PHOTO ART: Mini-challenge #45 – Japanese Garden

[DannyRaphael]

FIRST MINI-CHALLENGE?
See below for "Information and Guidelines."

Here’s another “mini-challenge” to play with in the Photo-based Art category until the next offical challenge is posted here.

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PHOTO ART: Mini-challenge# 45 – Japanese Garden

Remember the butterfly image that so many seemed to enjoy last week? This gorgeous picture of a Japanese Garden was taken by the same photographer, Alan Smallbone, my colleague in the DPReview Retouching Forum Action collection endeavor (see http://www.geocities.com/kafuensis/).

Same old legal stuff: Alan retains the copyright © not only for the original image, but for any photo-art versions of it. Unauthorized distribution or use without his permission are prohibited.

Thanks again, Alan, for letting me use another of your wonderful images.

Good luck and have fun.

~DannyR~

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INFORMATION AND GUIDELINES

Unlike “official challenges” for this forum which can be found here, this one will be self-contained within this thread. It is intended as an opportunity to engage in this artform until the next official challenge is posted.

The rules are more-or-less the same:
* It’s a challenge, not a contest -- intended to provide opportunities to experiment, share methods and/or techniques and, most importantly, have FUN.
* Everyone who participates is a winner.
* There’s no expiration date.

GUIDELINES:
1. Use any method, application(s), style(s) you like:
. * Convert to sketch, grayscale, abstract, watercolor, oil painting, pen-and-ink, Conte crayon, impasto, van Gogh or any style of your choosing
. * Add elements from other images (collage) or replace the background
. * Hand painting? Tracing? Freehand? You bet. Always appreciate entries of this nature.
. * Apply filters from your favorite application(s) or tweak it with 3rd party plug-ins
. * Feeling animated? Flying fish?
. * Any or all of the above

Bottom line:
How you create this masterpiece makes no difference. Whatever floats your boat as long as you follow guideline #4 in the process.

2. When done, reply to this thread and attach your work (don’t forget the 100kb size limit).

Note: Multiple entries OK if you’re so inspired.

3. By all means include some verbiage on how you achieved your masterpiece so others will benefit from your skills and experience. Make it as descriptive as you like. Grammar and spelling will not be graded. Priority given to content, not how it is written.

4. Have fun.

[omeyas]

My attempt.

[DannyRaphael]

CHUCK...

Textures work well here... Thanks for breaking out of the gate early on this one. You got this thread rollin'.

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FRANK...

Can I transplant some of your "vision cells" into my brain? You see things I can't even imagine (until I see your creations). Mirroring the image to double the real estate... and tweaking the fish count to disguise it.

Excellent. Sure glad you found this site.

[pstewart]

Used graphic pen, distort-displace with diagonal brush texture, color adjustment, KPT equalize to mold shadows a bit, and finally render-lighting to give it a bit of depth.

Phyllis

[ecurbh]

Ran a couple filters (spatter, and I forget the other), added a paper texture background, and ran an action for the edge effect. Then added the original back on top to restore a little detail, and put in a few subtle japanese characters.

On further reflection, it seems a little too busy. I'll take another whack at it tomorrow.

Bruce

[omeyas]

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FRANK...

Can I transplant some of your "vision cells" into my brain?


Thanks, I would regard myself as one of the least artistic persons going! Can't draw, can't paint. Neither this one nor the book started out with any preconceived ideas, I just started doodling! Never done a book before. The japanese one is, as you said, duplicated, inversed, then the bottom half was copied and inversed, then some cut out of the bottom to allow the pond to continue around.
But most importantly, I'm adhereing to rule number 4(?), I'm enjoying myself!

[pstewart]

I tried to make this look like a Japanese drawing without doing any drawing, just filtering. It's not exactly what I was aiming for, but it's "sort of" close.

I needed some Japanese words to put on it, so I looked on the web and found that the first two symbols together here spell "peace." I wanted three in the column, so I took pieces of the others and made a third symbol. I sure hope it doesn't say something dirty or threatening. If it does, it was purely accidental!

Phyllis

[arthill]

First I decreased the blue and increased the green in the foreground. then I created two layers. Applied sume filter to one and smart blur edge only to the other and inverted it. Applied Soft light blending mode to both layers then a spatter edge frame effect.

[phili1]

AS usual everybody entries are just great. I did like Danny said did mine first and then looked.

This is my first try at water coloring.

I used my Art History brush oil paint sys with no heavy emboss(texture) after that I used what I called selective foucus to bring up those elements that I wanted the picture to emphisiz and then I adjusted the water colored filter till I got what I wanted

[phili1]

I used the same history brush system and selective focus but this time I used MIke F Misty action and adjusted curves.

I just tried something different. I added Texure/sandstone and it came out really great. I would like to post all the images tries on my pbase but Danny do you think that would be ok.

[phili1]

I am soory to hit you with a third one, but this one I need opinions.

This is my Oil Paint system with the addition in this case of a sandstone texture. Does it add to it or detract.

[phili1]

Thanks Chuck.

I developed an Oil Based Painting with Danney and I am trying different things with it. It was developed for people and works great but now I am trying it on landscapes. The great thing about it is you can adjust the texture to your liking. The sand stone was an add in, and I think I used about 4. I will try it with 2.

BY the way down load Mystic and add sandstone to it, I just did and printed it on Pictorico canvas to see the effect and all I can say is wow it looks great. I did that one with 2.

[pstewart]

Phil, I like the last one a lot. The texture really does the trick!

Phyllis

[VisualEyes]

Here's a visitor from another challenge.

[JBCaffrey]

Trying for a Japanese wood block effect. BuzzPro, a heavy dose of unsharp masking, and a water paper texture.

Jim

[phili1]

Truman thats a great job. I know where you got the fins. Did you use luminosity on the rocks.

[pstewart]

Truman, clever and well done too. The coloring on the whale tail is perfect, and I like the softness you added to an overly busy scene.

Chuck, yes, you should have!

Jim, that's a really great looking pic! Love the texture you achieved. Again, I think I may have given up on Buzzpro too soon.

Phyllis

[VisualEyes]

phili1: Did you use luminosity on the rocks.

No, I just modified the levels and applied AlienSkin JPEG repair. Overall, just a quicky that took about an hour to tweak.

Truman

[DannyRaphael]

Truman:

Exceptionally creative! One of the best I've seen. Great image and color blends.

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Phil:

Watercolor version. Of the three I liked this one the best.

RE: Texture on #3
Too much texture detracts from the image. I'm with Chuck on this one... I'd tone it down a couple notches.

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Phyllis:

More creativity. You -ARE- amazing. My preference is #2 with the lettering and texture effect.

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Bruce:

The edge treatment and especially the faded background of characters definitely enhance the final result.

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Frank:

I don't think there's necessarily a connection between having artistic talent and having creative vision. (I'm with you on the former trait.) One can be taught (and can develop) technical skills.

Creativity can't be taught.

RE: "...most importantly, I'm adhereing to rule number 4(?), I'm enjoying myself!"
Hail to the Chief. A+ on that one!

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Art:

Very creative combination and blend of Sumi-e and Smart Blur/Edge Only. Works very well with this image.

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Jim:

A terrific result. The woodblock vision was inspired.

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Great stuff, gang! Keep 'em coming!

~Danny~

[pstewart]

Sketch effect treated with anisotropic diffuse and assorted blending modes. Then the depth and glow was added with KPT6 marvelous indispensable best-ever "equalizer" filter, which both sharpens by color, edges, and/or contrast as well as blurs/sharpens by different size pixel groupings. You can blur larger areas while sharpening edges at the same time, for example! And you still have a week left to order this package really cheap from andromeda.com! I would never want to be without this filter now that I have used it!

Phyllis--does NOT get a commission

[phili1]

Phyliss thats realy super effect, It really lends itsef to the picture. Nice job.

[AdaoMalem]

This would be my first photo art mini-challenge, i assume this is where you place it, lol, so much to this site, i always find myself geting lost in lots of learning and figuring out.
Using photoshop, i copied the original 2 times, the 1 I did find edges, on 2 I did did dry brush, erased some of two to bring out the lines underneath, mostly on trees, painted over the plant in water, and smuged the layer to give more of a flowing affect. 3 layer, airbrushed the tree branches and trunks white. 4 layer, airbrushed black around areas. 5 layer scanned in flowers, which i had hand painted in water colors. flatten, the erased some of pic and added white to the bottom. new layer, scanned in a piece of paper soaked in tea, overlay.

[jerry]

Well I am really playing catch up on this challenge..There are so many great entries.. Thought I'd give this one a try..Supposed to be a tinted sketch vingette..

Jerry

[phili1]

Jerry
Nice submission, definitely differnet fromall others. How did you get the water clear (not green( by the fishie). Real nice touch.


Adeo. vey nice you made some changes but how did the coy have babies

[jerry]

Thanks Phili1 for the nice comment..

This picture started out using Trimoons Sketch technique (using his pencil02 filter technique).. After completing the sketch I placed it above the original picture.. Using a variety of wet brushes I started to remove the portions of the sketch that I wanted the color to show through..It is trial and error adjusting opacities of brushes often..After I got the color that I wanted I added a white layer above and removed portions with the above technique to reveal the vignette..The clear water appears to be a combination of the sketch using pencil02 filter and the white layer overlay..

Hope this helps
Jerry

[phili1]

Jerry

If I were you and you have a good printer I would buy Pictorico canvas paper and hang that on the wall.

I took my mystic submission which was from an oil painting system I am developing and used MIke F misty filter, I did the texture lighter then usual and at the end I added sandstone NO 2
and printed it just to see what the end results would be and it was awsome. I had several people at work want to buy it but I said its not mine to sell.

I think if you use that paper you will surprised.

[pstewart]

Great sketch, Jerry, as usual. I like how the water turned out as a result of the layer blending.

Adao, that's a great look for this picture. Very well thought out and well done. I like how you have removed part of the background to simplify what is a too-busy picture. And welcome to the best site on the net!

Here I started with my last upload and layered over it a textured paper look from Andromeda Techtures. Made the texture a golden color and also tweaked the color of the picture beneath away from green somewhat and more towards golds and reds. The "Japanese" letters in the corner are really my initials PAS in Vivaldi font.

Phyllis

[phili1]

Phyliss just when I thought it coundnt get any better you come up with your last post. wow the coloration is just great an other one for Pictorico canvas paper. Great job.

[jerry]

Adao..Very nice painting and a thorough desccription..you put a lot of effort into that piece and it shows..welcome to RP.

Phili..I will have to look for that paper and give it a try..Thanks for the tip..

Phyllis..I like this last one best..It has a real Japanese art feel to it..Well done..You are the filter magician..

Jerry

[pstewart]

Chuck, nice subtle texture on the second one. As for brightness of the two, perhaps the truth lies somewhere in the middle?

There are two problems I found with this challenge picture: Too busy, and TOO GREEN! As you know, green is a really hard color to lighten, brighten, darken, etc. For example, when you saturate it, it loses detail and shadows because of all the yellow it contains. So green can be a real pain to work with. So I ended up changing the coloring a bit in my last two attempts...first making it bluer and adding other colors with color balance, and the second time shifting toward gold and red...helped with the overall tone.

Phyllis