Working the Darkroom

Great photography has always been a product of both shooting and developing. This was true long before Photoshop; cropping, dodging and burning were always part of the process.

So, after your Work the Scene, you need to consider Working the Darkroom, which, of course, has gone digital.

Some photos just require minimal processing. For example: a RAW photo can almost always do with a little sharpening and boost in contrast. Sometimes, your vision may require maximum processing with much filtering and processing.

As in Working the Scene, you may not know what you will like best until you have Worked the Darkroom.

You saw my shots of the heavy machinery shots in the previous post. They were all exposed to the darkroom in that post, but in a basic way. So, I took my experimenting further.

One obvious way to experiment is by converting to monotone or duotone. In each case, I may end up preferring the original colour but not always. Colour versions of the first three images all appeared in my previous post.

I went off the charts a little with the next two photos. I don't have a fisheye lens, but I was able to produce a somewhat similar effect in Photoshop. (A more standard version also appeared in the previous post.)

In this second example, I went for more of a vintage look complete with lens flares. I did not include this two shot in the previous post.

Finally, just for giggles, I did an antique look. While I did it just for fun and for example, I quite like it and just might put it near the top of my preferences. You just never know until you try.

I know this might sound overly pedantic and as if I think I am any good at all of this stuff, but it's just a hobby. I don't mean to lecture anyone; I am just putting some of my practices to words. I don't claim that any of the photos from either post are any good. I'm just exploring and putting it out there for what it's worth. Which is probably not very much at all.

It's good idea to get out of the, Take one shot and make one final product frame of mind. Mind you, I still do that quite a lot, but sometimes I also like to slow down and experiment.

Edit: Oops, I almost forgot to include the diptych as yet another viable alternative. You've seen it before, but here it is again, just as a reminder because it fits with this post.