About Me

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Columbus, Ohio, United States
I'm a stay at home mom and wife with a passion for family, creating and photography. I'm a little bit quirky and a little bit odd, but that's what makes me...well me. I'm a jack of all trades. So check back often because, to paraphrase Forest Gump's mom "I'm like a box of chocolates, you never know what your going to get.

Thursday, August 5, 2010

The Road Less Traveled

It's Thursday so it's time for another before and after with Pixel Perfect. I love this challange because not every photo comes out the way you like, with the magic of editing you can make it right. I grew up photographing with a 35mm camera (film). I remember the days of shooting rolls and roll of film and hoping everything would come out right. Back then these photo would have been filed under "T" for trash, but with the wonders of digital cams now you can shoot and erase until you get what you want. If you don't have time (or a patient model) to get everything just right, you can sort it out in processing. That is what happened with these.

The first on is Sage and me on an evening walk. I love this patch of old road. It leads up to some the wonderful bike and walking trails Columbus metro parks have to offer. This is actually really close to our house, I wish we could walk the whole way but we have to walk along a busy road with a lot of Semis. So with my little crazy gremlin I usually drive over. Saves me a few grays and money on hair dye. 

The road is block so you don't have to worry about any traffic. Perfect for going crazy. The day we went the sun was setting right behind up. my favorite light. The first photo we were having a good time playing with our shadow. The original had nothing really special about it, but to me it was a special moment. So I did what I usually do to photo like this, I made it look like it is from the 70's. Sometime I'll do b/w but I loved the tones of the sun. How it turned out reminds me of those old photos of alien sightings I would see when I was a kid.



I'm still experiment with the use of flash in the day time to balance shadows on the face. Unfortunately this was not a successful day of that all the shots turned out washed out. But there was something about all three of the next photos that I loved. Probably that they capture the energy that Sage possesses. I wish I could bottle it. I'd be rich. Unfortunately I think he has so much energy because he sucks it from me.

The first shot although it is washed out I could still see the possibility of the warmth of the sun in the trees. I wish I could tell you everything I did to it (as well as the others), but I lost track of what all I did. I can tell you that I edit in Picnik. Adjusting the basics like exposure, contrast, sharpness, tint and saturation. Then I played around with Orton-ish, Sepia, vignetting and 60's style.


The next one I was running backwards while he was running toward me. I love how he has the appearance of creeping around like a gremlin. Appropriate, since his nickname is gremlin. That's a story for a later date though. The color on this one was as bad, but it still needed a little umph. I think the after makes it look so much warmer.


This last one was another one of those over-exposed photos. I cropped this one to take out the street lights in the background. While I was editing this one I got to thinking about the old photos of my grandparents as a kids. So of course it had to be black and white. I love this one, because it gives Sage a little man feel instead of just a sweet little soft kid. Although he can be whiny, Sage is all rough and tumble little boy. I think it makes him look so much older than his 3 years.



If you want to see more great before and after photos be sure to check out Pixel Perfects challenge.



14 comments:

K Soucy said...

I love how you added warmth to those photos. The last one that you turned black and white, wow what a difference. Nice.

Susan said...

Wonderful edits! I love how you gave each picture a different feeling. Thanks for sharing!

Mommy2Four said...

They are all nice, but I LOVE what you did with the last one! Very neat!

Lolo @ Crazy About My Baybah said...

Thanks for stopping by my blog! Your edits are great. I really need to learn how to use photoshop. Is that what you use? (new follower)
http://crazyaboutmybaybah.blogspot.com

Unknown said...

These before and afters are stunning. I love the processing. I would never think you could save your 2nd image! I can't wait to see what else you can do :)

The OriginalPsyn said...

Thanks Samantha and Lolo,

Lolo actually I use Picnik to edit my photos. It is free to use. If you have a flickr account you can use it through that or you can go straight to the picnik site. I would recommend using it through flickr unless you are looking to make collage or scapbook pages, then you have to go straight to picnik.

Samantha, I wasn't sure if I was going to be able to save that 2nd shot or not. That was some determination on my behalf. This pretty much sums up a nature walk with my son. He doesn't walk, he always runs. It's a constant struggle.

Thank you both for joining me on my journey. I

Tara said...

These are wonderful edits, I really like the warmth you added and the sun. I really like your blog, I am a new follower.

Courtney said...

Love your edits! They feel very warm and inviting.

Heather said...

Your edits are great! I love that last black and white one!

Katie said...

Your edits are fabulous!!! All of them are just perfect!

Ashley Sisk said...

Wow - the composition and thought behind each photo was beautiful...and your editing was just gorgeous. Incredible job.

Anika said...

I really love what you have done with the photos. Those are great images! I love the blog by the way...i'll be following you.
Anika

Anonymous said...

Oh my gosh! These are AMAZING edits! The photos just draw me in and make me wish I was there. Fantastic!!

Unknown said...

I love all your edits, especially the last 2. I think the 3rd one is my absolute favorite!