Tuesday, 19 June 2012
Where have I been?
Wow, I have not blogged in nearly 12 months since I first created this blog, and so much has changed since then!
I am still loving HDR, and have joined a photo group where we shoot TFP models every month to help build up my portfolio and skills, forcing me out of my comfort zone!
So, to welcome me back, I thought I would share a BTS clip with photographer David Dare Parker on the set of TV Show, Bikie Wars
Wednesday, 27 April 2011
Basic HDR Workflow
One of the biggest challenges are scenes with high dynamic range (HDR). Dynamic range is simply the difference between bright and dark areas in the scene.
A typical camera will record only a certian level of dynamic range I think it is something like 9-11 depending on the camera you have the human eye can detect about 11 levels without to much trouble.
Some scenes can have far wider dynamic range than the camera can record. This means detail will be lost in either the highlights ot shadows. So you end up with large white or dark patches with little or no detail.
Capturing such scenes within one images is near impossible. If you try to capture the shadows you lose the highlights and vice versa.
The process is about capturing multiple exposures of the same image. If your camera supporst AEB (auto Exposure Bracketing) you can set your camera to automatically adjust exposures, commonlt +2 0 -2.
Cameras that do not support bracketing, require you to adjust the shutter speed between shots, so shooting in manual is a must.
For this process, you would use your cameras built in meter to set the correct exposure, then dial the wheel to the right 6 clicks to get +2, then 12 clicks left to get -2. You can dial more stops to get an even greater tonal range
The most important thing is stability & eliminating movement between shots. The way to do this is to use as much of the following as possible
Tripod
Remote shutter release (however you can use the Self Timer)
Mirror Lock Up
This is what we want to achieve, as you can see, there is now detail in the shadows where as the before (correct exposure of 0) there was non
You can download the files used for this tutorial below if you wish to follow along. These images are shot handheld, and as my camera doesn't support AEB, they are manually created, causing poor alignment
DSC_080.DNG: www.mediafire.com/?jm8c6i4d6ibc2l4
DSC_081.DNG: www.mediafire.com/?0n89wch5odq4689
DSC_082.DNG: www.mediafire.com/?lipaj3ehjc4so48
Please note, for this tutorial I am using Photoshop CS5's Merge to HDR function. Merge to HDR was introduced in Photoshop CS2 so you need to use CS2 & later version.
I will also use Photomatix Pro 4 which you can download as a demo version here.
1 Open Photoshop
2 File - Automate - Merge to HDR Pro
3 Browse & select your bracketed photos
4 Change Dropdown to 32bit & check Remove Ghosts
5 Click OK
6 Filter - Photomatix - Tonemap
7 I choose one of the default presets, for this image you can see I chose Smooth Skies
8 You can then change the sliders to adjust the image if you like, however I tend not to
9 Once loaded in Photoshop, you can see it looks a bit flat
10 Image - Mode - 16bit
11 You can tweak sliders a bit more, but I leave as default & click OK
12 Image - Mode - Lab Color
13 In Layers Panel add Curves Adjsutment Layer
14 Alt+Click on Curves Grid to increase graph Range
15 Choose A in Drop Down And change Curves to match below
16 repeat exacly the same for B
17 Layer - Flatten Image
18 Image - Mode - RGB Color
19 In Layers Panel add Levels Adjsutment Layer
20 Hold down ALT key & slide Black Right until black starts to appear in amge
21 Repeat in opposite direction for white
22 In Layers Panel add Curves Adjsutment Layer
23 Change Curves to form smooth S shape
24 Change Blend Mode to Luminosity & Opacity to 50%
25 Ctrl+J to duplicte Curves Layer
26 Change Blend mode to Soft Light & Opacity to 50%
27 Layer - Flatten Image
28 Image - Mode - Lab Color
29 Channels - select Lightness Channel
30 Filter - Sharpen - Unsharp Mask
31 Amount 85 - Radius 1 - Threshold 4
32 Ctrl+F to repeat the Unsharp Mask
33 Image - Mode - RGB Color
34 Ctrl+J to duplicate Image
35 D to set foreground as Black
36 In Layers Panel add Gradient Map Adjsutment Layer
37 Click on Gradient to open Gradient Editor
38 Click under middle of Gradient to add stop
39 Then Double Click on the new stop you added
40 On left side, Move up & down to get a high contrast B&W image (you need to release mouse to see result)
41 Ok to go back to image & apply adjustment
42 Right Click on Gradient Map & Merge Down
43 Change Layer Mode to Luminosity & adjust Opacity to suit, for this image I chose 37%
NB: You can then use some Dodge & Burn techniques to help with shadows & highlights if needed
A typical camera will record only a certian level of dynamic range I think it is something like 9-11 depending on the camera you have the human eye can detect about 11 levels without to much trouble.
Some scenes can have far wider dynamic range than the camera can record. This means detail will be lost in either the highlights ot shadows. So you end up with large white or dark patches with little or no detail.
Capturing such scenes within one images is near impossible. If you try to capture the shadows you lose the highlights and vice versa.
The process is about capturing multiple exposures of the same image. If your camera supporst AEB (auto Exposure Bracketing) you can set your camera to automatically adjust exposures, commonlt +2 0 -2.
Cameras that do not support bracketing, require you to adjust the shutter speed between shots, so shooting in manual is a must.
For this process, you would use your cameras built in meter to set the correct exposure, then dial the wheel to the right 6 clicks to get +2, then 12 clicks left to get -2. You can dial more stops to get an even greater tonal range
The most important thing is stability & eliminating movement between shots. The way to do this is to use as much of the following as possible
Tripod
Remote shutter release (however you can use the Self Timer)
Mirror Lock Up
This is what we want to achieve, as you can see, there is now detail in the shadows where as the before (correct exposure of 0) there was non
You can download the files used for this tutorial below if you wish to follow along. These images are shot handheld, and as my camera doesn't support AEB, they are manually created, causing poor alignment
DSC_080.DNG: www.mediafire.com/?jm8c6i4d6ibc2l4
DSC_081.DNG: www.mediafire.com/?0n89wch5odq4689
DSC_082.DNG: www.mediafire.com/?lipaj3ehjc4so48
Please note, for this tutorial I am using Photoshop CS5's Merge to HDR function. Merge to HDR was introduced in Photoshop CS2 so you need to use CS2 & later version.
I will also use Photomatix Pro 4 which you can download as a demo version here.
1 Open Photoshop
2 File - Automate - Merge to HDR Pro
3 Browse & select your bracketed photos
4 Change Dropdown to 32bit & check Remove Ghosts
5 Click OK
6 Filter - Photomatix - Tonemap
7 I choose one of the default presets, for this image you can see I chose Smooth Skies
8 You can then change the sliders to adjust the image if you like, however I tend not to
9 Once loaded in Photoshop, you can see it looks a bit flat
10 Image - Mode - 16bit
11 You can tweak sliders a bit more, but I leave as default & click OK
12 Image - Mode - Lab Color
13 In Layers Panel add Curves Adjsutment Layer
14 Alt+Click on Curves Grid to increase graph Range
15 Choose A in Drop Down And change Curves to match below
16 repeat exacly the same for B
17 Layer - Flatten Image
18 Image - Mode - RGB Color
19 In Layers Panel add Levels Adjsutment Layer
20 Hold down ALT key & slide Black Right until black starts to appear in amge
21 Repeat in opposite direction for white
22 In Layers Panel add Curves Adjsutment Layer
23 Change Curves to form smooth S shape
24 Change Blend Mode to Luminosity & Opacity to 50%
25 Ctrl+J to duplicte Curves Layer
26 Change Blend mode to Soft Light & Opacity to 50%
27 Layer - Flatten Image
28 Image - Mode - Lab Color
29 Channels - select Lightness Channel
30 Filter - Sharpen - Unsharp Mask
31 Amount 85 - Radius 1 - Threshold 4
32 Ctrl+F to repeat the Unsharp Mask
33 Image - Mode - RGB Color
34 Ctrl+J to duplicate Image
35 D to set foreground as Black
36 In Layers Panel add Gradient Map Adjsutment Layer
37 Click on Gradient to open Gradient Editor
38 Click under middle of Gradient to add stop
39 Then Double Click on the new stop you added
40 On left side, Move up & down to get a high contrast B&W image (you need to release mouse to see result)
41 Ok to go back to image & apply adjustment
42 Right Click on Gradient Map & Merge Down
43 Change Layer Mode to Luminosity & adjust Opacity to suit, for this image I chose 37%
NB: You can then use some Dodge & Burn techniques to help with shadows & highlights if needed
Wednesday, 20 April 2011
Generate Fake Rain in Photoshop
Open image
To darken image for rain if required
Duplicate Image (Ctrl+J)
Image - Adjustment - Curves (Ctrl+M)
Drag middle of Curve down to next Horizontal line - OK
New Layer (Ctrl+Shift+N)
Fill with White (Ctrl+Backspace)
Filter - Noise - Add Noise
Amount 10 - Guassian - Monochromatic
Filter - Blur - Motion Blur
Angle -65 (left to right) - Distance 15
or Angle 65 (right to left - Distance 15
OK
Image - Image Adjustments - Levels (Ctrl+L)
Input Levels 250 - 1.00 - 255
OK
Change Layer Mode to Screen
To double rain
Duplicate Layer (Ctrl+J)
CTRL+T to pull up the transform handles.
Hover mouse just outside the bottom right handle, until the cursor looks bent.
Then hold Shift and turn the layer clockwise until the bottom right corner becomes the top left corner.
Enter
Photo Restoration & Colouring
This is what we will be aiming for, Enjoy!
1 Open image, you can see here some of the areas that need repairing
2 Apply NR
3 Duplicate Layer
4 Hit D to ensure Black is foreground colour
5 Apply Gradient Map Adjustment Layer
6 Double Click Grandient Map
7 Click under gradient in middle to apply stop
8 Double Click Stop
9 Drag along the edge to get desired contrast releasing as you go to refresh preview
10 Merge Down
11 Apply Levels Adjustment Layer
12 Hold ALT key and drag Black stop left until black creeps into image
13 Repeat in opposite direction for White
14 Merge Down
15 You can see I keep duplicated Layers
16 Duplicate again & rename repairs
17 Now we are ready to start restore, if working with multiple people or different areas of image, I will duplicate layer after each step. But for my example I will only have 1 repair layer
18 Grab you Patch tool
19 Ensure you have Source checked in toolbar
20 select your area of damage on background by circling around it
21 Drag you selection to an area that you would like to replace it with, the most important thing here is to zoom in & work a little bit at a time, remembering to align features. With my example, where the black line is I dragged it to the left & kept that black line aligned
22 Keep zoomed in & scroll through picture repairing background as you go
23 Duplicate Layer
24 Apply a Guassian Blur of around 4% to lower repaired layer, ie not the new layer
25 Apply new layer apply mask
26 Select soft brush & opacity around 60%
27 Brush over skin in direction of shadows etc and avoid detail areaas like fingers, eyes, mouth, nose, hair etc
28 Use square brackets [ ] to increase & descrease brush size as you go
29 Duplicate layer & name Sharpen
30 Image > Mode > Lab Color > Don’t Flatten
31 Channels > Lightness
32 Filter > Sharpen > UnsharpMask
33 Amount 85% > Radius 1 > Threshold 4
34 Ctrl+F to repeat Unsharp Mask
35 Image > Mode > RGB Color > Don’t Flatten
36 You are now finished B&W image
37 Duplicate Layer
38 Use lasso Tool and select around skin area, leave a few pixels outside
39 Shift+F6 to feather 22%
40 Ctrl+J to copy Then double click on colour to select colour
41 R 247 > G 207 > B182
42 Ctrl+U > Hue 24 > Saturation 25 > Lightness 0 > Check Colorize
43 Apply Layer Mask & Paint black to mask out areas of skin
43 Select Previous B&W Layer
44 Choose what area you want to color, Apply a curves Adjustment Layer
45 Now there are no written rules on colours here, you need to adjust the individual colours to suit what you are painting so in the curves adjustment dropdown, choose your individual Red Blue or Green & make changes.
46 Here are a couple of example Curves
EYE COLOR
HAIR COLOR
47 Once you have the colour set for where you want to paint, click on the layer mask for that Curves Layers & Ctrl+I to hide
48 Now use a soft brush with white foreground & paint over the image for where you want that colour to appear, use X to switch back to Black to erase mistakes & use [ ] to change brush size
49 You can also play with Layer Mode & opacity to change the look, also you can click on the Curve layers to change your colour at any time
50 repeat for every individual colour until your happy with the entire image
Cheers
Carassius Productions
1 Open image, you can see here some of the areas that need repairing
2 Apply NR
3 Duplicate Layer
4 Hit D to ensure Black is foreground colour
5 Apply Gradient Map Adjustment Layer
6 Double Click Grandient Map
7 Click under gradient in middle to apply stop
8 Double Click Stop
9 Drag along the edge to get desired contrast releasing as you go to refresh preview
10 Merge Down
11 Apply Levels Adjustment Layer
12 Hold ALT key and drag Black stop left until black creeps into image
13 Repeat in opposite direction for White
14 Merge Down
15 You can see I keep duplicated Layers
16 Duplicate again & rename repairs
17 Now we are ready to start restore, if working with multiple people or different areas of image, I will duplicate layer after each step. But for my example I will only have 1 repair layer
18 Grab you Patch tool
19 Ensure you have Source checked in toolbar
20 select your area of damage on background by circling around it
21 Drag you selection to an area that you would like to replace it with, the most important thing here is to zoom in & work a little bit at a time, remembering to align features. With my example, where the black line is I dragged it to the left & kept that black line aligned
22 Keep zoomed in & scroll through picture repairing background as you go
23 Duplicate Layer
24 Apply a Guassian Blur of around 4% to lower repaired layer, ie not the new layer
25 Apply new layer apply mask
26 Select soft brush & opacity around 60%
27 Brush over skin in direction of shadows etc and avoid detail areaas like fingers, eyes, mouth, nose, hair etc
28 Use square brackets [ ] to increase & descrease brush size as you go
29 Duplicate layer & name Sharpen
30 Image > Mode > Lab Color > Don’t Flatten
31 Channels > Lightness
32 Filter > Sharpen > UnsharpMask
33 Amount 85% > Radius 1 > Threshold 4
34 Ctrl+F to repeat Unsharp Mask
35 Image > Mode > RGB Color > Don’t Flatten
36 You are now finished B&W image
37 Duplicate Layer
38 Use lasso Tool and select around skin area, leave a few pixels outside
39 Shift+F6 to feather 22%
40 Ctrl+J to copy Then double click on colour to select colour
41 R 247 > G 207 > B182
42 Ctrl+U > Hue 24 > Saturation 25 > Lightness 0 > Check Colorize
43 Apply Layer Mask & Paint black to mask out areas of skin
43 Select Previous B&W Layer
44 Choose what area you want to color, Apply a curves Adjustment Layer
45 Now there are no written rules on colours here, you need to adjust the individual colours to suit what you are painting so in the curves adjustment dropdown, choose your individual Red Blue or Green & make changes.
46 Here are a couple of example Curves
EYE COLOR
HAIR COLOR
47 Once you have the colour set for where you want to paint, click on the layer mask for that Curves Layers & Ctrl+I to hide
48 Now use a soft brush with white foreground & paint over the image for where you want that colour to appear, use X to switch back to Black to erase mistakes & use [ ] to change brush size
49 You can also play with Layer Mode & opacity to change the look, also you can click on the Curve layers to change your colour at any time
50 repeat for every individual colour until your happy with the entire image
Cheers
Carassius Productions
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