FocalPoint

More HDR: Before & After

newporthotel

Photograph by Robert Lachman ? 2010 – Newport Beach, California

It seems like I am getting into the “I need to find a sunset, time for 3-exposures, what’s my next HDR photo mode?” Could it be an addiction? It’s not a surprise when you see the results. Lets face it, one single image just doesn’t reflect what your eyes see. When you take a close you look at this image of the Doryman’s Inn in Newport Beach (above) at sunset, the ability to meld three different image exposures into one starts to close that gap. Of course, you need a tripod, so it really isn’t going to work for your kid’s soccer or party photographs.

It’s pretty much the same settings from my last HDR (High Dynamic Range) post, which included combining three image exposures taken with my Canon G10 camera and a tripod. The photo was first processed with Photomatix software. Next, I imported the photograph into Photoshop to make a few levels adjustments and then moved on to the FocalPoint plug-in by onOne Software to add a dark vignette and soften the focus around the hotel.

FocalPoint is on my short list of favorite Photoshop plug-ins and is on sale at onOne software website until April 30, 2010. The price is down to $100. You can read my review of the software by clicking here. A great resource for learning HDR is photographer Trey Ratcliff’s website Stuck in Customs.

Below is a photograph from a single correct exposure of the scene without any adjustments. Let me know what you think. -RL

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(BEFORE) A single correct exposure of the scene without any adjustments.

iPhone Mannequin

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iPhone Photograph by Robert Lachman ? 2010

A mannequin in a store window along Broadway Street in downtown Los Angeles captured with my iPhone a few days ago with an assist from the Hipstamatic app and processed with Photoshop CS4 and another one of my favorites OnOne’s FocalPoint Plug-in. It’s subtle, but check out the way FocalPoint blurred out the edges and brings all the focus to the Mannequin’s mouth and eyes.

Have a nice Sunday. I’m working later this afternoon. -RL

 

Around the Internet

Engadget
Ricoh GXR camera system swaps
out the sensor along with the lens

By Paul Miller

Ricoh’s been getting some love on its spendy GR series of late, but this new direction for what’s apparently slated to debut as a new “GXR” system is a wild one indeed. Basically, the camera comes in two parts, a body with an LCD, storage and accessory shoe (which works with an electronic viewfinder), and different lens / sensor combos which can be slotted into the body. READ MORE…

ononeplugin1
OneOn Software
The Plug-In Suite 5 is now being offered at $399 which is $200 off on Pre-Orders until November 10, 2009. It includes two of my favorite Photoshop plug-ins FocalPoint and PhotoFrame 4.5 Professional Edition.
FOR MORE INFORMATION…