Messy to Memorable

Photo editing has saved many less than memorable photos. What did we do before digital editing? This week Tina gave us Lens Artists Photo Challenge #134 “From Forgettable to Favorite.” Do take a look at Tina’s post to see how she has edited her photos to create beautiful ‘favorites’. Here are my “Messy” to ‘Memorable” photos.

A simple crop was needed for this photo taken at the World Equestrian Games. The green blob on the right is a plant decoration at the side of the ring, and the pink blob is a person in the stands Here is the edited photo with less green blob and the person in the BG is gone.

The photo below was taken from the deck at the back of our house. In order to get as much width of the frosted trees and to achieve optimum focus I had to take a wider shot and include the fencing at the edge of our property. I knew I could edit it out later . I also added texture and clarity in the edited photo.

In this photo of Belinda Trussell riding in the arena I felt the green windows reflected in the arena mirrors were a distraction. Black and white removed that and I brought up the highlights and the black to make a greater contrast. I do not use “contrast ” on its own but make changes to the black, white, highlights and shadow. Photo has also been cropped and levelled.

Here is another photo of Belinda . I brought up the whites, highlights and the black of the horse and took out the color saturation of the wood and the blues in the windows behind them. This also removed the color from Belinda’s boots and breeches.

The lighting in the arena is something that I cannot control . Using a flash is out of the question around horses. So I just take a photo, knowing there is not enough light, and I can edit it later. Here is Megan Lane helping Belinda. She is there in the dark. When I reduced the shadows and blacks and brought up the whites and highlights she appeared! I like doing this better than just bumping up the overall exposure. I also brought up the luminescence to give her a better look now she was in the light. Sometimes when shooting in dark conditions the higher ISO will cause too much noise. I did not want Megan’s face to have noise!

Thank you Tina for this challenge. I cannot remember editing anything back in the days of film. I vaguely remember that it you pushed the ASA you got more color saturation. I really enjoy the editing process and I use Adobe Lightroom Classic. One of these days I am going to get around to doing the online Photoshop course I have paid for but I need to find the time!!

Comments

27 responses to “Messy to Memorable”

  1. pattimoed Avatar

    Really well-done, Anne. All your edits worked very well. My favorite, though, is the portrait of Melinda. I love her smile! Her personality really comes through in that shot. Wonderful.

    1. anne leueen Avatar

      Yes it is a nice shot that’s the advantage of the person not knowing they are having a photo taken. I was a distance away and took it with a long lens.

  2. Leya Avatar

    You truly master your horses and riders, despite all difficulties – and B&W is gorgeous here. Also the portrait of Megan came out beautifully with your edits. So well done!

    1. anne leueen Avatar

      Thank you Ann Christine! I appreciate your feedback very much.

      1. Leya Avatar

        🙂

  3. Marsha Avatar

    Anne, those are amazing saves. I particularly love the last one. I used to take lots of shots at banquets and I know what it’s like to have noisy photos. Yours turned out perfectly! Kudos!

    1. anne leueen Avatar

      Thank you Marsha! I appreciate your comment!

  4. Photography Journal Blog Avatar

    I agree, what did we do before digital editing?
    I really like the edit where you decided to amp up the highlights and remove the color, that made for a really interesting image in my opinion.

    1. anne leueen Avatar

      Thank you. I think it made for a better photo and emphasized the horse and rider more clearly. I’m glad you like it.

  5. popsiclesociety Avatar

    Not good only at taking photos but also at editing ☺️ Great job! I like the black and white one 😉

    1. anne leueen Avatar

      Thank you Ribana!

  6. JohnRH Avatar

    Great photos, excellent adjustments. Well done.

    1. anne leueen Avatar

      Thank you John!

  7. Sue (Mac's Girl) Avatar

    Excellent examples of before and after, Anne! I particularly like what you did with the last portrait picture.

    1. anne leueen Avatar

      Thank you! I appreciate your comment!

  8. dprastka Avatar

    Ooh, now I really want a good camera and learn how to edit photos like you have done. One day I’ll have to invest in one and take some classes. All the photos are beautiful but my favorite is the last photo, that is truly amazing how you can highlight her face and smile! 😍

    1. anne leueen Avatar

      It is amazing .the smiling face is there in the dark light and the editing revealed her. Its such a great smile ! Thanks for this comment Diana.. Have a good week.

  9. Amy Avatar

    Excellent examples, Anne. Love how you crop these images. The black and white photo is amazing!

    1. anne leueen Avatar

      Thank you Amy! I’m glad you enjoyed them.

  10. Anne Sandler Avatar

    Great editing Anne! I love the last portrait.

    1. anne leueen Avatar

      Thank you Anne!

  11. Tranature - quiet moments in nature Avatar
    Tranature – quiet moments in nature

    Beautifully done Anne, I especially love the way you made Megan appear without shooting in high ISO or increasing the exposure 💖

    1. anne leueen Avatar

      She is such a nice looking young woman and I love her smile so I wanted her to be clearly seen. Thanks Xenia.

  12. Tina Schell Avatar

    Well done on all counts Anne! Your final image is an excellent example of overcoming a difficult situation with precise edits. Your skill when it comes to capturing these beautiful horses and their accomplished riders is amazing, especially considering the constant motion and difficult lighting. Your use of B&W in the first two images is spot-on and makes a huge difference. Terrific lesson on the importance of knowing your subject and optimizing results.

    1. anne leueen Avatar

      Thank you Tina. The arena lighting can be tricky with a lot of strong back light and also the mirrors at the one end and huge windows looking into the viewing room at the other end. But there is also light that comes in from the window at the mirror end that sometimes gives a wonderful effect. So it all balances out. I appreciate your comment very much

  13. Lesley Avatar
    Lesley

    Wow, it’s remarkable what you’ve done to highlight the subject without changing the composition too much.

    1. anne leueen Avatar

      Thank you. I’m glad you see that I wanted the focus to remain on the horse in the horse photos.

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