Using Topaz Adjust to Process Vintage Tin Photos

Rusty 1940 Chevrolet Detail
Rusty 1940 Chevrolet Detail

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On my motorcycle ride up US 31 yesterday I came across a 1940 Chevrolet sedan sitting outside BABBS Auto Collision Center in Sellersburg Indiana. It was around 12 o’clock and the sun was pretty high in the sky which is almost always regarded as a poor time to shoot anything. I decided to stop anyway and shoot some rusty vintage tin for processing with Topaz Adjust. I knew from experience that the Spicify preset in Topaz Adjust would reveal a rainbow of iridescent colors in weathered dark paint that is streaked with iron oxides from the rust around it. As you can see I was well rewarded and captured some incredible textures and colors in this image. I finished it with a small black border that just felt right to me when I applied it.

Rusty 1940 Chevrolet Detail #2
Rusty 1940 Chevrolet Detail #2

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Here’s another version of the same car from another frame that I captured with a normal exposure value. The previous image started out as a 2 stops underexposed frame and this normal exposure produced even more iridescence when the Spicify preset was applied in Topaz Adjust. As with the previous image I added that small black border I have come to like for these sorts of images.

Rusty 1940 Chevrolet Detail #3
Rusty 1940 Chevrolet Detail #3

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Same basic processing as the two previous images using Topaz Adjust and the Spicify preset.

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4 thoughts on “Using Topaz Adjust to Process Vintage Tin Photos

  1. Very timely, Nick, thank you for this post! In the Adirondacks last weekend, not specifically looking for old cars, I came across (and shot) at least two of them, plus an old train. I like Spicify and will try it when I process some of these images. Thanks also to the link for a Topaz discount. I have Adjust but want to purchase additional products from them; I like Topaz a lot.

    1. Glad to hear you enjoyed the post John. I counsel everyone who uses Topaz Adjust to try to exercise some restraint with the effects. It is awfully easy to go too far but with time and experience one can arrive at an acceptable image.
      BTW is you haven’t looked into Topaz FX Lab I highly recommend it. It works as a stand alone editor and has the added feature of being a layered workflow. I’m going to start experimenting more with it over the next few weeks to learn more about using it.

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