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Westervelt revisited

Started by Atlantis, August 13, 2008, 03:02:06 PM

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Atlantis

This was my hardest Westervelt ever. It needed a carpettransplant, lamptransplant, cupboardtransplant & walltransplant  from my previous polaroids followed by partial transforms to adjust size and/or perspective.
Still lots of cloning, healing and colouring needed after all those transplants. Being a perfectionist I do wish I could have done better but after restarting twice I think it the best I could get.



The main thing that still puzzles me is what furniture-item I might have missed on the left side. Sometimes I thought I saw a chair shining through the muck. Most of the times it looked like the damaged part of the cupboard. I put the original on top and flipped back and forth but I don't have a clue yet. Has anyone worked on a Westervelt-polaroid from this livingroom that shows the mysteryfurniture??

edited to insert the image  ::)
The only way to get better is to figure out what I did wrong.

Mhayes

Atlantis, I think you have done a great job of color correcting and bringing back the man and child. I wouldn't sweat what you can't bring back on the chair. I don't suppose you would be wanting another Westervelt?

Margie
"carpe diem"

Margie Hayes
OPR President
[email protected]

Atlantis

#2
Thanks! Maybe I'd better wait another day before sending it home in case somebody does happen to have more info on this ghostchair.

Quote from: MarCat on August 15, 2008, 01:09:38 AM
I don't suppose you would be wanting another Westervelt?

;D  ::)  :funny:

OK, I will give it a thought.

edited to add : as today is the anual "be nice to Margie day"  I picked another one , I tried to avoid the coloured polaroids this time but found one without the dreaded rug  ;)
I do have a huge 40 year reunion photoproject on my hands so I don't promise a fast work (that way we will both have a pleasant surprise if I do finish it fast) .
I hope my hubby can help to identify the car so I can look for references.
The only way to get better is to figure out what I did wrong.

glennab

Hi Atlantis,

I've done several Westervelt restorations, and if memory serves, the mystery item on the left is a flowered couch with a table in front.  It's so far in the shadows that not much is discernible.  There are a number of this family's photos in the same room, and I'm sure there's at least one that'll identify it.  Personally, I'd just follow the lines/shadows and not try to recreate the couch.  The polaroids make so many items on the periphery very "mysterious," so that's been my method.  I realized that after doing a couple that I'd misinterpreted several pieces of furniture, but I think the shadowed shape was close enough.  The people are most important.  Good luck!

GK
What we do for ourselves dies with us. What we do for others and the world remains and is immortal. ~Albert Pine

(Photoshop CS5 /Mac Pro)

Atlantis

Thanks Glenna, that's comforting. You know I'm starting to think the cupboard might very well be a piano ...
Never mind, I wait a little while to see if maybe somebody else has done this livingroom as well and if not I'll sent it home.
The only way to get better is to figure out what I did wrong.

Hannie

Hi Atlantis,  you did a great job on that one, don't you just love those braided rugs?   ;)
I had a quick look at the other Westervelt photos and Glenna is right, it is a couch with a table in front.  I agree with her that in this case you shouldn't worry about it, if you didn't know what it was you sure couldn't tell by looking at the original Polaroid!

Hannie
Hannie Scheltema
Distribution Coordinator
[email protected]

Atlantis

I went through the galleries to make sure and I think I'm working on one of the last of the Westervelts so I thought I'd post my progress :



I still need to find out if the baby is hiding her left foot under her dress and I think the mom's other hand is supporting her girl from under-behind.
The car has a perspective problem, I discovered I could not copy and flip spare parts from either side ... does anyone recognize this type of car so I could search for a reference pic?
Oh and hubby and me think the white thingy on the ground is a fallen handkerchief but my daughter thinks it's just damage.
The only way to get better is to figure out what I did wrong.

glennab

Hi Atlantis

We must be the "Westervelt twins," as I just finished one of the last ones as well.  I checked with hubby, who's a motorhead, and he thinks the car is a '41 Buick.  I think you're right about mom's hand being under the baby's behind to support her, and I can see just the barest hint of the sole of the little one's shoe peeking from under her dress at the far right of the hem (as we look at them).  I concur with you and your hubby about the item on the ground.  It's probably a hankie or a small "shoulder protector" to hang over mom as a "spit sopper."

It's wonderful to know that this family's photos are about to go home!

Cheers!

GK
What we do for ourselves dies with us. What we do for others and the world remains and is immortal. ~Albert Pine

(Photoshop CS5 /Mac Pro)

klassylady25



Glenna is correct, see the sole of the shoe?

Atlantis

Thanks! I found several Buicks from 1941, different models & sizes but one I thought I could use for a partial transplant using a few of the transformtools for a better fit. It was way to shiny so I used a few extra layers (hue/sat and color balance)  and a copy of the green channel to adjust the colour and a neutral grey with blurred noise to match the original older parts.
I honestly hope it looks plausible now. I know there are people, mostly men, who will notice every tiny detail that is not right. I only recognize my car by it's colour & numberplate :D .
I did not know what to do with what looks like the wall of a mobile home / trailer on the left (I think I saw another picture with a man and his car in front of a mobile home in the Westervelt gallery) so I decided to change that a little rather than blurring it out. Please let me know if I went to far taking this decision.
There is one part left that still puzzles me : next to the baby on the car. I have no clue what is hidden under the damage. I tried hiding it with some fantasy cloning but that made it look worse. Maybe leave it like it is now???

The only way to get better is to figure out what I did wrong.

glennab

Hi Atlantis

I think you've done a fine job.

My one pick is that there's something about the left front fender (as we see it) that bothers me, but I'm not sure if it needs reflections or more shaping.  It looks somewhat flat right now.  Too bad hubby just left for work or I could probably have gotten him to identify the item beside the baby.  I can barely tell one car from another, but he's able to identify the make, year, whether the car's been customized or changed in any way, usually what's under the hood, whether it's a correct color for that year, etc. etc.

I wouldn't worry too much about the peripheral items.  It seems as if each of the Westervelt photos had one or two mysterious shapes in them, but none seemed too important to the overall image.  I think your handling of that part works just fine.

I took one last look, and the only other thing I see is that the tire looks too extended, almost as if it's flattened a bit.  I think if you clone some ground up a little and make it straighter that'll do the trick.

Nice work on a tough one!

Cheers

GK
What we do for ourselves dies with us. What we do for others and the world remains and is immortal. ~Albert Pine

(Photoshop CS5 /Mac Pro)

Mhayes

#11
Hi Atlantis,

I think this looks great! To see what you started with and seeing the completion of the car took a lot of work. I wouldn't worry that you might have missed some detail to the car. Also, I think your decision on how to handle what looks like a wall of a mobile home, was the right move. What you have done is made the overall photo come together with the focus point being the mother and child. Beautiful!

I'm thinking that this photo is one of the few that we have of the man's wife and will be especially treasured upon its return.

Margie
"carpe diem"

Margie Hayes
OPR President
[email protected]

klassylady25

Lon, has given you the make of the car, you might look around in the year before and after 1941.  I do  believe that that is the logo on the front of the car, but again research is what is needed.

C

Mhayes

Atlantis, I sent an email to Sharon, the owner, asking if she might know the year of the car. She said she would ask her husband when he comes home from work this evening. I sent her a copy of your work and here is her reply: "Looks Great!!!"

Margie
"carpe diem"

Margie Hayes
OPR President
[email protected]

Atlantis

#14
That's a great idea, did you hear anything yet? I'm proud she likes it so far.

(I remember working on a document with handwriting waiting for a reply with extra data ... it never came  :-\ )

edited to add : I looked at several Buick-pics from around 1941, never knew there were so many models   ;) and none was an exact match in that area, I also thought it looked like something, a toy maybe, was laying in that spot so I decided to hide it a little and sent them home in both B&W and sepia.
Just let me  know if it needs more work after all.
The only way to get better is to figure out what I did wrong.