When the playing's done...

... this is all that's left.

[End result of editing over on my [url=http://www.blipfoto.com/entry/1314045]Kinda Horrigans[/url] journal]

Really atrocious day for photography today. No time and feeling generally exhausted. But... the processing that went into this image was as follows:

Firstly, in Photoshop CS4 I brightened his eyes using a 50% grey layer set on overlay blend mode using a white brush at about 10% to just paint over the whites and irises of his eyes. Then, converted to black and white using Silver Efex Pro and the Film Noir preset. I also applied a vignette to hide the white radiator behind him and to intensify the light on his face and arm. Then, another bit of dodging and burning to lighten his face and skin. A final bit of sharpening using the 'Sharpen Edges' filter and that was it.

I always rather like doing black and white shots where you've got good contrast between light and shade. Makes for a dramatic shot and means that your end image doesn't appear 'flat' as it would if the light was also flat. It can save a mundane image and add a bit more interest than if it remained colour. Though it can be a 'love it or hate it' thing too!

Tip of the day:

18 Free Tutorials for Black and White Photography - if you fancy having a go at some black and white photography, there are oodles of ways of converting your colour image. These tutorials are a great starting place!