C&C on reflection please and thank you

[elifant]

[

Some blue water would be nice as would a bit more blue in the sky. A bit more mid-tone contrast, add a bit of the Clarity slider, and a thin black border for a finishing touch....

I'm still learning, and using Lightroom. How do I go about doing everything but changing the clarity? I got that part down. Or can you recommend a good tutorial? Also like the Panorama, is it possible to do something like that using lightroom or is that strictly photoshop?

 

[elifant]

And to follow up, I'm having the moment...that I can only hope is normal.....where I feel like I have no business sharing photos I've taken because they stink

Hey now, let's not get negative! If you don't post up, you won't get any C&C to make you better! Everyone started somewhere. Take pride in your photos!

I once saw a funny learning curve posted about learning photography, I'm definitely at the point where I got the rude awakening that what I thought was good is not as good as I think it is. I'm not giving up yet!

 

[KmH]

I'm still learning, and using Lightroom. How do I go about doing everything but changing the clarity? I got that part down. Or can you recommend a good tutorial? Also like the Panorama, is it possible to do something like that using lightroom or is that strictly photoshop?

To add the blue I use the Gradient tool in CS5's Camera Raw (ACR). Lightroom's edit rendering engine is ACR, so the 2 work the same.(ACR, Adobe Camera Raw)

It takes much more than just a tutorial, it takes a couple of books; Real World Camera Raw with Adobe Photoshop CS5

Real World Image Sharpening with Adobe Photoshop, Camera Raw, and Lightroom (2nd Edition)

A book that is sort of a collection of tutorials for Lightroom (like most of Scott Kelby's books) is: The Adobe Photoshop Lightroom 3 Book for Digital Photographers (Voices That Matter)

The island pano could not have been made with Lightroom. Adobe designed Lightroom as a compliment to Photoshop for photographers that routinely make a high volume of images. Lightroom's editing possibilites are very simplistic and very limited compared to Photoshop.

 

[elifant]

Unfortunately I can't afford the hefty Photoshop price tag. I was planning on getting elements when I can set aside some extra money. Thank you for the book suggestions. I've put them on my books to read list.

 

[spacefuzz]

hmmm I dont know how much the B&W adds but I'm not crazy about the composition of the original photo. The centered horizon doesnt bug me because thats usually ok with a reflection (symmetry ftw), but it feels unbalanced with the left trees sloping down towards the water.

 

[KmH]

Unfortunately I can't afford the hefty Photoshop price tag. I was planning on getting elements when I can set aside some extra money. Thank you for the book suggestions. I've put them on my books to read list.

Are you a student, or have a immediate family member (including children) who is? Adobe offers some substantial student discounts.

 

[elifant]

Not a student, and no one I know is anywhere near being one either. Maybe in 4 years when my daughter starts kindergarten!

 

[gsgary]

I just had a play and used a method that starts in lab color and ends with high pass filter

 

[elifant]

I just had a play and used a method that starts in lab color and ends with high pass filter

I like this one!

 

[kundalini]

Some good info being passed on in this thread. If I may, I'd like to add some more food for thought. When you're looking at a scene, don't get that one shot stuck in your brain. Walk around, look at things from a different perspective, take many shots. You just never know which one might be the winner.

Case in point. These were taken about 4 years ago when I was just getting back into shooting and I had forgotten most of what I knew from the past. The great thing about digital is you can click away to your heart's delight without any cost. I was on my annual autumn pilgrimage to the mountains and as I was drinking my first cup of coffee that morning, I noticed how peaceful the lake was and the wonderful colors in the crisp air and the reflections being cast on the water. (I can’t find my re-edits, but this will give you an idea.)

Not content with one shot and not ready to leave camp (more coffee please), I backed up and included the dock that I had been standing on at the end of in the first photo. This included another element to the overall image along with some leading lines.

Then I looked left and right. Hmm, that’s interesting, reminds me of a wine on its side.

Just my 2¢. Keep your eyes open and keep shooting.