way you write or the pics your post! Delightful both! Thank you for sharing this.
Marylea
Marylea
Jan 31, 2019 17:17:08 #
bsprague wrote:
My turn to thank you for your very difficult and d... (show quote)
The photographic work I did in-country was mainly aerial reconnaissance so none of that was released for public consumption. I did get to use some neat infrared materials which I later used in my own work, agan for special effects and some architecture. The documentary work I shot on the ground was not the kind of stuff you show the grandchildren or invite the neighbors in for a slideshow. I donated most of it to the Legion, the JWV and the archives at the then Army Pictorial Center before I left New York. I did not retain too much memorabilia or souvenirs.
Sorry about the Canadian Geese- I try to tell the little rascals to stay here in Canada and stop messing up everybodie's property South of the border, but alas, they won't listen. They just don't like the cold Winters here. The do, however, come back here in the Spring and and do their aerial assaults on us. Well, at least the rest of we Canadians and even this dual citizen are nice folks and are polite when we come down to visit.
The images I posted were made from regular digital files. I transfer them to my Android Tablet and run it through a few free apps that you can download- you can also use a smartphone. Then I load them back into my computer and adjust the contrast in PhotoShop if required.
The apps are Arto Sketch, Arto Monochrome, and Arto Infrared. There are wide varieties of filters and various effects in both black and white and color. Some of my special effects work is done in Topaz on the computer. An early addition included Texture-effects. I loaded the Topaz program in years ago and I can't find the disk. I'll dig it up and post the version number for you etc.
For my casual work, I find the Android apps very handy and fast. No layers and multiple steps. The effects are pre-set but you can alter them, go from one to another and further modify things in PhotoShop or Lightroom.
Jan 31, 2019 17:39:36 #
Thanks for the list of apps! As luck would have it, I have an android tablet.
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