Which do you prefer?

jmtonkin · Jul 22, 2015

Here are two edits of this shot. Which do you prefer?

Option 1:

Option 2:

medic2230 · Jul 22, 2015

I like the contrast in photo 2.

Bryston3bsst · Jul 22, 2015

# 2

She looks a little mad and there's quite a bit of dead space here. Crop might be better just below her waist. That would eliminate the sort of dirty looking bricks as well. Kind of fun the her hair makes the hair for the guy on her shirt.

Derrel · Jul 22, 2015

medic2230 said:
I like the contrast in photo 2.

Yes, I would agree with that--the added contrast, the added punch of shot number two makes me prefer it over the first shot,. which is much more neutral, more muted. The darker blacks on her T-shirt also somewhat hide the smudges or faded spots on the tummy area of the shirt, so that's good.

I think this shot would also offer the option of making a decent vertically-composed, cropped image, in addition to this horizontal photo.

jmtonkin · Jul 22, 2015

With her clothing choice and her personality, the "punch" of the contrast reflects that nicely, in my opinion. I'm going to have to try the vertical crop to see how that looks, but I think you're on to something!

FITBMX · Jul 22, 2015

Yup, #2.

Derrel · Jul 22, 2015

With the vertical crop, the decision on whether to include the top layer of masonry mortar across the top is one of the main decisions, I think. Here, on the first, more low-contrast image, I left the mortar line across the top...but it also looks good with just a bit more cropped off the top, and that line across the width of the frame eliminated.

jmtonkin · Jul 23, 2015

Derrel said:
View attachment 105367 With the vertical crop, the decision on whether to include the top layer of masonry mortar across the top is one of the main decisions, I think. Here, on the first, more low-contrast image, I left the mortar line across the top...but it also looks good with just a bit more cropped off the top, and that line across the width of the frame eliminated.

I do really like that crop! I wish I'd have held off on printing the proof book! I can always crop it and show it to them separately, I suppose!

ronlane · Jul 23, 2015

Agree #2 (with Derrel's crop)

knswee · Jul 23, 2015

Like number 2 best.

ken

jmtonkin · Jul 23, 2015

I know this is a little off topic, but rather than start a new thread, hopefully someone here can answer.

I just got the proof book back, and they all look a little soft to me. When I exported them in Lightroom, I selected "Sharpen for matte", but I'm wondering if it wasn't enough? I think I had it set for "low". They all look sharp on my monitor, but not very sharp in the proof book.

Thoughts?

Derrel · Jul 23, 2015

Sounds like the sharpening applied was not high enough for the printing process that was used.

jmtonkin · Jul 23, 2015

When you get prints, how do you typically sharpen them? Should I have done the sharpening in Photoshop?

Derrel · Jul 23, 2015

jmtonkin said:
When you get prints, how do you typically sharpen them? Should I have done the sharpening in Photoshop?

It depends if the printing is inkjet or halftone...but for inkjet printing, I like to manually prep the files in PS, set my black point very carefully, and apply a pretty high degree of sharpening at a moderate percentage, but a fairly wide pixel radius of about 1.2 pixels. In Lightroom, I usually apply the highest sharpening for glossy paper at 360ppi for inkjets.

This is an area where the machinery used, and how the printer preps the files (does the print lab apply additional sharpening to incoming images, or NOT? both scenarios occur!), and the type of medium printed on (canvas? glossy,slick paper? inkjet on matte paper?) ALL can contribute to good,bad, or indifferent results. I really cannot give you much concrete advice because there are different types of subjects (low-frequency detail people and high-frequency detail landscapes), different printing methods, and different labs that process their files differently.

My comment was basically meant to convey that, if the images look soft in the proof book you had made, then the file prep requires more sharpening for that printing process. This could be a great time to contact the lab, and discuss what changes might make for a better-optimized file for their machines, on that paper/machine combo.

jmtonkin · Jul 23, 2015

Wow - I feel like I am completely prepared to handle the world of prints. I had no idea that there was so much to consider and so much to do as far as post-production! Call me ignorant.

I will definitely contact them tomorrow and see what I need to differently!