the Photo thread

[clapton is god]

And Tango, my wife does a Wednesday morning art class in watercolours and I felt sure she would want a crack at this one but no, the class has moved on and it was of no interest to her. I think she'll tackle it eventually though.

And, photographers secrets: The scene is pretty much as I saw it but no picture is perfect straight out of the camera. It has been brightened a shade and some vibrance added. There was a telegraph pole in the mid distance, near the cattle, with wires going left and right and I have removed them. Where the wall and hedge meet in the foreground there was a green tree rising right to the next wall/hedge and I have removed that too. That bothered me for a while as the image did not look balanced with it in. It looks much better without and its absence opens up the sweeping view through the centre right through to the mountains. Oh, and the leftmost sheep is an addition too.

When I saved the pic to My Images to work from, I noted the title "Pastel Shades with tree removed" and wondered. One of the reasons I don't want to try for an exact copy is that light is forever changing and even on a pc screen it appears different in daylight than by electric light. I want to get the essence of your scene with my own stamp, if you will. I doubt, as Dujon noted, that paint could ever reproduce colours to match those.

Glad I fessed up now then

[thebish]

And, photographers secrets: The scene is pretty much as I saw it but no picture is perfect straight out of the camera. It has been brightened a shade and some vibrance added. There was a telegraph pole in the mid distance, near the cattle, with wires going left and right and I have removed them. Where the wall and hedge meet in the foreground there was a green tree rising right to the next wall/hedge and I have removed that too. That bothered me for a while as the image did not look balanced with it in. It looks much better without and its absence opens up the sweeping view through the centre right through to the mountains. Oh, and the leftmost sheep is an addition too.

you don't know how much of a relief it is to hear that!

Much of the magic is in post, but it has to be there in the first place to reveal it.

oh yes - absolutely - you would not have that vibrance of colour in the grass (for instance) if you hadn't been there before the dew evaporated - nor the depth of shadow/colour if the sun had been higher or greyed out behind the clouds... you can't create the magic in post - but you can help draw it out...

[TANGODANCER]

Sorry Clapton. Not so happy with the first attempt. My cameras ( a mere Sony Cybershot pocket job) isn't up to decent colour representation and my painting is nowhere near as dark as this. Might have another go later.

[clapton is god]

I think that's an excellent effort, Tango. Well done!

[Always hopeful]

And, photographers secrets: The scene is pretty much as I saw it but no picture is perfect straight out of the camera. It has been brightened a shade and some vibrance added. There was a telegraph pole in the mid distance, near the cattle, with wires going left and right and I have removed them. Where the wall and hedge meet in the foreground there was a green tree rising right to the next wall/hedge and I have removed that too. That bothered me for a while as the image did not look balanced with it in. It looks much better without and its absence opens up the sweeping view through the centre right through to the mountains. Oh, and the leftmost sheep is an addition too.

you don't know how much of a relief it is to hear that!

Much of the magic is in post, but it has to be there in the first place to reveal it.

oh yes - absolutely - you would not have that vibrance of colour in the grass (for instance) if you hadn't been there before the dew evaporated - nor the depth of shadow/colour if the sun had been higher or greyed out behind the clouds... you can't create the magic in post - but you can help draw it out...

Boooooooo! Tarting photos up in post is cheating.

[thebish]

not a great photo pixel-wise - only had my camera-phone for this walk, but Cornwall is pretty stunningly beautiful...

[TANGODANCER]

Clapton. On the lake district, here's a line and wash sketch I did of Grasmere Church from a photograph. Again, the colours are nowhere near realistic from my camera.

[clapton is god]

^ Again, good effort, and I recognised the church before I looked at the text. Unusual angle though with Silver How in the background as this church is more often seen from the opposite side where there is a magnificent tree in the grounds and Arthurs Pike would be in view.

[TANGODANCER]

^ Again, good effort, and I recognised the church before I looked at the text. Unusual angle though with Silver How in the background as this church is more often seen from the opposite side where there is a magnificent tree in the grounds and Arthurs Pike would be in view.

Here's the view I used. :

[thebish]

one vague new year ambition is to get out and start using my camera again...

dusted off my old cheapy (but proper 1:1) macro lens while waiting for my tea to cook - and tried it out on my Christmas Cactus that is in bloom...

I was quite pleased with the sharpness - might try focus-stacking later this week...

[clapton is god]

Good effort. I've made a similar commitment but more out of necessity. My asthma, which really only started to be a problem last July, seems to be prohibiting me getting to the high fells so I think I'm now a phototographer who walks rather than a walker who photographs. I've bought myself a set of ND grad filters and a 8stop filter and have plans to use them soonest. Watch this space.

[thebish]

Good effort. I've made a similar commitment but more out of necessity. My asthma, which really only started to be a problem last July, seems to be prohibiting me getting to the high fells so I think I'm now a phototographer who walks rather than a walker who photographs. I've bought myself a set of ND grad filters and a 8stop filter and have plans to use them soonest. Watch this space.

ahh - we can all look forward to pictures of mushy waterfalls and rivers!

I think those things can have really ace results on big skies with moving clouds...

[thebish]

not my picture - it belongs to Lintao Zhang/Getty Images

part of this collection - the World News in Pictures feature in the Independent..

A Chinese shepherd leads his flock in the haze in a Beijing suburb...

[Bruce Rioja]

Is there only me that immediately started looking for Slenderman in that photo?

[Always hopeful]

^ No. Bobo immediately started looking for new romance.

[Dujon]

A similar photograph by the same photographer appeared in the newspaper we take, thebish. It was slightly different in that it was sans shepherd. Whilst the newspaper did give the credits for the photographer and Getty there was no comment on the aesthetics of the image. It was simply accompanying a short article on Chinese pollution problems. Perhaps the publishers have finally woken to the fact that its readers don't need to be spoon fed - although I doubt it.

[thebish]

Another Devon bike ride with a particularly stunning view, today... 15 miles up and down part of the Exe Estuary...

[Always hopeful]

^ Nice.

Those of a certain age might remember 'Vision On'? For some reason, this reminds me of the opening title sequence. Symmetry and all that. (Although if you turn this through 90 deg, I doubt that the image will look like a frog!!).

[clapton is god]

Had an hour in the freezing cold on Salford Quays this evening as the sun was setting. This was taken in raw, which I don't usually use, and with an 8 stop ND filter on the lens, which has smoothed out the canal water.

[thebish]

nice you got that blue hour!