been playing with a pic and can't get what I want.

[Andy]

Jul 4, 2024 15:51:08 GMT richrd said:

Does what looks good on the sscreen always look good in print?

This gets into the technical details of monitor calibration, and you can find plenty of threads on that topic on this forum and others. The short answer is that unless your monitor is calibrated, what you see may not be what gets printed (the most common problem is modern displays having their brightness set too high, resulting in the print being much darker than desired).

[fotofrank]

This is just my 2 cents on your image - I think it lacks a main subject. The door and the bright light are competing with each. In my view there is more of a story about the trip to get there.

[PeteB]

You got some good suggestions and I thought that I would add another. I wanted to make the subject (motorcycle} stand out. I did the following:

selected the motorcycle and sharpened it and then used levels to adjust {brighten} midtones;
diffused the background to help draw attention to the motorcycle
added a vignette around the motorcycle (darkens everything but the motorcycle)
applied average blur to avoid a color cast
Finally I adjusted the shadows (Enhance>Lighting}



My thoughts on your other questions …
A square crop can help to remove distractions.
How will it look as a print? In the past I have used a local printer and had cheaper 4x6 prints made. This allowed me to select the best version and it also allowed me to evaluate colors, brightness, etc. Then I could make adjustments and would have more confidence to print a larger version
For size, there is good software available to enlarge your image. Some may allow a trial period.

[richrd]

I kept going back to the original print and going thru the numbers. Decided this is what I liked, desaturated about 50%, toned down the whites and brightness, then add some grain.

After talking the guy who was going to do the printing, I sent him the file, then two more files with some brightness added in steps. He printed the middle file, as the first was too dark for canvas.

ended up with this.

[richrd]

on the canvas print, the door and lite are a bit more subdued and the bike stands out a bit more.

[hmca]

Looking good. Sounds like you are happy with the results, Richard. So glad it worked out for you. Enjoy your new print.....canvas was a great choice!