SSS Posted July 16, 2009 Share Posted July 16, 2009 Ok, I'll say now I'm very very basic when it comes to photography LOL so please bare with me. I want to know how to get those photos where the subject itself seems sort of highlighted and the background is a little bit darker... is this something that is photoshopped or is it a photography technique?? I wanted to google but then since I didnt know what its called that proved difficult For an example of what I mean, Ruthless' photos of Pax's BC in the main bit of 'photos photos photos' shows what I am after.. http://www.dolforums.com.au/index.php?showtopic=171680 This one... lol. I have a canon eos 400D with the standard twin lens kit. Thanks for reading through my waffle Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Snap Posted July 16, 2009 Share Posted July 16, 2009 I'll give you the best of what I know, not being an expert and all If you shoot in manual mode you select what you expose, so when you correctly expose your subject it may result in the background becoming darker or lighter. Manual exposure works by trying to get the light metre in your viewfinder to sit on zero by changing the apperture, shutter speed and ISO settings. In photoshop a very common and effective technique is vignetting- darkened corners. This 'highlights' the main subject, drawing your eye to it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ripley Posted July 17, 2009 Share Posted July 17, 2009 You can also use curves, masks etc. Everyone has a personal style and taste as to what they do. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chezzyr Posted July 17, 2009 Share Posted July 17, 2009 Many ways to skin a cat - so they say. Darkened edges or areas could be achieved by vignetting or 'burning'. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ruthless Posted July 17, 2009 Share Posted July 17, 2009 I asked a similar question before http://www.dolforums.com.au/index.php?show...amp;hl=ruthless Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chezzyr Posted July 17, 2009 Share Posted July 17, 2009 Another thought. Not sure if you can still get them but you used to be able to get filters (Cokin etc) that would create different effects - including vignettes/masks, sunsets, star bursts, diffusers etc. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kja Posted July 17, 2009 Share Posted July 17, 2009 Lightroom also has adjustment tools - you can use gradients or brushes to apply tweaks exactly where you want them and can control how much very easily. I just found a reference to this new (well, to me) FREE application that is like a Jr Lightroom or Lightroom Lite - might be of interest to some. Heck, it's free, can't hurt to try it! RAWTherapee You can also get fancy schmancy and use external/off camera lighting to highlight your subject and darken your background. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ripley Posted July 17, 2009 Share Posted July 17, 2009 I had to amend a whole lot of black dog shots last night. Next month I'll be photographing entirely white subjects. ;) more Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SSS Posted July 17, 2009 Author Share Posted July 17, 2009 (edited) Thankyou everyone Will do some searching on vignetting... and keep practicing to try and get my exposure right I'm slowly getting there with manual function (slowly slowly slowly :D ) And thanks Kja I will check out that link - I'll always take something thats free :D ETA: Here is my very first, kinda dodgy attempt at vignette with PS Oscar is all class of course, grass in his ears and everything ;) Edited July 17, 2009 by muffincav Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PossumCorner Posted July 18, 2009 Share Posted July 18, 2009 Most people doing this as a photoshop technique use a form of draganizing of one kind or another. There is a tutorial on it at http://www.metacafe.com/watch/735941/draga...oshop_tutorial/ it's worth watching right through. So many people use this now it is becoming a bit passe, (like selective colouring, a good gimmick but you get over it unless it is really special: or "out of frame" which were fun but get boring). There are some magic effects with the draganizing though so it's nice to be able to use it when you want. Any kind of warming and background darkening and a bit of desaturation while boosting the eyes is often credited to Dragan who originated this look when I guess it was all a bit more difficult to achieve. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SSS Posted July 18, 2009 Author Share Posted July 18, 2009 Thankyou PossumCorner, I'm watching that tutorial now Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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