Using PhotoLab 4 to process sunset photos

[Joanna (Joanna Carter)]

@mikemyers

I think the most important part of my photography goes way beyond technique. I learned a lot about this in art school, and learned how to make decent photos. You all have made me think deeper and harder, and that hopefully shows in the photos I post

Just keep thinking. I think your eye has been “corrupted” by years of journalistic photography

[mikemyers]

@Joanna

I think your eye has been “corrupted” by years of journalistic photography

I would say influenced, not corrupted.

I suppose those photojournalists would feel the opposite.

It all depends on what I intend to do with my photographs.

[mikemyers]

@Joanna

I would say it doesn’t work as an image, due to the strength and harshness of the blown white patch drawing the eye away from the rest of the scene

Test - show this photo to others, and see how many/few even notice this? I would bet that none of the people I know would be aware of it.

I prefer advice from you because you notice everything.

If this happens again, I will underexpose as you suggested.

[mikemyers]

@Joanna

Overall, it actually ended up needing very few adjustments, just the right ones.

I see that you used the Smart Lighting using very small boxes, one over the darkest part of the image, and one over the lightest. One more thing for me to do differently in the future.

[Wolfgang ([ Win10, PL+VP+FP, Nik6 (+3) ])]

@mikemyers

As you decided to completely change your composition but ‘exhibit’ the bird on the right, I just kept with it …

• It’s indeed clever to use the red colour from the bird’s head for your watermark, but I don’t like that you chopped off its head. – Don’t ‘sell’ the watermark, but the subject.
  [ BTW, to see your pics in PL, I always have to deactivate your watermark. ]

• The wodden bench in the background implicates a park. Unfortunately the bird didn’t do you the favour to move away from the bench, so you better would have changed your camera’s position.
  – I know it’s not always easy, and also with fix focal lengths.

• The bird’s head is not really sharp. Maybe it moved and got out of focus.

Anyway, here is my attempt. – You may check the Local Adjustments.

10-08-2021_L1003298.dng.dop (429,9 KB)

• M = NO correction
• VC1 = Mike
• VC2 = Wolfgang (portrait orientation – shown here)
• VC3 = Wolfgang (closer to your initial idea)

[Joanna (Joanna Carter)]

You know you were talking about getting the sun in the sky and its reflection?

Well, how about not guillotining the poor birds neck in its reflection?

…or, instead of having such an extreme crop, why not have both birds and their reflections?

By the way, I used an Auto-mask local adjustment over the birds to lift the detail in their plumage, whilst not do any sharpening on the rest of the image, in order to better separate the birds from the background. And I darkened the tree and its reflection because it was competing with the birds.

I also felt that the two birds, arranged like this made for a slightly more balanced composition.

DOP file

10-08-2021_L1003298.dng.dop (793,2 Ko)

[OXiDant (Peter)]

i took the lliberty to edit myself.
this is my view of the image:
10-08-2021_L1003298.dng.dop (11,3 KB)

What i did was (5min)
1 smartlighting to set highlight.
2 used exposure correction to push midtone’s up. more spread histogram.
3 used controlpoints to accentuate, red head and featherstructure , (maybe i overdid it but it was a quick one.)
4 only other structure is the bence, so i pulled that out too.
extra contrast some lowered exposure, clearview and such.

leaves are overexposed on some points but i left it that way.

composition.
no cut reflection, sided by two treetruncks even spread. as a trangle and as funny surprice the bence is not reflected which you only notice after a wile…

more balanced in my opinion.

[Joanna (Joanna Carter)]

Now, I really like this. The way the trees and their reflections frame the central subject.

[OXiDant (Peter)]

@Joanna

or, instead of having such an extreme crop, why not have both birds and their reflections?

I would name this one
“love seat ignored for a long time”

They turned there back to each other as they in the middle of a divorce …
Sorry i alway’s see things different…

[platypus (Canon & Mac (Intel and M1))]

Just an idea: clone/repair some structure into the burnt areas…
Here’s a quick and dirty example:

[Joanna (Joanna Carter)]

@platypus

Just an idea: clone/repair some structure into the burnt areas…

Well, you learn something new every day. I really like that as an idea. Well done

[mikemyers]

@Wolfgang

• copy your dng- and this dop-file into a new folder – I skipped all other versions
• to see how it looks in colour, deactivate → Color Rendering and → Channel Mixer

I’ve changed my mind; while I still like my image, I also like the versions that you and Joanna have created. I don’t think it’s as obvious what the “stuff” is on the water, or why it’s there, but it makes for an enjoyable image without any problem areas.

If I get a second chance to capture a scene like this, I will be sure to take a version underexposed, but that’s not likely to happen.

[mikemyers]

@Wolfgang

It’s indeed clever to use the red colour from the bird’s head for your watermark, but I don’t like that you chopped off its head. – Don’t ‘sell’ the watermark, but the subject.
[ BTW, to see your pics in PL, I always have to deactivate your watermark. ]

I tried with and without the head showing, and I thought I was adding too much at the bottom to get the head. Bad decision. I agree, keep the head.

@Wolfgang

so you better would have changed your camera’s position.

Because of bushes on either side of me, that would have been difficult, but I agree with you - something to try. I liked including the bench, but I couldn’t get what I wanted. I have several photos of the birds, but this one at least looked interesting. This is with my 135 lens, and I was pretty far away. When the birds return, they usually let me get much closer (but not too close!!). My brother showed me a place later where I might have gotten better composition, but it meant shooting through a large bush…

@Wolfgang

The bird’s head is not really sharp. Maybe it moved and got out of focus.

Next time, higher ISO, faster shutter, and try to hold the camera more steady, and focus on the head, not the body (which was easier).

@Joanna

…or, instead of having such an extreme crop, why not have both birds and their reflections?

That’s the picture before I cropped it in PL4. I liked and intended to have both birds, but doesn’t it get too “confusing”?

@Joanna

I used an Auto-mask local adjustment over the birds to lift the detail in their plumage, whilst not do any sharpening on the rest of the image, in order to better separate the birds from the background

How do I use “auto mask”?

@Joanna

I also felt that the two birds, arranged like this made for a slightly more balanced composition.

I agree, but what is the main place in that image where a person’s eye is drawn to? There isn’t one. But I now agree, two birds, without cropping.

@OXiDant

i took the lliberty to edit myself.
this is my view of the image:

I like the way the bird stands out from the bench. Maybe overdone, as you said, but very effective!

@Joanna

I also felt that the two birds, arranged like this made for a slightly more balanced composition.

In retrospect, I agree. Two birds, less cropping.

My main homework assignment - learn how to “auto mask”.

[Wolfgang ([ Win10, PL+VP+FP, Nik6 (+3) ])]

@mikemyers – there you have a lot of ideas

VC3

10-08-2021_L1003298.dng.dop (954,5 KB)
the dop-file contains all different versions in the ‘published’ order

• M = NO correction
• VC1 = Mike (post #219)
• VC2 = Wolfgang (post #225 – portrait orientation)
• VC3 = Wolfgang (shown now)
• VC4 = Joanna (post #226 – portrait orientation)
• VC5 = Joanna (post #226)
• VC6 = Peter (post #227)

[Joanna (Joanna Carter)]

Yes, this works.

[mikemyers]

@Wolfgang

• M = NO correction
• VC1 = Mike (post #219)
• VC2 = Wolfgang (post #225 – portrait orientation)
• VC3 = Wolfgang (shown now)
• VC4 = Joanna (post #226 – portrait orientation)
• VC5 = Joanna (post #226)
• VC6 = Peter (post #227)

I am using my MacBook Pro.
I have copied the above .dop file into the folder with my files.
I shut down PL4 and re-started, but it doesn’t seem to recognize all these virtual files. This worked back in Miami on my desktop computer - am I forgetting to do something else?

[mikemyers]

@Joanna

Well, you learn something new every day. I really like that as an idea. Well done

Me too! Full image, and no hole!
It sounds too easy! Thanks, ‘platypus’ !!!

[mikemyers]

I had another opportunity to take a similar photo, and tried to apply everything I’ve learned from the previous image.
Very little editing, and the resulting image matches what I saw and felt.

I’m hoping even Joanna will accept this (???)
10-10-2021_L1003365.dng.dop (11.1 KB)
10-10-2021_L1003365.dng (25.8 MB)

[platypus (Canon & Mac (Intel and M1))]

@mikemyers

Very little editing, and the resulting image matches what I saw and felt.
I’m hoping even Joanna will accept this

Looks good to me. Peaceful evening, calm before the storm or whatever you might call the mood exuded by the image.

Of course, one could brighten the shadows to show branches and leaves even more, and, ruin the mood.

Well done, Mike!

BTW, I noticed that you add a date prefix to the filename. For chronological sorting’s sake, I’d use YYYY-MM-DD instead of the American standard MM-DD-YYYY.

I use “GraphicConverter” for batch renaming. e.g. when I just copied files from the memory card instead of using Lightroom, which I’ve set for the renaming

[Guenterm (Win11, MAC OS, DPL 5, FP, VP, Nik4, Olympus)]

Hello,
looks nice to me too. The only thing I would repair is the point I marked.
I’ve take some looks but every time my eyes go to that

But overall…nice mood

Guenter