Sky problem

Following on from this thread, I was out last night doing a few sunset shots and I "think" my cpl caused the effect seen below, I didn't notice them until I uploaded them to the pc when I got home. I was using a Marumi super dhg almost at maximum effect and a hitech 0.9 gnd shot at 17mm on a 600D. I've never had this before in lots of similar shots. Sun was setting around 35-40 degrees to the right.

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Yes, its the CPL.

One cure would be to simply sample a part of the sky you like, place it on a new layer, then stretch it out horizontally to fit. After that its just some careful work with the eraser.

I use PS7 and might try the "lighten" layer mode. Thats assuming you sample the sky to the LHS say.

Thanks Richard. The sample sky and stretch and carefully erase certainly works well, it introduces some noise or artifacts into the sky but I guess I could mask the sky, apply a nr filter or gaussian blur to smooth out the artifacts/noise. The erasing certainly is a lot of work so I'll have to be very choosy which ones I pick to keep. A little vignette helps as well. It's very weird this has never happened before.

Definitely the CPL, you can't use the on wide shots that include the sky. If you do carefully turning the CPL may help a bit.

Here's a technique I use often to even out the luminosity in blue skies where a polarizer or natural light has given uneven tones.

Use a Gradient Map adjustment layer in luminosity mode. Set the map to a constant tone by using only the two end points and making them the same. Pick a tone from the original sky, targeting some mid tone to start.

To this Gradient Map layer, add a luminosity mask from the original image. Just use one of the original channels for the luminosity mask. This is optional, but can be helpful.

Then place the Gradient Map layer in a layer group and add a black mask to the layer group. Then paint white on the group layer mask to reveal the result.

The "constant tone" gradient map in luminosity mode will force the same luminosity across the entire image, but the luminosity mask will force the effect to be stronger in dark areas, weaker in light areas. Then, when painting on the group mask, you control the effect to only areas of the sky you want. This is double maskking.

Once the initial gradient map is in place, you can modify it my making the tones lighter or darker and see the effect in real time.

Redcrown wrote in post #14758088
Here's a technique I use often to even out the luminosity in blue skies where a polarizer or natural light has given uneven tones.

Use a Gradient Map adjustment layer in luminosity mode. Set the map to a constant tone by using only the two end points and making them the same. Pick a tone from the original sky, targeting some mid tone to start.

To this Gradient Map layer, add a luminosity mask from the original image. Just use one of the original channels for the luminosity mask. This is optional, but can be helpful.

Then place the Gradient Map layer in a layer group and add a black mask to the layer group. Then paint white on the group layer mask to reveal the result.

The "constant tone" gradient map in luminosity mode will force the same luminosity across the entire image, but the luminosity mask will force the effect to be stronger in dark areas, weaker in light areas. Then, when painting on the group mask, you control the effect to only areas of the sky you want. This is double maskking.

Once the initial gradient map is in place, you can modify it my making the tones lighter or darker and see the effect in real time.

Thankyou for that, not tried it yet but I will

For this shot, you wouldn't need a CP on the sky.

Take multiple exposures and blend the sky into your polarized foreground.

oh, and as to fix the shot, I'd clone the sky with Lightroom with "heal" mode.

A CPL has maximum effect when the sun is at 90 degrees to the camera (or 270 degrees). A wide angle FoV will include areas where the effect is less.

Redcrown wrote in post #14758088
Here's a technique I use often to even out the luminosity in blue skies where a polarizer or natural light has given uneven tones.

Use a Gradient Map adjustment layer in luminosity mode. Set the map to a constant tone by using only the two end points and making them the same. Pick a tone from the original sky, targeting some mid tone to start.

To this Gradient Map layer, add a luminosity mask from the original image. Just use one of the original channels for the luminosity mask. This is optional, but can be helpful.

Then place the Gradient Map layer in a layer group and add a black mask to the layer group. Then paint white on the group layer mask to reveal the result.

The "constant tone" gradient map in luminosity mode will force the same luminosity across the entire image, but the luminosity mask will force the effect to be stronger in dark areas, weaker in light areas. Then, when painting on the group mask, you control the effect to only areas of the sky you want. This is double maskking.

Once the initial gradient map is in place, you can modify it my making the tones lighter or darker and see the effect in real time.

I would like to know how to do this. Is there a tutorial somewhere explaining the steps involved?

Redcrown wrote in post #14758088
Here's a technique I use often to even out the luminosity in blue skies where a polarizer or natural light has given uneven tones.

Use a Gradient Map adjustment layer in luminosity mode. Set the map to a constant tone by using only the two end points and making them the same. Pick a tone from the original sky, targeting some mid tone to start.

To this Gradient Map layer, add a luminosity mask from the original image. Just use one of the original channels for the luminosity mask. This is optional, but can be helpful.

Then place the Gradient Map layer in a layer group and add a black mask to the layer group. Then paint white on the group layer mask to reveal the result.

The "constant tone" gradient map in luminosity mode will force the same luminosity across the entire image, but the luminosity mask will force the effect to be stronger in dark areas, weaker in light areas. Then, when painting on the group mask, you control the effect to only areas of the sky you want. This is double maskking.

Once the initial gradient map is in place, you can modify it my making the tones lighter or darker and see the effect in real time.

Rough edit, needs some work still bit the method sure works

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