Ansel Adams did it, so why shouldn’t we? We’re talking about selective adjustments. In recent years, Adobe has perfected selective masks in Lightroom. The possibilities are enormous and diverse. But it hasn’t necessarily become any easier. In this BLOG/VLOG, I provide an insight into editing with selective masks. See for yourself.
Tonight will be a piece of cake. All weather models are predicting a beautiful sunset. I arrive on site in good time and am pretty sure what I want to photograph and how. My tripod, camera and filters are set up in no time, and the sunset is already looking really great at sunset. Now I just have to wait until it really kicks in. But wait a minute, has it already faded a little between the last two shots? Yes… what now?
Oh man, what’s wrong with my timing? Phenomenal golden light shines on the landscape in front of me. I look at my car’s speedometer. I’m already going a little too fast. And there are speed cameras everywhere here in the Netherlands. Two more turns. Damn, another red light. Maybe it’ll stay red for another 10 minutes, who knows. Just a few more metres and I’ll reach the car park, but then the great light was gone. But the clouds look promising. Don’t give up too soon, I thought to myself, and we set off along the path past these beautiful windmills in the Netherlands.
Phew… I worked up a sweat again. I had already realised that the conditions were going to be fantastic that evening. I had scouted out a spot, but hadn’t had time to check it out yet. It should actually be fine if I get there early and have a look around. However, I hadn’t reckoned with my children and so — as a father of two — I ended up with less time than I had hoped. But see/read for yourself.
Skylum had asked me if I knew Luminar? Yes, I said, of course! But so far I’ve only ever used it for one or two effects as a plugin in Photoshop. Personally, I think the color harmony function is brilliant. Luminar has changed a lot in the last few years. Can it also prove itself as a “stand-alone” in a complete image editing workflow? And has it really become as fast as promised? Let’s find out in this BLOG/VLOG!
Obwohl ich im Winter für den Sonnenaufgang wesentlich später hätte aufstehen müssen, als jetzt, wo es schon bald Frühling wird, bin ich kaum zum Fotografieren unterwegs gewesen. Aber heute habe ich mich überwunden, denn ich wollte eine träumerische Aufnahme an einem See mit Morgenrot aufnehmen. Also raus aus den Federn, solange die Familie noch schläft und los zu einem nicht all zu weit entfernten See.
Was ist denn das? Als ich joggend an diesem Baumstumpf vorbeilief, hatte ich direkt den Plan für die nächste Stunde im Kopf. Ich lief nach Hause, duschte mich schnell ab und fuhr mit dem Fahrrad zurück zu der Stelle im Wald. Ich wollte das Abendlicht nutzen, um diesen Baumstumpf samt Kameraausrüstung erneut einen Besuch abzustatten und ihn zu fotografieren. In diesem VLOG/BLOG widmen wir uns dem kompletten Prozess des Fokus-Stackings, von der Aufnahme vor Ort, bis zur Bildbearbeitung in Lightroom und Photoshop. Besonders interessant für die Fotografen unter euch.
What was I thinking? I quickly discovered this small pond near our accommodation, but how do you get here? There doesn’t seem to be a path, at least not on any hiking map. Various map and outdoor apps don’t show anything either. And yet I’m now walking through the darkness. In the fog. There must be a way and I want to find it before sunrise. Read the blog to find out if and how I managed it.
I grab my rucksack and quietly close the door of the vacation apartment on the farm behind me. It’s still pitch dark outside and I’m completely unfamiliar with the surroundings, but I set off to take photos anyway. At last, after what feels like ages. I know that the area around the farm is partly untouched nature. So off into the unknown. There’s always something to photograph. But this time I don’t even know which direction is best, I have to let my intuition guide me. Will anything come of it? Let’s see what this landscape here in the Allgäu has to offer. This morning will show.
Im heutigen VLOG/BLOG gebe ich euch insgesamt 6 Methoden an die Hand, wie ihr mit Lightroom oder Photoshop schnell und einfach den sogenannten Orton-Effekt auf eure Bilder legen könnt.
Der Orton-Effekt ist ein märchenhafter, malerischer Look der euren Bildern ein wenig Glow und Softness verpasst. Mystische Stimmungen werden so noch etwas verstärkt, Nebel oder Dunst wirken noch etwas kräftiger und geheimnisvoller, Strukturen im Wasser etwas weicher. Der Effekt selbst stammt aus der analogen Fotografie von Michael Orton. Dieser benötige zwei Bilder dazu. Eins scharf und etwas überbelichtet und ein weiteres überbelichtetes unscharfes Foto. Diese hat er dann in der Dunkelkammer übereinander gelegt, und so entstand der Look, der mit Orton-Effekt heute bekannt ist. Dank der digitalen Fotografie, müssen wir diesen zwei Aufnahmen nicht mehr tätigen, sondern können den Effekt ganz einfach, und vor allen Dingen auch präziser und feiner in Lightroom und Photoshop nachbauen.
I’m sitting at the breakfast table in our flat, sipping comfortably on my laptop. The weather maps for the next two days show good weather for our plans. One more click and our ferries are booked. It’s easy and pretty straightforward online. These are the Faroe Islands too. I’ve booked a ferry to Mykines and Puffin Island for us today and a ferry to Kalsoy for tomorrow. So the programme for the next few days is set.
The next few days on the Faroe Islands are coming up and it remains exciting. Over the next 48 hours, we will visit the capital, go to old mystical and legendary places, photograph waterfalls in the rain, probably the most photographed place in the Faroe Islands, climb the highest mountain in the archipelago and drive to the far north-east. But read for yourself.
EN