lakeside for critique

scooter2044 · May 24, 2015

Photos I took this weekend. The first one I need some advice on how to lighten the shadows on the standing boy's face without losing all the shadows in the rest of the picture. Critique welcome on all photos.

fishing_attempt by Sheila Swindell, on Flickr

trail by Sheila Swindell, on Flickr

follow_the_leader by Sheila Swindell, on Flickr

jovince3000 · May 25, 2015

The first one was taken around mid-day, right ? I don't think there's anything you can do about lighting there. You could try a localized adjustment but I think it would look fake unless you have serious editing skills and time.. What software are you using for post processing, and also, do you shoot RAW or Jpeg?

I think the second one could gain a lot by boosting the contrast between the path and the foliage. It's my favourite of the set.

scooter2044 · May 26, 2015

jovince3000 said:
The first one was taken around mid-day, right ? I don't think there's anything you can do about lighting there. You could try a localized adjustment but I think it would look fake unless you have serious editing skills and time.. What software are you using for post processing, and also, do you shoot RAW or Jpeg?

I think the second one could gain a lot by boosting the contrast between the path and the foliage. It's my favourite of the set.

I only have Photoshop Elements and I am limited on what I know how to do. I wish I could get a better contrast on the second one without blowing out any more highlights. You're welcome to try. I love to see high contrast b/w. So far mine havn't no matter what I do with them.

The_Traveler · May 26, 2015

First is nice but tough edit because of sun angle.

scooter2044 · May 26, 2015

The_Traveler said:
First is nice but tough edit because of sun angle.

View attachment 101913

Yeah, it was mid-day, again... Everything I tried just made it look more unnatural. I need to get a tripod so I can shoot later into the evening hours. I can't keep still long enough to get enough light in the photos. How do you get so much contrast in your black and white shots? They seem to almost come to life. I always end up clipping my highlights if I use too much contrast. Are there different ways to convert to b/w. I just turn the saturation all the way down and then play with the rest of the settings.