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Mushroom!
Mushroom!
Breeee123


Photograph Information Photographer's Comments
Challenge: Hidden Gem -- 1,000th Challenge! (Advanced Editing VII*)
Camera: Nikon D3
Lens: Nikon AF-S NIKKOR 24-70mm f/2.8G ED
Location: San Pedro, CA
Date: Mar 4, 2008
Date Uploaded: Mar 4, 2009

[Mar. 12th, 2009 02:35:07 PM]

This was from the March Macro side challenge last year. Here's the original:

[thumb]654802[/thumb]

[Mar. 17th, 2009 08:53:46 PM]

More than a few people have asked how I did this, so on the off chance anyone checks back to read the details, I'll try to remember how it went down.

I used a wide angle lens and positioned my D3 on a tripod about 2 feet away from the large glass vase, which I filled with water. I hung up a blue paper background behind the vase, and put a yellow paper under the vase (which caused the yellow reflections on the surface of the water). The lighting was an experiment as I had never tried to light glass before, and my first few attempts produced nothing but glare. Finally, I did some research online and found that you can't point your strobes directly at the glass, you have to point your strobes at the background, and let the light bounce off the background and hit the back of your glass object, illuminating it from behind. This worked beautifully -it seemed like magic when I discovered this technique, as it was so simple and effective.

My camera and the vase were close enough to each other so that I could drop the orange in with my left hand and hold down the shutter of my D3 with my right hand. On continuous shutter mode, I was able to capture 9 frames per second, which gave me an advantage in catching that perfect moment, but it still took me 2 days and over 400 shots to get this one. This kind of set up is really an exercise in patience.

Post processing: I enhanced the colors and lighting, flipped the image upside down to create the mushroom illusion, and I sharpened the orange and water, while using a slight guassian blur on the blue background.

Statistics
Place: 60 out of 1129
Avg (all users): 6.5801
Avg (commenters): 7.5000
Avg (participants): 6.5780
Avg (non-participants): 6.5915
Views since voting: 1696
Views during voting: 773
Votes: 462
Comments: 90
Favorites: 14 (view)

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AuthorThread
 10/07/2009 11:54:24 AM
Thanks for sharing your technique on that truly remarkable shot. I admire your patience.

Walter
  Photographer found comment helpful.
 10/07/2009 11:18:45 AM
Excellent work. I love it..
DFP
  Photographer found comment helpful.
 03/22/2009 02:50:15 PM
Fabulous shot - wonderfully Mushroom like.
  Photographer found comment helpful.
 03/22/2009 12:45:30 PM
Thanks for the how to. I should have figured it was flipped. Again awesome photo with a great finish in the best of the best challenge!
  Photographer found comment helpful.
 03/20/2009 01:45:30 AM
Awesome!!! Thanks for the in-depth explanation of how you did it. The detail is amazing and flipping it really makes it a stunner!
  Photographer found comment helpful.
 03/18/2009 02:24:54 PM
Superb and thanks for the explanation. It still took a while but I get it now. Thanks and congratualtions on 60th place out 1100+.
  Photographer found comment helpful.
 03/18/2009 01:23:12 AM
Thanks for the 'how you did it' ...... Fantastic shot!!!
  Photographer found comment helpful.
 Comments Made During the Challenge
03/17/2009 11:35:37 PM
Brilliantly executed --- and beautiful as well. This one begs to be a poster. Looking forward to hearing how you did this. Wow. One of my favorites in the challenge.
  Photographer found comment helpful.
 03/17/2009 10:23:42 PM
Fantastic texture on the underside of the 'shroom, beautiful colors.
  Photographer found comment helpful.
 03/17/2009 10:13:52 PM
Well done!
  Photographer found comment helpful.
 03/17/2009 10:05:02 PM
I love this. Just excellent all the way around. Very good.
  Photographer found comment helpful.
 03/17/2009 08:59:11 PM
Nice Composition and thoughtful..
  Photographer found comment helpful.
 03/17/2009 07:29:09 PM
Cool effect, nice timing and focus.
  Photographer found comment helpful.
 03/17/2009 06:23:29 PM
very fun
  Photographer found comment helpful.
 03/17/2009 01:43:15 PM
Wow, this is so cool, I can't wait to read how you did this! Very colorful and attractive.
  Photographer found comment helpful.
 03/17/2009 02:10:33 AM
Fantastic.
  Photographer found comment helpful.
 03/16/2009 11:04:20 PM
Fabulous flipped! The colors are marvelous. really. The sharpness sings! Good for you!
  Photographer found comment helpful.
 03/16/2009 10:31:41 PM
Whoosh! I can almost hear the sound. Can't wait to read the details of how this was achieved.
  Photographer found comment helpful.
 03/16/2009 09:46:33 PM
Great focus and stop motion. I like textures and color
  Photographer found comment helpful.
 03/16/2009 06:12:43 PM
Nice shot. Clear vivid colors. - 9
  Photographer found comment helpful.
 03/16/2009 04:40:37 PM
just wonderful.... 9
  Photographer found comment helpful.
 03/16/2009 03:30:20 PM
WOW .. !!!.. AMAZING .. love the colours .. love the incredible mercury look of the water .. this is fantastic .. !!!!! ..:)
  Photographer found comment helpful.
 03/16/2009 03:01:07 PM
A classic - done well. The colors are a bit strong, but technically this is very good.
  Photographer found comment helpful.
 03/16/2009 01:13:47 PM
This is too cool! Love the bright colors!
  Photographer found comment helpful.
 03/16/2009 06:42:41 AM
Amazing colors! I love how you did this!
  Photographer found comment helpful.
 03/16/2009 05:28:33 AM
My fav. 10
  Photographer found comment helpful.
 03/16/2009 03:15:53 AM
Well captured and presented.
  Photographer found comment helpful.
 03/16/2009 12:41:09 AM
Excellent effect and color.
  Photographer found comment helpful.
 03/16/2009 12:37:23 AM
While shots like this are a DPC cliche, this one is really good.
  Photographer found comment helpful.
 03/15/2009 10:50:58 PM
What a catch! Well processed. Impressive.
  Photographer found comment helpful.
 03/15/2009 09:27:10 PM
Beautiful! Nice combination of colors.
  Photographer found comment helpful.
 03/15/2009 07:18:00 PM
I've tried these fruit drop shots and they aren't as easy as they look - so kudos to you for a well done one! Rotating it makes for a very interesting image too. Love the colors!
  Photographer found comment helpful.
 03/15/2009 02:06:47 PM
How was this done. This is awesome!
  Photographer found comment helpful.
 03/15/2009 12:36:35 PM
Nice! Great use of colors, nicely timed capture.
  Photographer found comment helpful.
 03/15/2009 12:22:09 PM
Tricky but interesting. Will be inteesting to see how you did it.
  Photographer found comment helpful.
 03/15/2009 12:12:17 PM
Great idea... 180 degrees :)
  Photographer found comment helpful.
 03/15/2009 12:02:44 PM
Well done, great advertising shot
  Photographer found comment helpful.
 03/15/2009 10:54:54 AM
i have been trying to fgure this shot out. then it came to me, you flipped the image! i can be so dense sometimes... nice clarity! 9
  Photographer found comment helpful.
 03/15/2009 10:21:06 AM
That's pretty cool, so sharp and clear too.
  Photographer found comment helpful.
 03/15/2009 09:29:17 AM
Awesome picture and I really want to know 'how you did it' after the challenge. Well done and good luck for the rest of the challenge.
  Photographer found comment helpful.
 03/15/2009 08:20:17 AM
Nice bright view of an orange in water.
  Photographer found comment helpful.
 03/15/2009 05:06:26 AM
great idea , and shot too
cheers, brano
  Photographer found comment helpful.
 03/15/2009 01:12:14 AM
Very clear and crisp!
  Photographer found comment helpful.
 03/14/2009 11:25:09 PM
very clever
  Photographer found comment helpful.
 03/14/2009 10:40:10 PM
This would be much better without the oversaturation? It seems a little too unnatural. Still good.
  Photographer found comment helpful.
 03/14/2009 10:30:05 PM
wonderful shot!!!
  Photographer found comment helpful.
 03/14/2009 06:08:26 PM
At first glance, this looks like a glass sculpture. Nifty!
  Photographer found comment helpful.
 03/14/2009 04:18:46 PM
Turning this upside down REALLY made an impact. Wonderful colors, clarity, textures. Great background for this subject. Top 100 at least.
  Photographer found comment helpful.
 03/14/2009 03:40:00 PM
Nice shot. Great colors and nice timing.
  Photographer found comment helpful.
 03/14/2009 12:44:17 PM
crisp and clear shot
  Photographer found comment helpful.
 03/14/2009 10:01:15 AM
Now I'm left wondering; how you did that. very nice.
  Photographer found comment helpful.
 03/14/2009 09:55:09 AM
A now "classic" shot done well.
  Photographer found comment helpful.
 03/14/2009 08:16:21 AM
Great imagination!
  Photographer found comment helpful.
 03/14/2009 06:54:09 AM
Classic. You gotta love it when it comes together as well as this. Superb shot
  Photographer found comment helpful.
 03/14/2009 06:43:56 AM
Cool!
  Photographer found comment helpful.
 03/14/2009 06:36:43 AM
really nicely lit, and good graduated background. very nice shot
  Photographer found comment helpful.
 03/14/2009 05:58:22 AM
sweet shot great dof and perspective
  Photographer found comment helpful.
 03/14/2009 05:53:26 AM
Very creative shot and beautiful execution. 8
  Photographer found comment helpful.
 03/14/2009 02:34:17 AM
The quality of your shot is superb.
  Photographer found comment helpful.
 03/13/2009 11:26:59 PM
Classic DPC shot
  Photographer found comment helpful.
 03/13/2009 04:08:54 PM
So many beautiful things going on here. Great processing, nice optical illusion.
*Back to bump this up; hope you don't mind. :-)
  Photographer found comment helpful.
 03/13/2009 03:22:39 PM
I'm hoping to leave comments on as many photo's in this challenge as possible... out of (currently) 1124 images, I gave 31 of them a 9. Your image was one of those 31.

Of all the "studio" shots, this is the most fun. Such a creative imagination, it's the sort of idea that I can only dream of being insightful enough to come up with. Expertly lit and shot. An imaginative vision, wonderfully realised.

Good luck for a strong finish in this challenge.
  Photographer found comment helpful.
 03/13/2009 12:39:46 PM
Nice colors
  Photographer found comment helpful.
 03/13/2009 05:52:48 AM
cool image, perfect lighting
  Photographer found comment helpful.
 03/13/2009 12:57:31 AM
Nice inverted aquarium shot. I like the coloring a lot on this. Excellent detail.
  Photographer found comment helpful.
 03/13/2009 12:44:32 AM
Of all the fruit dropped in water, the effect a half of an orange has is by far the best. Well done.
  Photographer found comment helpful.
 03/12/2009 03:58:52 PM
remarkable
  Photographer found comment helpful.
 03/12/2009 02:36:44 PM
Excellent capture! Well done with lovely colors and perfect timing
  Photographer found comment helpful.
 03/12/2009 02:03:24 PM
Perfect details and colors. 10
  Photographer found comment helpful.
 03/12/2009 10:45:09 AM
Wonderfully done! Clean, sharp, beautiful!
  Photographer found comment helpful.
 03/12/2009 09:51:30 AM
I love all the ripples in the water.
  Photographer found comment helpful.
 03/12/2009 09:43:42 AM
One of the best "drop in water" in this challenge - it looks more like a orange to me LOL
  Photographer found comment helpful.
 03/12/2009 02:01:54 AM
i doubt the genuineness.... if it is genuine .. its my fav.
  Photographer found comment helpful.
 03/11/2009 10:01:26 PM
love the colors...
  Photographer found comment helpful.
 03/11/2009 08:57:22 PM
that took a few shots...different, bright clear colors
  Photographer found comment helpful.
 03/11/2009 08:12:37 PM
WOW. I guess the other comment would be fantastic. Congrats.
  Photographer found comment helpful.
 03/11/2009 07:08:32 PM
Very clever, however I find the exposure a bit off.
  Photographer found comment helpful.
 03/11/2009 05:25:22 PM
I was trying to work out how you did this but I guess its a drop and then rotated ... very nice, looks great
  Photographer found comment helpful.
 03/11/2009 03:30:46 PM
The complimentary orange and aqua work well together. I immediately thought "mushroom" before I saw your title. :~)
  Photographer found comment helpful.
 03/11/2009 12:56:18 PM
Awesome shot
  Photographer found comment helpful.
 03/11/2009 11:55:06 AM
great shot
  Photographer found comment helpful.
 03/11/2009 11:18:18 AM
I really like the brightness of this shot. Very zesty!
  Photographer found comment helpful.
 03/11/2009 09:55:39 AM
Love the colors and focus. Nice!
  Photographer found comment helpful.
 03/11/2009 09:30:23 AM
Beautiful colours and interesting when inverted like this. One of my all time faves! I have never tried this but you have inspired me to give it a go.
  Photographer found comment helpful.
 03/11/2009 09:20:49 AM
nice drop !! very cool capture. A little oversharpened 6
  Photographer found comment helpful.
 03/11/2009 06:35:54 AM
That's a great bit of refraction on the face of the orange.
  Photographer found comment helpful.
 03/11/2009 05:09:46 AM
very good lighting and color. slightly oversharpened. (still wish I had submitted a similar shot and not changed my mind, I would probably not be sitting at 5.6 now :(
good luck!
  Photographer found comment helpful.
 03/11/2009 03:39:35 AM
way cool, looks like an orange
  Photographer found comment helpful.
 03/11/2009 02:04:19 AM
Very clever and creative. I'll have to come back and see how you did this one. Good work!!!
  Photographer found comment helpful.
 03/11/2009 12:25:41 AM
great shot... nice colors...
  Photographer found comment helpful.


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