Long time no see, friends! I bring you a post of some of my recent photography I captured in a beautiful little place called Mulranny. The family and me ventured there for an explore and while doing so, found this amazing walk that actually went all the way from Mulranny to Westport which is so cool! Of course we only did a small part but it is cool to see.
I took a variety of different pictures and out of all of them, I am choosing to share and chat about 6. All 6 I have edited in some way so I will include a chat about what edits I made and why, along with my vision behind each picture!
I hope you guys are well, I have been quite busy for a change which is nice. It feels good to have a routine and structure to my days after such a long time. I am attending my course three days a week which I am enjoying, although it is tiring. Along with also starting driving lessons, so things are looking up!
All of the photos are taken in raw so the editing software Lightroom does some small edits just to assist the user. I always leave these as I think they are an advantage for sure.
My little welcoming chat over, bring on the photography. Enjoy :)
I am in love with this one! It is so simple but impactful. I spotted these yellow flowers while we were strolling down the walkway and thought they looked so vibrant against the dull coloured grass behind. I snapped a couple of pics but ultimately ended up choosing this one because of how you have the grass leading up to the rounded top of the hill. It is basic but makes a statement. I also like how the flowers are more in focus compared to the tree beside, making them stand out.
I shot this picture on my long lens and the different settings were: ISO 400 due to it being dusk, Aperture 4.5 which made the focus of the image, the flowers, sharper and finally the Shutter Speed was 1/800. The SS is the standard you would expect alongside the other settings and the type of picture captured.
Now onto the edits! I made quite a few for this image because it was quite basic. These were:
The main edit was making the image black and white. I played around with it in colour but liked it better in black and white. I feel it is more bold and dramatic, something a little different.
I changed the white balance from As Shot to Custom.
I upped the contrast which helped to make the image stand out more, using the light and dark aspects.
I upped the shadows to add a little more light back in, balancing against the contrast.
I upped the temperature quite dramatically. This made the aspects within the black and white lighter, specifically the more yellow colours in the flowers and grassy area behind.
I colour-graded the shadows which darkened the image quite a bit. Before it was brighter and look more on the sheer side, not what I was aiming for.
I added a little texture just to make the aspects of the image more prominent, but I do not like to do too much of this because it can look grainy.
Finally, the finishing touch and something I have been experimenting with which is vignette. I added a slight black one which rounds the edges of the photo. It adds to the bold and dramatic look and I just really like how it is not too visible but there is enough to impact the final photo.
There we have it! The first photo. It is something different for me and I have to say that it is one of my favourites.
A landscape shot. I tried to vary the types of images I show because I do not want to just share all landscape or all close-ups. This was taken just before we arrived at Mulranny, we spotted it from the car and I thought it was a good photo opportunity. I was not 100% sure on it at first but after editing it and coming back, I actually am loving the feel of the image.
This image was taken on my 18-55mm kit lens and the other settings were: ISO 100 due to it being bright and sunny, Aperture 4.5 which I used because I wanted the focus on the rope, and finally the Shutter Speed was 1/500.
Time to chat about the edits! The ones I made were:
I upped the blacks so they were lighter throughout the image. They were quite harsh before and did not match the vibe I wanted.
I changed the White Balance from As Shot to Custom. This was because I preferred how it made the image look.
I adjusted the blue point curve so it was between the blue and yellow tints. I liked how it made the image slightly bluer, removing the harsh points.
I added a little yellow tint just to balance out the blue. The main parts it affected was the sky and greenery in the background.
I lowered the saturation only a minimal amount just to soften the brighter colours. That was the overall theme I was aiming for: soft.
I changed the colouring for the orange heavily. This was mostly present in the hills and grass, and I disliked how it looked against the rest of the image. To remove this, I upped the hue and the saturation, changing the off orange to more of a soft green. I also upped the luminance to help make the greenery appear more vibrant.
I also changed the yellow colour slightly on the hue which helped make the rope in the forefront less green and more toned down.
I lowered both the texture and the clarity because like I mentioned above, I was wanting an overall soft theme so lowering them achieved that.
I lowered the dehazing just to brighten up the image as otherwise the centre appeared darker which did not look appealing to the eye.
Phew! Finally, I added a black vignette again to add something a little different. Without it, the image looked plain. Whereas, adding that touch centres on the main part of the image.
This one had a lot of editing. However, sometimes an image needs that if it is on the simpler side. It also depends on your style and if you like experimenting. :)
This was a before sunset shot I managed to capture. There were many clouds present so I gathered the actual sunset shots would not be that amazing. I do like this shot however because you can see both the land and the ripples of the water, then leading into a rather ominous looking sky. I love all of the different shades in the image and the contrast between them. The views were literally so beautiful, they stretched for miles and I could of sat there for hours looking out. It was the reason we decided to go there because we drove through on the way to another location and the views really caught our eye; I knew it would be a wonderful photography location.
I shot this image on my 18-55 mm lens because it is landscape shot. The other settings were: ISO 200 which is a little high but there must of been enough light otherwise 400 would of been chosen. This probably was because I was facing the sun so the light was brighter. The Aperture was 9 due to it being a landscape shot and the Shutter Speed was 1/4000 which I would say helped to catch the finer details in the sea because high Shutter Speed freezes movement.
I did a few edits because I wanted to highlight the different colours in the image and make the most of the beauty. The edits I made were:
I lowered the exposure because the sun was extremely bright, making the image over exposed. It really made a difference and made the other colours stand out more.
I upped the contrast to make the slightly darker colours more prominent throughout the image. Before they were slightly toned down and my aim was to have all of the shades and colours balanced out.
I lowered the highlights slightly just to once again take away the brighter spots in the image.
I upped the shadows quite a lot to bring out the forefront of the image more. I wanted the streams of water to be visible.
I upped the blacks just to balance out all of the darker shades throughout the image after changing the other light settings.
I adjusted the red point curve setting, adding more of a green/blue colour throughout the image. Before, it had of more yellow tint and it made the image more washed out so adding the blue really highlighted the colours in the sky and I much preferred it.
I lowered the saturation slightly to remove some of the yellow colour. I did have it lowered more but after review, I added a little more saturation back because it made the sky prettier.
I lowered the hue and the saturation for the colour yellow because although it was the usual colour of a sunset, I really liked the different vibe that the blue added to the image. I found the yellow just a little over saturated. Although, I did add a little luminance to lighten the areas where the yellow was.
Finally, I lowered the clarity slightly just to soften the image. The sand was a little harsh and the clarity just lessened that harshness.
A beautiful shot if I do say so myself:)
I think I have to say this is my ultimate favourite. I stumbled across this bike on the way back to the car when we had finished our stroll. I thought it was so perfect and I just love the colour of it. I envisioned the final edit being a kind of vintage style and it is just so different to any bike I have seen! The flowers are such a little cute addition too. It was just sat outside a garage but I knew I could do so much with it in the edit so I snapped multiple piccys and off I went.
I shot this image again on my 18-55 mm lens mainly because it was a wide shot. The other settings were: ISO 400 as it was taken slightly later than the one above. This just shows how quickly the light fades and how the camera has to be adjusted between two images taken so close together. The Aperture was 5.6, an average f-stop for the type of image and finally the Shutter Speed was 1/200 because there was no moving aspects in the image.
Like I mentioned above, I wanted to add that vintage style so that is where the few edits came in. To achieve that, the edits I made were:
I upped the whites to brighten the whiter aspects as they were a little muted.
I upped the blacks slightly also as alongside upping the whites, there were a few darker spots that needed brightening.
To get that vintage look, I experimented with the point curves. I adjusted the green one around the middle of both the purple and green shades. I am not entirely sure what this does but experimenting gave me the look I wanted, so.... I am happy:) I also adjusted the blue point curve to more of the yellow side, and this really added that vintage look. The yellow really took away from the boring grey colouring. Combining both the point curve colour changes, achieved the desired look I was after.
I added a little yellow tint, to once again add more of that yellow style to the image.
I lowered the saturation heavily which really added to the vintage theme. It toned down the bright pink on the bike, alongside toning down the brightness of the greenery.
I lowered the saturation on the green and yellow colours. I wanted the flowers and greenery to be more muted to provide more of an overall softness to the image. It would also avoid a contrast between the flowers and the rest of the image.
I lowered the texture and the clarity to again make certain aspects a little less harsh. Especially the lines of the garage behind the bike, they were quite prominent.
I upped the dehaze setting quite a lot to balance out the clarity and texture change. I wanted the image soft but also to have some texture. Balance is key for me when editing.
Finally, I added a small white vignette just to remove the harshness present in the corners of the image where the ground was.
I have to say, one of my best edited pictures to date!
Some cute lil sheepies. There were two sets of sheep that we spotted on the walk and these were the first. I knew where the sheep were positioned would be a great picture. I love how they are the focus and the background behind is blurred. I love the colouring and how it is minimal but that it all goes together. I am just really overall happy with this picture and how it turned out. The day itself was so lovely too and the final walk and doing some photography really brought this amazing day to a close. It was such an amazing place and we for sure want to explore that walk further.
This was shot on my long Tamron 75-300mm lens so I could capture the sheep close up. The other settings were: ISO 400, Aperture 5.6 due to it being a close-up and the Shutter Speed was 1/800. The SS was high enough to capture the sheep as they were not moving much but it could of been higher.
There were only a few small edits needed for this picture just to balance all of the colours out and to make the sheep the main focus of the image. To achieve this, the edits I made, were:
I upped the contrast to add a little more definition to the image.
I upped the shadows to lighten the image, bringing a more balanced shadowing.
I upped the blacks, again to lighten the darker spots in the image. Particularly, the sheep's faces and the background.
I adjusted the blue point curve. The image before was slightly too pinky/orangey but adding a small change with the blue/yellow balanced that out and matched the overall colouring of the rest of different aspects in the image.
I upped the hue for the colour pink. This again helped to eliminate the pink colours in the image. I also lowered the saturation to remove the bright orangeness in the background because I felt it was too much and looked harsh against the sheep. I finally upped the luminance slightly for the pink colour just to make the greenery a little brighter once the saturation was lowered.
I upped the hue for the colour yellow. This helped to add more green to the background, making it less orange.
I added a little texture just to define the sheep's fur and other little aspects in the image.
I upped the dehaze tool slightly to help make the sky less dull and grey. It did not really do much looking back however.
I added a little black vignette to hone in more on the middle of the image. I liked how it looked and it emphasised the two sheep.
Finally, I added a little sharpening just to make everything as clear as it could be.
These are my two little sheep I captured:) They watched us the entire time so they were for sure sus of us!
The final one! This is one of the other sheep that were strolling together further down the path. They were a pair but I managed to capture this one alone. I love its little feet and how they are speckled. I had to be careful though as when I was done taking pictures and tried to get past, he began to run at me and I got spooked lol.... However, he posed and I got the image I wanted! The sheep must not be used to people as there were only 4 of them after all.
The settings are exactly the same as the one above due to them being shot one after the other. The image was shot on my long Tamron 75-300mm lens so I could capture the sheep close up. The other settings were: ISO 400, Aperture 5.6 due it being a close-up and the only difference was the Shutter Speed at 1/400. The SS is slightly odd because I would of liked it higher because this sheep was moving a lot! However, the setting I was on must of adjusted to this SS against all of the other settings. This is because if you change one setting like the ISO, it automatically changes the SS to get the right light in. I am still happy with the picture, just something to note next time.
Again, only a few edits needed on this little guy. These were:
I upped the shadows to lighten the darker parts of the image and the same with the blacks. My camera and the lighting made everything slightly on the darker side.
I changed the white balance from As Shot to Custom because it removed most of the pink tint present in the image.
I added a little green tint to remove the rest of the pinky colour I noticed was still left in the image.
I added a green hue to make the green more green, if that makes sense!
I added a little luminance for the yellow colour. It allowed the greenery in the background to be lighter.
I lowered the saturation for the colour orange, this helped to remove them orange tones in the grass and in the sheep's fur.
I colour graded and lowered the highlights. This helped the sheep's fur to be less bright.
I added some texture which helped define the sheep's features.
I added a lil black vignette which like the image above helped to emphasis the sheep as it is the focal point.
Finally, I added a little sharpening. This just helps to sharpen everything. It is especially useful for people/animals to make them appear clearer.
The final image and a cute one at that :) I hope the sheep is doing well hehe
I thought I would include a slideshow of our day in one:)
My photography post has come to a close:) I loved chatting through the images and giving you a little story with why I took them and the edits I made. I like the layout but I would love any feedback if you guys think there is a better way to chat through each image.
This day was so cute. We went to the only place we saw for lunch, what looked like a small pub. However, once we went through there was a massive open space and glass windows looking out at the view; which was spectacular. We ordered ham sandwiches which came with mayonnaise in which I am not a huge fan of. I still gave it a whirl, and dad who hates it literally ate all of his sandwiches. We now mention it to him whenever he says it dislikes it because how come he ate it there? lol. You cannot have it both ways!
Another plus was before we left we stopped in little shop and I discovered Cadburys Shortcake biscuits which were my jam when I was younger. I brought them and they were so good and reminded me of my childhood. I think they discontinued them in the UK so when I found them, I was so happy as they are a small but good snack. Just thought I would let you know. I have got them ever since seeing them there because I have noticed they sell them everywhere in Ireland!
A small quaint place and I cannot wait to go again. I hope you guys enjoyed my chats about not just my photography but about my day also. See you next time which I think will be a food post :D Got a few new staple dishes!
Stay safe and well, Lucy xoxoxo
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