B&W Photo

TheBackFire · Jul 19, 2015

Hey guys, I have 2 photos in black and white. I like both of them but can't decide which edit is better. The first one I posted on Flickr already. The second is the same photo with a sky overlay.

_DSC0182 by Wesley Graham, on Flickr

Braineack · Jul 19, 2015

I like the second crop better, but not nessecarily the processing.

Love the misfits shirt.

using tapatalk.

Fred Berg · Jul 19, 2015

The thing about black and white is there needs to be some black! To my eye, the muted, low-contrast look here is doing nothing positive. It might help if the crops were presented the same size to be able to compare them properly but, for me, the first is the better crop because cutting off the frame mid-thigh looks more deliberate, whereas at the knee looks a bit hashed.

Light Guru · Jul 19, 2015

TheBackFire said:
The second is the same photo with a sky overlay.

And the fake added sky has left a nice hard line in the image which gives it away.

Ysarex · Jul 19, 2015

Fred Berg said:
The thing about black and white is there needs to be some black!

Agreed.

Joe

TheBackFire · Jul 19, 2015

Alright. I have a min. Busy day at my job. I'm still learning with overlays and forgot to crop it. Anyways what do you guys think of just the first one. Like straight up critique on just #1.

Derrel · Jul 19, 2015

One of my favorite country songs is entitled Queen of The Misfits, by Rich O'Toole. Hard to find a good version of it on-line...the ones on YouTube are all home videos.

I prefer the second crop of this shot, but like the crisper look of the first shot.

The added leg length in #2 gives a much more "present" feel to the shot, as if she is actually walking alongside the tracks...shot #1 lacks that walking along feeling, due to the tighter crop.

Ysarex · Jul 20, 2015

TheBackFire said:
Alright. I have a min. Busy day at my job. I'm still learning with overlays and forgot to crop it. Anyways what do you guys think of just the first one. Like straight up critique on just #1.

#1: You shot a backlit model without needed front fill. The train tracks cliche isn't helping; the way the track intersects with her left elbow is very distracting.

The processing, as noted, looks like you tried to salvage an underexposed image that was shot backlit without fill. There's no detail in the shadows and yet the shadows contain no trace of black. Granted that processing method is a contemporary cliche; us old farts don't like it as you end up with a photo that's flat and insipid.

I prefer the crop in this #1 version. The model's hair could have benefited from a quick brush before you snapped the photo.

You have an NEF file so the processing can be re-done. With an NEF from a modern Nikon it may be possible to process the photo and for the most part overcome the lack of front fill.

Joe

GWWhite · Jul 22, 2015

The B&W in this just doesn't work for me. Contrast just isn't there.

AlanKlein · Jul 22, 2015

There's no "pop" in the original. Adjusted levels especially the blacks.

GWWhite · Jul 23, 2015

AlanKlein said:
View attachment 105372
There's no "pop" in the original. Adjusted levels especially the blacks.

There's still no pop in it because now her skirt is too dark. It made the lost detail in the dress even worse. I tried to save this myself to no real avail. I would have to start from the original RAW file to get it correct. This is the best I can do with the image as it is: