PS Lesson on how to lign up your photos on one page using layers.
Photo originally taken at Living Desert near Joshua Tree, California on a work trip back in December 2018. Of course, if you go on a work trip and take your camera you can take breaks and photo walks with your photo buddy -- and of course, that would be Taffy @taffy.
I originally processed and posted the one on the left. Then in a feedback meetup with my Munich group, it was suggested that it lacked vibrance. So I attempted the second one which was globally "vibranced" but Benno @bpfoto suggested the third version which was to give contrast and vibrance to only the cheetah, vignette the background, darken the foreground grass, and remove the pole behind the cheetah.
I know, a primitive exercise for those who know Photoshop. But I've been saying I want to learn for years, and I even bought two online courses. So Taffy and I have now started doing the course together via zoom and this combines a few lessons: layers, alignment, shape block, and text. But eeeeekkkkk -- the pole still shows although it looks more like the tree next to it that it's duplicated. Stay tuned, v 22 to be posted in next image.
Course instructor: Matt Kloskowski at Mattk.com
He's very methodical, clear, and thorough in easy to understand ways. The course is laid out in modules of about 6 - 7 minutes each so you can repeat any section you want before going on, practicing along with the instruction after watching it through the first time.
@rosiekerr You're the gold standard of what I'd like to learn to do! I was admiring your PS-ing two years ago on our trip and I'm just now taking the first steps to finally learn.
Interesting post. I've been telling myself to learn PS for ages but still have a limited knowledge. You would think that as I use a 3d cad system for work that it should be easy for me to pick up. Somehow I just struggle with it I think there is just too much in one piece of software! Impressed at your dedication to get to grips with it and the results :) maybe I will try again.
@rjb71 -- I had to look up 3d cad but that sounds quite complex! I think what makes PS so frustrating for me is that it's not as intuitive as some software, and their persistence at "sticky" changes means it's easy to make mistakes and frustrating to figure out what went wrong. Taffy and I found ourselves just quitting PS, starting over, and then trying to rework what we couldn't get right. And we're only at the early stages!
THere is another trick to try. Make two copies of the photo (all layered together) and play around with the Blend Mode and opacity of the top two. I do this a lot.
I absolutely love seeing the stages of the process. And I consider the pole removed :-) I'd love to learn Photoshop, but being sensitieve to RSI, I try to limit computer time to work.
Great practice and lovely result. I edit photos in LR, but now I also practice PS. I chose the course https://www.easywayphotography.com.au I chose this one because with my language incompetence I understand the content of the messages. And I guess I'm making progress.
PS can be intimating to say the least, huge kudos for taking the leap. I know that I will never completely 'get it' but then I am having fun in the process.
good for you, junko. and @taffy! nice to do it together :) your edits make such a difference to this fabulous image. do you use the history panel in ps? i find it incredibly useful to be able to faff about with several steps, realise they don't work and go back to how it was before those steps ...
@jgpittenger -- It's labeled alignment because the lesson was on how to line up your photos. The examples of what I was aligning show the progression of editing. The final final version is posted on the next day by itself https://365project.org/jyokota/365/2020-12-15 because I had to get rid of the pole on these versions.
@jyokota this is where layer may come handy ... if you apply changes to layers they can be turned on (and off) and even tuned down via the layer’s opacity
