Flicker on a Tree (Graphic Novel filter)

Happy last day of January, everybody! For today's picture, I re-processed an image of a Flicker on a tree, hanging out next to some holes that had been knocked out by other woodpeckers. I like the lines (the squiggles?) that are brought out in this image by the Graphic Novel filter, which is why I like the Graphic Novel filter in general (for its squiggles.) Since the Graphic Novel filter processes images in black and white, I lightly layered the colored image back into the black and white for the second image that you see below. Thanks for stopping by and looking at my pictures!

Flicker on the Deck (Graphic Novel filter)

Here's a different crop of a Flicker on my deck from a few years ago, processed with the Graphic Novel filter. First is the black and white, second is the colorized, and third is the HDR (no Graphic Novel filter) version. Thanks for stopping by!

Deer in the Field (Graphic Novel filter)

Here are my images from the deer in the field, processed with Photomatix for HDR and then with Photoshop for the Graphic Novel filter effect. The image below is the final cropped image. The second image is the original HDR, followed by the black and white (uncropped) Graphic Novel filtered image, followed by the colorized version. Thanks for stopping by!

Poinsettia (Graphic Novel filter)

This is another one that I have decided to post at full size, because I like seeing the texture in the image, and I'm not sure that you can really see it in the x-large size. 

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Trees, Brush, Branches (Graphic Novel filter)

Here is the big picture:

And here are the crops:

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Winter Trees (Graphic Novel filter)

 Today was a photo experimentation day. I tried running the RAW file through the Graphic Novel filter on Photoshop at 3 passes (4.25, 4.5, and 4.75) layered together (100%, 70%, and 40% opacity).

I took those same individual layers above and ran tonemapped them in Photomatix as an HDR image. (Usually, the images that I process in Photoshop are already tonemapped.) It resulted in the following:

The tonemapped image as a whole came out looking really weird, especially in the dark spots around the branches in the middle right half of the image. However, I went to Corel Paintshop Pro and cropped out a couple of images that I liked from the tonemapped version above:

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Snow and Trees (Graphic Novel filter)

I normally post my pictures at x-large size, but at that size, you really can't see the details that I like so well about these graphic novel filtered images. So, today I posted the image at original size. I like all of the lines in the image, especially where the tree branches mesh together in a jumble. Normally, that's probably not what you'd go for in an image, but there's just something about it that I really enjoy in these graphic novel images. Thanks for stopping by! 

Thoughts of Mackinac Island (Graphic Novel filter)

So, I'm thinking happy thoughts about Mackinac Island. No, I'm not there, but it's nice to get reports from people on Facebook who are there. A few days ago, they had some serious fog (which seemed to be going around the Midwest...). It's winter there, but my picture today is from a few summer's ago, a view of the lake and part of the Fort. Thanks for stopping by!

Fall Colors on Mackinac Island (2014)

Here's another repeat, processed just a little bit differently using the graphic novel filter:

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Rocks (Graphic Novel filter)

I processed this photo a while ago using the stamp filter. I even had one version where the color was inverted and the image looked like charcoal (or something.) For today's image, I processed the HDR Photomatix tonemapped version with the Graphic Novel filter, which gives the image a realistic yet cartoon-esque effect. Granted, cartoon rocks aren't all that exciting of a subject, but... that's what I've got for today. Thanks for stopping by!

Dark-eyed Junco (Graphic Novel filter)

Here's an image from a few years back of an old friend who usually shows up in my area sometime in the early spring and the late fall - the Dark-eyed Junco. The image here is processed with the graphic novel filter from Photoshop Elements. Thanks for stopping by and looking at my pictures! :) 

Tree with Roots (Graphic Novel filter)

This was one of my favorite images even before I processed it with the Graphic Novel filter. The black and white version reminds me of a coloring page, which is really cool to have a processed photo turn out with that effect. All I'm missing are some crayons, colored pencils, or markers! - Thanks for stopping by and looking at my pictures!

Frog (rendered with Graphic Novel filter)

This frog photo is from a couple of years back, but I wanted to see how it would look through the graphic novel filter. (Now I know.) :) Thanks for stopping by!

Poinsettia (Graphic Novel filter)

I really like the cartoonishness of the Graphic Novel filter. The subject looks like a drawing, and there is something in this that I find appealing. 

In this particular image, I made the HDR photo from several different exposures merged together in Photomatix. While Photomatix is capable of composing an HDR from a single image, using multiple images provides a better depth (imo). I like to use HDR images for these Photoshop filters, because there's something in the HDR that the filters are better able to "grab on to" than in the unprocessed image. Maybe it has better darks and lights?

For the final image, I will often layer the original color back into the filtered image, which usually comes out black and white, and you see the result in the second image below. 

Thanks for stopping by and looking at my pictures! :)

A Big Rock, A Tree, and Two Little Houses on Poles (Graphic Novel filter)

The title makes it sound like this picture should have a really good story attached to it, so... here goes nothing.

Once upon a time there were two little houses, stuck up on poles. The houses were across from one another, windows on all four sides of the houses. The view from one side of the two houses faced a rock, a very large rock. It was not much to look at. Of the two houses, one had a very nice view of a green leafy tree, while the other could only see the same tree through the windows of its neighbor. There wasn't much room for conflict between these two houses; perhaps jealousy on the part of the house that was further from the tree. Yet, what could it do? Ask the rock to create a slide and knock down its neighbor? Such a maneuver might very well take out both houses! When it finally decided that it could take it no longer, the jealous house asked the photographer to turn the photo black and white, so that its neighbor could no longer see the green tree. Voila! And just when it thought it had evened the score, it came to a realization: The neighbor still had a better view of the black and white leafy tree.

Thanks for stopping by and looking at my picture! :)

Squirrel Tail Mohawk (Graphic Novel filter)

The way this squirrel's tail wrapped back up its body and tufts up over its head reminds me of the 'mohawk' style haircut. This is one of my older pictures, processed here with the graphic novel filter (which I like better than the original image, in this case.) Below are both the black and white and the colorized graphic novel versions of this image. Thanks for stopping by! 

Asian Beetle (Graphic Novel filter)

It's an Asian Beetle, identified as such by the black M/W marking on its head. These little bugs are often viewed as nuisance bugs, their presence being defined with words such as "infestation". I like the grain of the wood in the background of this little bug; I don't like the little glare on the top, but... that's what I got when taking the picture from this angle (without any shades to block the glare...). Thanks for stopping by!

Duck in a Tree (Graphic Novel filter)

Here's another old image, one that I wasn't quite happy with at the time and tried to fix up with the Dry Brush filter. I processed that image again with the Graphic Novel filter for the following results below. Thanks for stopping by!

An Old Favorite - the Mackinac Bridge (Graphic Novel filter)

Here's an old favorite of mine, the Mackinac Bridge, processed with graphic novel filter, both in black and white and color (the color version has the original color image layered into the black and white photo at 60% opacity.) Thanks for stopping by and looking at my pictures!

Bumblebee and a Purple Flower (Graphic Novel filter)

In the black and white image, the bumblebee on the flower blends right in with the rest of the image. In the color version, the bumblebee stands out. I processed the image here first as an HDR on Photomatix and then with the Graphic Novel filter on Photoshop Elements. Thanks for stopping by!

Juvenile Bluebirds (Graphic Novel Filter)

It's been so long since I originally processed this image of juvenile bluebirds that I don't remember what exactly I did to it! For today, I processed the processed image with the graphic novel filter (and like the result better than the original processed result.) Thanks for stopping by!

Here's the processed original:

Here's the Graphic Novel:

Here's the colorization:

The Cat Came Back (Graphic Novel Filter)

Revisiting this cat photo with the graphic novel filter had the song going through my head.

You know which one.

"Oh... the cat came back, the very next day, oh, the cat came back..."

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Female Cardinal (Graphic Novel Filter)

"Graphic Novel filter, why has it taken me so long to find you?"

Using the Graphic Novel filter, I was able to take a mediocre image of a cardinal in the grass and come up with...

Here's the original:

I really like what the Graphic Pen managed to do with the image. On Photoshop Elements, it doesn't have quite the range of some of the other filters, but as this was my first time playing with it (or, it's been a while,) I'm interested to see what I can do with it.

Thanks for stopping by!