Category: Pacific Northwest

Soft Around the Edges

Pacific Northwest Photo Challenges 6 Comments

There are many ways to get a soft, dreamy effect in photos, and many reasons why you might want to use that effect.

For the Lens Artists Challenge this week Bren of Brashley Photography challenges us to use softness to process our photos. I often use a bit of softness to change the mood or help draw the eye in my compositions. There are several tools and techniques for doing this.

Long Exposure using a Neutral Density Filter to get a soft effect

First, I want to share an experiment that I did last summer: increasing exposure time. This technique smooths out quickly moving objects (in my case it was water), while keeping stationary parts of the composition in sharper focus. You increase the exposure time by using a neutral density filter in tandem with a higher f-stop (smaller aperture) and the lowest ISO available for your camera.

Deception Creek near Skycomish in Washington State roaring with snow melt.
Scene without ND filter
Deception Creek near Skycomish in Washington State makes a great example of how a neutral density filter smooths out the appearance of water. Softening the mood of the photo.
With ND filter
Deception Falls just off of US 20 on the west side of Stevens Pass in Washington State.
Without ND filter
Using a neutral density filter changes the feel of the composition. Making it feel softer and less vigorous,
with ND filter
Examples from Deception Falls State Park, with and without using an ND filter.

Topaz Studio 2 Filters and Looks

Topaz Studio 2 has several filters that can be used to soften an image, and a whole set of “looks” (a.k.a., presets) for achieving a soft effect. Here is an example using filters to reduce the contrast and detail. I also added a light vignette.

A pea blossom.
I used Topaz Studio 2's precision detail and precision contrast filters to soften the image and give it a more dreamy mood.
Example using Topaz Studio 2

Some options in the GIMP for soft, dreamy effects

Another method you can use is the Orton Effect. This post explains how to get the effect using the GIMP.

Path way at Rasar State Park in Washington State.
Original photo
The Orton effect changes the mood of the photo to be more mysterious. The woods appear more soft and dreamy and the lighting less harsh.
Orton effect
View of the North Cascades from a picnic area along US 2 beside the Skagit RIver.
Original photo
This example uses the Orton effect more subtly. A selective application of the Orton effect gives the photo a dreamier look.
Orton effect, applied selectively.

Another tool inside of the GIMP that I like to use is the G’MIC plug-in’s Smooth Abstract Filter. G’mic Smooth Abstract Filter Demonstration.

Blossom on a potato plant.
The G'MIC Smooth Abstract filter gives an image a soft, dreamy feel.

Raw Therapee’s Tone Mapping

Another technique I like makes use of the Tone Mapping tool inside of Raw Therapy. This tool can make an image dark and dreamy or very detailed and bright, depending on what settings you use. For this example I created three versions of the same image then used layer masks in the GIMP to combine them into one image. In this case the center is sharp and the two out layers become gradually darker and less sharp.

An oriental poppy, processed using Raw Therapee and the GIMP.

To get an idea of how to do this here is a screen shot of the layers and layer masks. I used the vignette filter (in the Filters>Light and Shadows menu) to make the layer masks.

The combination of layers draws the eye into the center of the flower.

These are just a few of the many tools and techniques that can produce a soft, dreamy effect in photos.

Cascade Loop Day 1-mostly on Whidbey Island

Gallery Pacific Northwest 3 Comments
View from the bridge at Deception Pass toward the east. A must see stop on the Cascade Loop Scenic Byway.

The Cascade Loop National Scenic Byway is in my state. The loop covers a pretty decent range of the scenery typical of Washington state. We did it clockwise, starting by taking the ferry to Whidbey Island.

Most years we go to Paradise at Mount Rainier for a few days to hike and just enjoy the mountain air. But this year we decided to see some of the state that we haven’t been to before. It seemed like a good idea to spend our vacation dollars locally. We bought a pass for state parks when we renewed our car tabs this year so we tended to focus on visiting state parks during this outing.

Whidbey Island

It started with a ferry ride…naturally.

Mulkilteo ferry to Whidbey Island.

I’m jaded about islands, my home town is Vashon, my dad still lives there and we go over pretty often. Whidbey is “just” a Puget Sound island. Pretty enough, but it doesn’t seem special. None-the-less walking on the beach and in the woods is always a peace point for my soul.

Some photos from Whidbey Island.

Cute sign at a beach on Whidbey Island.
Strong currents at a point on Whidbey Island.
Old pier at a beach on Whidbey Island.
Peek-a-boo view from a trail at South Whidbey State Park.
Little brown sparrow.
Path through the horse tails at South Whidbey State Park.
Big leaf maple.
View from trail at North Beach in Deception Pass State Park.
Trail at Deception Pass State Park.
Thimble berries
Tiny Nootka rose.
Trail to the bridge at Deception Pass State Park.
View from the bridge at Deception Pass toward the east.
Deception Pass from the bridge, facing west.

We didn’t really explore the towns, which many people enjoy. The one stop we made for food in Coupeville wasn’t to our taste. We stopped at a pub that only served sausages (which don’t agree with our older tummies) and beer, which I don’t like and the MOTH doesn’t drink when he drives (after lunch was his turn). It looked cute, I’m sure for the right folks it would have been great.

Fidalgo Bay

When we had got to Anacortes any thought of the cute town exploration I had had was out the window. Instead we stopped at an out of the way state park called “Bayview”.

View of Fidalgo Bay at low tide and some of the San Juan Islands from Bayview State Park

After that we headed to Sedro-Woolley for the night. Our total mileage was 131 and we left home at 9am and got to our hotel in Sedro-Woolley around 5pm. (The shortest route from our house would take less than two hours, we definitely took the slow road, plus a couple of trails).

Continue the Journey: Cascade Loop Scenic Byway series

Other posts about our trip:

Cascade Loop Day 2-North Cascades
Cascade Loop Day 3-Winthrop
Cascade Loop Day 4-Okanagan & Eastern Cascades
Cascade Loop Day 5-through the Cascades to home

I use Raw Therapee and the GIMP, both open source, to process photos. This post describes the process I use.

© 2024 K.S. McCormick

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