Lioness...need c&c on processing please

[Walczak Photo]

Hey Folks,
I posted a few shots in another thread here in the Critique forum, but I wanted to get some specific feedback on this particular image as I've had to do a rather fair amount of processing on it. In the original (which I will post below for reference) I had a real problem with reflections on the glass that was separating this lovely lady and myself. In fact I deleted a number of shots because the reflections were so bad, but I simply loved the expression on her face that I caught here. To me it almost says, "Oh no! That Walczak guy is back with his camera again!" LOL!!!

My main area of concern is where I had to fix the reflections...I had to do a lot of cloning, a few burns here and there and I even replaced most of her left ear, etc...if you compare this with the original, you'll see where the problem spots were.

For those who haven't read the other thread, this was taken with my 40D and my new Tamron 70-200mm f/2.8...1/400 sec, f/5.6, ISO 500 in AP mode. (Obviously) I processed the crap out of it in CS3...please let me know if I missed anything!


http://img140.imageshack.us/img140/3985/img3033awt2.jpg





Here's the original...

http://img340.imageshack.us/img340/7505/img3033originalrt9.jpg


Just for reference, this should also give folks an idea of just how much processing I do on some of my shots...this one has about 45 minutes of work into it. I know there's some folks who think that if it takes "more than 5 minutes to fix a shot, that it's not worth fixing" but to me, sometimes the shots are worth the effort :D.

Anyways, again is there anything I missed?

Thanks!
Jim

[SwingBopper]

Great edit and surely worth the 45 min. All I see is a small white spot on the top of her head that you might want to clone out. Otherwise it's a beauty for sure. Nice work.
I think she might have been wondering if you were coming for dinner.

[shannyD]

wow, this is an aamzing edit!

and she is beautiful too.

[midnitejam]

Hey Folks,



Just for reference, this should also give folks an idea of just how much processing I do on some of my shots...this one has about 45 minutes of work into it. I know there's some folks who think that if it takes "more than 5 minutes to fix a shot, that it's not worth fixing" but to me, sometimes the shots are worth the effort :D.

Anyways, again is there anything I missed?

Thanks!
Jim

Jim, since I've begun shooting with canon "L" glass, I don't need as much post processing. Sometimes I don't do any PP whatsoever.

I'm always impressed with you PP skills and advice.

[inonut]

Beautiful processing! The finished shot now says to me, "YOU look like dinner."

[acchildress]

Beautiful processing! The finished shot now says to me, "YOU look like dinner."

Yup, what he said!

[Walczak Photo]

Great edit and surely worth the 45 min. All I see is a small white spot on the top of her head that you might want to clone out. Otherwise it's a beauty for sure. Nice work.
I think she might have been wondering if you were coming for dinner.


Bopper,
Good call. Ya know I actually did see that spot and I guess I ignored it because it was just a flake of snow and with all the snow in the background...but your right, now that you've said it, it stands out to me since there really isn't any other snow on her.

Thanks (and thanks to all!)
Jim

[Walczak Photo]

Jim, since I've begun shooting with canon "L" glass, I don't need as much post processing. Sometimes I don't do any PP whatsoever.

I'm always impressed with you PP skills and advice.

Hey jam,
I'm sure you've probably read enough of my posts to know how I feel about L glass, but putting the chip on my shoulder aside for a moment, even if I did have L lenses (or even wanted them), I'm sure I'd still do a ton of editing...it's just what I do.

Obviously the "best shots" in regards to editing are the shots you don't have to touch at all but that said, I've never considered myself to be a "great" photographer by any stretch of the imagination. More over, because of what I shoot and the way I shoot, I never really mess too much with stuff like white balance/color, framing, etc., on the camera itself. In most cases, I'm not usually even paying too much attention to the background...most of the time there's not much I can do about it anyways since I do shoot mostly as zoos and such for this kind of work. I usually just approach each shot with the intent of processing the crap out of it later! LOL!!! This way I can focus (no pun intended) primarily on the composition and with critters especially, getting those great poses and facial expressions.

I have been using Photoshop since version 4 and in addition to the work I do on my photography, I also consider myself to be a "graphic artist", so to me snapping the shutter is really just the first step of the image creation process in any case (and with any lens). I guess to sum that up in a nut shell, what I lack as a photographer, I make up for as a graphic artist so having an L lens just really isn't a priority for me...and probably never will be :D.

That said, I really don't think having an L lens would have made any difference in this situation at all. The problem with this shot here really had nothing to do with the lens as much as simply my physical position in relationship to the window and the reflections (and the window itself...not exactly photo quality glass there! LOL!). I could have changed position where the reflections weren't such a problem (such as the shot in my other thread) but of course had I of done that, I would have missed this shot. That's kind of the thing about shooting most critters really...sometimes you just have to go with the moment and fix the details later.

All and all I'm quite happy with this new Tamron and as far as IQ goes, I'd really put it against an L lens any day of the week in pretty much any given situation. It was $400 cheaper than the comparable L and it does an outstanding job to say the least.

Peace,
Jim

[chauncey]

That is indeed a superlative PP effort and well worth the effort.

But it raises the question, why was that much PP needed?

Never having had the opportunity, I thought that when shooting through glass,
one should rest the lens on the glass to avoid the reflections that you had. True or false anyone?

It goes without saying that you should have cleaned the glass before taking the shot...on both sides. :lol: :lol:

[Walczak Photo]

That is indeed a superlative PP effort and well worth the effort.

But it raises the question, why was that much PP needed?

Never having had the opportunity, I thought that when shooting through glass,
one should rest the lens on the glass to avoid the reflections that you had. True or false anyone?

It goes without saying that you should have cleaned the glass before taking the shot...on both sides. :lol: :lol:

Hey chauncey,
Normally you would be absolutely correct and usually I do have the lens right up against the glass. When that's not possible, I will also try to get my body between the glass and any reflections (which is what I did in the lioness shot in my other thread). Of course a polarizer will sometimes work too -if- you have enough light to work with. In this case however, the first problem was that this beautiful lady was right next to the glass herself and I simply had to backup a few steps as she was inside of my lenses minimum focusing distance...in other words, she was only about a foot or two away from me on the other side of the glass! Secondly, this was really a "grab shot"...she was actually yawning here and I just started snapping away hoping to get a good or unusual facial expression (which I would like to think that I did) so I didn't really have any time at all to try and move my body to deal with the reflection...I could see it in the viewfinder, just couldn't do anything about it...again I just would have lost the shot altogether. Sometimes ya just gotta take what you can get and hope that it's something you can fix later.

It was really funny...she was actually very friendly. A lot of the comments about these shots have said that she looks as though she was looking at me as "dinner" but when I first had came up to the window, she walked right over, put her paw up on the window and when I put my hand on the glass, she just start affectionately licking the window where my hand was...I could hear her purring thru the glass! The thing to remember is that most animals in zoos or zoo like facilities aren't really "wild animals" as such...most of them have been born and raised in captivity and are often very acclimated to people (I work in a nature center and the same is true of most of the animals I work with there). In this case, it was cold and snowing and there really were not many people at the zoo at all. In fact I was out there for the whole day and I only saw 10 other patrons and maybe a half dozen employees (and most of those were hiding in the restaurant to stay warm). My guess is she was just a bit lonely and was just happy that someone came over to visit with her for a while! LOL!!! I actually had this happen with a number of the animals there that day...you should have seen the Humboldt Penguins begging for treats from me! LOL!!!!! Unfortunately when they are that friendly, it's not always conducive to good photography. There's a white tail deer at another local nature center who has no fear of people at all...every time I go out there, she just comes right up to me and starts giving me "kisses" over the fence and it really makes it hard to get good shots of her because she's always soooooo close.

As far as "cleaning the glass on both sides goes"...honestly, if they'd have let me, I would. I really have no fear of most animals at all, including the big cats (not even in the wild). The -only- reason I don't work at an actual zoo is that the nearest zoo to where I live, The Cleveland MetroParks Zoo, is still a good 45 minute drive (and the pay isn't usually worth it) which is why I do volunteer work for a nature center instead. I've worked hands on with a number of animals like this including some young African lions and a couple of cougars (not to mention horses, foxes, skunks, a large number of raptors, raccoons, etc., etc.,)...doesn't bother me to be "in the cage" with them at all :D. To be perfectly honest, the 2 rattlesnakes and the copperhead that I work with at the nature center scare me far more than these African lions do.

Peace,
Jim

[Sp00ks]

Walczak: I first saw the processed image before looking or reading your thread. My first thought was "that was shot through glass". Probably because I've done a fair amount of shoot through glass shooting. That being said, I think you did a wonderful job in your post processing. Glass reflections are hard to get rid of and I think you made a non-keeper a keeper by doing so.

I love shooting at the zoo on days like you described. Less sticky fingerprints on the glass enclosure as well.

Maybe she was trying to give you a false sense of security so you would clean the glass from the inside and her affection was merely misinterpreted and she was actually trying to get a taste..... :)