Photoshopped image

[ssim]

When I took the original of this I really liked the lava rock on the beach in Hawaii but the background was really overcast and kind of misty and I couldn't make much out of it. I put the sky in the background instead.

Would like some honest opinions about this.

http://www.pbase.com/image/26359980.jpg

[Scottes]

Too crisp of a line. Try a bit more feathering. I like to leave a couple/few pixels of the original sky intact, and blend in with that, leaving a more natural transition. This isn't always possible, but usually is if it take a bit of work.

Also, the light doesn't match - the sky is obviously very bright but the ground has no direct light. Light matching is at least as important as the transition - maybe more so, so the transition could be perfect but the image gets left looking odd but unplacable.

I also think that the cloud right on the horizon looks odd. Just odd, even if it belonged there.


Here's one I did:

http://www.itsanadventure.com/postimages/MagnoliaCove_0231.jpg

Good light match, I saved 2 pixels of the original sky to blend, and I mucked with the blending. Believe me when I say that blending in around the tree was not easy!

Some tell-tales here - the horizon on the left is too straight and crisp. More blend there should have been done. A few of the tree-tops are too crisp - I should have made them more jagged to look more natural. The light isn't perfect, though it's a pretty good match.

Some nice touches: The birds keep the eye from thinking it's a merge. Note the darker ground on the right - compare the house on the right to the one on the left. I used a graduated black-to-white blend to get the right side of the sky darker to match the house. Note that the clouds from foregound (top of the image) to the horizon line get smaller and have the correct perspective. I went through 100+ pictures to get the right clouds.

Adding light reflections off some of the house windows would have been another nice touch if I had thought of it.


If you like doing this blending then build a sky library. Get up someplace with a decent view - not the top of a mountain but rather the top of a hill. Take a dozen pictures while turning 360-degrees. Hold the camera at a natural angle, do not point it up, and perhaps point it down *a little.* Do this at various times of the day with different cloud formations. When I remember to do it I take a dozen skies every time I go out. I have used only two, but having the library helps a great deal.

[mr_clean001]

I have to agree that the line and lack of direct light on the rocks is in need of touchup. I think you will have a decent shot if you can go back and play with that.

[martcol]

Just running the blur tool along the edges can soften the line to make it look more natural - you have the option to reduce strength.

As for the light, hmmmm. It looks stark but, not unatural. I'm just longing though, for an off-road cyclist to come tearing over the ridge! Yee ha!

Martin

[ssim]

Thanks for your input. If there is one thing that I have struggled with in Photoshop it is working in the layers. I'll keep putzing away at this one as time allows but I'm quickly becoming frustrated.

[martcol]

You must keep hammering away with layers (and Masks) in PS. They are the keys to successful photo-editing. With layers for instance, you can adjust the colour/brightness of layers independently. So, if you have a sky layer and a foreground layer you should be able to adjust the brightness to make them look more "natural" together. I am no expert, but it is worth sticking with it!

Martin