We continue with the beach-at-sunset theme. This is our token smartphone-type image, although the challenge here has more to do with the lighting conditions than it does the hardware. Like the Concert on the Beach exercise, this one has room for lots of artistic interpretation, but unfortunately it is not exactly as easy technically.

 

If anyone doubts the utility of this exercise, let me remark later in this series you'll be confronted by another picture with the same lighting/exposure problem, but coming from an excellent camera guided by a world-famous photographer. If you can't do well on this one it's unlikely you'll be able to help his image out.

 

We may see more of this type of challenge in the future, particularly now that so many people are looking for time-consuming activities at home. In the last set, you'll recall working on a keepsake picture from Panama in the 1970s. So many people are going back to such pictures that a few companies now make money selling artists' canvases, based on the client-supplied photo, along with a set of 36 paints that can be used to follow the color-by-the-numbers map imprinted on the canvas.

 

Of course, it helps if the color of the photo has something to do with the color desired in the painting. Unfortunately, that was not the case with a friend, whose wife is dead set and determined that she is going to paint a canvas, at 70x100cm, based on a color print from twenty years ago that time has not been kind to. So guess who got a panicked call. I can hardly charge my friend for the couple of hours it took me, but the whole project is fairly expensive so I don't think they would have hesitated to pay somebody else.

 

This is the same kind of thing. I generally refuse to work on originals this bad, unless there is a convincing reason why there isn't an alternative available. But, I can tell you that this one has significant sentimental value to the young woman pictured, who would consider it worth our time to fix it.

 

Dan

 

Two notes about the previous entries, which may not be applicable here since we don't have a raw file to work with, but since we will the next time, let's get in the habit.

 

First, as noted in one of our threads, it has become possible to encode a JPEG so that it will open by default in Camera Raw and not Photoshop proper. Last year, only one person was commonly supplying files of that nature. This last exercise, I think there were five. When this happens it appears to be necessary to open a new file at the same size and then apply the offending image into it, as resaving doesn't make the problem go away. So I'd request that you double-click your own file and be sure that it opens directly into Photoshop.

 

Second, a reminder that applying a lens profile changes the aspect of an image enough that it can't be used for blending even though technically it's the same size as the others. So avoid that, just as you would avoid rotating or recropping.

 

 

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*This should be assumed to be a vacation keepsake. It comes from the same family reunion as in the Toast to Greece exercise in the last set.

 

*You can use whatever methods you like to improve the picture. 

 

*Please keep clear records of what you did for discussion. List members find these very valuable.

 

*In the Photos section, Case Study 2021: Beach at Sunset 

https://groups.io/g/colortheory/album?id=260800

I have uploaded the original file. As this original is from an iPad, you are stuck with downloading the JPEG. There is no zipped sourcefile, no raw file.

 

*The designated size of this exercise is 2576 x 1908 pixels. Make sure that that's the size you downloaded, as groups.io makes it fairly easy to foul it up. Do not crop, rotate, enter any lens profile, alter the sizing, or delete any tangible objects, because any of these things will make it impossible to use your version as part of a par assembly.

 

*Your final file is to be sRGB with a proper tag. If you work in a different RGB you must Edit: Convert to Profile>sRGB before submitting the file.

 

*When finished, save in JPEG form, quality level 9. E-mail it to me, dmargulis (at) aol.com, with your brief explanation of how you produced it. DO NOT POST IMAGES TO THE LIST.

 

*Remember that some e-mail clients automatically downsize image attachments. Make sure you’re sending it to me at the original size.

 

*Entries close Monday morning, 22 February, at 06:00 Eastern/1100Z/12:00 ora italiana.

 

*Rather than confirm every entrant I've received, I will periodically post the initials of everyone whose file I have.

 

*As soon as convenient after the deadline, I'll post all the entrants in a random order. Names will not be revealed. Once discussion begins, those who wish to identify themselves publicly may do so.

 

*If the filename of your version contains your name or initials, they will be deleted before posting. If you want to be able to identify your version by name once posted, throw in a few extra letters at the end of the filename; I won't delete them.

 

*I will leave discussion of the results to the group for the first two days after posting, and will then weigh in with my own opinion.

 

Dan