Here’s the post for Friday. It’s two days late, but I can’t help it, I almost have no time for posting besides when I’m on the train. I am at the moment, back from Carinthia to Vienna, and I’ll try to catch up.
This was a problematic image in more than one way. When I got out photographing on Friday, it was already late and the best light was gone. I saw a few sunny spots in a distance, but you know how it is, once you’re there it can all be different. Time ticks, you’ve got one chance, and if you’ve chosen the wrong direction, well, too bad.
It was not entirely wrong. I got some sunshine, though in the end I failed to catch anything interesting. On my way home I saw this scene.
I decided to bracket for HDR, and in post-processing I used my now usual approach of developing in Lightroom to TIFF, merging in Photoshop to a 32 bit TIFF, and finally working on that again in Lightroom.
It took me a long time. Finding the crop was problematic, and it took me more time to realize what this image was all about: the golden reflection in the water.
Once I was at that point, things became easier. I decided to do a partial B+W conversion, something that I normally abhor, but that worked out pretty well here. Trying split tones was more of a routine matter, and really, the cool tone went well with the image.
My first take on a vignette was to darken the edges. In that form I already wanted to upload the image, but then I made a virtual copy of the TIFF in Lightroom and tried a white vignette and some more local contrast in the distance.
After thorough inspection I decided to go with the second version. I exported it with a white border, and then I went to clean up. I deleted the original TIFF, intending to let the virtual copy become the new original. Unfortunately I seem to have had both versions selected and both were deleted. No problem, I got the TIFF back from the waste bin, but … the whole processing was gone. All I have from that much work is the exported JPEG. Speak of an original 😄
The Song of the Day is “Fool’s Gold” from Lhasa De Sela’s 2009 album “Lhasa”. Hear it on YouTube.