Sunset adjustment... too much?

[steevdavis62]

I took this photo the other night, saw a gorgeous sunset, and just couldnt capture it perfectly. the colours just werent as vibrant, and i couldnt work out how to capture it better. So i took them to photoshop, and played with the curves and saturation, and enhanced it somewhat. to more of what it really looked like at the time. But what i wondered is, has this gone too far, does to other one look fake... When u dont see it next to the other, does it look stunning, or over done?... and is this cheating with a photo, like doing it i felt almost like i was a crappy photographer, so i had to cheat, to get a good photo.... what are your thaughts

Before:
<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/62342462@N00/381681104/" title="Photo Sharing"><img src="http://farm1.static.flickr.com/45/381681104_44f70f678b.jpg" width="375" height="500" alt="pre-process" /></a>


Alrighty, i did another quick version.. and like Triglav said, i excentuated the reds, and the gold. tried to lay off on the magenta to take away some of the 'make up' look. basically more just accentuated the natural colour and cropped out a touch more tree.

Re-try:
<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/62342462@N00/381697638/" title="Photo Sharing"><img src="http://farm1.static.flickr.com/188/381697638_052c79cf60.jpg" width="389" height="500" alt="re tried" /></a>


Im leaving this here, so people can learn from my mistakes

After:
<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/62342462@N00/378154994/" title="Photo Sharing"><img src="http://farm1.static.flickr.com/173/378154994_c7dc993bef.jpg" width="408" height="500" alt="dponedd" /></a>

[NaturesPixel]

IMHO yes way to much i just love the original one..

[steevdavis62]

really.. the original is soo bland and drab... i wanted it tooo look like it really looked, it was just a fantastic sunset... like compared to the other one, it looks over done, agreed.... i think if u didnt see them side by side, its it less stark!... but thanks for ur opinion, i appreciate it... maybe ill get an inbetween

[jiminyClickit]

steevdavis62,

From subtle natural beauty to a little too much makeup. Mother Nature can tolerate a little bit of help on her duller days, but it's jarring if you go too far. Personal taste: color of "before" and crop of "after."

[Triglav]

My thoughts about this picture: the "after" picture is definitely too much. the colours are unreal. I think I would try three things with this pic:

- crop a little more trees out. IMHO they make a nice frame but they occupy 3/4 of your photo.
- try to add a little contrast by making the famous S-curve with levels (use the adjustment layer)
- Give the red colours a little saturation boost

But be carefull, I have learned that the subtle changes are the best. The once you only notice if you put the "before" and "after" picture side by side.

Goodluck and please show us the result!

[steevdavis62]

Alrighty i edited the post with a new one, much more subtle and natural... is this a better effort?..but is it still cheating? or do most photographers do it?

[Saralonde]

I think a lot of photographers do it, but the good ones know how to keep it subtle. I like the original best. Still there are times I see a colorful sunset and think that if I took a picture of this, people will think it's photoshopped. Mother Nature can put on brilliant displays of color that can seem unbelievable.

[steevdavis62]

That is a good point. But i guess then u could have the satisfaction of telling them it was straight out of the camera, and watching their jaw drop :)

[jiminyClickit]

steevdavis62,

The cheating thing: a scientist might fault your original for lack of detail; a painter might fault it for not coming from your "soul" onto canvas; Ma Nature is just amused at our presumption that anything we do is ever enough to match what it was like for you to "see" that sky. Even a photographer is "cheating" by how he adjusts his camera. Do something, learn from it. If your soul doesn't writhe in pain, it's probably not cheating

[wulf]

I think I also lean towards preferring the original. One of the differences is that the trees come out a lot darker in the edited version - I think the dark brown of the original tree silhouettes works better.

When doing this kind of work I often adjust the colours on a copied layer and then reduce the opacity to get a blend I like.

Wulf