If there is one thing I’ve learned as a photographer it is to not pack up my gear and go home as soon as the sun sets. It’s usually about a half hour later that the magic starts to happen. Such was the case on this evening. I did not manipulate the colors here it really was this pink as the ocean reflected the afterglow in the sky. I opted for a painterly treatment to soften the rocks in keeping with the beauty of the scene.
I spent a few days exploring Redwoods State and National Parks on California’s north coast this week. It wasn’t until the last day that I allowed myself a stroll through the Crescent City harbor area and now I’m wishing I had spent more time there. How often do you get fishing boats and a lighthouse all in one picture?
It was early morning at the time so this image needed some brightness and saturation added. I finished it off with a Cezanne treatment in Topaz Impression.
It has been raining almost every day for the better part of two weeks. So, I was forced to spend some time in the digital darkroom. I had shot this image back in April just down the street from my house. Though I liked the composition and subject,I was shooting up the light was not on the blossoms and it needed some work.
First I took it into Color Efex Pro for some detail and to add light on the blossoms. Next I added a couple of textures to bring more color into the sky. Finally, I took it into Topaz Impression for a painterly look. I think this one would look good as a gallery wrap.
I’m so happy to see flowers showing up everywhere. These pansies were in a planter by a store. The background was pretty busy and boring so I thought a texture might help. It did but the transition between the pansies and the background was still rough so I took it into Topaz Impression and applied a Georgia O’Keefe filter which brought me to something I feel pretty good about. Of course, if it were a real painting I would have the yellow flower facing into the frame, and purple. Oh well.
The weather was grey and I was a little depressed the other day so I took the Fuji down to the park and just started playing. Intentionally moving the camera, zooming during exposure, etc. Then I went home and started playing on the computer. This was the result.
What I did here was to take a straight shot of a blossoming tree and overlay it with one that I had zoomed during exposure. I didn’t write down all the steps so I don’t know that I could recreate if for you but there was some blending of the two images, some detail and saturation added in color efex pro. And a treatment in Topaz Impression.
What I love about this image is that it just screams spring is busting out. Probably not for everyone but it passes the “Would I hang it on my wall?” test.