Maestro and His Shadow

It looks like this subject is turning into a series: black and white portraits of Maestro!

In the other photos in this "series", I saw him in one of his usual spots and took a picture. In this case, however, he was kind enough to pose for me, and wait there until I was done composing the shot. So, I suppose that makes him my first official model...

The color conversion was done in LAB mode. I used a couple of layers with different blending modes (partial overlay) to increase contrast, and also selected the carpet with the lasso tool to darken it with Curves. Maestro's nose and left eye were much too dark, so a little dodging was necessary.

As always, I welcome your comments.

f/6.7, 43 mm., ISO 400, 1/90 sec.

Westie in his favorite spot...

My dog Maestro loves laying in the sun. Throughout the day, he finds the warmest spot to sleep, and follows it as the sun moves. Sometimes, when the angle of the light through the window is such that only a square inch is left, we find him sleeping there... with his nose catching the last rays.
This photo was relatively straightforward. I did the B&W conversion in LAB mode, then added a couple of Curves and Levels layers. I also had to dodge the bottom of his right paw, as it was completely black.

f/16, ISO 200, focal length 45 mm, exp. time 1/125 sec.

Hello!

Welcome to LeStro's Photos! I am a new photographer, trying to learn and improve everyday. Because I have learned so much from other bloggers, I in turn want to help others (in a limited way) by posting photos and information about how the shot was taken and about whatever post-processing was done. I also hope to learn more from your comments.

Here is the first photo. It is of my dog Maestro, a westie (West Highland White Terrier). I thought it appropriate to start with him, as his nickname (LeStro) is the inspiration for the blog's name.

The photo was taken in Aperture Priority mode, f/19, ISO 800, focal length 35mm. Exposure time came at 1/10 sec.

Then, in Photoshop, I converted it into LAB mode to use the lightness channel as the basis for the B&W version. I then duplicated the layer, set the top layer on multiply blend (15%), along with a couple of adjustment layers (Levels and Curves).

Et voilà!