Hmmm... I am of the mindset that the best way to do something is the way one likes the best. I was actually curious for me to learn... as everyone has a different way.
I actually convert ALL of my pictures to BW first, then add the color back. Though not always the same way, I tend to use the "gradient map" layer. Just open the layer pallete, and add a gradient map layer. Then play with the bottom sliders to increase the black and white. Curves should also be used, but (1) I only had elements and (2) it seems OK for the way that I shoot (how I score the "negative"). This is why providing advice is a bit risqué.
One thing with BW is that you can increase the contrast, if that works. Which is what the sliders in the Gradient Map do, without getting into a Level layer. A level layer is good to use, if you can change the colors instensity to help do "things," but that one is a little harder to follow. Once we do the desaturation, I expect we do all the examples of BW conversion, as everyone has a way to work it.
About the trees... I do not mind them, though now I can see your point, in that there are distant structure of about the same size. The quickie (photoshop wise ;) is that you can blur them. You can open the pic to 100% or more, and use the smudge tool, and adjust the brush size. Also do a Color Burn with the same brush, and that will bring them to a brightness closer to the sky, so it blends in more.
I actually convert ALL of my pictures to BW first, then add the color back.
Oh boy. That sounds awfully labour-intensive. That said, I do tend to like the colours in your photos a lot, so the technique obviously works for you. I guess I'll give it a shot some time next week, when I'll actually have time to look into such things again. :-)
[smudge tool, colour burn]
Does that make sense?
Right now, none whatsoever, as I've never actually used either of those tools before. Don't worry, though; I'll figure it out. How hard can it be?
I have to say, I look forward to some good, proper ps_grasshopper practice. Judging from some of the technical descriptions you've given me, I'm going to have my work cut out for me. :-)
Actually, it is not that hard... what I do. I was in PS Elements, so it cannot be: usually. So, don't let the size of the mountain deter you... there is a nice gondola to go up :) It only takes two or three layers, and some playing around. Practice does make perfect, but I also forget some of the stuff, and have to revisit old photos. That is just an age problem, all others should be immune. Still.
I am thinking that the little group of ps_grasshopper may have to get into AIM or some instant messaging to do the step-by-step aspects of it, because it is not that difficult, but the first time could be confusing (e.g., "what button? where?"). That should help.
That said, next week or the following... and timing is not an issue. Mental relaxation is the key. OK, that may make it impossible. That said, the first post is taking me forever to do, which is a bad example.
I used Smudge and Stamp Tools for the first time not long ago (the umbrella pic). So, no, it is not that bad... just have to recognize the icon. That is all.
It only takes two or three layers, and some playing around.
Well, that sounds easy enough in theory, but given how much trouble I'm having opening a decent second layer, I'm not sure how easy it actually is. I'm really going to have to invest in a proper Photoshop handbook soon. Although I gather there's a wealth of information to be found on the Internet, as well.
As for instant messaging, I was hoping we could avoid that. As I earlier told Bella, I really don't want to install an IM programme; I'm spending way too much time on line as it is, and I fear IM might make it worse. But you're right, it might make certain things easier, so I'll look into it.
Hmmmm, yeah, IM could be addictive, and a good way is to avoid installing it. There could be other ways, so I would not worry about that. One way is just to use emails, even if much slower. I do not see any problem with that.
Another way to make it easy is to send you a .psd file with layers already open to what it could look like, and notes on what buttons to push for what actions. Hopefully, when I install CS2 version, buttons and such will be similar to v7.
There are some good handbooks, but you can wait and see how things are.
E-mails will have to do, I think, as the very thought of installing IM makes alarm bells ring in my head. Honestly, I know myself well enough to know that IM is a Very Bad Idea.
A .psd file with layers already open would be fantastic, but isn't that a whole lot of extra work for you? If not, I'd appreciate it a lot.
A friend of mine recently recommended two Photoshop handbooks he'd found useful: Photoshop Artistry by Haynes & Crumpler, and Real World Photoshop by Blatner & Fraser -- two books which according to him focus on the photographer's reality rather than the graphic designer's one. I'm going to see if I can find those. Until that time, I'll probably stick to very basic Photoshop work. Unless, of course, ps_grasshopper turns out to be a real source of inspiration, which wouldn't surprise me. :-)
I think it is workable with emails... as long as you don't lose patience waiting for an answer ;)
I got .psd files with layers already so it not a problem, unless you don't have a broadband connection. Otherwise, no problem.
Yeah, I bought one from Kelby, and that help me start -- examples based and not much on the physics. Then I got two books from Phillip Andrews which I am reading now: they are all Elements, but there is enough there to get started even with Photoshop. Eventually, you will want one, though the community will be slow enough that you can absorb things -- and it will remain with easy access.
I sent the Kelby book to ladder7 with the idea that she uses it and passes it on. Soon I will be done with the Andrews' books and I can pass on one to you... if that works for you, and then you can pass it on. I am now getting two books on the full CS2 thing, and they are more on the physics of PS, so those will be the ones that I keep.
If you want, send me one photo and I can do some layers on it and send it back... and we can start that way. Otherwise, I can send you one of mine.
OK, e-mails it will be then. I'll be patient. And I do have a broadband connection, so bring on the psd. file if you're sure it's not too much work! :-)
Are you serious about the Andrews book? That would be brilliant. Thank you so much. I'd appreciate that a lot. Muchas gracias.
I'll send you a TIFF some time next week if that's all right with you. I have one in mind which needs some layer work, but I can think of a few other ones which might benefit from it, as well. I'll see what I come up with next week. In the meantime, thank you very much for the offer to help out; I really appreciate it!
No, it would not be too much work do some layers on a pic... it is very therapeutic: I put some music, drink vanilla coke (or sake, depends), and submerge ;)
Yeah, dead serious (not dead right, or dead wrong). If you have a need to pay money, you can donate the amount + postage cost to a charity of your choice.
Anytime is good... I think yahoo/google have the same restrictions with attachment size (10MB), otherwise, I can give you info to upload to a site. You can pick one that is in color to show the diff between color and BW, that would work.
yeah, strange to see "vanilla coke" listed. It cracked me up... so, I put out an easy hook for you :) I trying to minimize the amount of soda. It seemed to have died here, and that hooked me back into it (a bad thing). I like it best there because they use real sugar in the drink, not the corn syrup thing.
Where is "here"? America? And where's "there"? Europe?
I try to minimise the amount of fizzy drinks I drink, as well, but when the mood is upon me, I'll have a few glasses of Vanilla Coke. I'm certainly not addicted or anything, but I like it a lot. Hence its well-deserved place in my venerable top-100.
The most interesting soft drink I've had was Jianlibao, a Chinese variety of Fanta made with honey rather than sugar or corn syrup. When I first went to China in 1995, it was all over the place. The first time I tried it, I hated it; then I somehow got addicted to it. It was so good. When I went back to China seven years later, I was looking forward to having it again, but it turned out to be much harder to find. When I finally managed to get some, my reaction was the same as the first time around: the first few sips tasted horrible, and then I wanted more, much more. It seems it's going out of production, though. Pity.
I do have a dual frame of reference. Yes, here is here and there is there. You got it.
I was drinking too much softdrink for a long time, and then I quit in favor of sparkling water. That works... and now I am drinking diet Vanilla Coke, which is actually better sweetener (taste) than corn syrup.
In Puerto Rico we got some varieties too... but they taste awful to people that did not grow up with it, kind of like maltzbeer. This stuff is not sold elsewhere, but not sure it will go extinct like Chinese Fanta. May be it is a plot by Coca Cola (like in the movie The Coca Cola Kid).
Diet Vanilla Coke? I've never tried that. I don't think we even get that here. Regular Diet Coke, yes; Vanilla Diet Coke, I don't think so.
As for local brands, I know many countries have their own brands, but I was wondering -- do you get Fernandes in Puerto Rico? It's a Surinamese brand which is now taking Holland by storm. It's great stuff -- day-glo-coloured, totally chemical and completely and utterly addictive. I try to keep it as a special treat for myself, because I know that once I start drinking it regularly, I'll be hooked, but when the weather is like now (which is to say, hot!), I feel like drinking one can after the other...
Sparkling water has never done it for me. I infinitely prefer non-sparkling water, or even regular tap water.
I seem to be addicted to carbonation... or at least that is how I justified softdrinks. If I am able to slice a lemon, then even better with carbonated water. But yes, few people I know like it.
Though I can drink water at room temps, after getting used to it in Europe. No ice cubes for me anymore, and traveling on European airlines, I am never offered ice cubes, so that is cool (no pun).
Fernandes (the "s" at the end, instead of "z") distinguishes Portugese from Spanish (it is the equivalent to your "Van" and others Von, Mc, "son" endings)... so no, never heard of it! Islands seem to be rather quirky with what they consume, and don't get exposed to much, though PR is a testing ground from many things in Latin America from American brands.
It should be no time before you get the diet variety... wonder what sweetener they will use. Here is "aspartame"
Careful with addictions ;) We already tempered the IM possibility :D Sorry about your hot weather... there is some hear, but not so close to the beach :))
I actually convert ALL of my pictures to BW first, then add the color back. Though not always the same way, I tend to use the "gradient map" layer. Just open the layer pallete, and add a gradient map layer. Then play with the bottom sliders to increase the black and white. Curves should also be used, but (1) I only had elements and (2) it seems OK for the way that I shoot (how I score the "negative"). This is why providing advice is a bit risqué.
One thing with BW is that you can increase the contrast, if that works. Which is what the sliders in the Gradient Map do, without getting into a Level layer. A level layer is good to use, if you can change the colors instensity to help do "things," but that one is a little harder to follow. Once we do the desaturation, I expect we do all the examples of BW conversion, as everyone has a way to work it.
About the trees... I do not mind them, though now I can see your point, in that there are distant structure of about the same size. The quickie (photoshop wise ;) is that you can blur them. You can open the pic to 100% or more, and use the smudge tool, and adjust the brush size. Also do a Color Burn with the same brush, and that will bring them to a brightness closer to the sky, so it blends in more.
Does that make sense?
Reply
Oh boy. That sounds awfully labour-intensive. That said, I do tend to like the colours in your photos a lot, so the technique obviously works for you. I guess I'll give it a shot some time next week, when I'll actually have time to look into such things again. :-)
[smudge tool, colour burn]
Does that make sense?
Right now, none whatsoever, as I've never actually used either of those tools before. Don't worry, though; I'll figure it out. How hard can it be?
I have to say, I look forward to some good, proper ps_grasshopper practice. Judging from some of the technical descriptions you've given me, I'm going to have my work cut out for me. :-)
Reply
I am thinking that the little group of ps_grasshopper may have to get into AIM or some instant messaging to do the step-by-step aspects of it, because it is not that difficult, but the first time could be confusing (e.g., "what button? where?"). That should help.
That said, next week or the following... and timing is not an issue. Mental relaxation is the key. OK, that may make it impossible. That said, the first post is taking me forever to do, which is a bad example.
I used Smudge and Stamp Tools for the first time not long ago (the umbrella pic). So, no, it is not that bad... just have to recognize the icon. That is all.
Reply
Well, that sounds easy enough in theory, but given how much trouble I'm having opening a decent second layer, I'm not sure how easy it actually is. I'm really going to have to invest in a proper Photoshop handbook soon. Although I gather there's a wealth of information to be found on the Internet, as well.
As for instant messaging, I was hoping we could avoid that. As I earlier told Bella, I really don't want to install an IM programme; I'm spending way too much time on line as it is, and I fear IM might make it worse. But you're right, it might make certain things easier, so I'll look into it.
Reply
Another way to make it easy is to send you a .psd file with layers already open to what it could look like, and notes on what buttons to push for what actions. Hopefully, when I install CS2 version, buttons and such will be similar to v7.
There are some good handbooks, but you can wait and see how things are.
Reply
A .psd file with layers already open would be fantastic, but isn't that a whole lot of extra work for you? If not, I'd appreciate it a lot.
A friend of mine recently recommended two Photoshop handbooks he'd found useful: Photoshop Artistry by Haynes & Crumpler, and Real World Photoshop by Blatner & Fraser -- two books which according to him focus on the photographer's reality rather than the graphic designer's one. I'm going to see if I can find those. Until that time, I'll probably stick to very basic Photoshop work. Unless, of course, ps_grasshopper turns out to be a real source of inspiration, which wouldn't surprise me. :-)
Reply
I got .psd files with layers already so it not a problem, unless you don't have a broadband connection. Otherwise, no problem.
Yeah, I bought one from Kelby, and that help me start -- examples based and not much on the physics. Then I got two books from Phillip Andrews which I am reading now: they are all Elements, but there is enough there to get started even with Photoshop. Eventually, you will want one, though the community will be slow enough that you can absorb things -- and it will remain with easy access.
I sent the Kelby book to ladder7 with the idea that she uses it and passes it on. Soon I will be done with the Andrews' books and I can pass on one to you... if that works for you, and then you can pass it on. I am now getting two books on the full CS2 thing, and they are more on the physics of PS, so those will be the ones that I keep.
If you want, send me one photo and I can do some layers on it and send it back... and we can start that way. Otherwise, I can send you one of mine.
Reply
Are you serious about the Andrews book? That would be brilliant. Thank you so much. I'd appreciate that a lot. Muchas gracias.
I'll send you a TIFF some time next week if that's all right with you. I have one in mind which needs some layer work, but I can think of a few other ones which might benefit from it, as well. I'll see what I come up with next week. In the meantime, thank you very much for the offer to help out; I really appreciate it!
Reply
Yeah, dead serious (not dead right, or dead wrong). If you have a need to pay money, you can donate the amount + postage cost to a charity of your choice.
Anytime is good... I think yahoo/google have the same restrictions with attachment size (10MB), otherwise, I can give you info to upload to a site. You can pick one that is in color to show the diff between color and BW, that would work.
Reply
Oh, and Vanilla Coke is great. But you probably knew I was going to say that. :-)
Reply
Reply
I try to minimise the amount of fizzy drinks I drink, as well, but when the mood is upon me, I'll have a few glasses of Vanilla Coke. I'm certainly not addicted or anything, but I like it a lot. Hence its well-deserved place in my venerable top-100.
The most interesting soft drink I've had was Jianlibao, a Chinese variety of Fanta made with honey rather than sugar or corn syrup. When I first went to China in 1995, it was all over the place. The first time I tried it, I hated it; then I somehow got addicted to it. It was so good. When I went back to China seven years later, I was looking forward to having it again, but it turned out to be much harder to find. When I finally managed to get some, my reaction was the same as the first time around: the first few sips tasted horrible, and then I wanted more, much more. It seems it's going out of production, though. Pity.
Reply
I was drinking too much softdrink for a long time, and then I quit in favor of sparkling water. That works... and now I am drinking diet Vanilla Coke, which is actually better sweetener (taste) than corn syrup.
In Puerto Rico we got some varieties too... but they taste awful to people that did not grow up with it, kind of like maltzbeer. This stuff is not sold elsewhere, but not sure it will go extinct like Chinese Fanta. May be it is a plot by Coca Cola (like in the movie The Coca Cola Kid).
Reply
As for local brands, I know many countries have their own brands, but I was wondering -- do you get Fernandes in Puerto Rico? It's a Surinamese brand which is now taking Holland by storm. It's great stuff -- day-glo-coloured, totally chemical and completely and utterly addictive. I try to keep it as a special treat for myself, because I know that once I start drinking it regularly, I'll be hooked, but when the weather is like now (which is to say, hot!), I feel like drinking one can after the other...
Sparkling water has never done it for me. I infinitely prefer non-sparkling water, or even regular tap water.
Reply
Though I can drink water at room temps, after getting used to it in Europe. No ice cubes for me anymore, and traveling on European airlines, I am never offered ice cubes, so that is cool (no pun).
Fernandes (the "s" at the end, instead of "z") distinguishes Portugese from Spanish (it is the equivalent to your "Van" and others Von, Mc, "son" endings)... so no, never heard of it! Islands seem to be rather quirky with what they consume, and don't get exposed to much, though PR is a testing ground from many things in Latin America from American brands.
It should be no time before you get the diet variety... wonder what sweetener they will use. Here is "aspartame"
Careful with addictions ;) We already tempered the IM possibility :D Sorry about your hot weather... there is some hear, but not so close to the beach :))
Reply
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