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Ausimax's Workshop

Started by Ausimax, March 16, 2007, 08:38:57 AM

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Ausimax

 Hi Folks,

Keith, yes I have checked out the two library's I have access to and they have absolutely nothing on PS, I don't think us country folk are supposed to have such esoteric interests - only supposed to be interested in sheep, cattle and growing cotton.

Glenna, its a real bummer when you can see what is in a photo and can find no way to pull it out, this last one I could just not get my head around it,and there was no usable data in channels in any colour space.

Thats the trouble with a lot of the info put out by the experts, because you aren't well grounded in the intricacies of PS, much of what they talk about goes right over your head, mine anyway, and then you sit down to read and the old head goes noddies, does the same thing with TV, and the computer, many a trip to the floor, makes my mouse. Oh the vicissitudes of growing old.

I have accepted Roberts kind offer of PS 7 books, hopefully that will get my skill level up to scratch, and a better outcome for the clients of OPR, thank you all for the support you have provided through these forums, I only wish I could be of more use to others but the way I struggle with my restorations I think my advice is marginal in value.


Max



Wisdom is having a well considered opinion .... and being smart enough to keep it to yourself!     MJS

"Life" is what happens while you are planning other things!

kstruve

Max,

That makes me sad to hear you say that.  Try not to get discouraged.  You contribute a great deal to this forum.  I think what we need to keep in mind is (to paraphrase your own words) "not to bite off more than we can chew."  We all have different skill levels and different areas of expertise.  The trick is to find the projects that match our talents.

Kurt

glennab

Max

Amen to Kurt's comments.  You're a wonderful asset to OPR in so many ways.  You encourage the rest of us; you give us your valued insights when we're struggling, and contrary to your remarks, you do a wonderful job on the manageable difficult restorations -- which is saying a LOT!  The one you returned isn't one I could have done, either.  I didn't even know how to give you any information to help you get it accomplished. As Kurt said, we have to work on the ones for which we have the knowledge and experience to tackle.  I'm totally intimidated by my little boy, but I'm going to jump  in again this evening and hope I can use all of the great advice I've gotten from everyone to make him right.  He's so close, but I feel as you've expressed you do: that I'm not quite up to the task.

You're one of the BEST OPR-sters.  Hang in there!

Glenna
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)

kjohnson

Oh Max you've got a local library with farming topics. I was raised on a farm myself, a turkey farm though. Not as glamorous as cattle or sheep.

I think its great that you've got such a keen interest in Photoshop & restoring images. PS is considered to be one of the most difficult programs to learn & then combine that with working on images that are covered in muck & mud and have pieces missing, it isn't always easy & I get discouraged too.

And the more we use PS & explore the different tools & techniques, the better we'll get. In the end, I enjoy the challenge. I've been pecking away one photo now for quite sometime. Do a little here & a little there. Put it away, come back and repeat. And bit by bit, pixel by pixel, it looks way better than when I started. Geez, I've clicked the eyeball on/off so many times now - it turned into a black eye.


Ausimax

Hi,

Kurt, thanks for your support, I don't really get that discouraged, just pi#@~d off when I have to quit on something, it is hard to admit defeat to yourself, but the important thing is to get it right for our clients who are I am sure are all anxiously waiting the return of their restored images, and this last one I could not get to work. I think it needs cleaning up (like you did on it ) more than trying to actually restore - and I am not sure just how to achieve that.

Glenna, I think they all overwhelm me, you look at them in the gallery and think I can't do anything with these, then you pick out the best of the bad lot and when you get it you just sort of wear it down.
I am afraid I don't have a "work method" mostly I just start off playing around, trying different things to see what may work, then suddenly you discover you have it half done, and decide that you are now "working" on it. I usually start with the easy bits and work my way in, its amazing how after you work with an image for a while you begin to see so much more detail in the damage.
The bit that I find difficult is the detail you can see in the full image on your screen that you can't see when you have it full size for working on.

Keith, you are right about PS being a steep learning curve, I have no idea what half the features of PS do or how to use them, and unfortunately I am not a good student, I find it difficult to sit and work through tutorials and such like where I could perhaps learn more, yet I can spend endless hours working on these images - I probably have to spend the endless hours because I haven't sat down and learned how to do things in the first place. That said I find it a fulfilling hobby and a good way to fill the time particularly during summer when most of the time it is just to hot to be outside doing anything and after the you have the gear not too expensive, I used to do woodworking as a hobby but these days decent timber is just to expensive, especially when you can buy it ready made cheaper than you can buy the materials.

Max

Wisdom is having a well considered opinion .... and being smart enough to keep it to yourself!     MJS

"Life" is what happens while you are planning other things!

cmpentecost

Max,

I've been working in PS for 5+ years, and still feel like I have barely scratched the surface.  I love Photoshop....it's such a great outlet for me, and....a lot of family and friends have come to rely on me to "fix" their bad photos!  However, many of the photos in OPR have created challenges for me unlike anything I've ever done before.  Photoshop is such a HUGE program, and I've finally accepted I can't know it all, or more likely, remember it all, in working with these photos.  The one thing about these forums though, is what one person knows well, the other person may not.  That, my friend, is where you are valuable, because you have the knowledge to help someone who is in a challenged position.  There may be multiple solutions to a problem, or one, but the more suggestions that are given, the more likely that the volunteer will find a solution to his or her problem.  I'm glad you are a part of OPR, and trust me, that in that you'll continue to improve in PS as you work more photos.  I certainly have!   :hug:

Christine

GP

Max,

I just threw in the towel on my latest photo too.  :(   
I can't find a way to deal with all the green stuff on the photo and lack the knowledge to improve the damage.

Glenna, I'm now in chapter 11 of the LAB book and not much wiser than before. I need to practice all the tricks he is talking about, but who has the time...? It is not easy to learn everything there is to learn in Photoshop.

Gerlinde
PS CS5, PSE9, XP, Windows 7 -64bit

Ausimax



Christine,

Your right PS is a big program, so much to learn, I try and confine myself to things pertaining to photography and restoration, otherwise I would just get lost in the jungle, and there are so many ways to do the same thing, thats the beauty of this forum you get so many options to chose from to deal with problems.

Gerlinde,

Sorry you too had to send your photo back, real blow to the ego isn't it, especially after you have spent hours trying.
I hate the ones with stains over them, they look as though you could get a rag and just wipe all the gunk off, Oh! that it were so easy.

Max

Wisdom is having a well considered opinion .... and being smart enough to keep it to yourself!     MJS

"Life" is what happens while you are planning other things!

kjohnson

Ego vs a lumpy noggin though. I'll turn in my ego. I tend to go with the notion that whatever I can do will make it look better than it did originally. 

Ausimax

Hi,

This is my latest photo, first B&W I've done with OPR, have to learn a whole new skill set.





Comments and suggestions, please.

Max
Wisdom is having a well considered opinion .... and being smart enough to keep it to yourself!     MJS

"Life" is what happens while you are planning other things!

glennab

#40
Hi Max

She looks great.  The only pick I have is the top of the trees.  I think a little softness around their edges would make them look more realistic.

I downloaded the photo and first of all did an auto levels, which gave a little more contrast, bringing out overall detail. Then I made a slightly loose selection around the woman's face, hair and neck where it's deeply shadowed and was able to pull up a bit more of her features by using levels again.  Deepened the black a tad, and then lightened the midtones.  It's a fine balance, but it's possible to get a little more detail on that side.

Glenna

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)

Ausimax


Hi Glenna,

Tried what you said, the levels worked well on the lady and foreground, made the background and trees a bit dark, adjusted them separately and they then looked OK, got a little out of the shadows on the face, couldn't get much before it started to get grainy then again that is how the original would have looked, these are definitely "snap shots".

Thanks don't know what I would do without your eyes, will send it home now.


Max

Wisdom is having a well considered opinion .... and being smart enough to keep it to yourself!     MJS

"Life" is what happens while you are planning other things!

cmpentecost


Ausimax


Thanks Christine, not that it qualified for a high degree of difficulty, if the people aren't damaged they are reasonably easy. :huh:

Max
Wisdom is having a well considered opinion .... and being smart enough to keep it to yourself!     MJS

"Life" is what happens while you are planning other things!

Ausimax



Hi,

I need help with the shirt and tie colours for this one, I know nothing about US military uniforms.








Max
Wisdom is having a well considered opinion .... and being smart enough to keep it to yourself!     MJS

"Life" is what happens while you are planning other things!