Power Lines and Poles

[Texas Sadie]

Should power lines and poles always be removed from a photograph? Is there any time when they should be left in? (except in photo journalism and where they are the subject) Does anyone have a photograph where powerlines actually work well in the picture? Give us your opinion. I'd like to see some "before" and "after" shots too.

[Kar]

Took these a few weeks ago. There is no color added and it was great except for the powerlines. Not the cleanest job at the bottom, but my hand was killing me using the mouse to erase the lines.

[eurotrash]

that looks pretty good, but if you get down to the detail towards the bottom of the picture you can see the smudges from the heal/clone/smudge brush.

[bluetexasbonnie]

I have always been fascinated by the march of powerlines across the plains -- I think it is very possible for them to be a good supporting element. (Besides, I need to like them, because I go bonkers cloning those babies out! :lol: )

Sorry don't have anything availble to post.

[brad]

Here is one where I took them out.. (they were above the trees and a tower was partially behind the windmill... you can still see part of the tower through the windmill's supports)... this one was printing in a city calendar for this year...



But then, this one was as much of the lines as it was of the sunset....

[heinecke]

I don't remove anything that can't be cropped out. If I clone something out, it's no longer a true photograph, it's a fabrication. I don't have a problem with other people doing it as long as they state the fact. Other than adujstments to color, sharpening, brightness,etc., I don't do any other manipulation.

Not trying to start a discussion on ethics, just my 2 cents.


Glenn

[JamesB]

I agree with Glenn, I dont normally remove anything that cant be cropped out. Now I will clone out hot pixels and dead pixels and If it is REALLY important to me then I will clone out the stuff like power lines.

Im just not that picky, some always do it some dont, I guess its all up to you really. I just dont like people telling me i NEED to do it.

James

[Hogleg 44]

The lead picture of mine on the "Typically Texas Scenery" Thread in the 'Landscapes' Forum, had a bunch of High Power Transmission lines in the background, that I had to take out because they just didn't fit the effect I wanted in the picture.

But this one below, a different story, of course...!

[jeffkohn]

I typically don't remove them simply because doing so effectively is extremely difficult, at least for me. I'm pretty good at cloning/healing stuff against a detailed background but against the smooth gradient of the sky it always seems to leave a trace behind. I generally avoid using such edit technique unless they can be done seamlessly because IMHO it can detract from the image even more than if you just left it in.

[Texas Sadie]

Great response, guys. I like to see what others think. Sometimes it bothers me a to take out too much...but then if I do, I guess the view is not really that worthy of a shot?

I think it matters too, what is to be done with the photo. If you were selling it (like Brad) for a calendar, it wouldn't sell with powerlines in the shot. And since it is strictly for beauty and art's sake..why not clone them out? BUT if its a misrepresentation then I'd think twice about it.

Here is a shot I took with powerlines left in the SECOND shot. The first photo is with them smudged and cloned out of shot. The photo is strictly for art's sake, so I don't feel badly doing so. Now if I was trying to sell someone this real estate and was taking a photo of it to show them, it would be unethical, IMHO.

[brad]

Oh, absolutely.. if I'm selling it as a photographic representation of something, then no.. I don't remove them... crop in camera or crop later if needed.

If its for art or stock.. cloned every time (assuming it couldn't be cropped in camera... its still a last resort).

Now.. the gray area here is taking a shot of a local attraction or lake for an ad about that subject..... if the lines aren't terribly imposing, I might go ahead and clone them. Remember the human eye works much differently than a camera... the brain has an easy time of focusing only on the "good" things, where the camera captures it all. Its why sometimes a photo doesn't look as good as you remember... of course, tell the agency and let them decide if its unethical to use it or not.....

[Texas Sadie]

Originally Posted by brad

Oh, absolutely.. if I'm selling it as a photographic representation of something, then no.. I don't remove them... crop in camera or crop later if needed.

If its for art or stock.. cloned every time (assuming it couldn't be cropped in camera... its still a last resort).

Now.. the gray area here is taking a shot of a local attraction or lake for an ad about that subject..... if the lines aren't terribly imposing, I might go ahead and clone them. Remember the human eye works much differently than a camera... the brain has an easy time of focusing only on the "good" things, where the camera captures it all. Its why sometimes a photo doesn't look as good as you remember... of course, tell the agency and let them decide if its unethical to use it or not.....

Good point. I'm sure you're exactly right about that.

[CaptainTom]

A great thread. I have not perfected the cloning, etc. so I will not shoot if I can't expect to crop them out. I may have some blocks of free time soon (job related unfortunately) and will have a chance to work on the techniques. Perhaps then my viewpoint will change.