Drops and Smoke CC

niccas9 · Apr 21, 2011

Two water drop CC and Two smoke CC. I know that one of the water drop shots has some noise in the background. I also have some different angles but these worked the best for me, the others were awkward.

1

2

3

4

KmH · Apr 21, 2011

niccas9 said:
2

You can color the smoke to add some drama, depth, and tension. I cropped it a bit top and left too.:

TMphotography · Apr 21, 2011

Those are beautiful smoke shots; I especially like the composition of #1. It draws my eye to the exact spot where all the "action" is happening. The color in the water drop photos is also quite vibrant. I would assume that the noise is from a high ISO setting. Maybe add a little more light source so you can turn that down, and the noise will go away. Great job.

lyonsroar · Apr 21, 2011

You need to get lower down on the water drops.:thumbup:

The first smoke shot, the majority of the smoke is OOF. The second one is better. Up the F#.

Add some color to them with a gradient in PS.

IMG_9050 by Lyonsroar91, on Flickr

Or, invert colors for a cool new effect!

IMG_9014_1 by Lyonsroar91, on Flickr

niccas9 · Apr 21, 2011

Thanks for the feedback thus far. I need to invest in some kind of editing software, right now I am just using the free one that comes with a picasa membership. Saving up to get photoshop so I can control more of the PP.

Davor · Apr 21, 2011

Excellent focusing on the smoke! they are a tough subject. The drops, i recommend shooting them from a lower angle as it adds more effect to it. And if you are using a flash there is no need for high ISO, the lowest possible and fast shutter speeds.

niccas9 · Apr 21, 2011

Thanks! I want to give the smoke shots another go but by the time I was getting decent results the smell of the incense was making me sick.

I was having problems taking shots of the water from a lower angle because of the background I was using. I think that I need to get a brighter background so the drops will show up more from the lower angle. I will try and get closer to the drops too. Thanks for the feedback.

KmH · Apr 22, 2011

Are you aware that Adobe provides students discounted pricing? As much as 80% off the retail price.

Adobe.com Site Requirements

niccas9 · Apr 22, 2011

KmH thanks! You always chime in with great knowledge. I was not aware of the student discount. I do, however, have a potential hook-up through my work. I teach at a charter school and our digital arts teacher gets discounts for photoshop. I think he said it was CS4 and it would be somewhere around $200. I am going to check out your link and see if I can qualify since I still go to school technically.

KmH · Apr 22, 2011

They quit selling CS4 when they released CS5. It's actually CS5 Extended that they sell students for $199 (retail $999). Extended has 3D and scientific editing functions the regular CS5 doesn't have. There is no Student Edition of the regular CS5.

niccas9 · Apr 22, 2011

KmH said:
They quit selling CS4 when they released CS5. It's actually CS5 Extended that they sell students for $199 (retail $999). Extended has 3D and scientific editing functions the regular CS5 doesn't have. There is no Student Edition of the regular CS5.

after following your link it looks like that is where we get the "teacher discount" anyway.

I know nothing at all about photoshop. I want to be sure to get a good enough version that I won't be limited. I know there are a few different versions of PS and some are "dumbed down" do you think the $200 CS5 will be adequate? Sorry if it is a bad question. I just know nothing about proper PP of photos so this is all new territory.

lyonsroar · Apr 22, 2011

CS5 extended for $200 is literally the top of the line.

KmH · Apr 23, 2011

Elements is the $80, de-featured consumer version of Photoshop.

CS5 Extended is as fully featured as it gets. The $699, retail version of regular CS5 has fewer features than CS5 Extended does.