My search for bluebonnets today.......

[jagphoto]

I haven't done any editing yet. I just installed PS Elements, so give me your suggestions please.

[jagphoto]

They are so much clearer before I adjust the size to post them....why?

[kimberley]

where did you take these...beautiful bluebonnets

[CaptainTom]

to make a long story short, the compression programs have to decide which pixels to eliminate to make the photo the size you want. sometimes it softens the shot.
someone more technical can explaing further.

very nice kid shots. your kids? bluebonnets are great. where are you?

[jeffkohn]

Nice shots, first few are cute but I especially like the last one. Looks like you found some really nice locations, that's better than I was expecting to see based on all the pessimistic predictions. Where were you?

As for softness after resizing, that's fairly typical depending on the interpolation method used. Usually adding a little sharpening after after resizing will take care of it. For images this size I'd recommend Unsharp Mask settings of around 100, 0.3, 1 as a starting point in Photoshop; not sure how those numbers would translate to Elements though.

[Allen]

I drove to Austin from Houston today and noticed many bluebonnets along the way on both I-10 and 71.

Great pics of the kids.

[PhotoBella]

I adore these photographs....such priceless memories you've captured! I'm new to Texas (and TexasPhotoForum), and am heading to the Hill Country in a couple of weeks, and am very anxious to shoot the beautiful countryside there. I haven't photographed much outdoors, so I'd love some tips/advice. Could you tell me how you set up your camera to get the shots please? I'll be using an SLR film camera (and a little Coolpix 5900 for instant gratification). Help from anyone would be appreciated. And, to echo an earlier question ~ where did you find the field of bluebonnets???

[CincoJoe]

Great photos. We took some this weekend as well. We noticed some really good fields off Hwy 36 south of Brenham.

[jagphoto]

Originally Posted by CaptainTom

to make a long story short, the compression programs have to decide which pixels to eliminate to make the photo the size you want. sometimes it softens the shot.
someone more technical can explaing further.

very nice kid shots. your kids? bluebonnets are great. where are you?

Tom,
I'm sorry, I don't think I caught your questions the first time around. Yes, they are my kids and in these shots I was in Chappel Hill. I also found MANY more along HWY 6 towards Navasota. I think someone else posted a few spots too near Independence.

Lisa

[GonzoBernelli]

In Elements, first select sRGB color space for the image. Then choose Image/Resize from the menu bar. Decide on pixel dimensions of resized photo, then down near the bottom of that dialog, you will see something like "Bicubic" in a selection box. Open the box up and select "Bicubic Sharper" for downsizing. Then from File/Save for Web - run through those steps as well, remembering that the more compression you put on a JPEG the worse off the final result will be.

[jagphoto]

Originally Posted by GonzoBernelli

In Elements, first select sRGB color space for the image. Then choose Image/Resize from the menu bar. Decide on pixel dimensions of resized photo, then down near the bottom of that dialog, you will see something like "Bicubic" in a selection box. Open the box up and select "Bicubic Sharper" for downsizing. Then from File/Save for Web - run through those steps as well, remembering that the more compression you put on a JPEG the worse off the final result will be.

Thank you, that helps alot!

[dsjsws]

Here is the last photo.
I sharpened it - I had to go back in and blur the sweater after sharpening. I don't think that would have been necessary if I had been working from an original instead of a web copy.
I added color - saturation
I added a spot light to highlight the little girl. (I wanted the "sunshine" on her.)

Thanks for giving me hope that there would be bluebonnets this year. It has been so dry I was afraid we might have very few or none.

Donna

[jagphoto]

Originally Posted by dsjsws

Here is the last photo.
I sharpened it - I had to go back in and blur the sweater after sharpening. I don't think that would have been necessary if I had been working from an original instead of a web copy.
I added color - saturation
I added a spot light to highlight the little girl. (I wanted the "sunshine" on her.)

Thanks for giving me hope that there would be bluebonnets this year. It has been so dry I was afraid we might have very few or none.

Donna

Thanks Donna, that looks great! I haven't quite figured out the spotlight technique. I still haven't edited those photos, so I will try that ASAP.

LIsa

[Steelsun]

I was planning on going out to Hempstead/Brenham/Navasota again next weekend for some shots, but this week's weather forcast of alot of rain looks like it might beat up and kill alot of flowers.

[dsjsws]

Lisa,

Photoshop - Render - Lighting effects - (Then, select one - you have dozens of choices...)
Each one will have a different use for different photos.
Edit - Fade lighting effects...

Play with it, you will get the hang of it.

Donna