Barn in the Morning Fog–Southern Maryland

This photograph of a lonely barn in the morning fog blanketing Southern Maryland is a result of my mantra to always have my camera at hand.  I was off to play golf one weekend, and passed by this barn.  Thanks to anti-lock brakes, I quickly came to a stop without the drama of screeching tires.

The processing for this photo started with a three shot HDR and a round trip to Photomatix Pro.  I processed the photo in color, then sent it off to Silver Efex Efex Pro 2 for the black and white conversion.  This approach let me shoot directly into the sun while holding detail in the shadows (such as the shade side of the barn), and bring definition to the clouds, fog, and field.

The two lessons from this shot are 1) keep your camera with you if at all possible, and 2) don’t be afraid to combine post processing techniques to get the result you are looking for.

Have fun, and go make some great photography.

Craig

Justin and Rusty–Black and White Shots from the Garage

In early September I met and became friends with Jackie and Steve who were buying a number of prints from my Southern Maryland Photography gallery.  The photography was printed, framed and delivered in time for Jackie’s promotion party which I attended this past weekend.  Jackie hired a couple of talented young men to perform at her party – another photography opportunity for me!

The photography was little challenging to say the least.  Due to the passing showers, Justin and Rusty were forced to set up in the garage.  In general, garages do not make good photo studios.  This was made even more challenging because Justin (guitar) had his back to the open garage door which meant the lighting was dominated by back-lighting.

Having only my camera and no lighting gear, I pressed on and did my best to take advantage of what I could.  With the less than optimal lighting, some odd backgrounds to deal with, and uninteresting or even distracting colors, all the photography was processed as black and white through Silver Efex Pro 2.

This was my first run at processing a group of raw photos through Silver Efex Pro 2, and led to a couple of discoveries with respect to work flow.  First I started with my normal workflow of importing all the shots into Lightroom.  Next I proceeded with my normal process of selecting and rejecting shots.  Then I went to work on individual photos.  This is the point where the workflow diverges.

At first, I went directly to Silver Efex and made the black and white conversion. With the round trip to Silver Efex complete, I found that some Lightroom work was still warranted – such as cropping, and using the spot removal tool.

I quickly found that these Lightroom adjustments are best made before processing in Silver Efex Pro.  In the end, I discovered the only Lightroom adjustment best left for post Silver Efex Pro was noise reduction.  Because I was shooting at ISO 800, there were a couple of shots with underexposed areas that benefited from applying the Lightroom noise reduction tool.

I remain completely enamored with Silver Efex Pro 2 and the level of control and added creativity it offers for processing black and white photography.

Have fun, and go make some great photography.

Craig

Silver Efex Pro 2–Comparison of a Few Photographs

I have been viewing Silver Efex Pro with a touch of envy for quite some time.  Recently, Nik Software released Silver Efex Pro 2, and I finally made the commitment.  I am so happy I did.

For the regular readers, my bias toward black and white photography is no great surprise.  After having played with Silver Efex Pro for just a few minutes (literally!), I can’t believe I was so cheap that I did not purchase this software earlier.

Until now, all my black and white conversions were accomplished in Adobe Lightroom.  I have been pleased with the results.  But this satisfaction is like having enjoyed hamburgers your entire life without the knowledge of the bliss that comes from adding sautéed onions, mushrooms, and cheese.  With these new ingredients, you can never return to a plain hamburger.

The real case for Silver Efex Pro 2 is the incredible level of control it provides during the conversion to black and white.  This post is not intended to be a tutorial or review of all the Silver Efex Pro 2 features, but suffice it to say the possibilities are accessible, expansive, and exciting.

I have included two versions of each photograph to highlight some of the capabilities of Silver Effex Pro 2.  In each case, I have placed the version from Silver Efex Pro 2 first, and the original Adobe Lightroom conversion second.

in each case, I spent less than two minutes in Silver Effex Pro 2.  I selected one of the presets, applied a couple of global adjustments, and one or two local adjustments.  Local adjustments are accomplished through “control points” that allow a great deal of local flexibility including easy dodging and burning.

I am looking forward to spending some satisfying time learning the real capabilities of Silver Effex Pro 2. In the mean time, I am extremely pleased with the ability to improve my black and white conversions with very little effort and knowledge.

If you are a fan of black and white photography, Silver Efex Pro 2 is definitely a tool you will want.  Even the round trip from Lightroom to Silver Efex Pro 2 will not be an annoyance once you experience your new level of black and white conversion control.

Have fun, and go make some great photography.

Craig