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  #1  
Old 07-27-2008, 11:56 AM
runasics runasics is offline
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New knife pic.

Here's my latest pic.

I've been a bit frustrated. When I take the picture, it looks bright and sharp on my camera screen. When I put the picture in my computer, it looks darker, so I lighten it a bit. It still loos nice and sharp. Then when I post it...it looks...well...not so sharp.

Is me? My screen? My computer? Photobucket? Am I seeing crooked?

Anyway, here it is.

Photobucket

Knifemaker, David Sylvester. Swedeville Forge
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  #2  
Old 07-28-2008, 12:03 AM
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chiger chiger is offline
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Pic looks nice and clear on my display. May just be the light background washing out the subject a little on your display.

Have you checked the monitor's settings against something you know is right? Or another computer?

Also, every time a photo is saved it degrades slightly. Photobucket may factor in there somewhere.

Adding effects like sharpen or brighten from some editor softwares will degrade the quality slightly. Maybe some combination of all those things may be causing your frustration.

My pics always look better on the camera display than they do on the big screen. But then, it's not the best camera in the world either. I do kind of see what you mean by dark, but it still looks clear and sharp.

If it's not your monitor's settings and since the background doesn't look dark, maybe try moving the indirect light source you have in the lower right to a bit higher angle to brighten the face of the knife if you can. That might brighten the subject without brightening the background further. Or maybe even add a different kind of defused overhead light to your lighting scheme.

As I said though, the pic looks clear and sharp on my monitor. Wish all mine would come out that good.

chiger,
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  #3  
Old 07-28-2008, 03:07 AM
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How is your light meter set ? If it's set for averaging it may be seeing the light background as 'neutral grey' ,thus making the knife darker. Try spot setting for the meter. You can also get a 'neutral grey ' card to set the exposure, then take the photo.
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  #4  
Old 07-28-2008, 07:29 AM
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Something else to try, set the resolution on your camera to the highest setting. You may not get a ton of pics on the card, but what you have is the best you can start out with, then you can always reset back.


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  #5  
Old 07-28-2008, 08:20 AM
runasics runasics is offline
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Well, I'm glad they look sharp on your display. WHEW! I kept going back to the saved image on my computer and zooming it at max, and then on the screen on my camera and doing the same, and seeing sharp. I was getting crossed-eyed and frustrated going back and forth. I have found out from someone on another board that Photobucket has a web resolution of only 72dpi.

I'll definately try different angles of light. I'm going to be making myself a new diffusion system. Right now I have foam core cardboard pieces set up to make a box and vellum taped to it. It's based on a set-up that Coop showed in Burlington, Vermont hammer-in last year. We used to make things like that back in school, and I had forgotten all about that. Amazing what you forget when you don't do something anymore! I want to make something that I can poke my camera and lens through, the other set-up he showed there. I'm also toying with the idea of buying a softbox. Though I think using a soft box at this point would be ungainly in my wee dining room. LOL!

I used a hand-held LunasixF light meter. But then I had a polarizing filter, which of course meant that the meter reading wasn't accurate, but gave me a starting point. So I adjusted my exposure to what I saw on my camera screen.

Resolution was on RAW, but I saved it on JPEG.


Thanks so much for the input, guys!
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  #6  
Old 07-28-2008, 10:56 AM
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Glad we could put your mind at ease. That's a good point about the resolution settings at photobucket. A lot of people forget to click the more options on the save pop up in photo editors and make sure they're saving at the highest resolution. And even if you do, any server you save the images to may only display at low res.

If you really want to link to high quality pics, there are a couple of free web hosting services that don't restrict resolution. Just set up your own domain and use the free hosting service.

Oh, and your lucky. You at least get a dining room. I get stuck back in a small spare bedroom / junk room full of boxes and unused furniture. Shows what the wife thinks of my efforts. ;~)

chiger,
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  #7  
Old 07-28-2008, 12:28 PM
runasics runasics is offline
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Thanks for the tip about the web hosting stuff. I'll have to have my hubby look into that. I'll also look into the adjustments you mentionned about PB. THANKS!

I can't really say I "have" the dining room. I my stuff just packs up really well (so far). So you are lucky you have the spare room.
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  #8  
Old 08-06-2008, 03:03 PM
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Terrill Hoffman Terrill Hoffman is offline
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Until you calibrate your monitor you are fighting a loosing battle. The image may be perfect but you have to see it on the screen as the camera took it to tell.
Once the monitor is calibrated you can work from there.


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  #9  
Old 08-18-2008, 08:03 AM
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Quote:
Originally Posted by runasics
Here's my latest pic.

I've been a bit frustrated. When I take the picture, it looks bright and sharp on my camera screen. When I put the picture in my computer, it looks darker, so I lighten it a bit. It still loos nice and sharp. Then when I post it...it looks...well...not so sharp.

Is me? My screen? My computer? Photobucket? Am I seeing crooked?

Anyway, here it is.

Photobucket

Knifemaker, David Sylvester. Swedeville Forge
OK, I just came on board, and in 30 seconds I've discovered your problem.

Your website image has a colorspace of Adobe 1998. No good for the net or browsers. You have to edit and save it at the internet standard colorspace of sRGB. You are using Photoshop, right?

Make life really easy on yourself: Set your camera to sRGB, set your working space to sRGB and save .JPG's at sRGB. You will have the same 'look' you want.

The Adobe 1998 colorspace is a throwback to times when printers weren't as advanced. They are now. Lose it.

I use one colorspace throughout, and I am getting great results.

As Terrill also pointed out, a calibrated monitor is a must, too. But that's not your problem (Don't use sRGB as a colorspace for your monitor. That has to be specific.)

Coop


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  #10  
Old 08-18-2008, 08:07 AM
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SharpByCoop SharpByCoop is offline
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BTW, the 72dpi has nothing to do with it. All JPG's are 72dpi.

If Photobucket's sizing is exactly the same in dimensions and filesize, it's the same image. If you have either of those changed, it's been altered from the hosting site. Fototime has two options for posting, and I always use 'original' so I post what I shot. If I use their 'standard' link, it's downsized.

Coop


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  #11  
Old 08-18-2008, 08:59 PM
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The last "tip/explanation" Coop mentioned is one that would help a large percentage of photo's I see on the web look much better... Don't let an image host resize your photo's for you......
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  #12  
Old 08-24-2008, 08:59 PM
runasics runasics is offline
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Thanks for the advice! I'll have to show this post to hubby (my resident computer expert) and have him "fiddle" things for me.

Once I'm on day shift I'm going to look and sign up for a proper Photoshop course, 'cause this is all sounding like "technobabble" to me.

*sigh* The days of film and chemicals were so much easier! LOL!
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  #13  
Old 08-31-2008, 05:14 PM
runasics runasics is offline
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I've checked my Photoshop. My settings seem to be on sRGB. I'll have to double check my camera, but the default is sRGB.

Now, all I have to do is figure out how to calibrate my monitor.

Will be posting a new pic soon. Hubby finished another knife, and I have some more pics to take.

He wants me to take a picture of both side of the blade and then put them together on the same picture so that his JS stamp can be shown.

*sigh*

So much to learn!

I think I'll be signing up for an Photoshop class soon.
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  #14  
Old 05-01-2013, 01:34 PM
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R. Yates R. Yates is offline
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I use this one most all the time and it is awesome !

http://imgur.com/?noFlash



I can upload quite a few photo there and it is easy .

Sam


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Last edited by R. Yates; 05-03-2013 at 11:58 AM.
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