rob_ruttan

Your right, Len...colour is king in Vegas, which is why I opted for the B&W versions as well: the emperor with no clothes.  I did this by giving the lens a twist as I shot, then played with a couple of Lightroom presets; nothing really tricky about it.  

I was on the old Freemont Strip in Vegas, which I found to be an absolutely dismal place, especially after five days in those incredible deserts.

Very nice, Len!

I found Freemont an almost hallucinogenic experience -- and not a pleasant one. I

thought I'd descended into one of Dante's Rings, so have taken an ironic approach

with the photos I took there. I'll be very grateful for your comments.

Thanks,

R.

On a trip to the American South West last year I flew in and out of Vegas and stayed

st a place on the Freemont Strip. Gaudy and full of colour, I found it quite a miserable

place. I saw few people smiling, and no one seemed to be having anything like a good

time. The energy was frantic but pointless, and I thought it made a bit of an ironic

comment to process some of the photos from that evening in B&W. Your comments

will be greatly appreciated!

Nice composition...very well-spotted & well executed!

Very nicely composed & tonally balanced...does a lot with a little.

Alf & Bela -- thanks both of you for the comments.  Bela -- I wish I could give you a better answer, but this is all I have: I recently started playing with Lightroom on Adobe CC, and did this largely by playing.  There's something that appears to be an oval shaped graduated filter; I applied it on the centre and from there, used some sort of toning preset on the rest, probably with some more slider play, and maybe some vignetting.   Wish I could say more!

--Rob.

Thanks, Larry.  It's a departure because I'm trying to get more "black" into the black & white.  I'd love to reduce the noise in the sky, but I don't know how!

This photo is a bit of a departure for me and I will be grateful for

any comments and constructive criticism you may have.

Thanks very much, Patrick!  I'll certainly consider your thoughts.

Hello. I've never tried anything like this before and I am hoping

some feedback will give me a sense of whether or not I've missed the

mark. It could help if I told you what I'm aiming for, but on the

other hand "blind" responses might tell me more. Very much looking

forward to any input you've got. Thanks, Rob.

A very strong image.  I know that isn't a particularly helpful comment, but I don't know what to add!

Very effective work...pretty well leaps off the screen at you.

This is a fine colour composition.  It gives a very upbeat, happy feel...almost made me laugh!

Beautiful, elegant and simple.

This is a very compelling image, reminiscent of Jerry Usselman's work.  It's also a relief to see the nude human form used creatively -- 99% of the nudes we see are just cheescake.  Congratulations!

Yeah, the B&W makes for quite an arresting image.  Just goes to show what can be found when going through old stuff!

Nice one, Len!

Very nice range of tones & an interesting DOF -- gives it a bit of a 3D look.

Gorgeous.  Simply gorgeous.  In particular I like the subtle tones in both the sand & the sky and the excellent detail in the ridges, if that's what they're called.

Very well done; nifty tonal range at work here!

I quite like this sort of photo.  Almost nothing there, and yet...

I think it takes a sensitive eye to find images like this.

GREAT work!  I have tried a couple of times to get that kind of reflection but some ruddy wind always comes along at the last!  Extremely good exposure values, however you got them.