I tried to get rid of the second image but don't know how!
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I tried to get rid of the second image but don't know how!
Nice job Stan. Can't quite seem to get the constant you have in the gator itself.
This gator is really coming alive. Not yet as good as your Stan but better.
https://farm2.staticflickr.com/1551/...aa348c5b_c.jpgDSC_6048-4
I like it.
You can go back to the brush that you used for the desaturation and desat a bit more and also use the exposure slider to darken the BG just a hair.
Take a new brush and add contrast to the gator also lightening it a bit. (Contrast will darken it.) Then the gator will pop a little more.
If you are in the Develop mode and have clicked on the brush icon you can see where you used brushes by hitting the "H" key. This will show little gray circles on the image where you started a brush. You will have one in the BG and if you click the circle it will reactivate that brush so you can then just play with the sliders to change the area you previously worked. If you hit the "O" key the area painted will turn orange to show where you have worked. Hit O again to turn it off.
I'm thinking this is about right.
https://farm2.staticflickr.com/1480/...01328da4_c.jpgDSC_6048-5
Compared to the original that is much improved. The BG is much less of a distraction. I like the touch of eyeshine as well. Really cool.
I don't have the RAW, but for one more exercise, you can try a B&W conversion.
There you go. I would say that works quite nicely
https://farm2.staticflickr.com/1720/...3a5212b0_c.jpgDSC_6048-6
Well, now you have worked that image quite nicely!
When you have a BG that is less than ideal think of ways to downplay it. For me, decreasing clarity, exposure, contrast, sat. are all things to consider.
In the field, perhaps take a shot with less DOF, so just the head is sharp, and expose just for the gator, knowing what you can do in post.
Realy nice work.
Thanks Stan and I am really happy with the result. I couldn't have did it without you, Al, Ricardo and Matt so a most appreciative Thank You. :D
Pat
I like the last color edit, and this last B&W is nice as well. I believe I saw this somewhere but did you have another gator shot floating around? I believe I was surfing on my phone when I saw it.
The one located here maybe?
http://forum.simplydiscus.com/showth...=1#post1199044
The crop is different on this one due to the competition requirements of the long edge having to be 1400 pixels. I prefer the shorter crop in the other thread.