Brenda Fishbaugh, QPSA  


Santorini Sun by Brenda Fishbaugh, QPSA

July 2021 - Santorini Sun

July 2021 - Brenda Fishbaugh, QPSA

Original

About the Image(s)

Canon 5D Mark IV Tamron 28-300 handheld
ISO 250 67mm focal length f/18 1/250 second

We were in Santorini, Greece in September 2019 on a Viking ocean cruise. It was packed with tourists and it was hot sun, not much you can do on a cruise. I shot this after being shoved out of the way, you can see the tilt of trying to stand up. Recently, I saw the same shot by a pro photographer, and thought I'd give it a try.

I made the leveling and the crop and standard adjustments in Lightroom, Used Topaz Sharpen and used Topaz to add the sun rays, I used a high pass to sharpen the buildings, and I did add a little blue paint to the Orthodox church roofs, as the sun bleached them out terribly, and due to the drought, they hadn't been washed clean from rain.

Since I added a light blue paint to the roof and I added sun rays, did I toss myself out of PSA Travel? I could compete in PSA Color, or remove rays and blue, if you felt it was a strong enough composition. Or the same as a million other snapshots?



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




 
Lovely image Brenda. Wish I was there now, it is cold and winter here.
I like your crop, it really frames up well.
I am not as sure about the Topaz rays.
I like the plain blue sky. It is harmonious with the blue cupolas. There is also some noisy grain in the sky that catches the eye.
  Posted: 07/02/2021 02:53:03
Brenda Fishbaugh   Brenda Fishbaugh
Helen, I'd love your thoughts on my 7/20 renditions using the feedback. Thanks so much!   Posted: 07/20/2021 18:35:10



Sunil Mehta   Sunil Mehta
Brenda
Good travel photo.
Two large blue cupolas in the bottom half makes it unbalanced, also sun rays from left looks unnatural to me. I would crop and make the sky darker to bring out buildings.
  Posted: 07/02/2021 10:40:46
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Brenda Fishbaugh   Brenda Fishbaugh
I took into account your balance comment, I'd love your thoughts on my 7/20 renditions using the feedback. Thanks so much!   Posted: 07/20/2021 18:35:41



Terry Walters   Terry Walters
Super image, makes one want to go there. The straightening was essential and well done, but I would have included the full bottom left dome and the full tree. As for the roofs they still look natural and better for being cleaner.

I love the concept of adding the suns rays from the top left, but these look false because they just stop, can you extend them over the buildings, and maybe reduce the opacity?

You need to read the specific salon rules to see if they allow adjustments as some do allow changes, such as the roof fix, but the rays are probably a no-no.


  Posted: 07/04/2021 10:55:42
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Brenda Fishbaugh   Brenda Fishbaugh
Thanks for your thoughts, Terry. Do you like the horizontals I entered on 7/20 that definitely don't break rules?   Posted: 07/20/2021 18:36:30



Mitch Ross   Mitch Ross
Great image Brenda - adding this to my travel wish list! Nice work with the crop/straighten. I like the idea of the rays - agree with Terry's thought about extending over the buildings if possible (beyond my post-processing skill set). I like how you've cleaned up the domes. If only it were that easy in real life! Well done, beautiful image.   Posted: 07/06/2021 09:24:50
Brenda Fishbaugh   Brenda Fishbaugh
I'd love your thoughts on my 7/20 renditions using the feedback. Thanks so much!   Posted: 07/20/2021 18:36:54



Jim Hagan   Jim Hagan
Brenda you did a great job in capturing those white buildings - so easy to over expose. But, the large blue dome at the bottom of the image bothers me as your eye is drawn to that area instead of the rest of the image. In my revision I went back to the original photo and cropped the bottom domes out, left in some of the buildings to the left side of the original, eliminated the sun rays and also much of the noise.   Posted: 07/07/2021 19:31:14
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Jim Hagan   Jim Hagan
I forgot to mention that if the added rays were simply the result of a dodging technique it would be okay in color competition but no PSA competition allows you to add anything that was not your own creation. I am not sure about the rays being allowed in travel competitions as it alters the "feeling" of the original image, but I think the image would be better without it.   Posted: 07/08/2021 05:32:24
Brenda Fishbaugh   Brenda Fishbaugh
Jim, totally stole your idea (sans rays) and what do you think of my 7/20 renditions?   Posted: 07/20/2021 18:37:51



 
Wow Brenda. Sounds like you had to work to get this one! I would highly recommend enjoying Santorini on an extended stay not quite in the thick of tourist season if at all possible. Though when I visited (late Oct) it was a little too late and the locals were somewhat over catering to people so that was not so great either. Still it is such a beautiful island to wander and photograph.

Without reading the other comments, my first inclination was to crop it more like you and some of the others. But seeing Jim's crop, I do like the way you see the town growing up out of the empty mountainside and gives a nice flow to the image I think. I would try a crop like that and maybe even include those bottom buildings which blend better in a larger view than when they are taking up the whole bottom of the frame.

I prefer the sky naturally as it is where you get a nice gradient from dark blue sky to dark blue sea. Sunil's idea to darken it a bit more might work too.

  Posted: 07/15/2021 13:12:54
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Brenda Fishbaugh   Brenda Fishbaugh
Thanks so much for all your feedback, Jason. I'd love your thoughts on my 7/20 renditions using the feedback. Thanks so much!   Posted: 07/20/2021 18:38:27



Brenda Fishbaugh   Brenda Fishbaugh
Thanks for all the feedback on this! I've Jim and Jason's wider angles and I've left off the sun rays so that it could be in travel. I did crop up from the bottom, at Sunil's suggestion it was bottom heavy.

I have sharpened the buildings a bit, and I've NOT painted the roof or buildings, and the sky is about where it is in the original. Do you like the landscape or the really long landscape? Or neither (my opinion, as the churches are a bit pink with the dust, but does add to the town colors).   Posted: 07/20/2021 18:32:06
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Sunil Mehta   Sunil Mehta
Looks good.   Posted: 07/20/2021 20:45:40



Brenda Fishbaugh   Brenda Fishbaugh
  Posted: 07/20/2021 18:32:18
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Sunil Mehta   Sunil Mehta
I liked this version also.   Posted: 07/20/2021 20:46:08
Terry Walters   Terry Walters
I prefer the wider one.   Posted: 07/21/2021 09:34:02



Bev Caine   Bev Caine
(Groups 24 & 48 & 58)
Loved the image but not the dark sky. So I did a sky replacement in photoshop and wonder how you like that.   Posted: 07/29/2021 10:59:16
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Brenda Fishbaugh   Brenda Fishbaugh
Bev,

I love it! So much brighter! Unfortunately, adding a sky, even my own, would toss it from PSA Travel. I could, however, enter it in Color. Do you like either of the longer compositions just above your entry, if they were lighter, or do you like the vertical? Thanks for stopping by!   Posted: 07/29/2021 13:04:58



Bev Caine   Bev Caine
(Groups 24 & 48 & 58)
I personally prefer the less elongated versions as it takes your eye of what I believe is the center of attraction which are the two dome-shaped buildings on the left side. Take a look at these images when you can online looking for images of the Greek Islands and see what the pros do, then go ahead and compare and see what you think.   Posted: 07/29/2021 16:09:49