|
| Group |
Round |
C/R |
Comment |
Date |
Image |
| 5 |
Feb 22 |
Comment |
Nicely done! The angle and the lines make this image very dramatic. The touch of blue over the dome and the flag are standouts, which make the color version, to my eye, better. |
Feb 11th |
1 comment - 0 replies for Group 5
|
| 62 |
Feb 22 |
Reply |
Most FS workflows use Gaussian blur. Earth uses median. The big difference is in the way each is calculated. The Gaussian makes each "cell" larger, resulting in unsightly edge effects. The median "cell" stays the same size. I won't bore you with the math. I'd love to hear about your comparison. |
Feb 24th |
| 62 |
Feb 22 |
Reply |
Wow. I love it. The dark treatment really makes the chrome pop. |
Feb 23rd |
| 62 |
Feb 22 |
Reply |
Part 2
https://www.adobe.com/max/2020/sessions/frequency-separation-20-part-2-taking-images-to-th-l6153b.html
Part 3
https://www.adobe.com/max/2020/sessions/frequency-separation-20-part-3-problem-solving-tec-l6153c.html |
Feb 23rd |
| 62 |
Feb 22 |
Reply |
These days I am playing the Irish penny whistle to get in the mood for a trip to Ireland this spring!
Your son's teacher is correct. Most people don't hear the mistakes. If the performer can manage to decisively play a tonic note or chord at the end, no one will be the wiser. Modern piano teaching places so much emphasis on exact notes that the pressure is on the performer's memory. Whereas in the far past, performers had to be equally good at improvisation. It's that skill that saves many performances! |
Feb 16th |
| 62 |
Feb 22 |
Reply |
Thanks Oliver. Regarding the iPhone, I suggest that you make sure you capture raw images. I have come to using my iPhone for "test shots." If I like the shot, I'll set up my other equipment so I can control depth of field and so on. However, sometimes, as in the case of this piano image, I use the test shot.
Have you visited Group 51--Phone? |
Feb 16th |
| 62 |
Feb 22 |
Comment |
Ditto on all the superlatives! I love this image. Is that a true reflection or did you do that in post? I ask because I have a highly polished black granite slab that, under the right lighting conditions, creates a spectacular reflection. It never occurred to me to make a reflection in post. Your image also looks wonderful when rotated into the horizontal position.
About the dust...perhaps you already do this...but I frequently set up on black backgrounds. I have less dust removal to do when I first use a lint removal roller on all the surfaces. |
Feb 12th |
| 62 |
Feb 22 |
Comment |
WOW! What a great pose. You were in the right place at the right time. As both Emil and Bob suggested, the zebras could benefit from a bit of brightening. Here is my version. In Lightroom, I uses the Select Subject mask and increased the exposure. Then I used radial gradients on the eyes of both zebras and the nose of the on on the right side of the image. I decreased the shadows. Then, on the entire image, I widened the histogram by first pressing Option while increasing the Whites setting and then pressing Option while increasing the Blacks setting. That allows you to see only the whitest or blackest parts and then choose how much pure white or pure black you want in the image. Perhaps you already know that technique? |
Feb 12th |
 |
| 62 |
Feb 22 |
Comment |
Hi Emil, I love old car images. I am enjoying the crop you chose. The close up works well as a BW image. The bright spots on the hood are still noticeable, but as blemishes. I quickly took the color image into Photoshop and spent just a few minutes to remove those spots and the window reflection. If I spent a bit more time or had the original RAW or a Tiff, I could have produced better results. But you'll get the point. I used Frequency Separation 2.0, pioneered by Earth Oliver, and works much better than the FS used by most touch-up artists. If you are interested, see https://www.adobe.com/max/2020/sessions/frequency-separation-20-part-1-photoshop-fs20-reto-l6153a.html That session comes with sample files. I also have the Photoshop actions and would be happy to email them to you or anyone in the group. |
Feb 12th |
 |
| 62 |
Feb 22 |
Comment |
Hi LuAnn,
Thanks for the suggestions. I decided to try something a bit different with the upper right by continuing the reflection (cloning) and just a tad of a crop. I also burned down a few more bright areas.
It is an Estonia Hidden Beauty, L190. I used to have a Baldwin 9 foot, but when we moved, it wouldn't fit. I love this piano! |
Feb 11th |
 |
| 62 |
Feb 22 |
Comment |
Hi Bob,
I like both. I am enjoying the complementary colors in the color version! And the three textures in the BW version. The middle section is a bit dark for my eye. I played around with your image in SilverEFX and cropped it a bit to bring more attention to the trees. |
Feb 11th |
 |
| 62 |
Feb 22 |
Comment |
Hi Oliver. I very much like the image you posted in Group 5. You are lucky to be so close to the Capitol, because that means you can go there many times and find the ideal conditions for various angles of the building there.
I am enjoying the detail I see in the columns and the drama that black and white brings to the photo. I do miss the reflection, which I found quite lovely in the original. Have you considered going back and capturing an image that would allow for a complete reflection? Seeing what you did in Group 5, I think you can go back and try various angles, perhaps even resulting in a Capitol series! |
Feb 11th |
| 62 |
Feb 22 |
Reply |
Thanks for kind words Bob. I prefer to get lost in the moment and not pay attention to my editing process. It's only because of the Digital Dialogue that I make an attempt to remember. I do that so someone in the group can point out something else to try. |
Feb 3rd |
6 comments - 6 replies for Group 62
|
| 84 |
Feb 22 |
Reply |
Even in short videos, the hard cut seems to rule in most film festivals even for short videos. But I do agree with you in that one should not be bound to rules or the convention of the day. Some of these choices are truly artistic. I do think different circumstances call for different approaches. When I cut the Ice Hotel video with the intention of moving from beat to beat, to my eye, the hard cut kept with the beat. Yes, it is choppy by design. However, I do intend on making videos that are more ethereal and what would be more conducive to dissolves, slower paced music, and instrumentals. There is a whole world out there to explore! I'm looking forward to my Death Valley project as a new exploration! |
Feb 22nd |
| 84 |
Feb 22 |
Comment |
Dick,
I appreciate your detailed comments and also the amount of time you spent watching. Soundtracks and transitions are two interesting topics! When I can, for my travel videos I try to purchase music from the place in which I am staying. Most of that music ends up being instrumental. When I visited the Sami people who live near the Ice Hotel, I never heard any music. The Ice Bar played only pop!
I don't know what prompted me to choose the Hall of Fame piece, except that my niece was impressed that I went to the Ice Hotel. It is something she has always wanted to do. The lyrics of this song emphasize that one can do what one wants. I gave her a copy of my video and dedicated it to her as a way to encourage her to go after what she wants-whether the Ice Hotel or the Hall of Fame.
Interestingly, my next video submission is also a song, but I'll explain why in the submission. I think the Death Valley video that I am working on now will use an instrumental soundtrack. I am in the process of narrowing down the music. Look for that in May!
About transitions. I used to be a big fan of using a lot of transitions. I particularly like the ripple transition and some of the other more snazzy effects. In my documentary film making courses over the past few years, I learned that the hard cut is the preferred practice today, with dissolves reserved for special effects only-to show the passage of time or big change in geographic location. So I sort of got trained out of using transitions in my short projects. That being said, I am a big fan of Hershey Felder, a musician storyteller who, during the pandemic, started making films. His style of videography is unconventional. He does elaborate transitions as well as very long overlays of one scene over another. It is an interesting effect that supports his story telling. If you enjoy classical music, you might check out his website.
My next video submission will use hard cuts, but I am considering transitions, dissolves, and overlays for Death Valley, as I think the valley will lend itself nicely to such an approach. I don't know yet, as I leave for Death Valley this weekend. I hope the weather is on my side for taking footage. We'll see.
Thanks again! Your comments got me thinking!! |
Feb 22nd |
| 84 |
Feb 22 |
Reply |
Thank you so much for your comments and suggestion Peter! |
Jan 30th |
| 84 |
Feb 22 |
Comment |
Hi Peter,
What a trip! You saw a lot in just a few days. I am impressed. The footage was wonderful. The pace and quality of the images are great. I liked the way you varied the music. The titles were helpful. I especially like the font face and style that you chose.
I am a pretty fast reader, but I found that some of the titles left the screen before I finished reading them. I've always been told to leave titles onscreen to give enough time to read them aloud two times. Some people say three times. That would pose a problem for your video because the image pace is fast. You could put the titles on a blank background, but I really like the way you float them over images. You might consider stopping the motion of the image behind the title long enough for someone to read them. For example for the Ann W. Richards bridge, you could scroll the title over the shot of the people on the bridge, then remove the title, and resume the action with the bats flying. I felt I was missing some action by reading, so that sort of approach of stopping action while still scrolling the title might help the viewer. What do you think?
A few things (of the many) that I especially enjoyed:
0:43 The editing sequence of the images taken from the Sixth Floor Museum
1:25 Lady Bird Lake-I love the reflections and the color. Well done!
1:56 The speeded up sequence of visitors to the LBJ space center
2:30 The variety of art you showed from MFAH. I've been there and I think you give a good synopsis of the variety in that museum. Now I want to return!
Thanks for sharing your trip. |
Jan 14th |
| 84 |
Feb 22 |
Comment |
Harry
Wow! I was in Great Bear Rainforest in British Columbia this October. Now that I watched your video, I want to go back and see the Rockies.
You video had me spellbound, from the establishing car shot that made it clear you are taking the viewer on a road trip to your heartfelt text at the end. There are so many things that I enjoyed about this video, that I can list only a few:
1. Choice of music-simple yet majestic
2. Images with reflections in the water
3. Judicious use of time lapse photography
4. The rainbow
5. The sense of journey by seeing you and your companion with a teapot over the fire pit.
6. The difference in perspective you offered at 1:53 when looking down into the rushing water.
7. The long shot of the mountains and highway at 2:05. That shot really shows the majestic nature of the Rockies. The highway looks insignificant.
8. The Canadian railway shots. One cannot look at the Canadian Rockies and not also see the magnificent railway that runs through them. (I took it many years ago)
Thanks for sharing! |
Jan 14th |
| 84 |
Feb 22 |
Comment |
Hi Helen
Wonderful video! Your editing worked well with the pace of the music. I love the energy you communicated by moving from one scene to the next. The colors are fabulous. The surfing shots are extraordinary. They could stand on their own as stills. (Do you surf?) Ending with the fireworks gave the video a nice story arc. I am ready to pack my bags and go to the South Coast!
For my taste, the video ended quite abruptly (1:59). I wasn't sure if that is what you intended. I suggest that you consider adding a 5 or 10 second fade from Happy New Year to black, fading the music at the same time. Then adding 3 seconds of black with no audio. That would give the viewer a chance to recover and reflect on your video.
Thanks for sharing! |
Jan 14th |
| 84 |
Feb 22 |
Comment |
Hi Dick,
I thoroughly enjoyed watching your video. The quality is excellent. Overall, the drone appears to be very steady. You chose some dramatic music, which immediately set my expectations for a story to follow. Right away, I noticed how empty of people the lake was. To me, the music implied something nefarious was going on to make everyone be in hiding. Although I saw a boat at 3:49, it wasn't until 4:47 that there was action on the lake. Then I thought "Is the boat going for help? Help to get out all those trapped people who must be hiding in their cabins?"
As you can see, I have an active imagination. But the music you chose is very cinematic. It has many different cues in, cues that in a movie signal a change in either the character or the action. I think you have a great opportunity to leverage that music by perhaps adding some B-roll or cuts. For example, you might consider cutting in some close up footage of empty boats to build drama. Or you could get your buddies to look alarmed and splice their faces into some of the overhead shots. Just ideas for a way to have fun with the stellar footage.
For my taste, I prefer not to see such things as the rotors or the side of the drone. If you add a few cuts or some B-roll, you can easily remove these elements. Finally, my taste is to have the horizon straight. Otherwise I start to worry about the water pouring off the edge of the Earth! Most video editing programs will allow straightening the horizon. With the resolution that your camera has, I think the video would still look pristine. I am curious, does the drone has a level in it? If so, does that require much adjustment?
I've never used a drone, but I appreciate the wonderful perspective they give. I look forward to seeing more of your work!
Thanks so much for sharing your video! |
Jan 14th |
5 comments - 2 replies for Group 84
|
12 comments - 8 replies Total
|
