007 Nab's Gallery! (m/d/yy) 10/2/09

[cazaron]

been working on any other pieces to show us?

[007 Nab]

You got it cazaron, here's a wallpaper I made from a set of pics I took looking out from my front yard a while ago:

^Click for bigger version^

Taken with a Fujifilm FinePix S8000fd (reason for horrible noise) and without a tripod.

Initial panoramic stitching done in Ptgui, fake exposures in Adobe Photoshop CS3, HDR processing in Photomatix, and final processing in Paint.NET (Poor resizing quality is because I used v3.36)

At the time I made the original picture (before converting it to wallpaper form) I wasn't very accustomed to the different programs I used, so you'll have to forgive me on the various mistakes I made (lens distorts in PTgui, Not enough contrast smoothing in Photomatix, etc.)

For my next pictures I will try to focus more on solely relying on Paint.NET for stitching, HDR, and basic manipulation.

If you would like to see the original frames, composite, or simply the full sized HD versions, don't hesitate to send me a PM.

Also, if you want a custom resolution for this piece, just ask. I realize 1366x768 isn't a very conventional screen resolution (fits my tv nicely )

Notes:

I like the mood that's been set in this picture - I wanted to achieve an extreme CG look - to kind of make it look end-of-the-worldish. I enjoyed working with different programs to create one final image. Looking at this from an artistic perspective, you could say it wasn't a very good pic to begin with (No clear focal point, off the mark on Law of Thirds, etc., etc.) However, this was more of a technical exercise. It's also not very practical, because icons and text will probably be hard to see (I don't have an icons on my desktop) - so maybe this would be best used as a screensaver. Or maybe as poster on your wall. Or maybe as a banner draped from a skyscraper.

Here is a zip I've compiled that contains the various files and resources used to create the wallpaper: ZIP

Hope you like it, and feel free to use it as a wallpaper.

[Gamer_World14]

Taken with a Fujifilm FinePix S8000fd (reason for horrible noise) and without a tripod.

Does the finepix really produce that much noise? If so, I am glad I went with a Sony Cybershot DSC-H20.

At the time I made the original picture (before converting it to wallpaper form) I wasn't very accustomed to the different programs I used, so you'll have to forgive me on the various mistakes I made (lens distorts in PTgui, Not enough contrast smoothing in Photomatix, etc.)

Another Photo stitching program that I use is called Hugin. It is a free and I think open source stitcher and it works quite well.

If you would like to see the original frames, composite, or simply the full sized HD versions, don't hesitate to send me a PM.

What was the final resolution of this work you made?

(No clear focal point, off the mark on Law of Thirds, etc., etc.)

Not all photos need to follow the Rule of Thirds because it really depends on how the photo(s) were composed overall. I think you did a great job because you got enough of the sky and enough of the street to show a good mood in the image. I especially like the clouds in this one, I am not sure why, but they just look really cool.

Hope you like it, and feel free to use it as a wallpaper.

I liked it, great work. Nice to see such a combination of software to make one piece of art.

[Sharp]

Your stuff is always cool

[oma]

not being much of a photographer I didn't understand much of the critiques you gave yourself on this one and those listed by Gamerworld.

but I do know what I like the looks of. and this is really speaking to me. ! the sky is spectacular. certainly looks like a lovely place to live.

thanks for sharing with us.

ciao OMA

[Gamer_World14]

not being much of a photographer I didn't understand much of the critiques you gave yourself on this one and those listed by Gamerworld...

I hope my critique was easy enough to understand.

The only thing that might be a little difficult to understand is the Rule of Thirds (Wiki this).

[007 Nab]

Thanks for your compliments Welsh , oma, and Sharp

Gamer, thanks for all your input: The noise initially isn't too bad - I mean it's noticeable, but the HDR effects I ran on the image seriously increased it. I just waited far too long to take the shots, as it was too dark by the time I actually got around to taking the pics. I mean, compare these before and after shots:

OPEN THEM UP IN EACH SEPARATE TAB

See what I mean? It's there, but I foolishly enhanced it

I also realize I don't necessarily need to follow the RoT, but in my case, I just flat out don't have a focal :oops:

And yes! Thanks for pointing out the clouds - they're the only reason I took the pics in the first place

Oh, and I don't have a definitive number as far as resolutions go, because I cropped and resized the panorama right out of Ptgui. The original frames were 3265x2448 (8 megapix), with the cropped version at about 2406x917, which works out fine, because I think if the pic itself filled out the entire screen, icons would become invisible, or it would just look cluttered.

EDIT: I've been writing this reply for a couple of days, and in the meantime 3 people have posted

Thanks again for all of your kind comments people, sorry I didn't get back to you quickly

[Gamer_World14]

Yeah, the noise didn't look bad at all before. I have not tried using HDR effects, what is that even supposed to do? Is it like editing Raw? I wish my camera had Raw.

[007 Nab]

HDR: High Dynamic Range - where you take several shots at different exposure intervals (such as -4, -2, 0, 2, 4) and then mix them together to achieve a total light range.

While our eyes have this dynamic range, cameras don't, so with this method we can achieve what we actually see (for example: point your camera out the window, and you'll see it adjust exposure / shutter speed to compensate for the added light. Then point it back to an inside wall by the window, and you'll find the camera adjusts to the wall or room. With HDR, you can see both the wall, and the outside well.)

Photomatix not only does this, but it allows you to manipulate actual highlight / shadow levels as well as contrast, temperatre and luminosity so you can achieve some crazy effects.

Paint.NET is beginning to have these capabilities, though not directly. I remember J2K was experimenting with fake HDR techniques a while back - and certain plugins (Shadow/Highlight recovery, Local Contrast Enhancement, etc.) allow you to replicate something pretty close to HDR.

In fact, like I said before, in the future I want to be able to restrict as much of my HDR process to PDN as I can. (The only current restriction I see is that I wouldn't be able to have true HDR - with actual exposure intervals - it would have to be simulated instead.)

Oh, an I wish I had RAW capabilities, too. Pictures sure would be higher quality...

[Gamer_World14]

HDR: High Dynamic Range - where you take several shots at different exposure intervals (such as -4, -2, 0, 2, 4) and then mix them together to achieve a total light range.

While our eyes have this dynamic range, cameras don't, so with this method we can achieve what we actually see (for example: point your camera out the window, and you'll see it adjust exposure / shutter speed to compensate for the added light. Then point it back to an inside wall by the window, and you'll find the camera adjusts to the wall or room. With HDR, you can see both the wall, and the outside well.)

Photomatix not only does this, but it allows you to manipulate actual highlight / shadow levels as well as contrast, temperatre and luminosity so you can achieve some crazy effects.

Paint.NET is beginning to have these capabilities, though not directly. I remember J2K was experimenting with fake HDR techniques a while back - and certain plugins (Shadow/Highlight recovery, Local Contrast Enhancement, etc.) allow you to replicate something pretty close to HDR.

In fact, like I said before, in the future I want to be able to restrict as much of my HDR process to PDN as I can. (The only current restriction I see is that I wouldn't be able to have true HDR - with actual exposure intervals - it would have to be simulated instead.)

Oh, an I wish I had RAW capabilities, too. Pictures sure would be higher quality...

Ok, cool. I never knew exactly what HDR was, thanks for the info. And what version of Photomatix did you use for that image?

[007 Nab]

Yeah, no problem - I think I used Photomatix Pro 3.0.

[Splicit]

Wow, after i saw your gallery and ur help to me, i became your fan

[007 Nab]

Haha, thanks Splicit, it was not problem at all

I like your newest sig by the way - cool distort

[007 Nab]

"Vue Snowy Cliff Landscape WIP" ~ Playing around with vue

^^Clicky for dA Link^^

Please be sure to see it in full view!

[007 Nab]

Yeah that's the focal of the pic - I did this one in Vue (school is letting me use it - otherwise you're looking at $1000+) so I could get an idea of what it could look like in PDN

I, too, have been trying to get some different material layering - right now I'm working on a remake of my current sig all in PDN

Thanks for the comment!

[LibbyH]

Your newest picture is gorgeous. I'm unfamiliar with vue how does it work?

[007 Nab]

Thanks, Vue is a 3d rendering which works like 3DS Max or Maya, the main difference being it's specific to environmental scenes.

So the above picture isn't so much a creation as it is a manipulation - I didn't create the objects in the scene, I just composed and then edited them.

[Lego]

I'm impressed with Dunlace Castle and also your newest Vue Landscape piece...It's insane! Also, didn't know you have a dA!

[Aislin]

awsome!!! it looks so real!!

[007 Nab]

Thanks for the comments guys! I tried to really enhance the lighting from the original render (I hadn't exactly figured out the atmosphere editor in Vue yet, so there was a serious lack of dramatic lighting) - which is all good, because Paint.NET is perfect for lighting fixes

@Welsh: Haha, it would break the bank, I know - I got introduced to this software via a Computer Basics Class which I was taking for a throw-away credit.

@Lego: Yeah, I've got a dA - I'll have to add you on there

@Aislin: Thanks for the comment

[007 Nab]

Hello everyone, haven't uploaded anything in a while, I've been working mainly in Vue.

So anyway, here's my latest, inspired by the movie Avatar, rendered in Vue and edited in Photomatix and Paint.NET

^Click for full sized (2560x1600!!)^

Enjoy, criticism is welcome

[Frontcannon]

Woah.. combining different software with Paint.NET just creates a whole new level of art, amazing!

This, together with some fractals.. *starts dreaming*

[007 Nab]

Welsh: Hehe, that's what I do too - render, and then replicate (though 'replicate' takes me quite a bit longer )

There was quite a bit of editing in this one particularly - a lot of general enhancements, but some physical ones as well - fog, sunshine, the vines that connect the mountains, some vegetation, etc.

You're welcome to use this picture as you wish

Frontcannon: Haha - I was just thinking about fractals actually - they could be added for 'magic' effects

Thanks for the compliments guys!

[janettsue]

Whoa! I love the Avatar inspired image. Nice!

[barbieq25]

Like the concrete one...nice!