Gritty 52 Challenge For 2020.

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508
Name
Heather
Edit My Images
Yes
So here is my first TP image 1/52 Category: Local
Racton Monument..jpg


This is Racton Monument it is an 80ft folly built in 1772 by the 2nd Earl Of Halifax and commissioned as a summerhouse for the nearby Stansted Estate. It was designed by Architect Theodosious Keene and constructed between 1766 and 1775. It situated not far from me in Racton on the South Downs with amazing views over Chichester Harbour and the Isle Of Wight.
I have purposely made this noisy with slight vignetting to add to the drama but wasn't sure of the best way to upload this photo to show it at its best, I have had to greatly reduce this file quality to be able to upload it.
I have only just started using Ps & Lr so any advice please feel free to comment, any help and suggestions greatly appreciated, Enjoy.
 
Very interesting perspective, good start to the challenge there :)
 
Very interesting perspective, good start to the challenge there :)

Thanks rick448, hopefully by 52/52 2020 I will have the hang of this ;)
 
I always upload from my Flickr account, it seems to work ok.
 
I always upload from my Flickr account, it seems to work ok.

Don't laugh but I've only just starting sharing my photo's, I've only just set up an Instagram account. Guess I had better set up a Flickr account now.
 
Don't laugh but I've only just starting sharing my photo's, I've only just set up an Instagram account. Guess I had better set up a Flickr account now.
I think it would be a good way forward, you can also add your images to the Flickr group which relates to this challenge. :)
 
Guess I had better set up a Flickr account now.
That is a good way to go, rather than instagram.
You also need to link from the home page to your image in your thread, so people can find it, without searching (y)
I've done this one for you, Have a practice on the next one, shout if you have problems :)
 
That is a good way to go, rather than instagram.
You also need to link from the home page to your image in your thread, so people can find it, without searching (y)
I've done this one for you, Have a practice on the next one, shout if you have problems :)

Thanks Cobra, your a star
I will set up Flickr in the morning.
 
Thanks Cobra, your a star
They all say that at the beginning .... but a few weeks in, I'm a little something else beginning with "S" :D
 
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Great start to your 52 Heather. Suits B/W perfectly. Sharing from Flickr is really easy by the way.

Thank you BobBCN, it really didn’t look quite so haunting in colour. I am new to editing but wanted to add noise to enhance the thoughts and emotions it provokes when you look at it.
 
Hi Heather, a nice start, very moody picture, just up the road from me and I didn't know it existed!

Thank you, well worth a walk up the bridle way. A nice couple of safe parking places, I stayed a bit too long and had to walk back just using my head torch whilst listening to the owls... not eery at all.
 
That's a wonderfully moody image Heather, and what a terrific start to your 52 challenge!:clap:

I love the mono treatment, and the low angle works well for the composition.
Excellent work Heather, looking forward to seeing more of your images throughout the coming year!(y)
 
That's a wonderfully moody image Heather, and what a terrific start to your 52 challenge!:clap:

I love the mono treatment, and the low angle works well for the composition.
Excellent work Heather, looking forward to seeing more of your images throughout the coming year!(y)

Thank you Gareth, I really appreciate your thoughts and comments.
 
Nice perspective, very imposing look. I also like the way you've processed it, gives it a spooky feel. Great start.
 
Hi Heather.
The shot certainly does seem to evoke the effect you've gone for. The low perspective and heavy vignette really work. :)

You've asked for suggestions, here are a few thoughts.
The tower leans slightly to the right, the level area half way up isn't horizontal and the image is slightly to the left (not completely symmetrical).
Now for all I know this is exactly what it looks like (after-all it is a ruin), but with judicious tweaking in PS' camera raw you could straighten this up and centralise the shot. It would require the image to have a bit of space around it to avoid losing the top of the tower though. I always tend to shoot wider than I need to allow me to crop in when I invariably decide I want to tweak an angle.
I would also lose the signage that's halfway up the tower.

As you've marked your profile as "Edit my images - Yes" I've taken the liberty of spending 2 or 3 minutes doing a quick edit to illustrate my thoughts (just an illustration - it's not meant to be perfect).

What do you think?

Grity1.jpg
 
A very imposing building the tight crop adds to that, looks like something out of an old horror movie just needs some bats.
 
Good pov and I like the black and white conversion. Not to sure about the vignette, it's a little too dark for me.
 
Hi Heather.
The shot certainly does seem to evoke the effect you've gone for. The low perspective and heavy vignette really work. :)

You've asked for suggestions, here are a few thoughts.
The tower leans slightly to the right, the level area half way up isn't horizontal and the image is slightly to the left (not completely symmetrical).
Now for all I know this is exactly what it looks like (after-all it is a ruin), but with judicious tweaking in PS' camera raw you could straighten this up and centralise the shot. It would require the image to have a bit of space around it to avoid losing the top of the tower though. I always tend to shoot wider than I need to allow me to crop in when I invariably decide I want to tweak an angle.
I would also lose the signage that's halfway up the tower.

As you've marked your profile as "Edit my images - Yes" I've taken the liberty of spending 2 or 3 minutes doing a quick edit to illustrate my thoughts (just an illustration - it's not meant to be perfect).

What do you think?

View attachment 264890

Hi LC2, thank you so much for your compliment and thank you also for your constructive critique.
I totally agree with your comments and will take them on board and now shoot wider, watch my horizon and symmetrical positioning, so I have more movement whilst editing.
I used my 10-20mm @10mm, ISO200, f11 with a 1.3sec exposure. I was restricted due to the amount of undergrowth.

I love the way you have edited my photo thank you for taking the time to edit it? I am new to Ps & Lr and still trying to learn from resources on you tube and the web, I did try cloning the sign out but could not find an area suitable on the folly to clone with.

This is the first time I have ever placed any of my photos out there for others to peruse and pass comment on and I really do appreciate the time you have spent leaving such fantastic comments, recommendations and also the edit you made.

Once again, thank you so much.
 
A very imposing building the tight crop adds to that, looks like something out of an old horror movie just needs some bats.
Funny you should say that.... as I was packing my camera away a stunning bird of prey settled right on one of the windows, I felt it better to just stand there and appreciate the moment rather than grab my kit out and miss it.
 
Interesting perspective - makes it seem very imposing.
 
Interesting perspective, makes it look a bit phallic ;)
 
Like the processing on this shot, really adds to the haunting feeling, interesting history aswell.
 
Great shot Heather. The vignette is a little heavy for my taste but these are things that you will develop over time. Works really well as a moody b&w image

Thanks daveferguson, I am new to lightroom and photoshop so probably a bit heavy handed with everything I am doing at the mo, thank you for your comment. I knew the feel I wanted to enhance, the original photo had that haunting feel but I wanted to enhance it more.
 
Like the processing on this shot, really adds to the haunting feeling, interesting history aswell.

Thanks Baloo, it truly is an amazing place, new to editing so may be a bit heavy handed, thank you for your comment.
 
Week 2 - Pleasure.
So this week I had an image in mind that I wanted to capture.... The Pleasure Of "Childhood Memories Of Being On A Swing & Touching The Clouds".
1st problem I don't have any kids,
2nd problem having to get the wife to agree to act like a child (not normally an issue),
3rd problem waiting for the wind and rain to stop,
4th problem having to wait till the kids have gone home for dinner so we can use the swing....

Pleasure.jpg

I will be honest I am not happy with this image, the first attempt at editing it and of creating a vintage image came out well, then I decided to try to darken the sky as it was way too bright and I hadn't taken my physical filters and that is where it all went wrong and I could not erase the mistake I had made.
But time is ticking on and I cannot work out how to fix the sky so I will have to press submit and take the hit of entering an image I am not happy with.
 
Really like your take on Pleasure Heather I did consider a similar idea well executed
 
Clever idea Heather. I wouldn't worry too much,
sometimes we just have to play the hand we are dealt (y)
 
It's an image you visualised and executed - sometimes everything works, and sometimes it doesn't. This works for me - hits the brief and definitely pleasurable!
 
Not sure about the white vignetting, but the rest of it is great. A really good concept.
 
I will be honest I am not happy with this image, the first attempt at editing it and of creating a vintage image came out well, then I decided to try to darken the sky as it was way too bright and I hadn't taken my physical filters and that is where it all went wrong and I could not erase the mistake I had made.
But time is ticking on and I cannot work out how to fix the sky so I will have to press submit and take the hit of entering an image I am not happy with.

I really like the idea and the base image but as you say the processing has gone a bit haywire. If you are using Lr and Ps (as you say in your first post) then there shouldn't be an issue going back to a different stage in your edit or the original image - is there something in your workflow we could help with?
 
I wouldn't worry too much about the sky, the subject is big enough in the frame to hold your attention.
Okay, so there may be a bit of a halo around the tree, but given the style of processing you've chosen, I don't think there's anything to call out on that.
Haters gonna hate the white vignette, but hell, I'm sure we've all used it on occasions to rescue something (I know I have ;) )
What were you using for the effects? I know I tend to use an old copy of the Nik Collection.
 
Really like your take on Pleasure Heather I did consider a similar idea well executed

Thanks Downton Mini, I will definately revisit this when my godchildren are down and perfect this photo.
 
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