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EX1 photo, Piano Bar

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Joe Melillo

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Taken with the EX1 at the Seaview Hotel near Atlantic City, New Jersey. The camera was rested on top of the piano and set for a timed exposure. I was aiming for a semi-abstract image, and wanted to capture the symmetrical reflections.

The photo was produced from a raw file and processed with CS5. During processing, I made heavy use of the Nik filters plug-in.

I'm not sure if I like the chair in the photo or not-I'm half convinced that I do- but in any event there's not much I could do about it :)

Hope the photo works.



--
Joe Melillo
WSSA member# 86
http://www.pbase.com/jmelillo/root
 
I find the chair a bit in your face, otherwise a wonderful shot. As a suggestion post your image full size in the retouching forum. There are some very passionate talented guys in this forum all of which love a challenge and would be happy to remove the chair for you.

I’m glad to see more people shooting raw with the Ex1. The jpegs are very good from the Ex1, but I find the raw files exceptional in so far as what can be achieved.
RMW487.
 
It is a pretty good picture, well balanced and focused.

Even, I can't believe that the top of the piano is so clean to make a wonderful reflection.
 
Great idea and execution Joe :)

I've never tried shooting in RAW before, this has just inspired me a little more to give it a try..
 
Thanks for the tip. Removing the chair and replacing it with the appropriate background and reflections is defintiely beyond my Photoshop abilities.

I also like what I can make of the EX1 raw files. They're fairly malleable for a small sensor file. Final output is very sharp.
RMW487 said:
I find the chair a bit in your face, otherwise a wonderful shot. As a suggestion post your image full size in the retouching forum. There are some very passionate talented guys in this forum all of which love a challenge and would be happy to remove the chair for you.

I’m glad to see more people shooting raw with the Ex1. The jpegs are very good from the Ex1, but I find the raw files exceptional in so far as what can be achieved.
RMW487.
Click to expand...
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Joe Melillo
WSSA member# 86
http://www.pbase.com/jmelillo/root
 
I was amazed by the relectivity of that piano, too. They must polish it regualrly! As soon as I saw how it reflected the light, I knew there was a picture somewhere.
Blin Sky said:
It is a pretty good picture, well balanced and focused.

Even, I can't believe that the top of the piano is so clean to make a wonderful reflection.
Click to expand...
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Joe Melillo
WSSA member# 86
http://www.pbase.com/jmelillo/root
 
I agree about the HDR potential. On the same trip I took a photo of the resort lounge with swimming pool area visible in bright sunlight beyond a large window. I was amazed at how well balanced the ligth was indoor and out. With some post-processing, I could probably produce a picture that approximated what I saw.
joelakeland said:
With or without, chair it is a nice composition.

By the way, received my EX-1 the other day and it shows great potential with indoor HDR shots.
Click to expand...
--
Joe Melillo
WSSA member# 86
http://www.pbase.com/jmelillo/root
 
I hope you do try raw. I print relatively few pictures and when I do I spend a fair amount of time with the files in Photoshop. No question but that the raw files have the most latitude for improvement.

Jist an aside- i know that the reviews for the Oly Pen and similar cameras indicates that the jpegs are at maximum quality so that there's not much to gain from the raw files. I'd be surprised if this is really true. The result likely depends upon how much Photoshop effort is imparted. In any event, any raw file's 12 or 14 bit output is a lot more forgiving that an 8 bit jpeg during manipulation.
freedo said:
Great idea and execution Joe :)

I've never tried shooting in RAW before, this has just inspired me a little more to give it a try..
Click to expand...
--
Joe Melillo
WSSA member# 86
http://www.pbase.com/jmelillo/root
 
Thanks Bob.

I really don't mind the chair but my wife says that it looks like a hamburger (with the reflection)!
Robert Deutsch said:
Interesting shot. I like all the reflections. As for the chair--the picture might have been even better without it, but, as you say, there's nothing you have done about it, and it arguably adds a focus of interest.

Bob
Click to expand...
--
Joe Melillo
WSSA member# 86
http://www.pbase.com/jmelillo/root
 
Joe Melillo said:
I agree about the HDR potential. On the same trip I took a photo of the resort lounge with swimming pool area visible in bright sunlight beyond a large window. I was amazed at how well balanced the light was indoor and out. With some post-processing, I could probably produce a picture that approximated what I saw.
Click to expand...
Did you use the Smart Range or bracketing?

I have only had my camera a few days and would like more tech info on how to use the SR. I have read I need to use multi focus and make sure at least one of the several green focus boxes are in the shadow and highlight areas for the camera to pick the best two exposures to blend.

I have also tried manual mode with samples taken of either the highlight or shadow before making the exposure(s).

I have had decent success with scenes that are not too far out of the normal DR, but have seen examples posted here that seem to make HDR out of scenes that would normally would take a 3 shot bracket to achieve.

TIA, Rob_L
--
http://www.streamlinestudio.com
 
Rob, I usually shoot one picture, but double convert the raw file, separately emphasizing highlights and shadow values. I then layer mask the two versions in Photoshop to get the right contrast.

When shooting I'll usually reduce exposure by about 1/3 stop to protect the highlights. If the shadows then prove a bit noisy, I'll use Noise Ninja on them.

This can take awhile, but I print relatively few pictures, and when I do print, it's at either A4 or A3.

I've used this technique for a long time, but it typically worked better with DSLR files than digicam output. (Only a few digicams even have raw). However, the Samsung seems to have enough tonal range in the raw files to make this technique pretty workable.

My old Nikon CP 8700 and 8400 digicams did ok too, but only if used at very low ISO. They were 8M, 2/3" sensors.
Robert Strom said:
Joe Melillo said:
I agree about the HDR potential. On the same trip I took a photo of the resort lounge with swimming pool area visible in bright sunlight beyond a large window. I was amazed at how well balanced the light was indoor and out. With some post-processing, I could probably produce a picture that approximated what I saw.
Click to expand...
Did you use the Smart Range or bracketing?

I have only had my camera a few days and would like more tech info on how to use the SR. I have read I need to use multi focus and make sure at least one of the several green focus boxes are in the shadow and highlight areas for the camera to pick the best two exposures to blend.

I have also tried manual mode with samples taken of either the highlight or shadow before making the exposure(s).

I have had decent success with scenes that are not too far out of the normal DR, but have seen examples posted here that seem to make HDR out of scenes that would normally would take a 3 shot bracket to achieve.

TIA, Rob_L
--
http://www.streamlinestudio.com
Click to expand...
--
Joe Melillo
WSSA member# 86
http://www.pbase.com/jmelillo/root
 
Joe Melillo said:
Rob, I usually shoot one picture, but double convert the raw file, separately emphasizing highlights and shadow values. I then layer mask the two versions in Photoshop to get the right contrast.

When shooting I'll usually reduce exposure by about 1/3 stop to protect the highlights. If the shadows then prove a bit noisy, I'll use Noise Ninja on them.

This can take awhile, but I print relatively few pictures, and when I do print, it's at either A4 or A3.

I've used this technique for a long time, but it typically worked better with DSLR files than digicam output. (Only a few digicams even have raw). However, the Samsung seems to have enough tonal range in the raw files to make this technique pretty workable.

My old Nikon CP 8700 and 8400 digicams did ok too, but only if used at very low ISO. They were 8M, 2/3" sensors.
Robert Strom said:
Joe Melillo said:
I agree about the HDR potential. On the same trip I took a photo of the resort lounge with swimming pool area visible in bright sunlight beyond a large window. I was amazed at how well balanced the light was indoor and out. With some post-processing, I could probably produce a picture that approximated what I saw.
Click to expand...
Did you use the Smart Range or bracketing?

I have only had my camera a few days and would like more tech info on how to use the SR. I have read I need to use multi focus and make sure at least one of the several green focus boxes are in the shadow and highlight areas for the camera to pick the best two exposures to blend.

I have also tried manual mode with samples taken of either the highlight or shadow before making the exposure(s).

I have had decent success with scenes that are not too far out of the normal DR, but have seen examples posted here that seem to make HDR out of scenes that would normally would take a 3 shot bracket to achieve.

TIA, Rob_L
--
http://www.streamlinestudio.com
Click to expand...
--
Joe Melillo
WSSA member# 86
http://www.pbase.com/jmelillo/root
Click to expand...
Thanks Joe:

I use the same technique frequently when I can't bracket, or too much motion in the scene.

One more Q: Do you use Samsung's raw converter, or convert it to .DNG? I believe LR3 now supports Samsung raw.?
--
http://www.streamlinestudio.com
 
I've been experimenting with both dng files and srw, processed with the ACR update. The dng files are only about half the size, but it's been suggested that the larger files preserve extra dynamic range. I haven't decided.
Robert Strom said:
Joe Melillo said:
Rob, I usually shoot one picture, but double convert the raw file, separately emphasizing highlights and shadow values. I then layer mask the two versions in Photoshop to get the right contrast.

When shooting I'll usually reduce exposure by about 1/3 stop to protect the highlights. If the shadows then prove a bit noisy, I'll use Noise Ninja on them.

This can take awhile, but I print relatively few pictures, and when I do print, it's at either A4 or A3.

I've used this technique for a long time, but it typically worked better with DSLR files than digicam output. (Only a few digicams even have raw). However, the Samsung seems to have enough tonal range in the raw files to make this technique pretty workable.

My old Nikon CP 8700 and 8400 digicams did ok too, but only if used at very low ISO. They were 8M, 2/3" sensors.
Robert Strom said:
Joe Melillo said:
I agree about the HDR potential. On the same trip I took a photo of the resort lounge with swimming pool area visible in bright sunlight beyond a large window. I was amazed at how well balanced the light was indoor and out. With some post-processing, I could probably produce a picture that approximated what I saw.
Click to expand...
Did you use the Smart Range or bracketing?

I have only had my camera a few days and would like more tech info on how to use the SR. I have read I need to use multi focus and make sure at least one of the several green focus boxes are in the shadow and highlight areas for the camera to pick the best two exposures to blend.

I have also tried manual mode with samples taken of either the highlight or shadow before making the exposure(s).

I have had decent success with scenes that are not too far out of the normal DR, but have seen examples posted here that seem to make HDR out of scenes that would normally would take a 3 shot bracket to achieve.

TIA, Rob_L
--
http://www.streamlinestudio.com
Click to expand...
--
Joe Melillo
WSSA member# 86
http://www.pbase.com/jmelillo/root
Click to expand...
Thanks Joe:

I use the same technique frequently when I can't bracket, or too much motion in the scene.

One more Q: Do you use Samsung's raw converter, or convert it to .DNG? I believe LR3 now supports Samsung raw.?
--
http://www.streamlinestudio.com
Click to expand...
--
Joe Melillo
WSSA member# 86
http://www.pbase.com/jmelillo/root
 
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