First post ...

[Andreas]

Ok, after lurking for a few days here's my first request for critique ...



My SLR is still a film one but I've been playing around with a simple digital point and shoot (Sony DSC-W35). This photo is from that camera.

The background was a yellow wall and I wanted a dark background so I switched it for this gray/black gradient fill. Other than that, I only did the BW conversion and a slight crop.

Well, that's pretty much it ... please be merciless!

[Hugo]

Andreas, I have a question as to where you did the b&w conversion? Was it in camera, or in some photoshop-like program?

From lurking around here, and checking other places out, I know that b&w conversions are a source of great frustration for many in finding the proper technique (there are many) that gets the results that those photographers that traditionally shot in black and white film are accustomed to.

[windrider86]

First of all welcome welcome!
You did a great job with the expression and the presentation but in my opinion the face is a tad bit too dark and the hair is blending in too much with your background. Very easy fixes.
What post processing are you using?

[Andreas]

First of all, thanks for the comments! I'm starting to like it here ...

Originally Posted by Hugo

Andreas, I have a question as to where you did the b&w conversion? Was it in camera, or in some photoshop-like program?

It was done in the GIMP using the channel mixer. I'd rather do the conversion in post-processing because it leaves more room to experiment.

That said, I usually try to use the B&W mode in the camera to help visualize the scene on site. Then with the zone system in mind I play around with the spot meter, exposure compensation and the histogram. Even though my camera is a fully automatic P&S (the DSLR is coming soon) this already brings a whole new fun factor to shooting B&W over my SLR (though the final results barely stand to comparison at this point).

As to preferred methods of B&W conversion, I have none. In my opinion each picture will want a different method so I usually experiment with a couple different approaches to see which will turn to be the best in a specific picture. It's also part of the fun, I guess.

Originally Posted by windrider86

First of all welcome welcome!
You did a great job with the expression and the presentation but in my opinion the face is a tad bit too dark and the hair is blending in too much with your background. Very easy fixes.

Agreed ... I lighted his face a bit (actually not only the face, but I guess it came out ok) and increased a tiny bit the contrast between him and the background. I didn't want to increase a lot because the masking in the hair was a bit sloppy and might become too evident.

I know, I know ... I should go back to the beginning and do it all over again ... maybe in the weekend ...

[brianfarrell]

That edit is much better - it really needed the light on his face - well done

[TW1NS]

much better on the second post....
the tones are much more defined...
nice shot...
the bright spot beneath his chin throws me off a bit...not sure how you could define the jaw line and his neck more...

[Andreas]

Originally Posted by TW1NS

the bright spot beneath his chin throws me off a bit...not sure how you could define the jaw line and his neck more...

I see what you mean ... I think I could change the collar's tone in order to increase contrast between his face and that part of the sweater. But that would probably be best done in an earlier step (during B&W conversion).

I'll give it a try later ... (lots of homework this weekend it seems )

Thanks for the nice feedback!