This is a guest article by Mike Shaw.
Learn the technique that is behind the photograph Ages of Man.
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This is a guest article by Mike Shaw.
Learn the technique that is behind the photograph Ages of Man.
It was shot in RAW format (if your camera can shoot in RAW then you should, the information retained in the file is invaluable)
The image is then opened in CS5, it is then cropped to focus on the face and remove some of the background clutter.
Using the plug in Silver Efex Pro it is converted to black and white, once again here the contrast, brightness and structure is tweaked, stronger contrast and more brightness added and structure increased by around 20%.
At this point there is still some clutter behind the subjects head, so I set about getting rid of the background using the burn brush, set at a round 25% to 35% exposure I darken both the highlights and mid tones first, I then move onto the shadow and set the exposure to around 50%, at all the times the brush is kept small when working near to the face with the hardness set at 30%.
A lot of this technique is how you use the brush, as you work around the face you need to sweep it gently as each pass will darken the image, be aware of where the brush is falling within the frame. You also need to understand the lighting of the image, for this I wanted it be lit toward the face so I darkened the back with stronger strokes, more delicate to the front.
The image is then exported to Lightroom, in here I use the Tone sliders, I both lighten the image with the fill light and darken the blacks with the black slider. I also use post crop vignetting to really darken the edges of the frame but I use it in highlight priority mode to retain the highlights were needed. I also sharpen the image in here looking also to reduce any noise. Once happy I export back to CS5
The last stage is to use the brush tool with a soft edge set on black to tidy up any areas, with this image I also increased the structure again in Silver Efex to bring out more of the detail in the finished image.
Its sounds complicated but it is easier than you think, make sure you have the right image to begin with, it does not work on all portraits and less so on a subject that is looking directly at the viewer.
Mike Shaw is an experimental photographer that still thinks of himself a novice to the media Mike has had no education in photography.
It was a case of picking up a camera in 2006 and seeing what he could do with it.
After many months of frustration and a complete refusal to read any manual he started to produce images that showed some semblance to many photographers he admired.
He now see his world through a viewfinder and frames each day as it comes, photography has become a passion.
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A nice article, it is very inspiring for me
Michael, you gave us a quiet description of your post process. I like to
bring in my own experience to it, maybe it will help you or others in next
projects.
It is impressing, how many programs get involved in all of that transformation.
I would suggest you to try to do all of those adjustment in your CS5, instead
of jumping back and forth to different programs. All of those programs use same
adjustment tools, it is just mater of learning. That save you lot of time (even
time is not an matter). I hope your image was save in TIF, so when you have to
save and resave it in order to get to different editors, you not losing too much
info. I think you try to create portrait from street photo, and that is almost
impossible task. You got pretty good result, but not enough for hanging it on a
big wall over fireplace. Your object, head of the man, has hot spot, which
don’t look so bad in color, but in B&W, with all yours adjustment is
really not so pleasant. Anyway, you have very interesting portfolio, and I like
lots of your picture.
Good morning! Very helpful responce. From your perspective, how do you clean up the hot spots? (and for all that, what is a hot spot?)
Hot spots are overexposed places with NO info at all, you ca use different technique to fix that, BEST is proper exposed photo in beginning. here is some more info: http://photoshop911.typepad.com/…s_in_ph.html
or over here:
In my opinion, the shot is properly exposed. I think if you were sitting there when he took it, you'd see the shine on the head just as he exposed it. Sometimes hotspots are actually part of the scene, and it's likely that if he'd tried to compensate at the time he shot the image, he would have either underexposed, or would have lost the spontaneity of the scene. To me the capture of the mood is more important.
There is a big issue with a lot of photographers on proper exposure these days. The truth is that exposure, as long as it is not extremely blown leaning toward degrading the image (this photo does not suffer from this) does, and should take a back seat to the overall shot. In this case, there is no apparent loss of integrity from bad exposure. The image is communicated properly, and the emotion and effect the photographer set out to capture is, indeed captured.
Also, while many actions can be performed in different post processing software, not all actions will produce the same results. If that were true, we'd all be using one of the many free or cheaper programs that mimic Photoshop. It's a mistake to think that, because various post processing packages have the same buttons to do the same things you'll get the same results. Use what gets you what you're looking for, and what you feel comfortable with.
Thanks for a great shot, and a great tutorial.
Nice article Mike!!
very nice…
very nice
Thanks for sharing how you processed this. I've seen it in Google+ and didn't realize it came from a street photo… you had mentioned that he was playing music and your brief interaction. I assumed this meant in a dark club or some intimate setting, never imagined it was outside in broad daylight. Keep sharing your zest for photography… it never gets old!
very interesting and impressive article..wish i can have a photoshop in order to learn how to tweak and make admirable photos…
i love B&W photos…
Michael, this is a great image and thanks for posting. I saw it on G+ as well and immediately set out to try and do something similar, but I must say I'm having a hard time separating the foreground from the background (in order to turn it black). It doesn't seem to be something that SFX pro does by default. Did you use a masking technique to achieve this?
Great example that you do not need any photography skills and still can produce great photos.
The final photo could have been taken almost like it is, with minimal need of retouching.
The original photo is less than mediocre. It's something I would toss into the trash.
Very nice tutorial and awesome results. Thanks for sharing!
WOW. Amazing photograph. Thanks for sharing the techniques you used. Please share more. I think everyone has a thirst for knowledge, and you are helping quench it. Once again Thanks.
Great image and editing
The end result is a great image, but in my mind photography, especially from the street, needs to be raw and authentic, and this ain't either. Bit of a fake in my opinion. Sorry Mike.
Despite the post op surgery, you have definitely retained the intensity of his gaze and in fact enhanced the overall persona of the image. I'm a bit of a purest but in this instance, the post op surgery has made it a better image overall. After all it is about the mans face, his gaze and his eyes. Well done.
It's very nice looking. However, I think this goes past the realm of photography and more into digital artwork. When it comes to editing, as a photographer, less is more.
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How to: The Post Process of Ages of Man Photograph