The Fjord - testing stuff in PS

[jensandersen]

Studio/Institution: Personal project
Genre: Other
Software: 3ds max, vray, world machine, PS
Description:

I wanted to rework a previously done project as I wasn't satisfied with it. Im starting to find it much more rewarding to try stuff out in photoshop instead of getting it setup perfectly first in max (with exterior shots that is).

 

Here is the raw render I ended up with:

 

My aim was a cold/raw feeling and it was done in around 4hours (including scavaging the internet for references and usable pictures - christ this can take a while!).

 

Again this is for any feedback before I post to the gallery. Im still getting great stuff from you guys to work with.

 

Thanks!

[mfured20]

Overall, I think you are definitely on the right path here; the photoshop work you have done has been especially good. That being said...

 

 

The dude in the foreground is huge. Like 10 feet tall. If you assume that the camera angle is at a normal height of 5', the horizon line is at 5' too. And that works great in this image, except for that one dude. I made a quick diagram of what I see; please check out the attached image.

 

So, check it. The blue line is your normal horizon line at 5'. The red line is just pretty much the center of the dock going out. This is the general rule your people should follow if you want it to look right. Make all of the eyes at the same height and it just makes sense to our brains.

 

There are other options, of course; if the camera was low to the ground, and you wanted to make a statement of a large figure striding past, and maybe some glittering waves really catching the light in the foreground, with some striking sun and sky on and around the building. Or with an aerial shot looking down on the scene. But your view just makes sense as an eye level view.

 

 

If you want to keep the forced perspective in this, then I suggest that you add more things to re-inforce that the scale of the dude is right. For instance, a couple of signs at the head of the dock that are in his scale might work; also if the vertical supports along the dock were a little different supporting that the view is one of a little lower, and looking ever-so-slightly up for dramatic purposes. But as it stands right now, I get confused.

 

 

Beyond that, dude, there isn't much. You could try to soften the distinction in the foreground between the wooden dock and the rock... especially with the distortion of those round verticals. The basic color balance between the rock and the wood is a little off, and you can see that; resolution, too. But not a big deal. I might also try to add a little bit of hazy mist in between the building and the background mountains, just to really make the building pop off of the background, and let the background recede a little bit more.

 

 

Overall, pretty damn good.

[jensandersen]

This is why I love this community. Thanks for some really helpful advice Matt.

 

The camera is a bit below eye level, but your line illustration does indeed point out the doubts I had about his scale. I do however like how it affects the image, so ill start out with some extra foreground objects as you suggested and see how that goes.

Some more work on color balance and a quick try with a fog brush will definitely also be on my to do list. Thanks again for your help.

Edited December 15, 2014 by jensandersen