3 Quarters Today

My Life, my photography, my passions

Adobe Photoshop

Making Tulips “Pop” With Photoshop

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Photoshop is a powerful photography tool when used properly. My goal for most photo editing is to create an image that doesn’t look like it’s been edited. So let’s render an image of a tulip into something that pops just a little, but doesn’t take it over the edge.

See how subtle editing can improve a photograph without going over the top, as I have a tendency to do sometimes, according to my daughter.

Tulip SOOC (straight out of the camera)
Tulip SOOC (straight out of the camera)

This edit first involved adding a levels adjustment layer and darkening the whole image.  I selected the pink color in Image/Adjustment/Selective Color and added more magenta, which brightened the color in the petals.

The white portion of the petals seemed washed out so I then used the Burn tool and stroked over the creases in the bottom of the petal, which brought out the fine streaks.  I then used the sponge tool and desaturated the background.

I tried some special effects with this image, but I was never quite happy with them, so I settled on realism.

Learn How to Edit in Photoshop

120 Easy Tips And Tricks For Photoshop: LearningAdobe Photoshop CS6 Revealed (Adobe CS6)Adobe Photoshop CS6 Classroom in a BookAdobe Photoshop Elements 13Adobe Photoshop Lightroom 5Adobe Creative Cloud Photography plan (Photoshop CC +

Day 127/365: Photographic View of Church

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Today was my day of playing around in Photoshop again. This time with plug-ins from Xero-Graphics. The subject my home church of Trinity Lutheran in Murdock Nebraska. I was driving by ans a friend was taking pictures for our upcoming open house dedicating the new fellowship hall. So I stopped, said “Hi” and took a few myself. Turned out to be a perfect subject for some special effects.

Which one do you like best and why?

#1: Straight out of camera (SOOC)
#2; Xero Tweak w/burn edge
#3 Xero Illustrator w/burn edge
#4: Xero Line Art
#5: Not sure which effect, misname it, but it's a xero effect, I can find it again.

Here is a different photograph, but taken at the same time in black and white. I’ll tell you which is my favorite after the comments and voting is tallied.

#6 Different image, taken at the same time, but an effect I like

Day 93/365: Cat on the Porch

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Day 93: Cat on the Porch
Day 93: Cat on the Porch

Another trip to the mailbox and a stop at my neighbors house, her cats will be a common subject as the weather gets nicer.  It was a drab overcast day and I was disappointed with the original picture. No sun, no oomph, so I worked some photoshop magic.

Photoshop CS2 Notes: Regular adjustment layers with smart sharpen, then went in and decreased the lighting, bumped up the contrast, and added a warming filter. What a difference! After adding some additional sharpening on the face and whiskers and  I was happy.

SOOC (Straight out of camera)
SOOC (Straight out of camera)
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Day 90/365: Bangles at Coop deVille

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Bangle jewelry bracelet
Day 90-: Bangle bracelet,

This week I went shopping at one of my favorite stores, Coop DeVille & Feathers, in Louisville Nebraska. Both stores are a woman’s shopping heaven. Everything from funky jewelry, purses, whimsical gifts, and decorating doodads made out of the most unique items. Everything is displayed in the most creative fashion the whole place is a feast for the eyes in an array of color.

These bangle bracelets  is just of one of my favorite pictures, love the way I captured the sparkle and shine, but I took so many that I’m going to break the rule of the 365 project and post pictures from the same day in this series. Hey, it’s my project, so I can make the rules.  Make sure to subscribe so you don’t miss a thing.  In the meantime you can visit the Coop de Ville & Feathers Facebook page.

Photoshop Notes: Cropped, added standard action layers, added more sharpness to the rhinestones, adjusted layers brought the right marker to the edge of the histogram,adjusted the color to get the original pink color of the bracelet. The original image is  below.

SOOC (straight out of camera)
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