how can i change the sky color to alter the mood?

[life.simple]

Hello all,
I 'm a new member to DPS and I hope this thread works and conforms to the rules.

This is my image.


http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2754/...5dd0e281ae.jpg

This was shot in Stockholm last summer .


Camera: Sony DSC-W230
Exposure: 0.006 sec (1/160)
Aperture: f/5.0
Focal Length: 15.1 mm
ISO Speed: 100
Exposure Bias: -0.3 EV
Flash: Off, Did not fire

My question is as given in the subject. The picture looks a bit bland to me. How can I boost up its mood(give it a romantic aspect)?

Georgie

[sybren]

It's not the answer you want to hear, but I'd say re-shoot the photo. The photo was taken from the shadow side of the fountain, looking into the sun. Next time place your subjects at the other side, so that you've got the sun in your back. Or at least walk more to what is now at the left side of the photo, so that you get light from the side.

[edbayani]

if you cannot reshoot, using photoshop, go to select, color range, click on the white sky and adjust the slider to select only the whites. there will be areas selected other thatn the sky since there are other white areas in the photo. press Q to qo to quick mask and use the brush tool to brush away the excess selections leaving only the sky. then press ctrl J to copy the sky to another layer. make the blending mode to multiply since there is a slight bluish tinge in the sky. this will darken it a bit. copy again the sky layer and put it to multiply again and this will further darken it. merge the two sky layers and use hue and saturation to alter the color. when satisfied, flatten and save. and welcome to dps.

[navcom]

I agree with the comments as well. Also, concerning composition, your image appears pretty busy. There's a lot going on in the image to take your attention away from the kiss (other people, buildings, skyline, etc.). This makes the image more of a documentation photo and takes away from the intimacy. You might want to consider getting closer to your subject and/or using some shallow depth of field to limit any background behind the fountain.

When composing a photo, the best advice I was ever given was to eliminate anything that doesn't add to the subject. When looking through the viewfinder, our eyes often trick us into ignoring many things that shouldn't be in our compositions. Then when we get home and look at them on the computer, we kick ourselves for not seeing this or that.

One way to learn how to simplify an image is when you think you have it where you want it, move closer. Then move closer again. This gets you to think outside the box and leave your compositional comfort zone (so to speak). You can always move away if you get too close. Most of us try to capture "the whole scene" thinking this will convey the mood we felt...wide angle...forgetting that the viewer can't smell the smells or feel the mood. All they see is the clutter. For a landscape, wide angle can be great. For intimacy, not so much.

Much of the time I find my second or third move is where I end up.