AustralianPhotography

image doctor

fog on the lake

Image Doctor: Fog on the Lake

Photographer: david edwards

Added: 03-Jul-12

Camera Type: Pentax Kx

Lens: Sigma 70-300mm

Shutter Speed: 1/90sec

Aperture: f8

Adjustments: i converted the image to mono and increased the contrast a touch

Photographer's Comments: I shot this image early one foggy morning at a small lake close to home. I like the composition with the ducks in the left hand thirds. I also like the border but I know some won't.

Image doctor's advice

Hi David,

There's an old joke... How many photographers does it take to change a light bulb? Five hundred. One to change the bulb and 499 to say they could have done it better.

There's some truth in that when it comes to photo editing. If you gave this image to a dozen skilled Photoshop workers you would probably end up with a dozen different variations on this final image. This photograph is a great initial capture and there are many ways it could be worked in Photoshop. Some options would be better than others.

Perhaps the one immediate thing I would change with this image is the vignette. It is just too abrupt in the corners. This image just needs the slightest hint of a soft, broad vignette.

Now there is another little secret hiding in this picture and you have lost it by making the image too muted. If you look above the bird in the lower left of the picture you get the feeling that there is a pool of sunlight trying to break through there. Given the chance I would go back to the RAW file and try and tease out some detail, contrast and brightness into that area. Tiny pockets of sunlight in a fog are magical, so make the most of it.

Cheers,

Anthony

 

Image Doctor's edited version


reader comments

There are no comments on this article yet.


Commenting

Hi, we welcome your comments.

You may comment as many times as you like. We approve and edit comments at our discretion. Do not send us comments that are:

  • abusive or malicious
  • off-topic or excessively long
  • blatantly spam.

By commenting you agree to our Terms and Conditions and Privacy Policy . If you wish to alert us about a comment, contact us

Thank you and happy commenting!

add a comment







Leave this field empty

* Required field

Recent image doctor critiques

  • Not Talking

    Not Talking

    by Greg Harris

    This  is  a  nice  landscape,  though  it  could  be  even  better  if  you  could  pull  a  bit  more  life  out  of  those  lacklustre  clouds.  You  could  try  adding  a  graduated  more

  • Let Me Run

    Let Me Run

    by Kip Hobson

    I  don't  doubt  that  the  dog  is  itching  to  get  going,  but  as  for  feeling  cold,  that  sounds  more  like  you  -  quite  understandable  judging  by  this  shot.  This  captures  more

  • Rachel

    Rachel

    by Louise Bishop

    You  have  done  fine  to  get  those  skin  tones  looking  good,  and  the  shot  itself  is  nice  and  sharp.  Where  I  have  a  problem  is  the  use  of  flash  which  more

  • Untitled

    Untitled

    by Bob Shaw

    Yes,  you  can  be  quite  happy  with  your  result,  but  is  that  because  it  was  a  test  of  your  skills  or  because  you  really  liked  the  gimmicky  aspect  of  the  more