Autumn is the only time of year I really don’t like the weather here in Southern California. In October, while the rest of the country is slipping into a season of crisp temperatures, skies of vivid blue and brilliant displays of foliage, here in the southland it just keeps getting hotter and hotter. The sunburned hillsides have lost all semblance of green, and even the gold of midsummer has faded away to a dull brown that looks as if a too-hot look might set it ablaze. I long to put aside my summer wardrobe in favor of fuzzy sweaters and a stylish pair of boots. I want to serve hot cider to my daughters after they come in, pink-cheeked, from jumping into endless piles of leaves. Instead we swelter under ceiling fans in tank-tops and shorts, hoping that it will cool off at least a little when the sun goes down. Ah, sundown … the only sign of changing seasons we have this time of year is the loss of light as the inevitable swing towards the Winter Solstice seems to pick up speed.
But this is the sacrifice we make for the glorious weather we have the rest of the year!
I’ve had some fun this past couple of weeks with Photoshop. My little crappy point-and-shoot (a bargain at $60) can only do so much, so while my ultimate goal is to learn to take great photos without significant editing, for now I have to rely on digital tricks to add interesting-ness to my shots.
Up for a little before and after?
I cropped this one, and used a downloaded action called* “Urban Acid.” And added text, of course.
I tried a hope boatload of actions on this one, but I think the one I ended up with is called Midnight Black. I think.
This action is called “gothic glow.” I should provide links, I know. My bad. But I think this shows the most important edit you can and should do with a photo when editing: crop it! Doesn’t take a lot, but it can make a big difference.
Of course, having done such neat things with actions provided by other people, I want to learn how to do all these manipulations on my own. It somehow seems, I dunno, more honest. This is the only one of the bunch that I didn’t use an action for. For this, I followed directions from a magazine for creating a fake Holga* effect. Still not strictly my technique, but it’s a better way of learning what all those buttons and sliders in Photoshop do.
Of course, I can’t leave you without something new to ogle…
Aren’t they adorable? This is five years ago! More Halloween flashbacks to come because, you know, it’s just that time of year.
*An action is a script, basically, that executes a series of pre-programmed Photoshop commands. Lots of people develop and share these for free online. Of course the best ones will cost you.
**Holga cameras are toy cameras, essentially, that have a very distinctive (and sought after) look. The things you learn doing your job!
