Tribute to Planet Earth 🌎 ♥️
- Thread starter bjorb
- Start date
BHelmet
The Living Force
How many of these were photoshopped to high heaven? Most? Does that constitute a sort of wishful lens? The earth is beautiful no doubt. This thread would resonate more with me if it was all photos that forum members had taken on their travels instead of so many miraculous images preened from the internet of digital wonders.
Signed, Debbie Downer
Signed, Debbie Downer
Feel free to post them.
Hard to tell, probably less than you think. For example, many are award-winning nature photos. Photoshop or using a filter isn't allowed.
Also, most are from professional photographers. They often report whether they have modified them or not. Most aren't.
You will be surprised what light fall can do to a picture. Especially when the sun rises and sets.
Professional photographers usually know how to trap light in the lens to make a photo more eccentric. Or how light reflects in their surroundings. It then appears manipulated. But is just part of photography.
Nice picture!
Left me thinking. 95% are probably 100% real. I think your complaints are a bit silly.
But I like the idea of forum members sharing their own photography. Some already do that.
The fog fall of Senja Islands.
It's not a digital forgery. If you think it is, I can take that as a compliment. Because I try to share unique photos in the hope that others will enjoy them wiselik. Photos and videos of places you don't normally see every day. I am a member of several pages of professional photographers who try to capture the most unique images. I just pick them out.
Video of this spot:
It's not a digital forgery. If you think it is, I can take that as a compliment. Because I try to share unique photos in the hope that others will enjoy them wiselik. Photos and videos of places you don't normally see every day. I am a member of several pages of professional photographers who try to capture the most unique images. I just pick them out.
Video of this spot:
XPan
The Living Force
To be really honest...
I think indeed that many photos here are photoshopped (to various degrees) - and ultimately, it is a matter of what you personally can accept being ok or not. My eyes do see and sense many manipulations, even the subtle ones-. And yeah, some are definitely over the top (but I personally like it, you see). I call them "postcards"
I don't do that much in my own photography - but there is always a level of some manipulation going on, still. My personal preference is to make my images look "natural", in the sense of being acceptable to the naked eye, being perceived as natural - even if they already have diverted from how my eyes perceived reality life.
But like so many times - both analog and digital - the output of the camera is "raw" (raw material) awaiting to be formed, shaped and molded - into how the photographer perceived it, or makes it to what he wants to express. It is definitely always a transitional process, in which the photographer has influence of the final outcome.
In most real life situations for example - you often don't have such saturated colors or contrast like you see in many photos in this thread. Some turn dramatic (and more interesting) because shadows have been made deeper (darker), colors being increased, shadow/and highlights being altered.
Gradual Filter
Here is a classic tool: To make the sky darker with help of a half gray filter. This helps to reduce the extreme contrasts between sun/clouds vs the horizon. (it is one of the most used tools for serious landscape photographers) - and it does add a lot of "aaah and oooh" in the photo; it simply get's better, more balanced, having an almost "eternal" feel in expression when done well.
Then there are certain photoshop tools, photographers tend to overuse (there is one tool that chisels out finer details making them "pop" in contrast, especially inherently weak details come out stronger. If you overdo it - yes it looks a bit artificial. You can make clouds stand as if you face a hurricane type of atmosphere... But only because you can, doesn't mean you have to.
You can see that for example in some of the cloud images. e.g. the dying Super cell (near Spade, Texas) further up on this page... It is stronger in colors and contrast than clouds usually have. But it still looks stunningly wonderful, and acceptable, right ?
So, while I do see many images being manipulated - I do enjoy them... with a mindset like viewing beautiful postcards: It's like having with one leg in a paler, not as dramatic reality - and the other leg in the realm of fantasy and bright colors. Reality is beautiful, but most often in a more discrete, sophisticated way, rarely in bold ways (unless you are lucky) Photography often tends to be a bit bolder, more dramatic, colorful and empathizing.
I guess it is all a matter of taste.
Many are not because otherwise they were not allowed to compete in the photo contests. Next time I will share the names and the contest here so others can look it up. So if you have any doubts about that then the judges missed something. These people take literally hundreds or even thousands of photos of the exact same location. Often day after day. Even coming back in different seasons and weather conditions to capture a different feel. Then you also get very unique photos.
