forums
new posts
donate
UER Store
events
location db
db map
search
members
faq
terms of service
privacy policy
register
login




UER Forum > UE Photo Critiques > Flat photo help (Viewed 2285 times)
MeesterPanda 


Location: Montreal
Gender: Male
Total Likes: 21 likes




 |  | 
Flat photo help
< on 11/2/2015 1:32 AM >
Reply with Quote
Posted on Forum: UER Forum
Sooo... I'm still using my sad little point and shoot.

Basically, I was looking through some old photos, and I was this and noticed how flat and squishy the whole thing feels. The building just sinks into the background, and I'm not sure how to counteract that. Is there anything I can do to edit it, or is it a case of compositional/technical brain fart?
375931.jpg (88 kb, 366x500)
click to view


Any help is greatly appreciated!




Deuterium 


Location: PNW
Gender: Male
Total Likes: 290 likes




 |  | 
Re: Flat photo help
< Reply # 1 on 11/2/2015 3:37 AM >
Reply with Quote
Posted on Forum: UER Forum
Do you like this a bit better? 1.




Play around with your "+/-" setting on your camera to get around auto-exposure decision. Just about every P&S camera has it.

Take one starting at -2 and work your way up one whole value at a time all the way to +2 on a tripod to get familiar with what it does.




Titan 


Location: Australia | Sydney
Gender: Male
Total Likes: 4 likes




 |  |  | Urban Exploration Group Australia
Re: Flat photo help
< Reply # 2 on 11/2/2015 10:46 PM >
Reply with Quote
Posted on Forum: UER Forum
As above..
Unless you're looking at separating the subject from background like this ?

1.






[UEGA] urban exploration group australia
tiftastic 


Location: Pittsburgh, PA
Gender: Female
Total Likes: 99 likes




 |  | 
Re: Flat photo help
< Reply # 3 on 11/11/2015 12:32 AM >
Reply with Quote
Posted on Forum: UER Forum
I like the depth of field change, but it looks unnatural - reminds me of a tilt-shift image.

I would recommend playing around with darkening your blacks and desaturating the background just a touch

Posted by Snow7
As above..
Unless you're looking at separating the subject from background like this ?

1.
375998.jpg (53 kb, 366x500)
click to view










tiffers 


Location: Texas
Gender: Female
Total Likes: 565 likes


...

 |  |  | 
Re: Flat photo help
< Reply # 4 on 12/29/2015 6:33 PM >
Reply with Quote
Posted on Forum: UER Forum
It sinks into the background because you have a busy building and a busy background. I would advise a different angle...potentially lower, so the top of the building is a bit higher. Though, that may be pointless now as you're not still there.




Flickr: https://www.flickr...9156858@N05/albums
DJ Craig 

Moderator


Location: Johnson City, TN
Gender: Male
Total Likes: 373 likes


Break the Silence

 |  |  | AIM Message | Facebook
Re: Flat photo help
< Reply # 5 on 12/31/2015 10:43 PM >
Reply with Quote
Posted on Forum: UER Forum
There are three main ways that our brain perceives depth in a 2D medium such as a photo:
1. Perspective
2. Lighting
3. Depth of field / focus

Perspective: If you've ever taken a drawing class, think of 2-point and 3-point perspective. Perspective is created by the angle. This photo has some very limited 3-point perspective to it. Being closer to the subject would increase that. Of course that might not be possible, depending on the layout of the place.

Lighting: Our brain uses shadows to perceive depth. Because of the overcast lighting, there are no shadows, which makes it look flat. Same reason photos taken using a built-in camera flash tend to look flat.

Depth of field: This is probably the easiest one to fix in this case. The clutter in the background is making the background jump out at us. The more you can get that background to blur out the better. This can be achieved by using a wider aperture, or a higher focal length on your lens. Or you can do it very carefully in Photoshop, if you know what you're doing. If you really want to get fancy with depth of field stuff, do some research about "bokeh".


As an afterthought, I'll add that there is also atmospheric perspective. Imagine if this photo was taken on a slightly foggy day. The background might still be visible, but would be faded due to the fog, which would affect the foreground to a much lesser degree, which will imply depth.

Hope that helps!




"You have brains in your head. You have feet in your shoes. You can steer yourself any direction you choose. You're on your own. And you know what you know. And YOU are the one who'll decide where to go..." -Dr. Suess
yokes 


Location: Toronto
Gender: Male
Total Likes: 596 likes


I aim to misbehave

 |  |  | AIM Message | 
Re: Flat photo help
< Reply # 6 on 1/1/2016 3:40 PM >
Reply with Quote
Posted on Forum: UER Forum
What was the focal length of the lens? If it is a longer lens, it will compress the foreground and background normally, flattening things.




"Great architecture has only two natural enemies: water and stupid men." - Richard Nickel
Archer 


Location: Toronto, ON
Gender: Male
Total Likes: 152 likes


Imperator Sagittario

 |  |  | Abandoned UE
Re: Flat photo help
< Reply # 7 on 1/3/2016 12:04 AM >
Reply with Quote
Posted on Forum: UER Forum
Posted by tiffers
It sinks into the background because you have a busy building and a busy background. I would advise a different angle...potentially lower, so the top of the building is a bit higher. Though, that may be pointless now as you're not still there.


^ This. The peak on your subject is at roughly the same height as the background, which hurts. Your eyes generally follow lines - if the subject tower was significantly above the background, that distinct break in the background line would draw attention.


Posted by yokes
What was the focal length of the lens? If it is a longer lens, it will compress the foreground and background normally, flattening things.


^ Also this.





Abandoned UE - http://www.abandonedue.com

"We live in a twilight world... and there are no friends at dusk."
UER Forum > UE Photo Critiques > Flat photo help (Viewed 2285 times)


Add a poll to this thread



This thread is in a public category, and can't be made private.



All content and images copyright © 2002-2024 UER.CA and respective creators. Graphical Design by Crossfire.
To contact webmaster, or click to email with problems or other questions about this site: UER CONTACT
View Terms of Service | View Privacy Policy | Server colocation provided by Beanfield
This page was generated for you in 78 milliseconds. Since June 23, 2002, a total of 737010236 pages have been generated.