Telling your Story

“Telling your Story” – that’s probably intrinsically imprinted in any creative photographer’s mind and eye when he takes a picture – and even more so when he edits it and the countless possibilities pull at his imaginative muscles inviting to dance with light and shadow, colors and shapes, depth and lightness and endless other options.

Fascinating! Just as I was carried away by what I ‘saw’ on this particular picture… and I remember the shadows creeping towards me as it was getting dark and I was here all alone…

Telling your Story

However, when producing for Stock Photography we have to change the hat and “Telling your Story” becomes secondary from our perspective.

Our first objective is to have a technically correct high quality image – so that whoever sees that picture can recognize something within it that will allow him to be telling his story – not our’s.

I would think that the better one gets, the more a picture we shoot for Stock Footage has both: high quality and high story potential. Potential!

When producing for commercial purposes – like for Photo Media Stock -, it is important to know which hat one wears.

Semiomantics Web Design and classy Digital Photography

With the combination of Semiomantics Web Design and classy Digital Photography, Website Publishing becomes more exciting each and every day!

Read more…

• Protea Pink Ice
• Spring in Cape Town
• Photographic Essay with Filters
• Photo Media Stock Seminar
• Photo Media Stock Preparation

Post Editing Digital Photos in Lightroom

When Post Editing Digital Photos in Lightroom, I start by developing a clean image first, for which we created a preset. While the color intensity still shocks me a little… although I have found how to level that down, I am always amazed at the amount of detail that it brings forward if compared with the initial picture. That definitely is a great plus!

However, I have identified a problem that I haven’t solved yet; here it is… and it applies – in different degrees – to all pictures I export from Lightroom into Photoshop CS4 (in my case): a remarkable color difference!

How can this be? What am I missing here?

Above you see the screenshot of a picture – in Sepia – in Lightroom.

Post Editing Digital Photos in Photoshop

As I need to resize the picture for a specific purpose, I export the Digital Photo directly from Lightroom for some Post Editing in Photoshop.

What a surprise: see the difference in color! The golden touch has completely faded, some grey has sneaked in that was non-existent on my Sepoa picture above, and even the sharpness has taken a blow.

What has happened in this process… on this passage?

The Influence of Backgrounds

Being conscious of the Influence of Backgrounds – black, white, grey or any other -, I was wondering whether my eyes are being fooled? Or my mind? Or both?

In Lightroom the background is of a dark grey, in Photoshop it is light grey – could it make such a difference in the perception of a color?

Not believing this could be the case, I still had to investigate this issue; after all, I had spent precious time in Lightroom, I was happy with the result… and I did not want to start all over!

So here is the exported picture in Photoshop on the same fond – a darkish grey – as in Lightroom! And have we found an answer to the problem? Unfortunately not yet… but I am determined to solve this mystery. . .

Photo Media Stock

If anyone out there knows the answer, please comment! It’s only in persisting on finding solutions to problems that we evolve… I would love to have this one answered!

Images are so important in Website Publishing – and that’s what we are focusing on right here and right now; Printed matter comes at a later stage as I am concerned. For the time being, I focus on getting the quality of digital photography right – be it Landscape Photography or Architecture Photography as in this example in a magnificent private garden in Noordhoek, South Africa – in order to supply good Stock Photography for our new website: Photo Media Stock.

Read more…

• Post Editing of Digital Photography
• Photo Stock Greek Church
• Sunset at Chapman’s Peak
• Stock Photography Protea Pink Ice
• Spring in Cape Town

Post Editing Digital Photos in Lightroom

When Post Editing Digital Photos in Lightroom, I start by developing a clean image first, for which we created a preset. While the color intensity still shocks me a little… although I have found how to level that down, I am always amazed at the amount of detail that it brings forward if compared with the initial picture. That definitely is a great plus!

However, I have identified a problem that I haven’t solved yet; here it is… and it applies – in different degrees – to all pictures I export from Lightroom into Photoshop CS4 (in my case): a remarkable color difference!

How can this be? What am I missing here?

Above you see the screenshot of a picture – in Sepia – in Lightroom.

Post Editing Digital Photos in Photoshop

As I need to resize the picture for a specific purpose, I export the Digital Photo directly from Lightroom for some Post Editing in Photoshop.

What a surprise: see the difference in color! The golden touch has completely faded, some grey has sneaked in that was non-existent on my Sepoa picture above, and even the sharpness has taken a blow.

What has happened in this process… on this passage?

The Influence of Backgrounds

Being conscious of the Influence of Backgrounds – black, white, grey or any other -, I was wondering whether my eyes are being fooled? Or my mind? Or both?

In Lightroom the background is of a dark grey, in Photoshop it is light grey – could it make such a difference in the perception of a color?

Not believing this could be the case, I still had to investigate this issue; after all, I had spent precious time in Lightroom, I was happy with the result… and I did not want to start all over!

So here is the exported picture in Photoshop on the same fond – a darkish grey – as in Lightroom! And have we found an answer to the problem? Unfortunately not yet… but I am determined to solve this mystery. . .

Photo Media Stock

If anyone out there knows the answer, please comment! It’s only in persisting on finding solutions to problems that we evolve… I would love to have this one answered!

Images are so important in Website Publishing – and that’s what we are focusing on right here and right now; Printed matter comes at a later stage as I am concerned. For the time being, I focus on getting the quality of digital photography right – be it Landscape Photography or Architecture Photography as in this example in a magnificent private garden in Noordhoek, South Africa – in order to supply good Stock Photography for our new website: Photo Media Stock.

Read more…

• Post Editing of Digital Photography
• Photo Stock Greek Church
• Sunset at Chapman’s Peak
• Stock Photography Protea Pink Ice
• Spring in Cape Town

Sunset at Chapman’s Peak

Today was mostly spent with Digital Photography in one way or another – and it was crowned with a magnificent sunset reflecting off the tip of Chapman’s Peak! I was lucky to catch it right when I came back from another photography session in a friend’s garden … and it only lasted a few moments! In digital Photography one has to always be ready!

Here is my original untouched picture that I just ran quickly through my basic preset in Lightroom and I added a bit of vignette – that’s all:

Sunset at Chapman’s Peak

We will see the real sunsets again once the sun emerges again from behind Chapman’s Peak and sinks into the Atlantic Ocean right here in Noordhoek, South Africa – as of November… for about 3-4 months. I have posted a number of sunset pictures – especially of Noordhoek Beach and from my garden… and there will be more especially in view of the fact that many people adore them and may look for our stock photography production on Photo Media Stock.

Here is an almost black & white version of the above original – the sky becomes almost liquid… :

Photo Media Stock

At tonight’s call we will look further into our new websote: Photo Media Stock! Exciting times ahead for our members who have a passion for Digital Photography and the willingness to learn and improve.

Read more…

• Post Editing Digital Photos
• Post Editing of Digital Photography
• Stock Photography Protea Pink Ice
• Spring in Cape Town
• Photographic Essay with Filters

Post Editing of Digital Photography

Before… we spent hours on measuring and adapting to shoot the best picture with our photo cameras, using different lenses and filters and seeing the actual results only once the pictures came back from the photo developer – unless we got into the darkroom ourselves… which I thoroughly enjoyed for my black & white pictures at the time.

Today, it’s the Post Editing of Digital Photography that takes up our time – and that makes all the difference … as you can see below as this is not what I saw after downloading the photo from my digital camera!

The photo below is what I saw!

A bit disappointing as it did not reflect the luminosity of the evening light reflecting on the majestic mountains above a lush, darkening garden… with a white pillar – a couple of meters high – on a perfect lawn… to measure the unmeasurable… and white clouds drifting past a blue sky…

Ycademy Seminar on Post Editing for Photo Media Stock

Clearly, the past Ycademy Seminar on Post Editing for Photo Media Stock in Lightroom 3 taught me many valuable lessons… and I invested the past weekend taking pictures in the garden here in Noordhoek, South Africa, and then applying my presets and filters painstakingly…yes, running through them again and again, making notes – and finding that there are certain items I always come back to – almost blindly.

The same picture – the same blue… but different lighting! One could call it a different stage (theater) alltogether! Amazing difference and definitely we touch the stuff movies are being made of!

I always imagine and associate sound and music with an image… and while these two rather monochromatic pictures seem to be the same, they are worlds apart in terms of emotional triggering and impact.

Post Editing of Digital Photography

In Post Editing of Digital Photography the basic picture has to be optimized first. Once that’s achieved, we can let our imagination fly. It’s not done overnight but a continuous process… but well worth the journey in order to come to a point where one can develop one’s style.

It was actually interesting to see how this surreal white pillar ‘behaved’ in the changing light and tinting. It was – and still is – a very challenging item in itself: how not to appear ridiculous within such grandeur?

All I can say is that one has to study, experiment, compare and “do” in order to see and understand… and that it’s pretty addictive!

Read more…

• Post Editing Digital Photos
• Stock Photography Protea Pink Ice
• Photo Media Stock Preparation
• Photo Stock Greek Church
• Monkey Valley Beach Nature Resort

Stock Photography Protea Pink Ice

Stock Photography Protea Pink Ice…  once Photo Media Stock is opening its doors, I will have a contribution with this spectacular flower I shot yesterday in a friend’s garden in Noordhoek, South Africa. Here’s a detail:

Spending the cold and rainy part of the weekend almost entirely on studying Lightroom 3, I ran it through the calibration setting Yorgo prepared for me, adjusted it in the Lightroom Develop section, then eliminated a bright and interfering little branch in Photoshop, gave it a tiny tick of sharpening – and saved it.

The colour is spectacular – there is no other word! I have the Pink Ice Protea in my garden as well, but it’s really pink  – not this flaming magenta.

Stock Photography Protea Pink Ice

The Protea Pink Ice -  Protea neriifolia x susannae  -  is said to be the hardiest of the Proteacea family and is a low maintenance plant.

On the other hand, it provides us with beautiful flowers we can adore in Nature – or of course also as a cut and dried flower… which I keep to a minimum. I just love them to radiate and glow outside… but getting a good digital photo – whether for private usage or stock photography – makes us feel even the tiniest of fluffy hairs and lets them come alive in a virtual way for all to admire.

Enjoy the excerpt above!

Read more…

• Post Editing of Digital Photography
• Post Editing Digital Photos
• Sunset at Chapman’s Peak
• Protea Pink Ice
• Spring in Cape Town

Protea Pink Ice

Although it was an overcast and stormy day, I spent most of it in the magnificent garden of a friend and neighbour, here in Noordhoek, South Africa – who has invited me to take pictures of  his masterspiece of a home.

Here I captured the stunning Protea “Pink Ice” that set an incredible accent in the ocean of greens that surrounded me in his garden.

Protea Pink Ice

The above photo of the Protea Pink Ice just went through my minimum presets in Lightroom and I added a bit of a vignette – that’s all. This is the real colour – it’s breath-takingly beautiful!

The Cape of Good Hope

In fact, the Proteacea family already attracted the attention of botanists visiting the Cape of Good Hope as far back as the 1600′s… and its ‘ancestors’ can be tracked back to Gondwanaland just 300 million years ago!

In fact, the Cape of Good Hope area is regarded as “…the richest floral Kingdom in the world”.

When I close my eyes and visualize the spectacular piece of Nature that enveloped me for many hours today, and this under dark and oppressive clouds rolling over the mountains, the explosive “Pink Ice” Protea appears immediately – a lasting impression!

What will it look in bright sunshine?

I will know soon . . . as I’ll be back there for ‘more’!

Read more…

• First Video with Digital Camera
• Telling your Story
• Post Editing of Digital Photography
• Stock Photography Protea Pink Ice
• Spring in Cape Town

Spring in Cape Town

Our Digital Photography Experiments in view of our new website ‘Photo Media Stock’ has inspired me to capture this picture of a huge bumble bee on a cloud of pink keurboom blossoms in my garden in Noordhoek:

Spring is in Cape Town, South Africa – finally

Spring in Cape Town

The above picture is right from my camera with a little correction in toning and vibrance – and of course some serious downsizing! The original is 3000 x 4000 and of good, sharp quality.

Here I added variations using filters in Lightroom and adjusting to my taste.

And of course… the black & white version:

Filters are a never-ending story… but using them is the only way to get to know them… in order to know when to apply them.

As the weather gets warmer and the colors and fragrances continue to explode, these little buzzers will soon be dressed in furry black and yellow pollen coats as future photos will show.

Read more…

• Photographic Essay with Filters
• Photo Stock Greek Church
• Stock Photo Seagull
• Stock Photo Seagull on Beach
• Photo Media Stock

Best Accommodation Cape Town South Africa

“Crowned Eagle” at Monkey Valley Resort, Noordhoek, South Africa, is certainly the most spectacular amongst the Best Accommodation Cape Town South Africa when it comes to visitors who are looking for that special, warm “Out of Africa” ambience one hardly finds anymore… as so much has become sort of the same high international ‘standard’.

Best Accommodation Cape Town South Africa

To promote “Crowned Eagle” as one of the Best Accommodation Cape Town South Africa has to offer in the UK and US, Monkey Valley Resort will market this gem of a villa – which is situated high up on the slopes of Chapman’s Peak and overlooking 8 km of pristine beach along the Atlantic Ocean – via a precious downloadable and printable brochure to their tour operators and contacts overseas – leading them to direct bookings or to their new website on Semiomantics Evolution.

As the German Tourism Industry is up, the German version of the brochure will be marketed in Germany, to reach out for some market share in the flourishing German Holiday and Travel Industry.

As many Germans and Swiss love Noordhoek and spend at least the German winter in their holiday homes down here, there may be some really positive response.

Best Accommodation Cape Town South Africa on Google

When looking at the search term ” Best Accommodation Cape Town South Africa on Google” we currently get 12,8 million returns. It’s certainly a highly competitive arena, especially when domain names contain these exact terms. However, when working on Semiomantics XO it’s never a question of getting there – it’s just a matter of how long it takes… a few minutes, a few hours or a few days? Which depends on how much we apply ourselves to the task… which depends how much we really want to focus on it.

Let’s see where we can get with a first shot – Lights Out! Action! Go!

Read more…

• Destinations Expo 2010 Cape Town Feedback
• Destinations Expo 2010 Highlight
• Destinations Expo 2010 with Monkey Valley Resort
• Life in a Day Project Moon
• Alan Marriott at Monkey Valley Resort

Best Accommodation Cape Town South Africa

“Crowned Eagle” at Monkey Valley Resort, Noordhoek, South Africa, is certainly the most spectacular amongst the Best Accommodation Cape Town South Africa when it comes to visitors who are looking for that special, warm “Out of Africa” ambience one hardly finds anymore… as so much has become sort of the same high international ‘standard’.

Best Accommodation Cape Town South Africa

To promote “Crowned Eagle” as one of the Best Accommodation Cape Town South Africa has to offer in the UK and US, Monkey Valley Resort will market this gem of a villa – which is situated high up on the slopes of Chapman’s Peak and overlooking 8 km of pristine beach along the Atlantic Ocean – via a precious downloadable and printable brochure to their tour operators and contacts overseas – leading them to direct bookings or to their new website on Semiomantics Evolution.

As the German Tourism Industry is up, the German version of the brochure will be marketed in Germany, to reach out for some market share in the flourishing German Holiday and Travel Industry.

As many Germans and Swiss love Noordhoek and spend at least the German winter in their holiday homes down here, there may be some really positive response.

Best Accommodation Cape Town South Africa on Google

When looking at the search term ” Best Accommodation Cape Town South Africa on Google” we currently get 12,8 million returns. It’s certainly a highly competitive arena, especially when domain names contain these exact terms. However, when working on Semiomantics XO it’s never a question of getting there – it’s just a matter of how long it takes… a few minutes, a few hours or a few days? Which depends on how much we apply ourselves to the task… which depends how much we really want to focus on it.

Let’s see where we can get with a first shot – Lights Out! Action! Go!

Read more…

• Post Editing of Digital Photography
• Stock Photography Protea Pink Ice
• Protea Pink Ice
• Destinations Expo 2010 Cape Town Feedback
• Destinations Expo 2010 Highlight