Don't Forget "Place"

This a bit of a different project for me.  Rather than a photograph of people, restoring a place was also an interesting project, especially since this is where I went to school.  I was not able to work from the original photograph.  Instead it was from a low-resolution scan, so the end result is much more pixelated than I would like.  Nevertheless, it is still a marked improvement over the original, which had lost all of the original color information except for blue.

I wanted the result in black and white so that it would be a nice companion piece for a retrospective storyboard I'm working on.

If you are considering which photographs to have restored, don't neglect the environmental.

Cat and Mouse

This is my home version of cat and mouse. Chloe is my near constant Photoshop companion. She has her spot on my desk, under a lamp that she uses as if it were a sunlamp. I have concluded that after two years of regular Photoshop use, she has settled on a favorite "action"......sleep :-)




To Chloe, my little Photoshop friend:  
This wouldn't be nearly as much fun without you.

Workbook by Skye Hardwick

Check it out!

I recently discovered Skye Hardwick, her beautiful photography, and fabulous workbook that is jam-packed with valuable information for photographers.

Her photographic images are a masterful combination of elegant images with textures and embellishments that cause me to slow down and examine the details. Inspiring.

Incredible work, Skye. Thank you for making this information available to all of us.....

http://www.theworkshopworkbook.com

Father's Day

Father's Day is June 20. For a unique gift, check out the "Storyboard" on my Products page.

Catchlights

You've heard the saying, "The eyes are the window to the soul." Well, in photography, not only are the eyes windows to the soul, but you can sometimes SEE the window IN the eyes!

To the left is a small selection from a restoration I've just completed. The original image was badly faded and discolored and very tiny (only 1.5 x 2"). When you looked at the original, you saw the little boy, but couldn't discern any of the details.

After bringing some of the original detail back, I found that both eyes had light streaks across them. While you couldn't see this at all in the original, in the restoration it became a major distraction.

The catchlights captured by photography are always in the shape of the light source. If your subject's face is illuminated by a rectangular window, the catchlight will be rectangular. If the light source is round, the catchlight will also be round. If you use a flash, you will most often notice a single very bright spot in the center of the eyes. (not the most attractive catchlight, in my opinion)

I couldn't see any visible scratches in the original image that would have caused these light streaks, so I have to wonder if these streaks are actually the shape of the flash the photographer used. Regardless of the source of the streaks, they had to go.

Remember to look at the eyes of your subjects. Watch for the catchlights. A window with diffused lights creates beautiful light in the eyes as does light coming under a porch or other outdoor structure.

By the way: sometimes, you will find yourself reflected in your subject's eyes. (Look carefully at the little boy's eyes at the beginning of this post.)

It's going to be a beautiful weekend here in the MidSouth. Take your camera and a favorite person and practice finding and capturing the light in their eyes.