A couple of weeks ago I was fortunate enough to go on a shoot with a much sought after dance model. She is an ex professional ballet dancer who now models along with helping to train the British diving team, as apparently diving moves have a lot in common with ballet moves. The image was taken with my Olympus OM-1 and 12-40mm lens. Settings were f7.1, 1/160s, ISO 200. Studio flashlights were used with one on either side of the model. I made the following changes in Photoshop after initial processing in Camera Raw.
I selected the subject and put her on a new layer and removed the tattoos on her arms. I put an image of the backdrop over the background and added in a new floor. I wanted to keep some floor in the image, so the viewer can appreciate the height of the jump. I took an arm from one of the other shots I'd taken and replaced the top part of the upper arm, as I didn’t like the position of the hand in the original. I took a section of the skirt and copied this a few times. I rotated and warped each one, and blended them in, to try and give some movement in the skirt. I lightened the whole image by adding an image of some white canvas paper in soft blend mode at low opacity. I added a vignette using a curves layer and altered the colour balance using Nik Efex ??“ Cross Processing.
5 comments posted
Georgianne Giese
Carol, you did a beautiful job of turning your excellent photo into a real work of art! The photo catch is so perfect! I do love the coloring that you effected in your final image, and that floor is perfect. What you did to her skirt also adds movement to the story. I have no suggestions for improvement. It doesn't need any, in my opinion. Posted: 10/01/2026 23:18:26
Denise McKay
Beautiful image Carol! Your edits to add movement to her skirt made a very positive difference. I like that you lightened up the colors to better reflect the "lightness" of this ballerina floating in the air. I also feel like the size of the crop gives her room to move. At first I thought I'd prefer it cropped in a bit more from the left, but, considering she's dancing, more room makes sense.
Well done! Posted: 10/04/2026 16:41:28
Rita Johnston
Georgianne and Denise said what I was thinking. I like the lighter color and the final presentation. Excellent! Posted: 10/08/2026 00:54:44
Bruce Titus
I can usually find something in an image that could be improved ... but your final version is flawless. Great job! Posted: 10/08/2026 17:23:17
Jan Handman
This is beautifully photographed and processed Carol. The technique you used to lighten the image is really innovative. All of your changes helped to make this a stunning example of fine art. Well done. Posted: 10/10/2026 19:39:15
