Toning

I'm really into toning these days, especially toning a series (also see The Series as Art on Houston Photobloggers). Some images are just made for a particular tone or treatment. One of the things I love about shooting digital is the ability to experiment with tone and "developing".

This image was "developed" using an infrared-simulating black and white conversion layer, followed by two toning layers and some contrast adjustments. The tone fits the style of the building and the brightness and contrast of the image.

Windows

Everyone is probably familiar with the notion of the eyes as windows to the soul. I find this particularly evident in children, especially my own, because I know them so well. Well-captured, well-lit eyes lend so much depth to a picture. The eyes allow you to connect, to imagine who the subject is, maybe what they're thinking.

Anyway, this isn't just about eyes, it's also about a new toy... I got a Lensbaby (the original). I got the original primarily because I wanted the most low-fi version they had. I want the dreaminess turned up to 11. So far (I've had it for 8 hours or so), I love it.

Both of these images were processed in Photoshop CS3, primarily using the new Black and White layer.