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  #1  
Old 04-02-2009, 11:35 PM
Barbara Turner Barbara Turner is offline
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C & C

I have uploaded another photo for critique. I have listened to everyone's positive suggestions and I think it turned out pretty good. I made the knife the main focal point, but if you see anything that needs additional improvement let me know. All suggestions positive or negative will be appreciated.



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  #2  
Old 04-03-2009, 07:23 AM
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VERY nice layout. My favorite of yours.

I'd want a touch more darkening of the darks. The brights are on or just over the edge, so contrast alone would push it over.

And then again your personal preference or monitor may see something different.

Now I'm really picking nits. Overall it's a high five!

Coop


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  #3  
Old 04-03-2009, 08:31 AM
Wade Holloway Wade Holloway is offline
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Nice job. To me it looks great.
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  #4  
Old 04-03-2009, 01:08 PM
Barbara Turner Barbara Turner is offline
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Wow, thanks for the compliments. I am glad to see that I am finally on the right track. Coop, you are right about it being to bright. I am working with an uncalibrated monitor, but I convert Raw to Tiff files, then export in Jpeg, finally reducing the size for posting. Conversion from Tiff to the Jpeg process plus uploading does change what I see. I made it a little darker, couple touches of spot sharpening and did a very slight white balance adjustment, more in line with where I think it should be.



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Last edited by Barbara Turner; 04-03-2009 at 09:53 PM.
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  #5  
Old 04-03-2009, 04:41 PM
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Excellent!! I only have the photos you have posted here recently to compare to, but I'm with Coop, easily your best offering to date.. The newer version is even better. Barbara, you mentioned your monitor being "uncalibrated". After our last contest, I spent some time really trying to make sure mine was dialed in. Way back in the day, Coop sent several of us a "gray scale" to properly adjust contrast. If you don't have it, I'll be happy to send it. It's a snap to use, and made a big difference to my overall picture quality. In addition, I have several programs I can steer you to to assist the other adjustments. My monitor is one of the first gen. LCD types and through age, or not being set up correctly to begin with, it needed a lot of help.. (I'm considering a small Apple system now...)

Again, this new photo is VERY well done IMO.... Best, Richard
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  #6  
Old 04-03-2009, 05:13 PM
Barbara Turner Barbara Turner is offline
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Richard,

Thanks for the compliment on the picture. I don't have the grayscale you are referring to. I would like to have it and would appreciate you sending it to me.

I presently am using an Imac 24" computer and I have thought about monitor calibration but I keep putting it off. I was thinking about the Spyder 3 program. I don't think my monitor is that far out, but I could be wrong.


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Old 04-03-2009, 08:39 PM
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I'll send the grayscale attachment by email to you Barbara. Your pictures look fine on my monitor, and I'm sure if does need adjusting, it's just a tad here and there... Instead of software, have a look at this first.... http://www.lagom.nl/lcd-test/

It has about a dozen quick checks, and if you spot anything out of whack, it gives nicely laid out instructions about how to correct.. You know what surprised me? Doing various checks, and finding my biggest adjustment was brightness.. Mine now is about 23.5 of 30 up from around 20 or so. I really do need a fresh monitor.... Best, Rich
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  #8  
Old 04-03-2009, 08:58 PM
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I did edits on this recent photo after after making color, contrast, sharpness, and brightnes changes to my monitor. Does it appear correct to you on your end? Curious...





Barbara, I was unable to email you.. PM me with your email, as I need to send the grayscale we discussed as an attachment... Best, Rich
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Old 04-03-2009, 09:12 PM
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Barbara,

Your second photo is not showing. I'd like to see it. (I even loaded the URL in a new tab, but it's blank.)

Here is the file Rich is referring to:



On a properly set monitor you should be able to see each gradient from white to black. This is for brightness and contrast alone.

Rich, those shots look great from this end. The colors are vibrant and the grey is really grey.

My experience with the Spyder products is a solid two thumbs down. After two purchases and a return, I'll look elsewhere.

I'll bet your Mac is awful close.

Coop


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  #10  
Old 04-03-2009, 10:03 PM
Barbara Turner Barbara Turner is offline
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Rich,

Your pictures look great on my monitor. As per Coop I think you have everything adjusted pretty well.

Coop,

Thanks for the file. I have reposted the picture. Let me know if you can view it now. I also have posted a couple of non knife pics. Is the vignette over done. Let me know what you think. Thanks





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  #11  
Old 04-03-2009, 10:51 PM
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Barbara - Yes, big improvement. Very nice. The only thing I'm noticing is that the blade is kind of high and the handle is low. In this case I think you want to put a small lift under the end of the handle, since the blade is already elevated by the sheath. It's a perspective issue.

Coop's gray scale is a useful tool for sure. Here's another variation on that theme:

For color matching this chart is useful. These things are expensive because they are accurate and don't fade over time. Each color has a number so you can use your editing software to tell you the number of a color in your image and compare with the chart. You can also use it to tell how well your monitor is rendering colors.


Rich - Your images look good to me too. Re monitors - as you probably know, they 'drift' over time (weeks to months) and need to be re-calibrated regularly. Also, especially LCDs, they gradually lose there brightness and color rendering capacity over time. A new monitor every few years is not a bad idea. Coop has the big 30" Apple which is awesome. I use a smaller (24.5") NEC MultiSync LCD 2690 WUXi which I love. It came with its own calibration software built in and a dedicated colorimeter (Spectraview II) which I leave hooked up all the time. I also used some black foam board and made a 5" hood velcro'd to the top and sides. It helps keep stray light off the screen so the colors are as true as they can be.

The best tool in our digital cameras and editing software, IMO, is the histogram. I use the histogram often and it really helps me a lot these days. Read about it in your camera or software manual. This one is from something I shot recently and it struck me as just about perfect. More about histograms later but I thought it'd be nice to mention them here.


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  #12  
Old 04-03-2009, 11:04 PM
Barbara Turner Barbara Turner is offline
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Buddy, good point on lifting the handle a little. Thanks. I will try and keep the knife on as even a plane as I can.

Thanks for posting the color chart as well.


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  #13  
Old 04-04-2009, 11:50 AM
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Thanks to all three of you for taking a look, and responding.. I'm sure if something was a bit off, you guys would have spotted it. With the prices on monitors having dropped so much in the 7 years I have had this one, it's silly not to get a new one. (Which I am going to do right away.) Spending time on a photo, only to have it look funky "out there in space", is no good..

Best, Rich
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  #14  
Old 04-05-2009, 07:48 PM
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Buddy, I spent the day researching monitors, and that tip on "built in software, and color checks" has been VERY helpful.. It's now on the must have list.. Thanks... Best, Rich
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