“Patterns and Symbols” was the theme of 500px Global Photo Walk, the one I was helping to organize in Montreal. First, I was a bit sceptical about having a theme for such a social event as a PhotoWalk. I thought it would be too restrictive for a bunch of photographers having fun. But, I am ready to admit that I was wrong. I failed to realize that it is often a struggle for beginners to come up with the subject or direction for everyday photography. “Patterns and Symbols” is a very abstract theme, but it was just enough to fuel creative juices. The Photo Walk became a “treasure hunt”.
This featured photo is my contribution to photo walk’s “Patterns and Symbols” theme.This is the sculpture called, “Four Elements Column” which is a part of the open air exhibition of Musée de Lachine (Lachine Museum), with 22 huge sculptures permanently featured in Parc René-Lévesque park.
Canada. Montreal. René-Lévesque Park
Loc: 45.430421, -73.668736
Deconstructing Featured Photo
Camera: Canon 60D
Lens: Sigma 10-20mm
Focal Length: 10mm
ISO: 100
Aperture: F8
Bracketing: 5 shots (-2, -1, 0, +1, +2)
Tripod: FEISOL Tournament CT-3442 – Check my FEISOL Tournament CT-3442 Review.
Ballhead: FEISOL CB-40D
Processing: HDR Processed in Photomatix
Lightroom: import, tagging, export to Photomatix
Photomatix: I used 5 bracketed images to tone map image (-2, -1, 0, +1, +2 ), 16-bit tiff image was exported to Lightroom. (check my tutorial Before & After – HDR With Photomatix)
Lightroom: straightening, cropping, export as PSD image
Photoshop: cleaning, removing HDR artifacts in water, contrast. I used Stamp Tool to mask lens flare (see original images)
Photoshop Plugins:
- Topaz DeNoise was used to reduce digital noise (sky)
- Topaz Detail was used to enhance details in foreground elements (cliffs, tree, rocks)
