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 balcony on the second floor has some wonderful details in the woodwork. What I don't like in the picture:The reflections from the windows on the opposite wall have got to go. Also, there is a purple cast in the black wood that I think came from those windows. What I learned:After lightening the woodwork in the half-wall, the triangle from the first floor in the lower right became too light. I darkened that with a linear gradient. 2nd Chances: What I might try nextOn the far side of the walkway is a pillar in the doorway that almost looks like a person. I might need to try cloning that out. |
