New to processing

[digital45]

Hi I started taking photographs for the first time last weekend and have already received some good tips from pbdweeeebie and peeperita in the animal critique forum. I am really enjoying the learning curve and I know that no matter how much I learn there will always be more.

This is a picture of York Minster that I have manipulated in a couple of software packages this evening and I was wondering whether anybody had hints or tips on how I could improve the image. I know it isn't the most interesting shot of this magnificent building but unfortunately at the moment a lot of it is covered in scaffolding.

[Naidie]

I think this sort of picture would look great in Black and white with high contrast. Just personal preference though.

[DBeck]

Hi, one of the first things I was taught when processing pictures, is correct the white balance, then the contrast and brightness right off. This should be done for every shot whether you think it needs it or not. This will bring consistency to your photos. What post processing software are you using? I hope you don't mind, but I made a couple of adjustments. I used Photoshop to correct the white balance using a curves adjustment and then slightly corrected the contrast and brightness.

[peeperita]

there are so many tacks you could take with this shot....or any shot for that matter....i think it all depends on where you have your head at the start.....do you want to repair only.....or change the whole mood of the piece....

i like to start with repair work first.....cropping, levels adjustments, and sharpening.....just a little fine tuning until my capture looks as it did to me when i there taking the shot.....

and then sometimes, i like to set a mood that's still belivable....by using a vignette, or selectively lighting areas......i'll even wash colors to simulate a time of day or intensify the golden light of a setting sun.....the sky's the limit here and it's all up to you.....

if you don't mind, i mocked up an edit of your shot so i can show you what i mean....



now, i don't know what editing software you have, so the translating will be up to you....

i repaired first.....and that was simply one click in auto levels....it added a little more contrast to the building and made it's features pop out.......i sharpened ever so slightly.....and even though your image is sharp to begin with, it added just a hair more definition to the details....

next was the creative end of things.......i added a very subtle vignette...your sky had no gradient to it and it just seeemd to make sense to make it look more believable......and also the vignette got my eye to focus more on the building and less on the sky.....i put a large, highly diffused area of cream to the center window to bring out the shutter pattern more and set this color on a separate layer with a soft light blending mode......i used this same process with a more vibrant color and painted over the parts of the building that were naturally receiving the sun so that they would glow a little and stand out from the building as a whole.....i felt like this made it more "dimensional"....

anyway, i rattle on.....as i said before.......the only limit is your imagination....

peeper