Lauren Heerschap  


Cologne Cathedral by Lauren Heerschap

May 2022 - Cologne Cathedral

About the Image(s)

This infrared photo was taken in Cologne, Germany of the twin towers at the Cologne Cathedral. ISO 400, 12mm, F18 1/15. In Lightroom I used the Transform module to straighten the keystone effect, and used the infrared B & W 08 profile. I ran it through On1 for sharpening and got lots of fringing. I then went to Silver Efex Pro and decided it was best lightened with the full dynamic selection. To get rid of the fringing, I went back to Photoshop and used a clone stamp setting on the tops of the towers. I didn't like the clouds, and the noise, so I added a mask over the cathedral, and then put a Gaussian blur. I think the clouds are strange because I was shooting so directly up. I had tried to do a panoramic effect, but my shots wouldn't merge in PS because the tops of the towers darkened, so I selected this shot. Any suggestions on the clouds would be welcome. This cathedral is constantly being rebuilt, they started in 1248, and if you zoom in you can see lines and working platforms between the towers. I like the fact that infrared brought out the exquisite detail of this World Heritage Site Gothic Cathedral.


This round’s discussion is now closed!
7 comments posted




Stuart Bacon   Stuart Bacon
The clouds don't bother me as much as not seeing the base of the cathedral. Too bad the panoramic didn't work out. It is a very impressive structure and you do show the intricate detail throughout.   Posted: 05/15/2022 08:05:36



Chuck Nauman   Chuck Nauman
Very weird clouds: I like them as they are and don't know how you might make the more realistic, short of sky replacement. The cathedral seems overly detailed (not your doing), almost like a model, and too dark and gloomy. No original image to give us some clues.   Posted: 05/17/2022 19:07:51
Lauren Heerschap   Lauren Heerschap
I will try to post the original, I think the problem is the size won't allow for more of the cathedral in the restrictions of this format.   Posted: 05/21/2022 15:51:55



 
An impressive place, your building detail is amazing!! As for a suggestion to "fix" the clouds, I think you could use your Select Subject in PS, the invert the selection to get the sky and put in a sky (B&W) of your liking. Select sky would probably work but I tend to select subjects for any background replacement. To my eye, there is still a bit of tilt but this could be because it is a really big building. Would love to see some closer shots to show more of the details!!   Posted: 05/20/2022 12:02:21
Lauren Heerschap   Lauren Heerschap
thanks for the helpful suggestions!!   Posted: 05/21/2022 15:52:25



Lauren Heerschap   Lauren Heerschap
This is the entire building. You get an idea of how HUGE this cathedral is when people are below it.   Posted: 05/21/2022 18:45:09
Comment Image



Nelson Charette   Nelson Charette
Nice image, I kinda like the clouds. Nice work in processing you made everything look sharp. You could always try the new sky replace in Photoshop, then convert them to B&W
  Posted: 05/26/2022 11:37:48