Softening effect

GD
Posted By
Grant_Dixon
Jan 9, 2004
Views
534
Replies
12
Status
Closed
Tonight I came across a nice way to soften and brighten images. It is an up date of a photographic trick and I am told it is called an Orton Montage. http://www.cavesofice.org/~grant/OrtonMontage.html Have a look and tell me which one you prefer I am stuck between "soft" and "softer" —
Grant

Home Pages http://home.cogeco.ca/~grant.dixon/index.htm

Challenge Pages http://home.cogeco.ca/~challenge/

*********************************************************

Creativity is so delicate a flower that praise tends to make it bloom, while discouragement often nips it in the bud. Any of us will put out more and better ideas if our efforts are appreciated.

Alexander Osborn (1888 – 1966)

*********************************************************

How to Improve Photoshop Performance

Learn how to optimize Photoshop for maximum speed, troubleshoot common issues, and keep your projects organized so that you can work faster than ever before!

NS
Nancy_S
Jan 9, 2004
I prefer the soft.
R
RobertHJones
Jan 9, 2004
Hi Grant,

My personal preference is for "soft".

Nice effect but it doesn’t quite look like the "real" Orton Montage effect that I’m used to seeing.

For those of you reading this thread that aren’t familiar with Orton Montage, it’s a sandwich technique where you take two slide photos of the same scene (using a tripod, of course, so you don’t change any angles or positions between shots) and mount them together in the same slide mount. The first photo is taken using maximum sharpness and depth of field and the second one is taken out of focus and the lens opened all the way to get minimum depth of field. The two slides are both overexposed so that the sandwich, which adds both densities, will appear to be correctly exposed. By varying the degree of focus and the degree of overexposure between the two shots, you could vary the softness and effects. You could even achieve painterly effects this way.

Orton Montage photos often have a kind of ethereal inner glow that some liken to that which you sometimes see in infrared photos.

I haven’t seen a published technique for digital pseudo Orton Montage although we should be able to figure one out. Could you point us to a tutorial or description of how you did it?

Bob
LK
Leen_Koper
Jan 9, 2004
I cannot tell which one I prefer; I don’t like this way of softening. When softening the traditional way the lighter parts of an image tend to blend over the darker parts. Here it seems to be the opposite, just like when you are softening at the printing stage.
Moreover, in my opnion, this technique produces rather "muddy" images compared to traditional soft focus, like with the Carl Zeiss Softar, which retains the tonal contrast in the image.

My 5 eurocents.

Leen
GD
Grant_Dixon
Jan 9, 2004
Robert

You are very accurate in describing how it the process is done with film. May I add that to get this softness the sharpest image is usually overexposed by two stops while the blurred image is over exposed by one stop. A rule of thumb is that the amount of blur is achieved by the image being blurred to the point where the shape is maintained but the details are lost. The problem with this technique is that it is very hard to predict so each image is an adventure. Elements would make the traditional way of doing this so much easier than sandwiching slides and then trying to print.

I just discovered how to do this with Elements and so far it lives up to its photographic brother in that I am not totally able to predict what is going to happen. I am not sure if there are any tutorials in now to do this as I just thought to myself, if I were elements, how would I do this. The first time I did this I separated the image into two copies. The first I sharpened and made it lighter by 2 stops by using Screen. The second I made lighter by on stop then dragged it on top of the first image as a new layer. Then I used Multiply on this new layer and added Gaussian Blur until I got the effect I wanted Later I did the whole process just using one image and layers.

I have added more images to
http://www.cavesofice.org/~grant/OrtonMontage.html to show more of the variety that can be achieved with this technique.

Leen

I suspect the trouble with Elements is it that it has rotten boke 😉

Grant
DS
Dick_Smith
Jan 9, 2004
Grant,

I really am taken by the middle shot on page 2. It is, at least to me, very beautifully done. I can see that one on the wall!

Dick
DS
Dick_Smith
Jan 9, 2004
Grant,

I think I must be Elements challenged this morning. Would you mind rehearsing those directions with a wee bit more detail?

Dick
GD
Grant_Dixon
Jan 9, 2004
Dick

Here it is

1) Open and image with

Creating the blurred image

2) Duplicate the Background and call it Blur
3) Duplicate the Blur and in this layer select screen from the pull down ( over exposing 1 stop)
4) Merge Down <ctrl> +E and hide this layer we will need it later

Creating the Sharp image

5) Duplicate the Background and select screen from the pull down ( over exposing 1 stop)
6) Merge Down <ctrl> +E
7)Again duplicate the Background and select screen from the pull down ( over exposing 2 stop)
8) Merge Down <ctrl> +E
9) Sharpen this like crazy this is a place to experiment (For this effect you I have even gone as high as 500,5,0 using unsharp mask)

Putting it all together

10) Select and unhide Blur
11) Select Multiply from the pull down menu
12 Apply Gaussian blur ( There is no right value here you will have to experiment don’t be timid slide the slider back and forth and see what you like)

That is it.

g,
DS
Dick_Smith
Jan 9, 2004
Thanks Grant

D
DS
Dick_Smith
Jan 9, 2004
Grant,

Wow, What a great effect. I just did on the last challenge 48 image I submitted. Really very ethereal on the buildings and the blue sky.

Dick
R
RobertHJones
Jan 9, 2004
Grant,

Your second page of photos is very much in keeping with the look and feel you get with the film technique. Very nice! I think you’re going to stimulate some of the forum members to go out and try it! (Ray, are you listening? Is it time for an Orton museum???).

I used to do things like this back in the old days when I was a much younger man. The range of effects you could get was truly remarkable and the unpredictability was one of the attractions. The 2 stop – 1 stop ratio was indeed the standard technique.

It’s fun to bring these old film based techniques into the digital world. Thank you!

Bob
CS
Chuck_Snyder
Jan 9, 2004
Grant, I save the good tips and print the great ones. You’ve been printed!! 🙂
Chuck
GD
Grant_Dixon
Jan 9, 2004
Chuck

I am honoured the last time I was printed was at the 5th precinct for …. never mind.

g.

Master Retouching Hair

Learn how to rescue details, remove flyaways, add volume, and enhance the definition of hair in any photo. We break down every tool and technique in Photoshop to get picture-perfect hair, every time.

Related Discussion Topics

Nice and short text about related topics in discussion sections