Tag: bridges

Silhouette

Posted on by Nick Roberts
Cedric's Shadow
Cedric’s Shadow

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I shot this image yesterday morning just after sunrise. I especially liked the way the hook and the crane operator, Cedric, were silhouetted on the rusty steel retaining wall. The morning light was simply gorgeous and I have several other images that really reveal the wonderful colors. While processing them I decided to see what one would look like in Black and White. I wanted to create an image that felt like it might have been taken at the turn of the twentieth century.

I used the normal exposure value of 0 EV which rendered the scene very well. I first processed this image in Topaz Adjust as a faux HDR image which allowed me to emphasize the colors and texture. I then took the resulting version into OnOne Perfect B&W where I applied the Ambrotype preset. I also added a border within OnOne Perfect B&W using the Emulsion 003 setting with a wide border size. I didn’t need to do anything else, except to add a little sharpening, when I returned the image to Aperture 3.

Ironworkers

Posted on by Nick Roberts
Ironworkers Assembling an Iron Framework for a Bridge Pier.
Ironworkers Assembling an Iron Framework for a Bridge Pier.

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This shot is looking east with the Big Four Bridge in the background. The iron structure the ironworkers are building will be placed inside one of the steel cylinders that are in the righthand side of the image. There is a completed one on the barge behind the one where they are working. The hexagonal piece on the end is a jig to align the steel rebar while they assemble it.

This image is a single frame that was edited in Aperture 3 and Topaz Adjust. I wanted to capture the early morning fog and the light as the sun was coming up. The early morning on the river is a peaceful quiet time before the sun gets up in the sky and the temperature starts rising.

Topaz Adjust will be 50% off ($24.99) from September 9th through September 30th with this promo code: septadjust Topaz Adjust is one of their most popular plug-ins and doesn’t go on sale very often so if you haven’t tried it yet this will be a great opportunity to get it and save some money as well. Topaz Adjust is one piece of software that I find indispensable in my work and have been using for years now.

Here’s a link to their site:

http://www.topazlabs.com/705.html

 

 

 

HDR Images Using Topaz Restyle and OnOne Perfect Effects

Posted on by Nick Roberts
Ohio River Bridges Project Downtown Span #1
Ohio River Bridges Project Downtown Span #1

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This first image was created in NIK HDR Efex Pro 2 from a three frame bracket set using +2, 0 and -2 EV. Because it was evening I shot it with a tripod to allow for the long exposures needed to capture such a low light scene. After merging the three frames in NIK HDR Efex Pro 2  I returned the image to aperture 3 where I made some adjustments to the color channels and applied sharpening.

Ohio River Bridges Project Downtown Span #4
Ohio River Bridges Project Downtown Span #4

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This second image was created by taking the same HDR image as above into OnOne Perfect Photo 7.5 and then opening it in Perfect Effects where I first added a layer with the  Daguerrotype effect I then added a second layer where I overlaid the Palladium Print effect after that I added another layer where I applied one of the Border effects to complete the image. As you can see it gives an entirely different feeling to the image which is one of the strengths of the Perfect Effects application.

Ohio River Bridges Project Downtown Span #3
Ohio River Bridges Project Downtown Span #3

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For this third version I took the HDR image into the newest Topaz Labs product, Topaz ReStyle, and applied the preset named Saffron Sunset. I was amazed by the transformation that Topaz ReStyle made to the image. I didn’t stop with simply selecting the preset; instead I then adjusted the sliders in the preset to give the image the feeling I was looking for. Topaz ReStyle has over 1000 different presets built into it and by previewing them in groups I was able to find one that I liked for this scene. One of the interesting feature of Topaz ReStyle is the ability to select a color pallet to work with and search the entire preset library to find variations that use the colors you have selected. You can then preview the presets with your image before committing to one of them.

I hope these three images help you to see the potential of combining different software options from Topaz, OnOne and NIK to create an image that expresses your personal vision for a particular image. Topaz ReStyle is going to become another tool for me to use when I want to explore variations on a theme and I think over time it will be as valuable in my workflow as the many other plug-ins that I already use.

Topaz ReStyle is on sale for $29.99 (a 50% discount) until August 31  if you use the link below and the promo code restyleit 

http://www.topazlabs.com/705.html

 

 

Louisville’s Downtown Bridge Is Underway

Posted on by Nick Roberts
The first phase of construction on the Downtown Bridge is underway.
The first phase of construction on the Downtown Bridge is underway.

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This is another HDR image of  Waterfront Park looking west toward the crane that will be part of the skyline for the next couple of years. I shot this from the ramp to the Big Four Bridge overlooking the Swing Garden. I shot a handheld bracket set of three frames +2, 0 and -2 EV. I was able to hand hold the shots because it was mid morning and the light was high which resulted in relatively short exposures.

I first took the three RAW frames into NIK Sharpener Pro and applied adaptive sharpening to all of them. I then opened them in NIK HDR Efex Pro 2 where I merged them and applied  the Deep 2 preset which I tweaked a bit to reduce some of the luminance and saturation. I then returned the merged image to Aperture 3 for final adjustment, sharpening and added a small vignette. In Aperture 3 I also adjusted the exposure and contrast as well as tweaking the individual color channels in the green, yellow and blue areas.

Ohio River Sunset

Posted on by Nick Roberts
Ohio River Sunset
Ohio River Sunset

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This is a three exposure HDR using NIK HDR Efex Pro 2 for the merger and tonemapping as well as some exposure and structure adjustment. The three kayaks in the scene are from the middle value exposure which is the default frame for NIK HDR Efex Pro 2 when anti-ghosting is applied; I used a 60% setting which seems to work very well for preventing ghosts when objects in the scene are moving in one direction. The anti-ghosting also worked very well for the women walking along the landing at this 60% setting. After completing my NIK HDR Efex Pro 2 adjustments I returned the image to Aperture 3 where I adjusted the separate color channels to get the image I wanted.