Every Picture Is a Compromise
Lessons from the Also-rans
Most photography websites show the photographer's very best work. Wonderful. But that's not the full story of a creative life. If we want to learn, we'd better pay attention to the images that aren't "greatest hits" and see what lessons they have to offer. Every picture is a compromise — the sum of its parts, optical, technical, visual, emotional, and even cosmic – well, maybe not cosmic, but sometimes spiritual. Success on all fronts is rare. It's ok to learn from those that are not our best.
This is a series about my also-rans, some of which I've been able to improve at bit (i.e., "best effort"), none of which I would consider my best. With each there are lessons worth sharing, so I will.
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Original digital capture
Ventfort WeekVentfort is a Gilded Age mansion in upstate New York that is in the process of being restored. My inclinations were to do some pretty straight photography and just let the place tells its own story. That doesn't mean that it didn't require some intense processing to get the photographic images to look right. What I saw that I liked:This red couch just screams "Gilded Age!" What I don't like in the picture:The green coming through the sheer curtains is very distracting. This was also right on the edge of needing an HDR treatment, but I didn't shoot it that way. Crossed my fingers that I could pull enough out of the shadows to get what I wanted. What I learned:To get rid of the distracting green, I simply used the Color Mix in Lightroom to desaturate the green out of the image. More and more I find this trick a useful one. 2nd Chances: What I might try nextI did have to punch up the red tones a bit. That helps in the flowers, too. I hadn't anticipated that. |
