[TomTextura]

Hi all. I'm not always confident that my post processing in Lightroom 4 is the best it could be. Here are two pictures taken on a recent visit to Colonia, Uruguay. They were processed almost exactly the same. The yellows were heavily boosted and the local exposure in the glass of the lamp was also boosted using an adjustment brush to make it brighter and stand out more. If there's interest, I can post the original unprocessed pics too.

I basically would like feedback on two things but feel free to add whatever else:
1.) What do you think of how I processed these? Specifically, I would like to know your impression of the colors. I'm afraid they may be a little artificial. I'm also concerned that the lit up lamp might look fake.
2.) If you like either of them: Which do you think is the better one or are both equally as good? The background is almost the same between the two and I keep going back and forth between whether or not the man's silhouette adds to the image in a significant way or if the simplicity of just the lamp post is stronger on it's own.

Thank you for any and all feedback!


Lamppost Sunset

K-5 with DA* 50-135mm at 50mm. f/5.6, 1/1500 sec., ISO 80, Av mode, -0.5 exp. comp., Center Weighted metering


Lamppost & Silhouette Sunset

K-5 with DA* 50-135mm at 55mm. f/8, 1/3000 sec., ISO 80, Av mode, -1.5 exp. comp., Center Weighted metering

[GDRoth]

I like them both, especially the color of the lamp...........many of my PP shots look similar, but I have to be careful because I'm a bit color blind

However, I'm curious as to why you used such fast shutter speeds..........

[TomTextura]

I like them both, especially the color of the lamp

Thanks GDRoth!

However, I'm curious as to why you used such fast shutter speeds

I should have used a smaller aperture but I wasn't putting a whole lot of thought into these beyond framing and doing some chimping to quickly check the exposure. Between the relatively large aperture used in Av mode and the negative exposure compensation, the shutter speeds ended up being really fast. Additionally, the ISO couldn't have been any lower. When doing manual exposures, I like fast shutter speeds for keeping bright skies from blowing out. Is there a risk of fast shutter speeds degrading IQ by introducing something unwanted, like noise or blur?

[Ash]

Well done spotting these scenes, particularly #1. It brings a bold subject amidst an interesting and brilliant backdrop. Compositionally, these images do work, and could have more contrast and textures brought forth in PP but otherwise these are fine results.

[Sage97]

Wow! Outstanding!

[bezuidar]

Nice compositions. Both stunning pics.

[atupdate]

The only problem I see with either image is the halos around the black areas (lamppost, railing, and the man). I'm not sure if Lightroom has cloning capabilities but if it does, you might want to give this tutorial a try.

Sharpening Halos And How To Hide Them - Tutorials

Tim

[Schraubstock]

Hi

The white halo of the lamp post is an obvious result of over processing. How exactly you managed to get them I do not know, but it makes the lamp look "planted" after the event. If the halo is a result of sharpening use FocalBlade (a Plugin) it has a function to eliminate white or black halos.

Greetings

[TomTextura]

Thanks atupdate and Schraubstock! Good points about the halos. I'll see what I can do about them.

[Macario]

very nice shots. I prefer the second one

[slackercruster]

They are OK. i like 1 best cause of the rays.