(Dear Moderator -- I posted this item in the National Parks forum because it is about the particular problems I encountered when taking photos in the southwestern national parks. If it is in the wrong place, please feel free to move it, and sorry for any inconvenience.)
After several trips to the national parks of Utah, I was a little frustrated with my photos -- they never looked quite right, because of the high contrast and the harsh light, even with a digital SLR camera, and even with editing the photos in Picasa (which is free and also easy to use, but is not very high-tech). I adjusted the white balance -- still disappointing. I did not have the same problems in Yellowstone or the Sierra or any other area with a little more moisture and vegetation.
So, for example, here is the best I could do at Arches -- not bad, but very high contrast:
I tried to use Photoshop but it was too daunting -- the learning curve was too steep. I am not a pro, and I don't want to spend hours on each photo. But then someone gave me a tip -- try Lightroom, which is sort of a beginner-level version of Photoshop. It has made a big difference -- I can easily correct the exposures of the rock and the sky separately, so that I can get detail in both of them, like this:
I don't know whether the rv.net "photo posting" device will degrade the images so much that the differences between those two images are obscured -- if they are, please feel free to look at our blog post -- to see just those two pictures, put the word "turret" into your "find" box, since these are pictures of Turret Arch:
Blog post that includes Arches and a lot of other stuff too, unfortunately
I hope this tip is helpful to folks who (like me) are really particular about their photos!
After several trips to the national parks of Utah, I was a little frustrated with my photos -- they never looked quite right, because of the high contrast and the harsh light, even with a digital SLR camera, and even with editing the photos in Picasa (which is free and also easy to use, but is not very high-tech). I adjusted the white balance -- still disappointing. I did not have the same problems in Yellowstone or the Sierra or any other area with a little more moisture and vegetation.
So, for example, here is the best I could do at Arches -- not bad, but very high contrast:
I tried to use Photoshop but it was too daunting -- the learning curve was too steep. I am not a pro, and I don't want to spend hours on each photo. But then someone gave me a tip -- try Lightroom, which is sort of a beginner-level version of Photoshop. It has made a big difference -- I can easily correct the exposures of the rock and the sky separately, so that I can get detail in both of them, like this:
I don't know whether the rv.net "photo posting" device will degrade the images so much that the differences between those two images are obscured -- if they are, please feel free to look at our blog post -- to see just those two pictures, put the word "turret" into your "find" box, since these are pictures of Turret Arch:
Blog post that includes Arches and a lot of other stuff too, unfortunately
I hope this tip is helpful to folks who (like me) are really particular about their photos!
I used PhotoShop and, also, use very little of it's capabilities; just like my computer - very little.
I only caution about saturation as it is very easy to do; I like things to be as I saw them - not looking like circus colors.
I only caution about saturation as it is very easy to do; I like things to be as I saw them - not looking like circus colors.
But don't over saturate, over contrast, or anything to make phony images. Easy to do.
I have the D5100 now, johnna, and it is all I need for sure.
A professional photographer friend of mine in CO once told me - put the camera away at 9am and don't get it out until 3pm; unless the weather turns bad. Much to be said for that.
I have shot many thousands of images in UT and it, like AZ where I live, just washes out at midday. If you try to add in with programs you get unreal looking things many times.
I have the D5100 now, johnna, and it is all I need for sure.
A professional photographer friend of mine in CO once told me - put the camera away at 9am and don't get it out until 3pm; unless the weather turns bad. Much to be said for that.
I have shot many thousands of images in UT and it, like AZ where I live, just washes out at midday. If you try to add in with programs you get unreal looking things many times.
HDR = High Dynamic Range photography. The process involves taking 2 or more exposures of the same scene and combining them with software. Some DSLRs have a HDR setting that will do this for you, in-camera. If you don't have this feature, HDR is still possible.
I tell the DSLR to bracket with 3 exposures: one is about 1.5 stops overexposed, one is right on, and one is 1.5 stops under. Then I use a program called Photomatix to map out the sets and combine them. Photomatix has plenty of settings options, so you can get a very realistic look or a painterly effect or whatever.
Another, easier way (IMO) to do the job is to take your single image and then process with a program called Topaz Adjust. I took the liberty of spending 5 minutes on your photo:
Topaz Adjust is a plug-in (an add-on program) that will work within Lightroom or Photoshop. It has a ton of presets as well as manual slider adjustments, so after a bit of practice you can fix an amazing range of exposure problems as well as enhance details, sharpen, and cut down noise. On your photo I used adaptive exposure, then lowered contrast and enhanced coarse and fine detail. Topaz Adjust is essentially a shortcut to your desired results, using an easy interface to give the host program (in your case, Lightroom) complex instructions. A person can download a free 30 day trial, and test drive it before buying. I downloaded the plugin to Photoshop and was immediately convinced.
I tell the DSLR to bracket with 3 exposures: one is about 1.5 stops overexposed, one is right on, and one is 1.5 stops under. Then I use a program called Photomatix to map out the sets and combine them. Photomatix has plenty of settings options, so you can get a very realistic look or a painterly effect or whatever.
Another, easier way (IMO) to do the job is to take your single image and then process with a program called Topaz Adjust. I took the liberty of spending 5 minutes on your photo:
Topaz Adjust is a plug-in (an add-on program) that will work within Lightroom or Photoshop. It has a ton of presets as well as manual slider adjustments, so after a bit of practice you can fix an amazing range of exposure problems as well as enhance details, sharpen, and cut down noise. On your photo I used adaptive exposure, then lowered contrast and enhanced coarse and fine detail. Topaz Adjust is essentially a shortcut to your desired results, using an easy interface to give the host program (in your case, Lightroom) complex instructions. A person can download a free 30 day trial, and test drive it before buying. I downloaded the plugin to Photoshop and was immediately convinced.
