Cant seem to create the depth I need...

[Tzetsin]

I got this shot and I really want to make it work. Unfortunatly I cant seem to seperate the car from the rest of the shot. I've tried black and white, full colour, black and white overlay with 50% opacity... I cant seem to get the depth it needs to make it pop. This is the latest iteration of the shot, what could I do differently to get it to pop?

Copy1JG.jpg

F23
1/12Sec.
iso160
43mm

[RichardTaylor]

Have you tried "de focussing" the background?

[Tzetsin]

No, not yet. I didnt want to loose what little defanition I had with the light flare thingies on the left ( not sure what those are called) but It might be just what i need. I'll give it a go.

[ravncat]

I`d try alot of things in combination, and see which elements work - here are some ideas

Use a little bit of gaussian blur over the whole image to remove some of the sharpness - but use a mask and leave the details of the car alone.

Try darkening everything but the car - one can do this with a large brush and the burn tool, or a brightness adjustment and masking. you could try and hint at it with some light vingetting.

Increase just the contrast of the car area.

increase the saturation of the car

I`d apply all these changes and play with their opacities and find a balance that works pretty well - subtle changes should work fine - often just a bit of dodging and burning can really affect how an eye hits an image. Subtle is the key - opacity will let you go for a stronger effect and then bring it down to where it looks pleasing to you.

[Tzetsin]

Ok, i've done the guassian blur and I think that did the trick. What do you think, does it pop?

Copy1JG.jpg

[JFSanders]

It helps, but the back of the car is not in sharp focus and that hurts your chances.

Jim

[Tzetsin]

Originally Posted by JFSanders

It helps, but the back of the car is not in sharp focus and that hurts your chances.

Jim

The original Image is 5092 x 3390, 300DPI and tack sharp. Unfortunatly the one your seeing here has been through the ringer with edits more than a few times and dumbed down to 640 x n and 76dpi so it looks not so good. when I'm happy with the results i'm getting I'll start over and do it right for a finished image.

thanks for the input guys, if there is anything else i can do to make separation, I'd gladly hear it.

[ravncat]

you may want to use a gradient - the rocks under the car are a lot sharper than the rocks by the car - also in the reflection of the bumper - it`s noticeable to me, but im not sure if it is a problem. personally, I don`t think you need that strong a blur

[Tzetsin]

Originally Posted by ravncat

you may want to use a gradient - the rocks under the car are a lot sharper than the rocks by the car - also in the reflection of the bumper - it`s noticeable to me, but im not sure if it is a problem. personally, I don`t think you need that strong a blur

Oi! (Facepalm) Nice catch on the rocks.... I did use a gradient, but the car is on another level which includes the shadowed area under the car. I would have to rub that out too and just keep the car. I'll be starting over before this image is finished, so i'd probably caught that... ahem... yes. thank you. Your also right about the amount of blur. i'll likely keep a little more detail in the final. thank you again for pointing that out.

[Jo.T]

not sure if the car colour is important to you but is seems to much in the same tones as the sky, try a different blue or even maybe a red