Experiment: Desaturation, Part II

So, I have had a dry spell for the past week, but I'm hoping to get out and shoot a bunch this weekend -- our weather is finally getting awesome.

But, I've been browsing forums and websites lately, lusting after the 24LII and drooling over images people have taken with it. So I turned to my 85mm, hands-down the best portrait lens in my [teeny tiny] kit, at the mo to satisfy my desire for delicious, fast prime goodness.

Here's a shot I took of the mister as he was watching Lost on the PC with headphones, too eager to wait til I was ready to join him (we started from the beginning and just finished the first season).

It was at ISO 800 with my 85mm, f/2. In Lightroom, I desaturated it by about -50, upped the contrast a bit, and applied noise reduction and some vignetting:

I'm not sure if it works at all. Desaturation is my love of the moment, so I think I like it, but I'm not sure if it's universally appealing.

Also, as a side note, it looks noisier here on the web than it does in LR. Probably has something to do with the JPEG conversion. I read recently that you should save your files as .tiff after your edit them (and are converting from RAW) because that will introduce the least amount of artifacts? Or it will save as much image quality as possible? Something like that. But from my understanding, you can't post .tiff files on the web -- only .jpg will do for that. So there's no way to avoid JPEGs if I want to continue sharing on this site (which I do!).

Unfortunately, I've been dying to experiment with wide angles and low shots (no idea where I got the idea for that), but I don't have any lenses for that! Daaamn! The lust after full frame and the 24L continues.

Experiment: 16:9 aspect ratio

In my regular (okay, obsessive) internet frolicking on photo sites around the net, I ran across this guy's Flickr and came to understand the appeal of 19:6 aspect ratio.

So, I experimented with a few photos I snapped today at a parade (mid-day, bright sun, bad shadows... beware!)...

Now, if only I could figure out how to get the black borders top and bottom...

It's a format that works well for crowds and makes my 85mm look wider:

A a few cute (if hesitant) parade participants:

Not the best subject matter for this format, but I think these three work okay. I have another photo in mind that (I think) would scream for 16:9. It needs to warm up before I can make it happen, though, since it involves standing on a windy overpass at night.

Lenses I've inherited

I tested my sister-in-law's lenses a while ago, when I was deciding if I wanted to keep either of them. One is a 100-300mm and the other is a 35-80mm. I think I've decided to hang on to the 35-80 and let my husband sell the 100-300 with the Canon film camera.

Here are crops from larger photos taken with the 35-80mm:

At 50mm, ISO 1600(!) on my 350D:

This next one is also at 50mm, ISO 1600:

Remember, these are crops.

Here's one more, at 80mm, ISO 1600:

Not bad.

I think the problem with the 100-300mm is that it doesn't have IS. Also, I just don't feel the need for those focal lengths often. I was out using my 85mm today at a parade, and if anything, I wanted a wider angle, not a longer one! At some point, you start to feel like a sniper with longer focal lengths. 85mm might be the longest I go on crop. When I finally go full frame, I might be able to convince myself that the legendary 135mm is necessary, and that'd probably be the longest I'd go on FF.

What I need to do is go out with the zoom(s) at 35mm, and then at 24mm, and see how those focal lengths feel on a crop cam. I often need to see wider than my 50', and I'll likely decide between the 35L and the 24L, keeping in mind my hope/plan to go FF at some point (24mm on FF = 15mm on crop, and 35mm on FF = 22mm on crop). I would just get the 24L, since it would be much wider on my crop for now, but I don't know if it would be too wide on FF. Can't test 15mm on my crop since my widest focal length is 18. And apparently, when you get wide, a few mm make a big difference. I have some time to make this decision since I can't see myself making another lens purchase for several months at least.

And all this, after my post about how gear doesn't matter! In my defense though, since I've decided to go for essentially an all-primes kit, focal lengths are big decisions, and if you need a different one, that means a new lens. I'm thinking 24' - 50' - 85'. Two down, only one to go :) Then when I go FF, I'll maybe sell the 50' and get the 135'.

Seeing (do I have a vision?)

Came across photographer Nick Onken and his awesome website the other day. Not only are his photos amazing, but he also tells a couple of really good stories, like this one.

I was reading through a few of his blog posts and came across this one about seeing -- I liked what he had to say about photography being a top-down art. You can have the best gear, the best studio, and the best website, but if you aren't aware of your own vision, or if you're not able to communicate your vision in the photos you take, you won't make it very far. You should begin with your vision. As you refine it, better gear, equipment, and outlets are just ways for you to improve what you're already doing. I'll admit that sometimes I have to remind myself of this. As a beginner, I think it's easy to become wrapped up in gear and "stuff" --- when really, these things are just tools that allow you to create what you "see," both literally and figuratively.

This also got me thinking about my own vision, or what kind of style I want to embody as a photographer. I definitely don't think I have a recognizable style yet, but as I read more, study work that I admire, and do my own experiments, I am learning what excites me. It is a fun process.

Here's an image from Nick's Smokey Mountain project:

Experiment: Desaturation

Barry Hannah died on Monday. I was home alone last night and decided to try a few experiments with desaturation -- something I've been wanting to try for a while after being inspired by a few things here and there, and most recently, by Chris Hunt.

For these, in Lightroom, I took the saturation down to -48 or so, upped the color temperature a bit (warmer), and played with the saturation of the oranges, yellows and reds to find the right mix of desaturation and warmth.

In this one, I heavily re-saturated the blue and yellow tones to emphasize Barry Hannah's tome -- Airships. I thought that that, paired with the shallow DOF on his name, might make it stand out, maybe as a kind of ode.

Here's the image:























I rather liked the way it turned out. The only thing I'm not sure about is if it looks too dark.

I tried another one with my husband's amp. It sits in our incredibly 70s-ish hallway (thanks to the wallpaper, among other things), so I also gave it some fairly heavy vignetting in post-processing to try to convey that vintage feel. Again, I'm not sure if it looks too dark:






















I could probably have stood to brighten it a bit. Maybe I'll try that and repost later.

Otherwise, I like the results.

I am also curious to try out this treatment with photos that were taken outside on bright, sunny days. If our weather keeps on as it's been going, though, I might have to wait a while for a chance at that!

5D classic

Have these two photos from yesterday morning. Tried out a used 5D at Caribou Coffee, and when I got home to look at my test photos, I thought these two were actually kind of neat-looking.

This one's at ISO 400 with my 85mm @ f/1.8, 1/2000 sec:
























I'm wondering which one looks better. This one was at ISO 1600 with the 85mm at f/1.8 and 1/8000 sec. (I was kind of testing ISOs.)






















I think the man stands out better in the second one, but I like the visible bank of windows on the first one --- I think it turned out better. Love the black and white conversion for these.

Some may say the "dark masses" on either side of the man are regrettable, but I like them. I think they, along with the B&W conversion, show a sense of isolation. Maybe I'm just trying to talk a crappy photo into being better, but it really does appeal to me.

As a side note, I tried out my sister-in-law's flash, and after reading my manual again, I don't think it works on my cam. Kind of a bummer. I also think I'll let my husband sell her 100-300mm lens. I might hold on to the 35-80mm for now.

4 a.m. Project

I saw a link to the 4am Project on Twitter, and I think I might participate this year.

The idea is to take a photo at 4 a.m. on April 4th --- a "share what your 4 a.m. looks like" kind of thing.

It looks kind of fun, and I already have an idea about what my photo could be of. Though, funnily enough, April 4th is Easter this year, so we might be out of town since we'll have a day off. I might have to come up with a couple of alternative plans...