Challenge: Visual Puns (Advanced Editing IV)
Camera: Fujifilm FinePix 3800
Location: Florida
Date: Dec 14, 2005
Aperture: f/2.8
ISO: 100
Shutter: 1/5
Galleries: Humorous, Still Life
Date Uploaded: Dec 12, 2005
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-rotated
-gamma
-color adjustment
-softness application
-spot editing to even out glitter on backs with a tiny bit of burn on bottom left & right of dress and mans right hand.
-turned b/w while preserving green glitter
-cropped
-small frame
I had a million ideas, but most I got from the web. A few I will mention here---
I was going to do "Rock Concert" and have a bunch of stones with googly eyes holding matches for candles, but I already caught my hair on fire doing the Candlelight challenge *smile*.
I thought of "Soap Opera", where I was going to have a bar of soap with a wooden head attached wearing a viking hat and long yellow braids, standing in front of a draped curtain and on stage. Mouth drawn open like singing. My problem was both the viking hat, and the hair. Not having access to yellow yarn, I would have had to buy a whole spool of it just to use a tiny amount. Wal-Mart sells no doll hair where I live. For the viking hat, I did find something to use for the cap part, but not the horns. So as I walked around the store, I changed my mind back and forth and decided on what you see, but.......
I was going to do "sky scraper", using not what I saw on the web, which was a window squeegy, but a cake spatula. But the sky wasn't doing what I wanted it to for the shot.
I thought of "Butter-fly" with a stick of butter soaring through the air, or attached with string and spot edited out later, but thought it wouldn't seem to be flying unless I attached wings to it, or had a model to use throwing it, which I didn't have.
I was also going to do "Apeel-ing", using a peeled fruit, but I thought it would be boring and right up there with a few birds on a wire and calling it "bird watching".
Soooooo...given all that ...Here is the how to on what you finally are seeing:
In my sleep, as I usually go to bed thinking of what to do for the new challenges, I came up on my own idea for the "Greenback Wedding" (Soap Opera was my own too though), and decided to go take the trip to Wal-Mart. I bought a wedding couple, some green glitter, and a 1/2 yard of glittery material, and I was on my way home. I had made my decision, and that was THAT. LOL....
I took out my glue gun and some parchment paper to catch the glitter, and decided to not do their entire backs, but just outline the tux and the ladies back and bow. I like how they both come to the same levels in the back.
Originally I was going to let her veil fall to the back, but decided it would look better in front and wouldn't cover up the green. Also appropriate for the bride to have veil in front till the "kiss".
Once all the glitter was applied, I did my normal routine of inside shots and outside shots. I used some things around the house to perch them on and the front material backdrop is draped over a tall Santa.
About 50 shots were taken in all. A record for me. Usually I take about 200 shots before I get one I like. :P Ironically enough, I ended up using one of the first 10 shots I did, so the rest was a waste of time.
I didn't like the outside shots much, as the sky turned out gorgeous, but took away from the visual pun. Since the idea was to have the backs really stand out, I decided to use the plainer background I used for the inside shots.
After I made a few photo choices, off to PSP I went for trial and error. I had it all nice and sharp originally in raw, but most wedding shots have that softness added, and once I added that I could see it was really making the photo come to life just as I wanted it too. I wanted more softness, but found it took away from the glitter effect. Since it still looked nice at this level of softness, I kept it.
I then turned it to b/w while preserving the green glitter. Once that was done, I evened out the edges of the glitter on both their backs, making for a cleaner look. I then used dodge a burn in a few areas to complete the look.
I still wasn't sure the green was showing enough, (I guess I had just worked with it too long and couldn't tell anymore LOL..) but lightening it more was making the white on the dress look blown and the glitter too blurred, so I called over my husband and he smiled when he saw this shot.
My husband is blind in one eye and has limited vision in the other, and he said he can see the green nicely and the shot looks great. (He also says he worries about me sometimes when I come home with things like wedding couples, glitter, and ....well, it is better than a bag of rocks and googly eyes for "Rock Concert"! LOL...). Anyway, he says if HE can see the green, then anyone can!
So, here you have it. "Greenback Wedding" - the finished product! Hope you like it!!
Rose |
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