[Rosegold]

Hello,

I just got my Sigma SD14 back today after a firmware update killed it and have been messing about with my Sigma APO Macro 150mm F2.8 EX DG lens and the Sigma Photo Pro 3.0 software.

I love black and white photographs but am never sure if I'm hitting the mark myself ... so I thought I'd try a conversion in SPP after seeing a shot I liked at PBase created using the software rather than PSP 9.

I'd appreciate any advice/suggestions/comments about improving etc., and the settings I used are listed below the shot.

If the photo doesn't show up, click HERE for the PBase link.

Thanks




Converted in Sigma Photo Pro 3.0

Exposure -0.7
Contrast -0.7
Shadow -0.4
Highlight -1.0
Saturation 0
Sharpness 0
X3 Fill Light -0.5

White Balance Setting put to Monochrome

Saved as Same size [to original Raw] tiff, re-sized and set to 72dpi for web, little unsharp mask around eyes and nose.

[Summerleft]

I love the idea and the composition, it might be the upload and resizing thats caused issue? the image is quite small. However it does look a bit out of focus and the fact you mentioned sharpening the eyes nose makes me think this is the case.
Also it looks a little dark to me. The burnt out highlights on the right paw and muzzle - its better to slightly under expose than over as its easier to bring back.

I like the sunlight on the floor, Hes (?) such a cute little thing, maybe a less tight crop as well.

[fionaB]

have to agree with summer, it does look out of focus, and yes i like the play of light ont he floor, conversion to mono also looks a little flat, i would have a look at levels and make sure you are getting the full tonal range there.
great to see you doing different things and having a go
Fi

[Markulous]

Great to hear that you're back up and running with your SD14!

Really enjoy that comp with the shadow on the carpet - as been mentioned it's not sharp (and think I'd prefer DOF for all of Murphy)

[Rosegold]

for your comments, I’m going to give the conversion another go as I like the shot.

I also like things on the dark side at times, but that's another issue I have problems with when converting to black and white, how dark to go. I have to be especially careful if I want to print as my Epson R800 always goes darker than my monitor, even before I got the tft one, but that's irrelevant, so back to the point!

I let the software warnings guide me when it came to exposure, it was very bright sunlight shining on Murphy's paws so I've probably taken the changes too far to get rid of the warning marks shown in SPP 3.0.

Summerleft, I sharpened the eyes after I re-sized for the web and converted to jpg, I’ll try a larger version and see if it still looks out of focus as I‘d like a print if it works out. In SPP 3.0 it shows you a histogram so you get an idea of the range but I don't really understand how it all works, I'm going to ease up on the shadows and maybe ignore some of the warning marks and see how it goes.

Fi, maybe that will help with the flatness? Bring more variation into the shades of monochrome.

Can't do much about the crop, it's close because I was messing about with my macro lens and took a chance at a shot of my camera shy dog I was about 5ft away from him and trying to cut out the table leg on the left! He never makes it easy for me!

I’ll edit my post later to include a link if I mange to re-do it.

Hey Mark Thanks - I’m really happy to have my camera back! Yes, I need a lot more practice at making the most of my chances, I’m not fast at all so often miss out on my ideal composition. The shot would be better with all of Murphy in focus, something to aim for if he’d stop dodging the camera to sit on my knee.

[WOODY]

WHEN I SAW THE NAME, MONOCHROME MURPHY, I WAS EXPECTING TO SEE A GREYHOUND, SURPRISED TO SEE A SMALLER DOG. BUT GREAT SHOT ALL THE SAME.

[Rosegold]

Thanks Woody, Murphy would give a greyhound a run for their money if there was food involved!

[Markulous]

A couple of things struck me - you've lost much of any potential detail in the upload. Pic would look better at 800 px and 200k.

Looking at your processing details, I'd be tempted to up the X3 Fill Light to about 1 or 2, to add some light into the dark, undetailed areas. You don't really want to ignore the warnings as you'll end up with burned highlights and/or clipping

[Rosegold]

Thanks Mark

I tried again, but think I'm going to have to scrap it and try for a better shot next time, have a look here if you like:

~ photographs.claremc.co.uk ~

Thanks for all your comments and advice