“If there’s something you want in life, go and grab it with two hands and don’t let it go. Chances are, if you don’t take it, someone else will be more than happy to” – Unknown
F14, 26 sec. ISO 100 Canon 6D.
Single RAW used to create three different exposures. Blended with Raya Pro by Jimmy Mcintyre; a super-easy natural blending panel for PS, read more at: http://www.shutterevolve.com/raya-pro-the-ultimate-digital-blending-workflow-panel-for-photoshop/ — in Durban, KwaZulu-Natal.
It was a hard slog at work this week and the comfort of a single malt was not awaiting me this Friday night… the dieting enforcer is in town!
Luckily I had something grand to look forward to… Raya Pro version 2.0 – the super efficient and powerful Photoshop plugin by world renowned Jimmy Mcintyre. If you know what HDR and blending are about then you will certainly know this Scotsman come exposure blending guru.
Version 1.1 had those “luminosity masks”, that some of us whisper about, made easy to understand with various other blending modes and many other useful post processing features. Read more here.
Version 2.0, soon to be released, has a host of other features which make this must-have plugin even more powerful and a .45 on the hip when navigating Photoshop especially in the landscape area (but I would be keen to shoot the inside of a mansion / building and test the images with Raya).
I tried the new Precision masks / Auto Dark Blend and “boom” out came an evenly blended image (I chose one of the 5/6 or so options / created masks it offered to suit my liking). I noticed a new feature called Fix Blend but will need the tutorial for that.
In summary that’s now five (5) different blending modes (if I’m counting correctly) in one plugin that has the potential to make any Joe Soap a master blender.
Jimmy always seems to mention image degradation (something the old style HDR software packages were good at doing) and his plugin clearly cruises the golden mile to effortlessly blend images without turning them into a horror that would make your blind grandma turn in her grave.
I’m sure Glen Phillips and chaps from FISHING DBN will enjoy this blended photo taken at sunrise on Poenskop looking North across the Nkadusweni River Mouth (it’s the favourite Port St Johns Tourism fishing spot of many a fisherman with tall tales).
Base image F10, 0.5 sec. ISO 100 Canon 6D 24-105 mm L
I spend most my time on Facebook, Instagram and Flickr getting inspired by the photographs of others and also reciprocating when fortune smiles on me.
I’m having a small break from WordPress while I clear my Lightroom catalogue onto my Flickr account (accessible on WordPress page bottom right side).
At the same time I am posting albums of interesting photos on my Facebook page, some of which go onto my Instagram feed which you can access on my WordPress page (middle right side).
So if photography is really your passion then hook up with me via the links below:
The photo below was taken in Bangkok Thailand.
It was processed using Raya Pro.
Good morning Durban! Something to warm you up on this chilly Monday (13 July 2015).
“If you set your mind to something, you can accomplish anything!” – Michaela Carrozzo
F3.2, 1/80 sec, ISO 400 using a Canon South Africa entry level kit – 550D with Canon EF 50mm f/1.8 II Lens. Vert. Pano. PS stitched. Finished off with Raya Pro (http://www.shutterevolve.com/raya-pro-the-ultimate-digital…/) by Jimmy Mcintyre. Taken last Sunday 07:03.
5 Star Durban Celebrate Durban! I Love Durban
Show Me Durban Durban2022
“Your heart knows the way to Heng Mountain. You are not afraid; few people go there. Inside the boat, you still hear birds and temple chimes. At the river’s source, you dry your monk’s robe in the sun. You had a family, but left it when young; Now there is no temple that would not welcome you. Managing to find a shelter in the cold, You do your usual zazen as snow fills up your door” ~ Chia Tao (779-843)
Last night (7-7-2015) I did my “virgin” run at luminosity masks using the Raya Pro Panel (test) by Jimmy Mcintyre. It’s being released in less than 11 hours (http://www.shutterevolve.com/raya-pro-the-ultimate-digital…/) and only costs R 375.54.
I tried LM’s once before via another platform some months back and couldn’t fathom it. However, I was able fairly easily understand Jimmy’s video and use the panel quite easily.
Yes, I have a long way to go and the accompanying photo is not a good example of the potential of the panel. It was more my experimental photo to work on while I tested all the other features of the panel – there are so many other features; LM’s is just one!
The upshot: I got my varying selections as needed, the ants were marching as asked and I painted in shadows / highlights with ease – in most cases just the push of a button – no big technical stuff.
Canon South Africa 6D, Canon EF 17–40mm lens, F14, 1 sec, ISO 320
— at Thompson’s Bay
“Everyone has something they can do. Whatever means you have to make the world a better place, you need to do it. Even if we won’t see the fruits of this in our lifetime, start now” ~ – Daniel Goleman 
This is one of my experiments I worked on tonight. The other one burnt my brain out.. sizzled! Canon South Africa 6D, F10, 1/4 sec, ISO 100, 24-105L, -2 exp bias at Boulders Beach Simonstown
Here is my full size image.https://www.flickr.com/…/18945746834/in/dateposted-public/. I burnt my brain out as I was learning about all the many features available on the new Jimmy Mcintyre “Raya Pro” Panel plugin for Photoshop (http://www.shutterevolve.com/raya-pro-the-ultimate…/).
This photo achieved 264 faves on Flickr without being in one group! That was very surprising for me as no other previous photo (showcased in multiple groups) had ever reached 100 faves. The only thing I did different was used the Raya Pro luminosity masks feature.
Andrew Harvard Photography 