Outcome #3

I freely admit it, I'm a lousy blogger.  If you've followed me for any length of time, you already know that. If I wanted attention, I'd post Youtube videos. I don't so I won't. Where have I been? Working my day job, just like most of you. My manuscripts are languishing, my photography has slowed and my book sales have cratered.

But that's alright. It's all really not important. I've been spending time with family, and that's really good. I've also been spending time working on me. I've lost 10% of my body mass in the past 4 months, mostly accomplished through proper nutrition and a lack of alcohol. I'm jogging again for the first time in 14 years. I feel good. Actually, that's not the right word. I feel centered.

Centeredness is something we take for granted in our youth. It comes from strength and health and the ability to live in the present. Centeredness, combined with faith and acceptance, puts one is a really good place.  I like it here, and would like to take up permanent residence.
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Enough of that, let's talk about that image.

This project's objective was to fuse two separate images into one using Photoshop (PS). ​This is a project I've been working on for the past three weeks. Its a composite of two of my images, one I took in the Aracata Forest in Northern California several years ago, and one of my daughter at DragonCon in Atlanta earlier this month. ​Here are the two images, taken about five years apart. 

When I took my daughter's image, it was on a cloudy morning. I had the Arcata shot in mind when I posed her. I arranged her in a best attempt to match the light that morning in the redwoods.  Also placed her in front of a background that made it easier to isolate her in PS.

I've come to a place in my photography journey where, when I take an image, I set my camera settings for  one of two different outcomes. Outcome #1 is to maximize the light as if it were a conventional film camera. Outcome #2 is to maximize an intended effect in post-capture PS editing. I find myself being drawn more and more to Outcome #2, which is how my mind sees the image, not necessarily as the environment presents it at the moment. The forest image was intended as an Outcome #1, my daughter's image was an Outcome #2. Fusing the images gave me something entirely new - Outcome #3. 

My first attempt at the fusion was okay, but flat. Thankfully, my son tutored me on some PS tools I was unaware of. His help gave me the capability to create the effect I wanted. Namely, I wanted to convert the Arcata forest lighting that morning to sun shafts to spotlight the subject. Also, I needed to better convert the subjects albedo (light reflectivity) to match the Aracata forest lighting. Also, I had to adjust the depth of field on the subject to match the camera setting in the Arcata shot. Finally, I converted her blue dress to a green dress to better match the setting. 

I really enjoyed this project. I want to do more of them. I want to leverage AI to create a virtual "photo studio" for my subjects, but AI has proven a clumsy and often frustrating tool. It's far more effective to use my own images as backdrops and match subject lighting in post-editing. 

Overall, I was satisfied with the effect. As I practice and do more of these "Outcome #3" projects, I'm hoping to improve. I plan on taking more shots with the intention of using them as backdrops. I will likely be bugging my son for more Photoshop instruction, too. 

That's all I got for now. Everyone have a blessed and centered day. 

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