Photography

Questions tagged [contrast]

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Contrast is the difference in luminance and/or colour that makes an object (or its representation in an image or display) distinguishable.

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When enlarging with no contrast filter, photo comes out extremely dark. What am I doing wrong?

When enlarging b&w 35mm film in the darkroom, I cannot get a decent print unless I use a 0 or 1 grade filter. If I use no filter, the print turns out nearly completely black (even at exposure ...
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217 views

I took this photo of a sunset a few years ago. Would this image be considered a low or high contrast image?

I’m confused because there are dark silhouettes at the bottom of the image. I’ve been taught that if there are dark shadows and silhouettes, it will almost always be a high contrast image. Can someone ...
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133 views

8bit monitor theoretical contrast

Imagine perfect monitor that can display pure blacks and is perfectly calibrated. What would the contrast be between its second darkest shade of black, that is 1,1,1 values for blue green red sub ...
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216 views

Contrast vs sharpening?

I am trying to study basic digital image processing but i am confused by the difference between two terms "image contrast " and "image sharpening' Please kindly explain the difference and if possible ...
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2answers
321 views

Do I have to buy filters to control contrast in multigrade papers?

I am interested in buying one of Ilford multigrade papers, e.g. https://www.ilfordphoto.com/multigrade-fb-classic-glossy-sheets I have old small-format enlarger and I wonder if I could achieve ...
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4answers
186 views

Is it possible to make an apparently completely blurry image (shot through a colored label) more clear?

I have been putting a colored label on my webcam when im not using it. I read this on the internet as it prevents hackers from seeing you in case your laptop gets hacked. I don't know much about ...
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6k views

Is there any proof that high saturation and contrast makes a picture more appealing in social media?

Atm I'm editing some images (Mainly photos of landscapes and food) for a social media campaign. My supervisor is confident that adding high saturation and contrast will lead to more attention in ...
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122 views

Why does the imported JPEG from my Canon Powershot G9X Mark II on PC screen differ quite significantly from the camera display? [duplicate]

Consider the attached sample images. I took them circa 4:50 AM and 3:50 AM, respectively. On the Live View display of the Powershot G9X Mark II, they were full of light. The pictures were taken as ...
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273 views

Will upgrading from P900 to Nikon D500 and a 200-400 lens make my bird photographs sharper?

I am using a Nikon P900 and although I love the camera the image quality is not always as sharp as it could be. Also it is just 3 years old and is falling to bits although i do use it daily. As most ...
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3answers
211 views

How can take a better picture of this creek under bright sun light and dense vegetation on banks?

Here is the first picture with 0 ev, f/2.8 and exposure time of 1/80. Here is second pic with -1.33 ev, f/3.2 and exposure time of 1/150. I think there are several problems with them: 1) It is ...
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1answer
195 views

How to handle the tone curve (linear/medium/high contrast) and the other development settings?

I use Lightroom 6.x and I usually start with a linear curve, adjusting the sliders in the "Basic" section accordingly. The Tone curve section usually does not even get opened. This because I'm not a ...
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1answer
167 views

Enhance snowy mountain detail (high-frequency high-contrast) in RawTherapee

I occasionally have this issue where the camera software produces better microcontrast than I can via RawTherapee. I am unsure whether this is an issue with the software or with my ability to use it. ...
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549 views

How to increase contrast/brightness of product photos?

[Warning: I'm not a pro photographer!] Hi guys. I need to take a lot of product pictures for my blog. I'm using my Canon G5 X (compact) and continuous lighting of 3x 125 W 5500К bulbs in softboxes (...
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2answers
336 views

Contrast order of operations in Lightroom?

I've been watching a number of how-to videos on Lightroom, and one general workflow I've seen is performing the Basic adjustments first (white, black, highlights, shadows, etc.), followed by adjusting ...
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891 views

What is “veiling glare”? How does it affect my photos, and how can I avoid it?

Someone mentioned that "veiling glare" or "veiling flare" was to blame for reduced contrast in a photo. What does this mean exactly? What causes veiling glare, and how can it be avoided? How does it ...
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1answer
63 views

Is negative's contrast change by the developement process different from software contrast adjustment of the negative's scan?

Let's assume that I have an exposed frame with the contrast range not fully covered (and let's assume that I just want the scan). I have two options: develop it normally, scan and then work on this ...
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77 views

computer produces light photos

I noticed recently when I copy an image from my pc to a thumb drive and connect it to a digital projector or a TV or a laptop comp. the image comes out lighter than that on my pc. I also tried a jpg ...
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437 views

Is there an optical filter that reduces the film's contrast?

As far as I know, the change of the exposure moves the negative' density curve left or right only (moves the objects to the different zones), and to shrink or enlarge overall contrast, one has to ...
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1answer
190 views

Programmatically assessing image quality [closed]

I am using a third party service which processes images and returns some metadata: The data (and ranges) looks like this sharpness 0-1 brightness 0-1 contrast: 0-1 dominant color: hex array of '...
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1answer
466 views

How to mimic Olympus' dramatic tone filter?

I just did a few tries with some of Olympus' art filters and liked that "dramatic tone" filter. But even then, the images are far from perfect and I would like to recreate them in my raw converter (I ...
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1k views

Does opening the aperture improve color contrast? (Open aperture producing more punchy colors / closed aperture more dull colors?)

I'm using some SLR legacy lenses on a mirrorless camera that I have, and I am under the (subjective) impression that if the aperture is wide open, the colors are more vibrant, while closing the ...
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1answer
119 views

What settings to use for portrait with white background? [duplicate]

I am newbie trying to get a good picture of my friends (contrasting skin color) with snow covered mountain in the background. I tried using aperture priority mode with f/11 and 1/100 sec, 28 mm. ...
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1answer
112 views

What “makes” contrast, anyway? [closed]

Or better, the loss of it? If I take a picture of a uniformly white wall, I don't expect contrast at all and that's ok. But sometimes I take photos of a a scene where there are light areas, dark ...
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404 views

Lanyard colours which are both high contrast and suitable for colour blind attendees

In a recent weekend long game, we started using colour coded lanyards to determine players photography preferences: Black: No photography restrictions (take and publish without tagging) Orange: No ...
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1answer
260 views

How to increase contrast when shooting drab scenes

On cloudy days, it seems like the amount of contrast available for shooting is greatly reduced. For a specific test I did, the in-camera histogram shows a very narrow band in the middle - for ...
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202 views

Why are the images from a new camera I bought sort of greyish compared to my old camera?

I am not a huge expert in photography. I own just a simple pocket size Sony WX220, and have been comparing it with shots from a Canon G7X Mark I that I bought as a Christmas present (shh, don't tell ...
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1answer
103 views

Photographing surfers

A while ago I was photographing some people surfing. I looked at some previews and was a bit puzzled: all the shots were suffering from extremely low contrast, and seemed generally out of focus. ...
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4answers
959 views

Can I tell which photo has more contrast from their histograms?

for my BA degree I need to find out which one from the following two photos has more contrast: The histogram looks like (left histogram for the left photo, right histogram for the right photo): My ...
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5answers
891 views

How can I change contrast within a single colour?

What techniques can be used to change the perceived contrast within a single colour only, in post processing? For example, how can I change the contrast of the blues to affect the sky, or the green ...
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1answer
289 views

How to achieve the super high contrast look of Thierry Le Gouès' Soul Album?

I'm curious to know how to achieve the high contrast look of Thierry Le Gouès' Soul album (please note: images are NSFW). I know this is probably done in post but I would like to know if there is a ...
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3answers
761 views

What does the “Flux” effect of Instagram do?

Whenever I'm done doing Post on my photos and share on social media, Flux from Insta always seems to magically make my photos "pop". No matter if they're portraits, landscapes - it seems like a very ...
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1answer
864 views

Dark+Contrast. New trend in photography editing, how its done?

There is this new trend where people create crazy contrasted photos, its all over the Tumblr and Instagram. I'm not in love with the style, but it looks so strange, that i can't help wondering - how ...
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251 views

How do you achieve this look and what style is it called? [closed]

I'm not sure how to describe the look in the picture, but I would like to achieve. Can anyone explain the specifics of it? I don't know where to start although it does look a bit desaturated.
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1answer
362 views

DSLR setting for a good contrast, sharper picture?

Is there any specific setting for capturing a picture that has a good contrast and is sharp? Sometimes I get a low contrast and need to go for post processing. I'm a beginner in DSLR photography and ...
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1answer
126 views

Why are details lost when dynamic range is high?

I have read in many blogs and forums that when we have a larger dynamic range, we may lose details. Of course, I have experienced completely white areas in taking photos with bright sky. As far as I ...
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1answer
114 views

What tools can do severe contrast reduction, especially on faces?

Someone said in a comment "As a hint though, most of the options I'd head for in post would be in the Lab colour space where I can split colour and contrast." Most all tips I see on "post" are about ...
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5answers
4k views

Why do all my landscape photos turn out so milky, almost foggy, and lack both contrast and color?

I don't really know how to explain it, but I guess the photos speak for themselves. What can I do to stop it from happening? I'm more trying to capture nice memories than take amazing photos, but the ...
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1answer
476 views

How do I give my photos the same dreamlike effect as this photographer?

I've always found this photographer's images very intriguing and have recently been curious as to how she took and/or edited them. Can you explain how this effect would be achieved via both of these ...
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1answer
200 views

What's the balance of highlights, shadows, lights, and darks in this photo?

I would love to give my photos a dreamy effect like this. I can see there's some clarity reduction; what, in terms of highlights, shadows, lights, and darks, would the lighting look like? For instance,...
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2answers
1k views

How can I undo Canon Auto Lighting Optimizer in Lightroom?

I was shooting in RAW in the Tv mode with my Canon's Auto Lighting Optimizer set to Standard. I understand this is one of the settings that, even when you shoot in RAW, will correct your image's ...
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79 views

All white with dark contrast color

I'm very much attracted to photos like these, but I have no idea how to do them. I would greatly appreciate if someone could explain how these photos are done because they are so beautiful. : ...
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2k views

Why do my prints darken too quickly in the developer tray?

I'm playing with a pinhole camera recently.¹ It's the first time I'm actually developing photos myself. On my developer bottle it says I should use 1 unit of it and mix it with 9 units of water. Also,...
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3answers
750 views

What is the difference between levels, curves and contrast settings in post processing?

I have found and read a lot of tutorials that speak individually about curves, levels and contrast in post-processing but no luck so far about finding something that compares them. It is my ...
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3answers
300 views

How can I automatically correct aerial perspective in landscape photographs?

Because different wavelengths of light are scattered differently in air (there are actually two distinct types of scattering involved) light on the red end of the spectrum is scattered far more than ...
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2answers
499 views

Can I recover my aurora photographs?

I really need help fixing these photos. My mom (71 yrs old) had seeing the aurora on her bucket list and so we went to Norway (from DALLAS!) to see them. We did, luckily, but the photographs all ...
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5k views

Techniques for photographing stained glass?

I often take photographs of stained glass, but they come out either as too overexposed or underexposed due to the high levels of contrast between the window which is usually backlit and the frame ...
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7answers
4k views

How can I make the text in this photograph of an ancient column more readable?

I have a picture of a column with some text: The text is really hard to make out. Is there any way I can manipulate the image to make the text stand out more and be easier to read? I have tried ...
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1answer
1k views

How do lenses vary in contrast?

I was reading a review of a wide-angle lens, and the review opined that the lens had impaired contrast wide open. Optically, what's happening here? How does the light passing through the lens lose ...
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2answers
264 views

What is the Lightroom equivalent of setting the contrast to -2 in the camera?

I am playing with the different picture styles directly from my Canon 5D-II and I would like to know if there is some sort of mapping with what I can do in Lightroom. What is the equivalent of -2 ...
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2k views

What is difference between tonal contrast and just contrast?

What is difference between tonal contrast and just contrast? Usually the editor programs will have a contrast slider while the "special" plugins of these software will have tonal contrast. Is tonal ...

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