7.12.2010

touch-up Tuesday

Last week, I was taking pictures of Livia in a little forest by my parents' cabin in Branson. At first glance on my LCD screen, I thought they looked pretty good. Then after I started editing in Photoshop, I realized how "off" the color was. I white-balanced for daylight, (which it was), but the green leaves in the forest were creating a major color cast on Livia's skin. This is a situation where you would want to do a custom white balance. Notice that I said you. You would want to do a custom white balance. I would not. I should, but that's an extra step. And when you're photographing a tiny tornado (read: my daughter), you don't need extra steps. :-)

Here's the unedited version:
Photobucket


See how there's a greenish-grey haze covering her skin?

Here's the touch-up:
Photobucket


Brighter and cleaner, right? If you think it's too light or bright, it might be a matter of personal preference, or it could be because you saw the darker, hazier picture first. It's amazing how my eyes play tricks on me when I study a picture too long. I think if you had only seen the edited picture, it wouldn't look so bright in contrast to the SOOC.

This picture looks similar to one I posted last week, but it is actually a different shot. I don't remember what steps I used the first time around, so it is edited a bit differently. As you know, there are a million ways to edit a picture!

What I did:
Aly's Basic Boost
auto color at 40%
soft light blending mode 35 %
curves adjustment
MCP's non-destructive burn tool 60% (slight vignette)
MCP's magical color finder brush (background only)
TRA's select-o-pop 10% (on Livia only)

That sounds like a lot of steps, but I just wanted to see what all I could do with this picture. If you did only the first 3 steps, you would still have a nice result.

I want to say a special thank you to everyone who participated in touch-up Tuesday last week! We had a record number of "players" - yay! :-) Your edits were fantastic and I enjoying viewing them all.

If you're participating in touch-up Tuesday, please copy and paste the button below in your post. If you're new to the blog hop, please see the instructions in my menu bar.

<center> <a href="http://thebonnie5.blogspot.com/search/label/touch-up%20Tuesday"><img src="http://i47.tinypic.com/xpxbno.jpg"/> </a> </center>


8 comments:

Ashley Sisk said...

Much better - amazing how a little tweak here, a little tweak there can make all the difference i nthe world.

Unknown said...

Love the edit! I don't think it's too bright at all. And I love her dress. :D Where did you get it?

Jess said...

No way, that's not too bright at all, I think it's perfect. She's such a cutie and her dress is awesome!

Maybe I'll play along sometime. Hmmm...

I am loving your blog! (following)

Sarah said...

I think it's beautiful! Not too bright at all. And of course she is too adorable. :)

I'm with Adeena, I love the dress! It's so cute!

Ashley said...

Awe I love the picture. The touch up it fantastic! I think that is just a fun a cute age.

Alisha said...

Great photo! Thanks for hosting this fun blog hop!

elizabeth said...

thank goodness for photoshop!!!

Unknown said...

You are so smart. She is a DOLL! : )