Darkroom Challenge Digital Darkroom Derby #223 (closed, results posted)

[WhidbeyLVR]

Start Date

Aug 27, 2024

End Date

Aug 30, 2024

This is Digital Darkroom Derby #223, a digital image editing/processing challenge.

These challenges are open to everyone. If you have any interest in practicing or improving your image editing and post-processing skills, please feel free to join in!

Please read the rules here. Short version: Host provides the challenge image and selects the winner, who then becomes the next host.

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Tourist snapshot to photographic masterpiece? Good luck!

The RAW and JPEG files are here.

The challenge will close at 4:00 PM Pacific Daylight Time on Friday, August 30th.

 

[Rob R]

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Down in front ladies!
ACR and photoshop Topaz Denoise

 

[griffljg]

This is going to have to be a non-entry. I am heading off to a very out-of-the-way place on Queensland's Granite Belt for a few days. The mobile phone reception there is, to be very kind, very patchy.

I like this image. - Especially that the ladies with a mobile phone are intruding where I didn't really want them to be. So I resorted to my old method of.......

Raw file -> DxO PureRAW 4 (Mainly for lens correction purposes) -> DNG file -> Capture One Pro (Perspective Correction, Highlight and Shadow recovery, added a bit of Saturation and Contrast, and then tried to "Heal out" the annoying ladies and their phone and finally cropped to suit) -> JPEG file.

I am not at all happy with my matching of the water where I removed the ladies and phone. If I can find the time, I would like to fiddle with that a bit further.

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[RobD]

#1. ACR & PS

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[kae1]

Entry #1 DXO PL7 then Elements and PhotoAI

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[kae1]

Entry #2

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[gecko]

Edited raw file in DxO PL7 then tweaked in Elements (with ON1 Effects and Topaz Photo AI as plug-ins). Slight edit to my original entry (removed residual part of the crane that I had neglected).

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[Peano]

Not competing, just killing time . . .

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[Zeus1]

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[WhidbeyLVR]

Nice entries so far! There is one day remaining in the challenge.

 

[gecko]

Entry #2: B&W version of entry #1 obtained using Nik Siver Efex.

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[gecko]

Outside the competition: applied 50% haze reduction (Elements) to entry #1.

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[WhidbeyLVR]

The challenge is closed for entries. Results soon-ish.

 

[WhidbeyLVR]

Thanks to all who participated!

I based a lot of my decision on how well the cloning of the water was done -- did it look too soft, too harsh, or was it the wrong tone or color. After that, the overall effect (crop, exposure, color, contrast, perspective correction) guided my decision.

Special mention to @Peano : the night scene seemed a bit like a silk screen or block print, but was effective, nonetheless. The replacement Thames looked quite good.

Results:

• Winner: @kae1. I really liked the way you simplified the foreground, but kept the photographer. Very nice! I liked both versions, but the B&W was my favorite.
• 2nd Place: @Rob R . Nice crop and processing!
• 3rd Place: @Zeus1. Another good B&W image, almost like an engraving, I only wish you had eliminated the crane on the left.

Unfortunately, I was too busy this week to make a version myself. I used a different image with fewer problems for this scene, but I thought this one would be a better challenge image.

Congrats, Ken!

 

[kae1]

Congrats, Ken!

Thanks for the win, Lyle

Next challenge, continuing the Victorian theme, is here.