Brightness/Contrast

[bsbaxter]

Hey guys,

I'm still learning my way around the brightness, contrast, and other color adjustments in Photoshop. So forgive me if I seem a little green.

I got the comment on the following reject that it had "bad contrast". I'm hoping somebody can explain what makes the contrast good or bad. I simply can't tell... Is it something that can be touched up? Or is it something that simply dooms the photo to a lifetime of poor contrast?

http://www.railpictures.net/viewreject.php?id=101454

Thanks,

Brandon

[Ween]

I'm not too sure on the B&W contrast. On cloudy days, sometimes going B&W helps, but I'm not sure how to do Photochop magic myself yet...

[railfanzone]

Photo is a bit washed out - no contrast between the dark and lighter areas of the photo.

In Photoshop, try this - Filter -> Sharpen -> Unsharp Mask

Set the USM to:
Amount = 45%
Radius = 60.0 pixels
Threshold = 0 levels

That should juice up your contrast considerably.

Yet another use for the good old USM... :)

-Tom

[bsbaxter]

Thanks Tom,

I really like how that Unsharp Mask command made things 'pop' a little bit more. Looking at the original and comparing it to what I have now...wow! That was a pretty washed out picture indeed.

I'm going to give it one more try, hopefully I've removed the washed-out feel that the previous photo had.

Brandon

[TAMR4449]

With B&W contrast is the strength of the grays. If it is low contrast the Blacks will seem more like a dark gray and the whites will be more of a light gray. Normally with B&W high contrast gives the photo more strength and can give the subject an almost 3d effect. It can just make the photo more striking. If you have photo shop go to Image- Adjust- Brightness/Contrast. I took you image and did -6 brightness and +36 contrast and Like what that looked like. Notice how the Leaves don't seem so soft and how the white strips on the engine stand out more. Adjust it how you please but that could be a place to start. I hope that helps.

***Photoshop rocks my socks!***

-Ross

[bsbaxter]

Thanks to Ross and Tom for your suggestions and advice. I'm going to keep playing around with the brightness and contrast and try to get a feel for them. In the meantime, I was able to work a little bit with the photo I initially asked about and resubmit it...and here it is:

http://www.railpictures.net/viewphoto.php?id=96867

So, thanks for the input. Hopefully I'll be able to use it again on future photos that I make.

Sincerely,

Brandon