| » Forum Index » The Friday Challenge » Topic: Challenge 352: Deborah's garden |
|
Posted on 25/05/11 3:03:44 PM |
|
Gerard
Digital Dutchman Posts: 145 Reply  |
Re: Challenge 352: Deborah's garden
Here is mine, tricky one All well here in Holland! Greetings Gerard  |
Posted on 25/05/11 3:26:22 PM |
|
sutex
Specular Specialist Posts: 157 Reply  |
Re: Challenge 352: Deborah's garden
 Trojan!!!???It is not 1st April to make such a joke. hmmmm???
James get Malwarebytes from web(its free) - install - run your PC/MAC in Safe Mode(press F8 on start) - scan with Malwarebytes - see what its show.Not every Anti-virus can deal with malware/trojans if its loading before anti-virus software and most even before operation system start.You can as well open Task Manager as well ,go to Processes and look for something unexpected running. Hope its nothing wrong. Tomasz |
Posted on 25/05/11 3:48:03 PM |
|
sutex
Specular Specialist Posts: 157 Reply |
Re: Challenge 352: Deborah's garden
Trevor, Thanks for looking Trev.I don't know till Friday. But how do you know there are decortive lights in this garden...and these solar power bunch of spots on.And the weather?Full sunshine two days before constantly. How...?  You and Deborah barbecue together????Hope she forget and post her challenge soon we can see what is all about.  |
Posted on 25/05/11 8:41:21 PM |
|
vibeke
Kreative Kiwi Posts: 2166 Reply  |
Re: Challenge 352: Deborah's garden
I suspect there is some trick here, that we (I) haven't figured.  _________________ Perfect confidence is granted to the less talented as a consolation prize. |
Posted on 25/05/11 11:01:07 PM |
|
Jota120
Ingenious Inventor Posts: 2615 Reply  |
Re: Challenge 352: Deborah's garden
Tomasz, I've only met Deborah and few others in London a couple of times. Never seen this garden. I recognise the style of the garden. Looks great. Had a bit more time this week to look, since did not have to study so many palm trees this week  .
The front lamp is from an old train. Since it is black it must be the rear red light of the guards van. Paraffin / kerosene fuelled. I've been doing some 24/7 voluntary monitoring recently (long story....) during the day noticed these silver-glass "things" with curiosity on top of traffic cones. I see they are solar charged night lights. Your right, when do we get enough sun. They are not working at night, but a small country lane! Okay finally, in my view, the cups at the back and front are for candles, or whatever.. ; Chill out with friends 
|
Posted on 26/05/11 07:42:15 AM |
|
Marty
* Posts: 39 Reply  |
Re: Challenge 352: Deborah's garden
 _________________ Life is a great big canvas, and you should throw all the paint on it you can. ~Danny Kaye |
Posted on 26/05/11 08:33:16 AM |
|
tissana
Thai Trickster Posts: 29 Reply  |
Re: Challenge 352: Deborah's garden
garden  _________________ Futurebis |
Posted on 26/05/11 7:44:04 PM |
|
BigVern
Q Quipper Posts: 674 Reply  |
Re: Challenge 352: Deborah's garden
My go at it ... I decided not to mirror the interior image as I liked the balance of the image as it is. It should probably be flipped to make it factually correct but I could not read the text on the book spines etc. so could not tell. 
|
Posted on 26/05/11 9:33:14 PM |
|
Emil
KAFKAsFRIEND Posts: 413 Reply  |
Re: Challenge 352: Deborah's garden
_________________ I have the true feeling of myself only when I am unbearably unhappy. - Franz Kafka |
Posted on 26/05/11 9:37:42 PM |
|
Emil
KAFKAsFRIEND Posts: 413 Reply |
Re: Challenge 352: Deborah's garden
Very tricky challenge.  _________________ For me the creative process is more one of discovery than creation. - James Lee Burke |
Posted on 26/05/11 9:42:53 PM |
|
Emil
KAFKAsFRIEND Posts: 413 Reply |
Re: Challenge 352: Deborah's garden
OK, just to be brighter. deleted. _________________ For me the creative process is more one of discovery than creation. - James Lee Burke |
Posted on 26/05/11 9:44:53 PM |
|
Emil
KAFKAsFRIEND Posts: 413 Reply |
Re: Challenge 352: Deborah's garden
Again.  _________________ The most beatiful thing we can experience is mysterious. It is the source of all true art and sience. - Albert Einstein |
Posted on 26/05/11 10:00:41 PM |
|
michael sinclair
Off-Topic Opportunist Posts: 1871 Reply  |
Re: Challenge 352: Deborah's garden
In my last address, we had a gas fire (real flames) that extended an image of itself into our garden which was an equal distance to where I was sitting from the fire; moreover, if i can remember correctly the fire image in the garden was curiously on the same side (to my right) as the real fire.
|
Posted on 27/05/11 06:53:20 AM |
|
PDelavigne
Mannequin Mestre Posts: 124 Reply |
Re: Challenge 352: Deborah's garden
Let's see !   |
Posted on 27/05/11 07:57:34 AM |
|
Steve Caplin
Administrator Posts: 7049 Reply  |
Re: Challenge 352: Deborah's garden
A very difficult Challenge this week - thanks, Deborah, for the brain-stretching exercise. You all produced good entries, but if there was a dividing line it was between those of you who remembered to flip the reflected room horizontally and those who didn't... a minor thing, certainly, but it does represent a completeness of approach. The first entry this week was from a new member, jimstrummer. You've chosen a hard one to dive in with, Jim, but there's some good work here: the darkened garden works well, and the reflection fades off neatly. But is that too much rippling on the reflection? That would imply very shaky glass indeed. Welcome to the forum, Jim. There's a very appealing quality to Josephine Harvatt's night garden, with a subtlety of colouring that works well. The room reflection blends in nicely, but surely that lamp should be switched on? A dark scene from Garfield72 - could we do with more blue in the night garden? And I think the beam around that lamp is too tight: it would project light onto most of the wall behind. I like the way the bookcase fades into the fence here. A bold entry from Nick Curtain, with clever positioning of the light over the bench - and a very well switched-on light, too. I like the reflection of the viewer in the glass - nice touch! Good to see maiden back after a long absence - with a fantasy image involving a rather fine troll caught in the lamplight. Still trying to work out if the troll is in the house or in the garden (but maybe that's the way with trolls). Nice job, Becky. As always, there's a textural depth to LonnieK's entry that takes it beyond mere tinting. I really like the tones in the garden, and the light in the shed: could the reflection be a little stronger, perhaps? A very close-up reflection from brewell, with a neatly-placed skeleton in the chair. But you've set yourself a difficult task here, Bruce: the reflected scene is already at low opacity, so is the skeleton supposed to be a ghostly image on the chair? Or is this simply a case of "should have used a layer group"? (I'd be happy to accept either explanation.) A twilight view from bjansen, with a reflection hovering over the garden. I think the edges are too precise here: that reflection looks like it needs to fade away more subtly into the background. Our second new member this week - and our second Jim this week - is Jimbean, with a neatly tinted garden in good shades of blue. I like the fact that you've put a light spot on the chair seat, although it's perhaps too strong for the fabric. The main issue here is one of feathering: the edges of the lamp light need to be much softer, and the whole image could do with fading away into the background - try adding a layer mask and then use the Gradient tool to soften that right hand edge. Welcome to the forum, Jim! A very dark garden from Jota120, with a rather neatly placed reflection. But what really made this one work for me is all the added light sources - the candles and the lit lantern give the garden a much more magical feel. Nice work! "Do you find that there's a point where if you keep fiddling, you just make it worse?" asks LagoDiLecco - and it's a problem I know all too well. I really like the way you've created a lit-up area in the middle of the garden, which provides a great sense of depth: and the fading of the reflection works well, although I'd have added some more yellow for contrast. And well done remembering to flip the reflection in the second entry! A strong image from puffin31939, with a nicely made night view. It's hard to see what's going on in the reflection, though, as it seems to consist largely of yellow wall: is it just too bright? An extraordinary shaky camerawork image from sutex, who (I imagine) guessed that Deborah wasn't using a tripod... Tomasz describes the whole process as "like rendering a lens flare on a transparent layer", and I agree with the metaphor. But you've come up with a very innovative approach! By the way: Jota120 says he can see your reflection in the glass. I've tried, and I can't see it... is it there? Top marks to Ben Mills for coming up with the room surround - that window frame and curtain assembly really makes the scene work for me. But is the reflection now too close to the window? That would make it a very shallow room! A really charming scene from James, who has not just created a beautiful night view of the garden, but has populated it with a parliament of owls (yes, that is the collective noun for owls, I checked). Terrific flying action, and a subtle reflection: looks like you've settled into the new iMac with no problem, James. A good window frame from JmarcP, with just the faintest of reflections in the glass - but that's because you've set the scene during the day, rather than at night. That could have made it easier! It's been a while since Gerard has posted an entry, and here he is on fine form with a very strong reflection, neatly fading away into the bushes, against a well darkened garden. Welcome back, Gerard. "I suspect there is some trick here, that we (I) haven't figured," says Vibeke - and it's astute of you to think it. But there are no tricks: in the end, it all comes down to the lighting. In your image, though, the edges of the reflection are just too hard: fade them away into the background more for a smoother appearance. A very, very dark garden from Marty - I don't know if it's just my screen, but I can hardly see anything in there at all! The lit-up shed windows are a treat, though. Your reflection seems rather too hard-edged: even though you've softened the edges, those lines are too straight. Use a large, soft brush on the layer mask, and paint our a more irregular shape. There's a lot going on in tissana's entry: where are those lanterns suspended from? A great reflection, that blends into the garden with subtlety, and I like the window frame. A clever double reflection from BigVern: is this double glazing, or one too many pre-dinner sherries? And I see you agree with Trevor about the red train light - a nice touch! I've noticed Emil's fondness for dark scenes before, but in this case the garden seems to have disappeared completely: only the reflection remains, neatly masked by the beam of the spotlight. Ah, there's a brighter version in the second entry: that looks stronger. It would take very uneven glass to produce that level of distortion, surely? Tales of gas fires from michael sinclair - and you're right, the gas fire would be on the same side, but the flames themselves would be flipped horizontally. In your image, the reflection is cut off by too hard a line on the left: it really needs to fade out more than this. And turn the light on! A huge reflection from PDelavigne: but there's a transparent quality to this that works well, and the reflection of the viewer is a good addition in the foreground. Should she have been a little brighter? __________________________________ Good work all round, in what was one of the most tricky technical Challenges we've had in a long time. And so it's time to reveal the original photograph: 
There are several surprising features here. For one thing, the chair reflection is much lower than I would have expected. The lighting is key, of course, especially the way the light catches the books. And the whole garden is much more blue than I would have thought realistic. But what's most interesting here is the fact that it's only the bright areas that reflect, not the dark ones - these appear transparent. I think the way to simulate this in Photoshop would be to use Advanced Blending to take out the deep shadows, rather than lowering the transparency. So what do you think, Deborah? Any comments? |
Posted on 27/05/11 08:50:33 AM |
|
Deborah Morley
Makeover Magician Posts: 1319 Reply  |
Re: Challenge 352: Deborah's garden
I thought they were all really fantastic images. I'm very glad I didn't have to attempt this Challenge. Knowing me I probably had the white balance settings on the wrong thing which is why there was so much blue, but just really liked the image and wandered how difficult it would be to emulate it, and for everyone it wasn't difficult at all! (It might have been difficult but the end results were great) I really liked Trevors entry - is that the first one where you didn't go off brief! It took me a second look to see my reflection in Nick's entry - spooky. And yes, I have taken photos like Tomasz' image. |
Posted on 27/05/11 08:52:01 AM |
|
Nick Curtain
Model Master Posts: 1768 Reply  |
Re: Challenge 352: Deborah's garden
Interesting, a great challenge and thanks to Josephine. I started this early on saturday morning, with the garden still fairly dark and noticed that it was only my desk lamp and the lighter portions of the room reflected in the patio door glass. I tried numerous opacities and blends, but misjudged the lighting of the chair and positioning of the lamp, to light mainly the wall, including the shelf supports. I think 'blend if' would have helped, as you have suggested. Nick |
Posted on 27/05/11 08:59:27 AM |
|
josephine harvatt
Gag Gadgeteer Posts: 2603 Reply  |
Re: Challenge 352: Deborah's garden
Ha! I knew my light wasn't yellow enough but fiddle as I may I couldn't get it right _________________ I'm not really bad - I just draw that way |
Posted on 27/05/11 09:19:19 AM |
|
BigVern
Q Quipper Posts: 674 Reply |
Re: Challenge 352: Deborah's garden
Thanks Steve! Got idea for double reflection from HTChiPS CS5 Page 275. Sherry indeed! Never touch the stuff. 
This was another great challenge which resulted in beautiful images, even if some of us (...ahem) didn't mirror the image
Thanks Deborah for the original images and idea. Vern |
Posted on 27/05/11 09:25:14 AM |
|
brewell
Pixel Pentagrammarian Posts: 752 Reply  |
Re: Challenge 352: Deborah's garden
It's definitely a ghostly image - like the opposite of vampires - you can only see the figure in a reflection. (That's a lot of backstory) _________________ Onward and upward! Excelsior! |
| page: 1 2 3 4 last |