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ctfchallenge | all galleries >> CTF Challenge 165- Big Color >> CTF Challenge 165- Eligible > Blacksmith house
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8/1/08 Bill Warren

Blacksmith house

I like shooting little houses and this image is my best to date. It's tiny, there are minimal ground distractions and the sky/clouds are great, and then there's that peeling paint.


other sizes: small medium original auto
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ctfchallenge11-Aug-2008 02:40
I actually like this version better Bill. If you read through my original description and what I posted in the thread the whole idea is to find a setting that has color that gives a big impression and not make a setting look like big color through processing. Had you read all that, I expect this would be the version you would have originally posted and I would not have felt a duty to say anything except "nice image Bill" and the comments you complain about I would not have needed to make. Please consider that before suggesting I am being a bully here. I have worked hard trying my best to be a good host for "all" concerned.
~Brent
Bill Warren10-Aug-2008 18:12
I’ve gone ahead and reposted the non-HDR version of this shot and reframed it so that some might notice the change. In addition, I’ve held down the saturation below my taste for what constitutes “big color” to be compliant with your defintion of natural. For days I’ve been torn between doing this or just taking down the shot. The reason is your last 2 comments Brent have made me feel like a cheater. So I can’t take your advice about no worries because this experience has given me plenty of that.
ctfchallenge07-Aug-2008 23:12
No worries Bill, you are of course free to post whichever version you like. I just felt it was my duty as host to at least say something. Many here have followed the challenge from the start reading the original definition and my additional descriptions in the challenge thread, and have already posted using constraint in the spirit of what I have communicated. I just didn’t want those people to feel slighted. Good luck with your image :-)
~Brent
Bill Warren07-Aug-2008 21:41
The original is a single exposure (and not multiples) that was run through mild HDR and tone mapping. And it is certainly not amped up in the typical HDR fad sense.My just minimal PS version is very close to this one. Bill
ctfchallenge07-Aug-2008 17:30
Bill if you do post an off centered version, please consider doing it with one exposure and no HDR treatment. I am regretting I didn’t specifically list one exposure as a requirement in the original topic description, though my using the word "natural" would imply that to many. I can’t disallow the use of HDR after the fact, but I did express my hopes it would not be used among other effects in the challenge thread right here.
http://forums.dpreview.com/forums/read.asp?forum=1010&message=28796727
To me the use of HDR gives one a “leg up” over the competition the same way turning up your amp louder than everyone else at a guitar audition might. I would hate to see a scenario where everyone starts cranking up their amps to the point where ears start to bleed. It is my hope that the image that ultimately wins will be a classic image that will look good many years from now. I don’t think I’m alone in viewing HDR as a fad that even the masses will tire of eventually. I hope you understand where I am coming from :-)
~Brent
Bill Warren07-Aug-2008 15:34
Yes a small world it is on pBase angioman. Brent I have tried the image both centered and off centered and like both. I may repost it off center and am open to toning down the saturation a tad.I pushed it up because it's my taste and the competion is Big Color. I am interested in what others think. Yes there is a touch of HDR processing here but the real key is the underexposure of a couple of steps. Goes back to my shooting slides day. It is the way to go for me when shooting color in bright sun. Bill
ctfchallenge07-Aug-2008 11:44
whoops - the unnamed comment below was me. - angioman
Rod 07-Aug-2008 08:10
I think you said it all Bill:-)
ctfchallenge07-Aug-2008 03:57
My favorite combination of color in a picture. Yellow, green, and blue always a keeper. -COAmature
ctfchallenge07-Aug-2008 03:40
Cool picture.
theFly
aam1234 07-Aug-2008 03:39
The plot thickens :)
Btw, who left the comment below this one.
ctfchallenge07-Aug-2008 02:46
Wonderful shot Bill. Gotta share a "small world" story! Right after seeing your entry here, I read an email from my brother (sent yesterday). He listed 5 different interesting galleries he recently came across. Yours was the first listed, and the first gallery I viewed was your "Light Tales", with this as your first pic. Spooky!! What are the odds?
aam1234 07-Aug-2008 02:15
Excellent.
ctfchallenge06-Aug-2008 22:24
I agree with you about the assets you claim the image has in your description Bill, but maybe those attributes should be left for the viewers to mention thus giving them incentive to comment. This is a striking image yet seems unreal in some way to me- is this an HDR image? I like the inclusion of the house shadow yet wonder if this would work better if the house weren't centered in the composition- assuming there isn't some obstacle out of frame to the right. The colors do look nice if maybe a little too heavily saturated and I'm a sucker for peeling paint :-)
~Brent