Convocation

[Himalayan]

One thing that I would like to change, is the hand gesture...

 

[canonrebel]

I like the way the blurred-out background makes the subjects pop. Blurred backgrounds usually always lend a 3-dimentional quality.

 

[Big Mike]

I also like how the blurred background makes the subjects "pop".

Did you blur the background in PS? I prefer authentic bokeh to a PS blur.

 

[Sharkbait]

It's a good shot, but I agree with mikey--you can see the PS edges.

 

[StvShoop]

it doesn't get the whole "background out of focus" effect cuz the whole background is the same level of blurry.
try doing several layers of blurry, and make the further away areas blurrier than the closer ones
wait... gah. i got stuck on the realism kick.

i think it looks fine as is, obviously photoshopped and all. the edges dont even bother me, it seems like it would be too big a contrast if the people stood out in starkly sharpness

 

[canonrebel]

The photoshop was so obvious I didn't even find it necessary to mention it. I liked the photo as it was--still do. You can find beautifully Artsy sunsets and scenics on this thread that is more photoshop apparent to my eye than this print.

I like photography for its artful appeal--regardless of the process used to make it artful. There are times when the photoshop processing is so expertly applied and the finished product is so beautiful that it is passed off as pure camera talent. But if it looks too good to be real--it usually isn't.

My point is....who cares if it is "real or if it is memorex" as long as it sounds good.

You did good, Himalayan, well done.

Toward the bottom of the following thread is some real photoshop talent--without any pretenses to be pure camera.........
http://forum.pbase.com/viewtopic.php?t=4749

 

[StvShoop]

isnt memorex a cd company?

i like the pic too, but i don't think process should be ignored. if it were a straight-up photo, it would have a feel of "that moment" which was captured on the fly (kinda). since it's not, it's got a monumentality to it, since it was posed in person, then in the computer (as in, worked on, savored kind of)

 

[Himalayan]

Thanks for all of your comments.
I don't want to make the Photoshop a long discussion here. Maybe next time I would post a photo without obvious PS work on it.

Thanks again

Any other comment besides the PS issue?

 

[bogleric]

the photo is done very well and the fake depth adds to it really well. At a quick glimpse I would not have noticed all of the PS work except it is really obvious by their heads.

Nice attempt... now lets see if you can PS one and fool everyone!

 

[canonrebel]

Nice attempt... now lets see if you can PS one and fool everyone!

To accomplish this, you can
change your extraction method to the pen tool to obtain a clearner extraction
Isolate the subjects to their own layer
Gradient blur the original layer.