NTP: Challenge VI

[ricktas]

Good result there Graeme. Certainly improves your photo eh?, The shadows/highlights tool can be reasonably effective, but it is limited.

[mcdesign]

Graeme there is a very handy device in Bridge Camera Raw where you can open an image as an object, in Photoshop that becomes editble in camera raw always.

Step one. Do your fine tuning in Camera Raw, open as an obeject by holding down the shift key and clicking Open Object, (normal mode is Open Image) when open in Photoshop Mac, Ctl click, PC, right click to the right of the layer's name and choose New Smart Object via copy, you can now adjust each layer independently of each other, reopen this layer in Camera Raw and adjust for another part of the image, ie; the foreground in the first layer and the sky in the second, they can then be masked to get the best out of the image, this is a particularly good way of editing for landscapes. Hope this helps and makes sense.

Give me a PM Graeme and we will try and get together soon. Margaret

[bigdazzler]

ive been playing around tweaking a few old shots and thought id post this one up as my example ..

[Nic076]

Nice colours Darren.

Some great photos in this thread, well done to all. Here is my attempt from our trip this week.

[ricktas]

Great work Nic. Lovely landscape. like how the sweep of the beach curves at a rule of thirds point. However your horizon is central vertically, and your horizon is sloped slightly downhill to the left of the photo.

Lovely scene and a great landscape photograph

[NikonNellie]

I took this photo in January '09 so I hope it's OK for this post. I am unable to get out and about at the moment as I have torn a tendon in my foot. The photo was taken at Freshwater Beach at sunset - it was one of the first low light shots I had ever taken. It probably doesn't sit on the Rule of Thirds but I wanted to keep the bird in the shot.

[remin]

Hi, very new here.
Not too sure it fits the Rule of Thirds, but thought I'd post it anyway. It's not the best photo (compared to what's already been posted). Was done with a Canon Powershot A570 IS as it's all I took on that particular trip. Was taken at Wellington Dam in WA.


After looking at more closely, really should've moved closer to the shore line.

[ricktas]

Really good use of the Rule of Thirds Narelle. Horizon 1/3 of the way down, headland coming in from the right about a 1/3rd of the way into the image, and the foreground rock placed well. Nice light coming onto the rock to bring out the colour and texture. Very well done.

[ricktas]

Welcome Remin. Very good try, the road leading up the left side fits the Rule of Thirds reasonably well. The horizon is a bit to central and the guys in the boat are very central as well. As you have noted, getting closer to the shoreline would have helped here. Very nice scene and its sad seeing another Dam so low (waterwise).

[remin]

My mates and I went fishing tonight, I took my cameras along and here is the results. Everything here was done using the SX10.






There are some others, check here:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/3751583...7616980587188/

[ricktas]

Nice shots there Remin. But the challenge is about using the rule of thirds, all your photos have the horizon in the centre of the photo (top to bottom). Maybe go have a read of the Learning Centre topics suggested at the start of this thread.

Also, please don't post more than one photo at a time in these challenges. If you want general critique, please put your photos in the member photo's area of the site. The NTP challenges are for each member to present one photo, get advice on improving it, then going out and work on improving based on the challenge topic.

[chelle]

finally time to come back to this thread! I took heaps of photos and had a re-think before i clicked the shutter button to see if i could change my angle to give a better rule of thirds. Here are a couple.
Funnily enough just scrolling through my blog since the day of this challenge to my more recent posts and there are heaps jumping out at me that i want to post here but i won't! I'll choose two that at the time i was trying for the thirds rule but looking at them now i wonder if there are too many other elements in the photos that don't fit the rule that are enough to unbalance things.

With this one the horizon is close to being one third up but not exactly... is it enough? or do you find that it really needs to be as close to visually thirds as you can get to have the right effect? When i took it i thought the tree gave a god 'one third' on the right but now that i relook for this challenge the overhead rock is half way across the top so if that enough to counter-act the effect we are aiming for?
(Hoping the photo shows up... First time trying to not upload direct to AP...)

Here is a photo of me! THe horizon is closer to thirds and the boulder with me on it is the other third... but again has the grass being half at the bottom ruined the rule?


But for a photo that i think really matches the guidelines i'd pick this one (i'll just link it to save posting too many photos)

[ricktas]

I fixed them for you Chelle! You had the IMG tags in but had also put URL tags around them as well.

Please only post one photo at a time in the NTP area though, as it is not a general critique area, and is designed for each member to present one photo, get feedback on that one, then go out and work on improving.

I will comment on the first. Well used Rule of thirds, by placing the rocks and tree around the outside of your photo. Horizon is well placed, I like how the rocks and trees 'frame' the photo. Having then positioned yourself so the middle distant boulders are through the frame has worked well. Good work, No the 1/3 is only a guide, you don't have to be precise, but as you can see, by using the Rule of Thirds, you create a very visually pleasing photo, it just feels 'right'

[chelle]

oops, i may have unfixed them cos i tried editting it again and you must have already done it.
sorry for posting two images (i sorta knew i was not supposed to! :hide: ) but i had the same question for them both re whether you needed to have as many elements as possible as thirds or if something prominant being half-half ruined it.

[ricktas]

I will fix them for you again Chelle.

EDIT - there appears to be an anomoly in the way blogspot names its image links, your original links wont work on AP, but if I copy them into my browser, go to the photo, right click the photo on blogspot, click properties and then copy the link that appears in the pop-up window, that link will work with AP, there is a slight change to the name of the link between the two. Something to watch Chelle, so always use the right click, properties link on the photo on blogspot and then paste that link into AP using the icon to make sure it pasted as an IMG link

[sketty]

OK here's my example:



Not brilliant, but I ruined my last session by leaving the ISO at 1600 = a whole load of noise!
so this one'll have to do for now

[Hamish McHaggis]

Here is my attempt at the challenge, and also my thoughts on the photo:


Composition: the horizon is in the upper third (well, 5th probably) of the frame. It (the horizon) is bendy, though, probably can be fixed in PS. There is foreground interest; however the main rock is in the centre of the frame – could be better composed.
Exposure: the long exposure has allowed the water to become “milky” – I like this, but the upper third of the pic has consequently been overexposed. I applied a grad filter in LR to deal with this but am not too happy with the result.
Colour – let’s not go there! I’m red/green colour blind and therefore have interesting ideas about colour, usually reflected (badly) in my choice of fashion, LOL. I think while I’m learning about photography I’m going to try to think in terms of shapes, lines and contrast and probably in B&W as well.
Focus: I want this pic to be sharper, to reveal the details in the rocks that I saw when I took it – any tips??
thanks,
Colin

[ricktas]

Great use of the rule of thirds there Sketty and Colin. I like how your horse's face runs straight down a rule of thirds line there Sketty.

Colin, very nice long exposure sea-scape. To fix the bendy horizon in photoshop. Filters> Distort>Lens Correction, there are perspective adjustment tools in there, use the sliders till you get the horizon level, click OK and then crop the result.

Great work, to both of you!

[Hamish McHaggis]

thanks Rick, I'll have a try in photoshop to fix the horizon,
Colin

[Calelli]

Here's one that I took in December at Shelly Beach near Port Macquarie. By good luck rather than good judgement it has most of the properties. The one thing that was missing is the rule of thirds. I've gone and cropped the photo so that the horizon is sitting on the 1/3 line and the sun rise is 1/3 in from the left. In this instance I'm not sure if I prefer the original or the 1/3 pic. By cropping you lose a line of clouds which I like. Here are both.

The original

sunrise original small.jpg

With Rule of Thirds

sunrise 3rd small.jpg


Camera: Nikon D60
Exposure: 0.005 sec (1/200)
Aperture: f/13.0
Focal Length: 55 mm
Focal Length: 55.0 mm
ISO Speed: 100