Processed : which do you like better?

[wings of a bluebird]

Appreciate your feedback on this one. I had taken this shot with the aim that I was going to make it a bit "urban" looking and high contrast, but when I was editing I found I was torn as to what version I prefer...

Vintage


brolly girl vintage feel by wings of a bluebird, on Flickr

or

Contrast


brolly girl high contrast by wings of a bluebird, on Flickr

any and all opinions gratefully received.

[Nicole]

I like the bottom one and the way the colours stand out. The only thing I'd consider doing is toning down the shoes a little.

[wings of a bluebird]

Originally Posted by Nicole

I like the bottom one and the way the colours stand out. The only thing I'd consider doing is toning down the shoes a little.

Thanks for the feedback Nicole.
This was more the look I had in mind when I took the shot. However since the shoes are fluoro pink already and I upped the contrast they've gone wild! But I'm not clever enough with PS to know how to selectively do things yet... whenever I learn it I will try and tone down the shoes

[Nicole]

Yep, I think the look suits it quite nicely And the pink shoes are definitely bright enough in the original to fit with the processed version.

One really quick and easy way you can try to see how it looks is to just put the original and edited versions into a single photoshop document as layers. Put the processed one as the top layer, then add a layer mask and a brush that's about 50% grey and paint on the layer mask where the shoes are. I tried that (I also lightened the legs a little), and I really liked the end result. May just be personal preference though.

Overall, I think the processing works great.

[ravncat]

If you find yourself torn as to which version you prefer - maybe you'd prefer a hybrid even more - I recommend taking and layering the two atop eachother - then peeling the opacity of the top one back until you find a happy medium - I'd also recommend going back and forth, 0 - 100% - 10 % -90 % - 20 % etc... you'll probably find something you like and settle there long before you reach exactly a 50% blend. There's a few other ways to do it, but you might be surprised with how a mix can turn out...