Winter Rant

Went out today...another crappy day of winter. MA, you're welcome to my portion of the snow and ice. I'm getting tired of it. Temperature was OK, +3C, but I miss the sun. I know it started off badly because the first half dozen shots I took I didn't even notice ISO set to 1600 :headslap: Didn't matter, they were all crap anyway - the noise was just overkill.

I was only out for a couple of hours but, again, I think that was fortunate because my head was just in the wrong space or something. Dropped my nifty-fifty on to some rocks 3 inches from the river. :wall-an: Thankfully, it's fine.

Focus was horrible on most of the shots I took. Composition lacking on most of the rest. I sort of saved these 4 with some editing in Picasa/Gimp. Oh, and did I mention I tried editing with PSE8 demo version and couldn't get past the RAW processor. :sad: Maybe if I go check out some more of those learning sites I'll do better tomorrow.

Attachment 5735
Attachment 5736
Attachment 5737
Attachment 5738

Sorry for the rant. I'm hoping by getting it out of my system I can re-focus and do better the next time out.

Hi Ig:
I liked your photos and your description of your mood along with them. I know what you're saying.
I like the second one, with the black and white foreground of the water moving up to the rocks and the land in the background, below a blue sky. I can feel the water.
You were mentioning problems with your PSE8. I've been finding that if I take a RAW shot and open it in PSE7, it will open in Adobe Camera Raw. I had to upload the latest version of ACR by the way with instructions from the Adobe website. I can edit it but if I save it, it gets into PSE but I can't edit it with any layers or filters. I've been puzzling about this for weeks, trying to read up on what the problem is and not resolving it. So I was wondering if that's the problem you are encountering as well? Any tips you have would be appreciated.
Hey, winter's over in just a few weeks. Hope you'll keep sharing your pictures (and rants).
Mike

To mbrager -If you are having trouble using the filters in Elements it is probably because you need to convert your files to 8 bit first. At the top of the page click on image > mode > 8 bit channel and you are good to go.

Nothing wrong with the compositions in those last 3 shots at all. In fact the 2nd shot would be awesome if you could lighten up that lower portion!

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by mbrager

Hi Ig:
I liked your photos and your description of your mood along with them. I know what you're saying.
I like the second one, with the black and white foreground of the water moving up to the rocks and the land in the background, below a blue sky. I can feel the water.
You were mentioning problems with your PSE8. I've been finding that if I take a RAW shot and open it in PSE7, it will open in Adobe Camera Raw. I had to upload the latest version of ACR by the way with instructions from the Adobe website. I can edit it but if I save it, it gets into PSE but I can't edit it with any layers or filters. I've been puzzling about this for weeks, trying to read up on what the problem is and not resolving it. So I was wondering if that's the problem you are encountering as well? Any tips you have would be appreciated.
Hey, winter's over in just a few weeks. Hope you'll keep sharing your pictures (and rants).
Mike

---

Thanks, Mike. As for PSE I haven't a clue yet. Sounds like JAS has a suggestion though. If I run into a solution I'll be sure to let you know.

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by Mad Aussie

Nothing wrong with the compositions in those last 3 shots at all. In fact the 2nd shot would be awesome if you could lighten up that lower portion!

---

Thanks, MA! I'll see if I can figure out PSE8 a little better and maybe give that a try and see how it turns out.

I quite like the dock shot here Iggy.
I'm sorry to hear you have the winter blahs...I get what that's about....I grew up in Victoria and the long stretches without sun really got to me. Here it's the cold...but at least the sun shines. :thumbup:
For me, this year I've decided to look at winer as an opportunity,,,I've found it's forced me to be especially aware of the little things like frost and light and composition...the morning light in winter I've discovered is friggin' spectacular! The drawback is getting up early but at the same time my years as an early morning chef has gotten me used to it....besides it's great to be done by 11am and have the rest of the day to do as I like! :clap:
Whatever you decide to do, remember it will be over soon, but why not try going out before the household is up and about and try finding and shooting the beauty in winter...there is so much of it out there. Thing is, you just have to look for it a bit more closely sometimes. Who knows.....might change how you feel about it in the end...it did for me.
Anyhow best of luck and hope you feel better. :)

I quite like the bridge shot! and today the sun is shining, the temp is above 0 and the birds are singing :clap:

Are you ready to hit me yet? :D

Cheer up mate!

I agree with MA (yet again) shot two is pretty good, with just a little bit of pp and it would sing.

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by JAS_Photo

To mbrager -If you are having trouble using the filters in Elements it is probably because you need to convert your files to 8 bit first. At the top of the page click on image > mode > 8 bit channel and you are good to go.

---

Thank you. I hadn't noticed the 16 bit vs 8 bit in ACR before. Now I'm off to the races. Much appreciated.
Mike

I like the second shot only in a lighter version

I like the composition of the dock shot IG.
Yep, Learning new software can be frustrating & time consuming.

Thanks, everyone for the suggestions and comments. I really appreciate them! :goodvibes:goodvibes

Morris Lake shot revisited. Here's what I can do with two RAW files tweaked on opening then using PSE8 to auto merge based on exposure. Like the PSE8 wizardry - not sure I like PSE8. 21 days left to play...

Attachment 5751

that's a big improvement!!! well done Iggy:highfive:

Despite your PP issues iggy I must say these compositions are very good!

Huge improvement IG!

Once you learn it, Iggy, you will not want to be without it. I just signed up for the Scott Kelby website after purchasing one of his books, "The Digital Photography Book", I was that impressed. For just $25 per month you have full access and you have no obligation to continue any longer than what is comfortable for you. I can see where it would have prevented a lot of trial and error on my part. :rolleyes:

But now that you have the free trial of PSE try the free trial of the plug-in Topaz Detail and Topaz Adjust. They can really make your photos pop, or they can make them just crazy artography. And if in the future you decide you like them, they will not break the bank.

P.S. a hint for winter photography. The key is to just dress warm enough, basically. I am a non snow sport person but I bought some really good snow pants this season and they keep me warm and dry so I do not mind crawling around in the snow at all. I wear them even when it isn't really cold -temperatures- hovering around 0 to 5 degrees because if you are out for a few hours you start to feel the cold. Just don't let the greyness get you down. Take care- JAS

Thanks, Everyone! :thankyou:

Feeling much better today due to a peek at the sun and the great community here! I don't mind winter that much it's just the dull greyness that has been around for what seems like forever! :eek:

Also, thanks for the winter tips, JAS. I don't have the snow pants which I plan to definitely get for next year but I do wear long johns! A must if you're out for a while. I'll check out Scott's site. I've heard about it before but just haven't made the leap yet.

My favourite is the 3rd.
Bye!
S.