Honest opinion wanted on this one

[Robyn]

Top version was how it came from a professional photographer. Very bad I thought! Bottom version after I had played with it.

Have I made it better or worse? Any other suggestions on how to improve the original image.

http://www.pixentral.com/show.php?picture=1aA8a0WTQkmpviZcXLDeHRzqMn3

[kayser]

Hi Robyn,

Whatever you did with the lighting/shadows on the faces looks better than the original.

What is the green colored thing next to the boy? Is that part of the blanket thing or part of his clothes? My eye was drawn to it, away from the image, so you might consider cloning it out if it's not what he's wearing.:)

[Pauline]

Robyn I do prefer your more colourful background. The top one looks so washed out.

[Robyn]

Kay,

That a cushion he is sitting on. Get rid of it altogether you think? I can see what you mean when I have another look at it. That's why fresh eyes are so good!

[kayser]

I think I would try getting rid of it and see what it looks like. I think the rest of the colors all blend together nicely, and that sticks out. But, I'm certainly not the expert on this, that's just what I see when I look at the image.

[Robyn]

Thank you Kay. Opinions and advice are what I'm seeking.

[w7vp]

Very nicely done Robyn. I think adding the blue cushion to the left of the boy gives it nice balance. The background is more interesting though it might be just a hair softer.

I especially like what you have done to the faces and I would probably use a bit of healing brush on the boy's leg too.

Very nice.:)

Bill

[Shari]

Robyn,
I like your version better. I think there is more depth. I didn't mind the green cushion - I thought it added colour and pulls out the bit of green in his shirt. Just a different way of seeing things.
They are beautiful children. I think YOU should take the photos. The vision in pink of your granddaughter is very special and beautiful.
Shari

[Robyn]

Bill,

Thanks for the suggestion about the leg......another thing I didn't see.

Re the background.......I tend to think it's a bit busy.....I did lower the opacity on the cloud layer as I have a white layer under that. I'm still not sure on that background though. I'll try lowering the opacity even more. Any other background suggestions would be most welcome.

[SCRAPPYGIRL]

Robyn,
I really love what you've done with the background. I don't mind the green pillow, but that's just my opinion, everyone see's something different I guess. Beautiful children, love her curls!!
SG

[w7vp]

BTW Robyn
My son David (see him in my gallery) was in Hobart a couple of year ago and did not bring me back any pix. Coulda shot the kid.:mad: Still Last weekend was great camping with David and a friend of his from Perth who he met climbing in Thailand. Small world eh?

Bill

[kevq]

Robyn,
I'm sorry to say that I don't really like your background.
I would change my foreground colour to the blue of the girls dress and my background colour to the blue of the boys shirt, then apply a linear gradient to the photo. I've just tried it and it looks good.

Kev.

[Robyn]

Thanks Kev,

Don't be sorry. It's exactly the sort of comments I am looking for. If you read further up the thread I commented that I didn't particularly like the background........and even if I did, I want honesty and I value everyone's ideas.

I was thinking along those lines anyway.....but have been working on another project and hadn't got round to trying it. Big thanks.

[kevq]

Robyn,
I did a quick alteration just to show you what I meant.
You can add texture to the bground.
Hope it gives you some ideas of what you can do.
Kev:) :)

http://img157.imageshack.us/img157/6981/bkgrd9rw.th.jpg (http://img157.imageshack.us/my.php?image=bkgrd9rw.jpg)

[Wendy]

Hi Robyn ...

I posted a reply to you early this morning but it seems to havee vanished :confused: :confused:

By the way I like Kevs new background too :)

Here I go again ...

I really like the way you have balanced up your image with the cushion ... it makes it look more finished and I like the background you have done too but I think that with those colours in it then it does indeed look too strong. I reduced the opacity quite a lot until it was really pale

... the other suggestion I have is that their shadows are a little too heavy for me ... they are quite near the wall so their shadow would be small and soft. I couldn't do that so I removed them altogether ...


http://img126.imageshack.us/img126/5251/two5ax.th.jpg (http://img126.imageshack.us/my.php?image=two5ax.jpg)

Wendy

[MikeH]

Hi Robyn,

I have to say that I prefer the original to just about everything you and others did to it...

Your background is distracting and the subjects blend into Kev's too much. The subjects need to stand out from the background, but on every version but the original my eye wasn't drawn to the children.

The shadows you added are also distracting and create the sort of flash effect that the lighting in the studio was set up to avoid. If you're looking for a portrait type shot then I wouldn't add any shadow at all.

Balancing the cushion seems ok. I have mixed views about using the cloning or healing tools on the boy's leg.

Mike

[Punkinsmom]

I like your background better than the original. You have such cute grand babies!

[mel]

Hi Robyn, I have to agree with Mike on this one.......I also think the background in the original is alot better that all the other ones I saw. The background you made seemed to distract me from the children..........just too busy for my personal taste. Your grandchildren are beautiful and should stand out!!!

I do like what you did to the cushion, it balanced it out better.

Mel

[NMarti]

Robyn,
I'm a little late in joining in but in my opinion the background might look good with a very softly hued gradient. I wouldn't use a huge range of color - just a soft blend of perhaps 2 or 3 shades of the same color. It should perhaps be a radial or a linear with a spotlight effect - very soft - behind the children. I like the way you extended the cushion to fill the frame. It looked unbalanced before. The green cushion - I can take it or leave it. It does add color but also is a little distracting.

[Punkinsmom]

I have to admit I like Kev's background better.

[lindajay]

Robyn, what if you turned the green cushion to the same purple as the rest of what they're sitting on? Then it would look like they were both sitting on the same purple cushion/blanket. May or may not look good, but I'd try it, if I were you. Really cute kids, Robyn!:)

--Linda

[NMarti]

Robin,
Here is what I meant - I used a radial gradient dragging from the patch on the shirt to the outer left edge just up from his shoulder - this takes a few drags to get the position right. I just used the simple lighter purple gradient in elements without any adjustments. I then added a sandstone texture to give just a bit of texture to the background - though you can't see that much in the thumbnail. Sorry for the sloppy selection - I'm working from my laptop.

http://img124.imageshack.us/img124/7735/test19im.th.jpg (http://img124.imageshack.us/my.php?image=test19im.jpg)

[Bandid34]

Robyn,

I am new here and as such my opinion may not count too much, but I do think your version is better. I particularly like the added purple cushion at the bottom left. I think it completes the picture quite well.

Esteban.

[Wendy]

Hi Robyn ...

I think that maybe you will have to make your own mind up on this one ... as everybody seems to like a different option :D :D

Wendy

[Pauline]

I was thinking the same thing Wendy!! :rolleyes: Keep in mind who you are doing it for Robyn. It's what you like, but you've also been given some suggestions.

[Robyn]

I've just got out of bed and I'm amazed to find all these ideas and suggestions. I'd like to thank you all very much for the time you have taken, especially those of you who have posted some examples - I really appreciate this. This thread really does demonstrate that there is no right or wrong way of doing things.....as Pauline has said the right way is what is right for you.

Having said all that, I think I'll go with a soft gradient (not very much colour maybe with a soft texture), no shadow, leave the purple cushion on the left. The green cushion - I'm not sure of - probably take it out.

Thank you all for your HONEST opinions.:)

[Wendy]

Hi Robyn ...

Its going to make a really nice image ... they are just so cute. :)

Wendy

[MikeH]

the right way is what is right for you

Robyn,

With something like this I would absolutely agree...:)

Mike

[Robyn]

I think this is close to what I'll settle for. Positive or negative comments welcome. Thanks


http://img136.imageshack.us/img136/372/sallyandandrewstudiophoto24ga.th.jpg (http://img136.imageshack.us/my.php?image=sallyandandrewstudiophoto24ga.jpg)

[NMarti]

Robyn
That's just beautiful. I really like it now. It's uncluttered and simple and allows the children to shine. Very nice job. I would never know it wasn't the original shot. You did the edits very well.

[kevq]

Robyn,
now it looks really terrific. I like the new cushion layout.
The kiddies (gorgeous) really stand out.
Well done!!
Kev:) :)

[MikeH]

Robyn,

Now that is excellent... much better than any of the other versions.

Mike

[Robyn]

Nancy, thank you very much.

I've got a difficult project now. My sister's old dog has just died. The only photo she has is quite small and some years old. She has her hands around the dog. So - get rid of the hands, clone in some dog's fur, etc. etc.......It is going to be a challenge.

This morning I went for a walk in a couple of our local parks and took about 200 photos, a lot of which ended up in the delete bin. A couple of the flowers I took, I've "modified" just a tad.......just put them in my gallery.

Edit.....thanks Kev and Mike for your positive comments.

[NMarti]

Robyn,
I'm sure you will do a wonderful job with it. Your work is always very beautiful. Your gallery is one of my favorites. I like the way you keep the images the focal point of the work and enhance / edit around them. Almost makes you forget the edits have been done. Very nice!

[virgo1]

Robyn,
You did a beautiful on the final edit. Your grandkids are so cute.:)
Eva;)

[Wendy]

Hi Robyn ...

Oh I do like the final version ... its so nice :)

Wendy

[kayser]

Good job, Robyn! It really looks good, I think your family will be happy with it. Those projects are sometimes the hardest, when the picture you have isn't BAD but could be better, but the changes have to be just right. And, you did a good job wading through all our comments and figuring out just what would work.

[lindajay]

Oh, Robyn -- so nice! The colors really compliment the children instead of running competition. I love it. (If I could suggest one teensy-weensy thing -- I can still see the green cushion peeking between the children. Can you "purple" it? ;) ). And I agree that your gallery is so nice.

--Linda

[Norm F]

Wow. Great job Robyn. My head would have been spinning. With all of those terrific suggestions, I'd still be wondering where to go but you've pulled off a great image that everyone is impressed by. Good job.

[timteamouse]

Top version was how it came from a professional photographer. Very bad I thought! Bottom version after I had played with it.

Have I made it better or worse? Any other suggestions on how to improve the original image.

http://www.pixentral.com/show.php?picture=1aA8a0WTQkmpviZcXLDeHRzqMn3


I wouldn't shadowed the kids, and make your background look like was the real thing when the photo was taken.

From a quick view, it looks like it was edited because of the shadowing, you want your photo to look like you can't tell if it was even edited.

That's the goal - right.

[explorerwinds]

Hi, I reviewed over all the options. At first I did not like the purple, because I thought it downplayed the fact that the lovely little girl's eyes are so bright blue. I then noticed she has purple in her clothing, which looks great now in your final version. I went ahead and tinkered with the pic for a second. I upped the contrast and brightness slightly and lightened her eyes after I reduced the noise then sharpened it. I also used the blur under their eyes and on different places to bring out their eyes. I also changed the overall color on the lowest setting and decreased the blue, which made their skin look more tan. I toned down the green in the pic also...just to show kind of what I thought I would do to the pic if it were on my sister's children.

Both children are lovely and this is a great pic.

Your latest version:
http://i49.photobucket.com/albums/f299/explorerld3/sallyandandrewstudiophoto24gayoural.jpg

Where I made the above alterations to mention the contrast/brightness (my mom says she does not like it when I raise them...so it some like it and others do not.)
http://i49.photobucket.com/albums/f299/explorerld3/sallyandandrewstudiophoto24gaaltere.jpg

The picture you have is lovely.

[Robyn]

Thank you, that looks really good. It might all be a bit beyond me.....I'm a relative beginner........I wouldn't even be aware of most of these steps that you've done.......but I'll give it a go. Thanks for the time you have put into it.

[explorerwinds]

Thank you, that looks really good. It might all be a bit beyond me.....I'm a relative beginner........I wouldn't even be aware of most of these steps that you've done.......but I'll give it a go. Thanks for the time you have put into it.

I think I opened the filters then clicked Reduce Noice...then clicked sharpen.

I clicked on Enhance...adjust light...then brightness/contrast...when the box came up I made the top 2 and the bottom 5.

Clicked on Enhance again and selected Adjust Color then Color Variations. Make sure the Amount is set on the farthest left. Make sure it is on Midtone...and click the one that says Decrease Blue.

Then madnify the picture several times till her eyes are very big. Click on Selection brush tool and make the size small enough so that you only click once on each of her eyes. Then go back to the Enhanse...adjust light...brightness/contrast and make it 2 for both.

I think I then used the dashed box to make small boxed around different places under their eyes, chin, and cheeks each time clicking on Blur under the Filters area.

I believe that was just about what I did...I noticed you have already mastered the clone and can change the colors of things. I guess this was about what I did. Hope this helps. It is just a lot of clicking. Then, compare it to the original. It is a cute pic of the kids. I have had PSE for a little over a half a year now...before that I had PhotoDeluxe Home Edition 3.0. I love Elements a lot better!

[Robyn]

Thank you very much. I will have a "play".