Before and After

February 2019
M	T	W	T	F	S	S
« Jan
	1	2	3
4	5	6	7	8	9	10
11	12	13	14	15	16	17
18	19	20	21	22	23	24
25	26	27	28

I thought some folks might enjoy seeing a before and after comparison of this shot. Not exactly one of my better shots, even after all the work that went into it, but it gives an interesting view from pre-RAW processing to post-photoshop quality.

So, quick to-do list on this image:

1) Raw processing:
1a) Increase color temperature.
1b) Increase shadows.
1c) Increase contrast.
1d) Decrease exposure.
1e) Decrease brightness.
1f) Add very slight, gradual vignetting.
1g) Shift shadows green slightly.
1h) Increase overall saturation.
1i) Increase blue saturation.
1j) Increase sharpness.
1k) Tweak curve.
2) Crop.
3) Get rid of sign info on the right.
4) Get rid of the power line across the shot.
5) Get rid of the 2 shadows across the sign.
6) Make the grass its own layer.
7) Make the sign into its own layer and increase the saturation and contrast.
8) Make a monochrome soft light layer to crush shadow detail, increase specific saturation, and increase contrast across the image.
9) Paint the grass green and multiply it to increase saturation and decrease brightness.
10) Clean up any blemishes on the subjects.
11) Make a Vivid Light layer over the subjects, with them in a white circle and a wide black ring immediately around that. Fade out by 200 pixels in the transition. This adds a spotlight effect on the couple.
12) Desaturate the couple slightly.
13) Dodge and burn as appropriate.
14) Collapse and sharpen.
15) Add a border.
16) Resize.
17) Sharpen again.
18) Upload to flickr.