Tina has challenged us to practice changing up our photos for #Lens-Artist Photo Challenge #134. I’m not an expert artist any more than I am a photographer, but just as I did with my dad, I can spend hours fiddling in the “darkroom.”
Car show season will be coming up soon in California, if the COVID restrictions are lifted. With a little help from Photoshop Elements 15, or the filters in your camera, you can turn your pictures from ordinary to stellar. What programs do you use to improve your photos?
Vince and I used to love go go to car shows. Hosting one in Woodlake was lots of fun, too. However, as many photos as I took, I wasn’t thrilled with any of them. I loved this car, but I couldn’t separate it from the cars around it and still photograph the whole car.
So, I brought the photo into Photoshop Elements 15, for simple photographers like I am, and made some Guided Fun Edits experimenting with the shape of the blobs, the texture and finally added an effect. Then I cropped it and added a frame resulting in this finished picture. I think it looks romantic.
I love old cars and trucks, and I put a little too much of myself into this next photo. First, the fingerprint at the top and the shadow on the bottom. Since the photograph didn’t showcase the entire truck anyway, I cropped it to death and added a frame and a signature. There was a little too much of another truck admirer as well. 🙂 Notice I didn’t have to deal with tires. This one looks like it is floating on the grass.
After a few little cuts, the flaws faded into the woodwork.
This last picture was my favorite because it included a natural frame of leaves and limbs. But the problem was still too many cars and too many people who didn’t add interest to this fire-engine red beauty.
I played with this one in several ways. I had never tried the radical bursts in the Fun Edits, but I liked the way it came out – sort of.
This first picture had a bit more blurring of the car than I wanted, and somehow I did not notice that my name floated up almost into the car itself. So I brought back the original photo and added more focus and less blur. I added the red frame first then the black so it did not disappear as the first one did. I copied the color from the old license plate for my name. What do all of you do for your signatures?
I still was not done playing with it, though. In Photoshop you can experiment with filters until the wee hours of the morning and you realize that you have someplace to be at 7:30 in the morning, so you’d better stop. That’s where I was tonight. Nonetheless, I still played with a few filters. I like the Fresco Filter because it gave the car a comic book look.
Thanks for joining me today. Please visit some other participants by going to Tina’s website and looking at the comments.
Coming Up
- #WQWWC – Frank will be hosting the topic of Love at his beach site. It will be posted on Tuesday, so you can link to his blog, and we will both visit you. It’s still not too late to link your posts about respect to #WQWWC this week. Instructions are on the post.
- #Story Chat in January, “A Postcard from the Past” by Anne Goodwin went so well that there were a record number of comments to summarize and categorize. Thank you all so much!
- Tuesday the February Story Chat short story, ‘Trophy Cabinet” by Geoff LePard come out! If you look on his website, you’ll see that he has about 13 books published. So, if you don’t know him this is your chance to get acquainted. Leave a comment, and it
mightjustwill show up in the Story Chat Summary/Follow-up. 🙂 - Sue Vincent Rodeo Classic. We have until February 11 to complete the first challenge and to make a donation to help Sue as she is suffering (you wouldn’t know it from chatting with her) but she is dealing with a terminal cancer, and we bloggers have been called on to make a difference.
Have a great week, my friends. See you soon on your blog, various challenges and hopefully here as well.
Marsha Ingrao - Always Write 
73 responses to “#Lens-Artist 134: How to Turn Car Show Photos From Forgettable to Favorite”
I have a little blue Mini-Cooper with “go faster” stripes. I think it’s time I took its photograph. I’ve bookmarked your post for reference/inspiration. Thank you . 😀
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There you go. That Mini will spin right off the page!
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Very creative, Marsha!
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Thank you Erica. It was fun to do in Elements 15 and easy if you go to the guided section.
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I like the crop of that truck! Cropping can be a great way to salvage a photo that otherwise didn’t turn out good.
If you like old trucks, you might like my “Truck Art” post. I had fun taking the photos and editing them.
https://jasonssullivan.com/2020/12/07/truck-art/
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I LOVE old trucks, Jason. Here’s one we bought as yard art when we lived in CA. https://tchistorygal.net/2020/05/18/three-easy-steps-to-make-your-garden-a-work-of-art/ You have to scroll down a bit to see it unless you like reading about gardens. 🙂
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I loved following your thought processes as you worked through several different edits. My favourite is the tight crop on the radiator grille 🙂
I use Photoshop Elements mainly for basic editing (crops, contrast etc) and play around with effects in Nik Effects which I got as a free plug-in a while back. I’m tempted by Lightroom and/or Topaz, which several friends use, but reluctant to spend a lot of money when on the whole I like what I manage to achieve with what I have . I do need to get a decent watermark signature however, as I currently don’t bother and probably should!
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I hear you. I need a good signature, too. I’m not crazy about the one I get when I process multiple photos, or even when I add them individually. My friend Terri Webster Schrandt has a great one. She hosts Sunday Stills. Have you visited her? https://secondwindleisure.com/2021/02/14/sunday-stills-color-challenge-a-rosy-outlook/ You will like her if you haven’t.
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Yes, I know Terri and have been participating in Sunday Stills – it’s one of the challenges I do pretty regularly. I agree, I love her signature!
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She’s a dear. She came to my home the night the raccoons bit me. She thought my screams at 3:30 am were coyotes. My husband slept right through them. LOLhttps://tchistorygal.net/2020/07/26/yellow-stills-or-still-yellow/
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Wow, that I have to read about …
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Hi – excellent edits and artsy renditions
🙂
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Thanks, Yvette!
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☀️😊 we have not been to too many car shows but love them when we do go!
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Vince used to be more of a car guy when he owned some old cars, but it’s still fun to go. 🙂
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😉
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Great experiments, Marsha. The effects are totally different in each one of your edits. I like that you’re experimenting to see which effect works best on the shots. It is hard to separate the car from the background. I’ve had the same problem at car shows, too. You’ve had more success than I have!
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Thank you, Patti. I had so much fun with this challenge, as I do with all of them. Thanks for the compliment. You are too kind! 🙂
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Wow that is such a clever way to keep focus on the car you wanted.. love it.. especially the top car.. 😉
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Thanks, Lisa. I loved that one, too.
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You really had some fun with these – thank you! We had fun as well – splendid energy bombs!
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Thank you Leya. I always learn so much from your challenges. 🙂
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And so do I ;-D
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Anne and I were talking about the challenge of sharing our journeys. That is an excellent way to assess your “pupils” so that you know what types of challenges would help us. It would also make a great couple of follow up posts looking at all the comments that are meaty like Anne’s. I had no idea that a person could get certified to take equestrian pictures, for example. You four definitely provide much more than a challenge for those who follow.
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Interesting, and so great we have each other on WP, and learn from each other. A rewarding game this!
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Yes it is.
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Fun edits, Marsha! You are really getting the hang of photoshop. I still struggle with lightroom and stick with PicMonkey premium and the Painnt app. I love what you did with the various images, really very creative and showcase the cars nicely…and isn’t that the point? My favorite is the collage, looks like a great marketing tool!
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I haven’t tried that yet. Isn’t Lightroom an Adobe product? Thanks for the compliments, Terri. I’m working on Sunday Stills next. 🤗🤗🤗
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Yes, LR is. I was told by the pro photographer that LR was created to work with images only, while PS works for graphic design.
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Interesting. I used to have it, but it was either too expensive or I didn’t use it enough to keep it. That is the first time I knew that PS was for graphic design rather than the photo. BTW, who designed your signature. I am not happy with anything I’ve been able to produce. 🙂
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I created the blog signature in Picmonkey. Canva can do something similar. The white watermark on some of images was made with photologo, like $29.
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I was thinking the watermark on the photos. I love the font and the way it looks on your pictures.. PS Elements doesn’t have anything quite that elegant.
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[…] #Lens-Artist 134: How to Turn Car Show Photos From Forgettable to Favorite […]
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Your enthusiasm leaps out of the page along with the cars, Marsha 🙂 🙂
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Thanks, Jo, it was fun. I do love to take pictures even if they aren’t the best. This challenge stretched me. On Saturday we took a walk in the red rocks of Sedona. My husband took all the pictures, so there are even a few of me this time. I want to share it with you. It is one of my favorite places. 🙂
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Sounds wonderful. I will look forward to that, Marsha 🙂 🙂
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Wow Marsh you made each one look amazing! Great shots! ❤️❤️❤️💖💖💖
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Thank you , Cindy. It’s not my forte, so it takes me a long time to do it. I’m never too sure of myself when it comes to graphic art. 🙂
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But it will be since you are practicing. One would NEVER know.. especially me.. but I’m getting the new camera John has.. the Panosonic Lecia.. fingers crossed it’s easy to use. ❤️❤️🤗🤗
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It sounds fancy, Cindy. My camera is heavier than my phone, so I rarely unpack it from its case any more. Lazy me! 🙂
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It does… wow.. so that’s all the phone.. I’m sooo impressed! ❤️👏👏👏👏
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Thanks, Cindy!!! ❤️❤️❤️
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❤️❤️
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Good job with the filters, Marsha. My favorites are in Topaz Studio.
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I’ll have to check it out. Why do you like it? Is it free, or what is the cost?
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Marsh, it’s editing software called Topaz Labs. The price is $99.00. I originally bought it for the sharpening add-on called AI Clear. Not sure what the price of that is. I use LR for my primary editing, but like the sharpening software when used with a light touch and love all of the filters for adding artsy touches.
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Thanks, Sue. It sounds like a lot of people use LR. Was it hard to learn? I hate to admit it but I’m like a deer in the headlights about learning new programs!!!
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I love Lightroom! Not only is it wonderful for editing, but also for cataloging and storing your photos. There are many excellent classes available. I would start with Julieann Kost on You Tube. She’s worked for Adobe for many years and is an excellent teacher. I’m happy to answer your questions any time.
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OMG, cataloging and storage is my biggest problem.!!!!!!!!! Thank you Sue. I will definitely check this out immediately!
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What fun looking at the images, you might consider sending them to Zazzle, for greeting cards, or other items there.
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Thank you, Myrna. What a nice thing to say.
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Custom photos for custom cars. VERY well done. They go together nicely.
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Thank you so much, John. If I only knew who the cars belonged to. The pictures would make a great gift. 🙂
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Hi, Marsha – These photos are truly stunning. I especially love the second shot in this series. Thanks so much for sharing these with us!
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Thank you, Donna. I had fun playing with them during the second half of the Super Bowl and beyond. I figured it was over after the first half, and if Vince let out a hoot and a holler I’d dash back to the TV. 🙂
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Wow Marsha, you went to town on these! Every one of them is really fun. I can see them as huge pop-art photos in a funky old-time-themed diner or in a used car showroom. They’re a great example of the fun we can have when we work outside the box to create something totally different with our images. Thanks so much for adding to our fun with the challenge.
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Tina, thank you so much for your encouragement to stretch. I used that radial filter in a photo for Story Chat today after learning about it yesterday, so thanks again. What program do you use to play with your photos?
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Nothing fancy I’m afraid. I use L/R for simple edits and P/S if I need to remove things or expand a background for example. I do use Topaz when I want to create an artistic interpretation, or apply textures using P/S. You could spend all day every day if you really wanted to be a photographic artist!
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It is time consuming. I use Canva for creating art for posts or for flyers. Sometimes I alter something in Canva then alter it again in Photoshop. Canva will now remove backgrounds easier than Photoshop, which I never mastered.
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I used Canva for a while but decided I preferred P/S. It does make some nice photographic art though
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There are so many options with Photo Shop. What I like about Canva that is fairly new are the thousands of pictures that are available at very little cost. Those work well for my Story Chat Series. Since I’m not writing the stories, my photos don’t usually fit the story, and I love doing illustrations for them.
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Not only did you have fun at the car show, you had fun with the images. Red cars simply pop off the page. Especially love the second pic. 🙂
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Yes, I did, Frank. You discovered a weakness of mine – red cars and trucks. I also like turquoise. There’s an old truck near us sitting in someone’s yard that is turquoise. If I had a yard, I’d be dangerously close to asking if he wanted to sell it. 🙂
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LOL … You don’t need to move again just to get a yard for the red car.
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LOL, Frank!
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You had some fun!
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Yes, it was years ago when I volunteered for the Woodlake Chamber of Commerce. That was the last year they hosted the car show. So it was good that I got pictures. 🙂
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Very good!
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That’s very clever. I don’t do much editing apart from changing the size of a photo or improving the light and balance. Well done!
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Thanks, Carol. I don’t usually, but it was a stretch to rise to the challenge. 🙂 It’s always fun to try new things.
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It is amazing what you can do with photoshop. I don’t actually have photoshop
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I purchased the most elementary version a few years ago, and I love it for everything but text. I know there are others that do so much more, but I haven’t had time to experiment recently. 🙂
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😊
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