Action/Movement
Name: Round We Go
Location: Irvine Spectrum
Write-Up: I had a cool effect with the ferris wheel moving faster than it looked and the colors looked punchy and bright. It’s an interesting edit with the blurriness of the lights. It evokes a dizzying feeling.
Edits:
Long exposure effect on iPhone
Increased contrast and highlights
More saturation and blue-toned color mixing
Added grain
Animal
Name: Fishy Pond
Location: Fashion Island
Write-Up: The colors came out really vibrant and interesting; makes aspects pop. The deeper shadows makes the light of the fish and the water stand out and it almost looks real. Koi fish are one of my favorite animals and the meaning and symbolism surrounding them is really important to me
Edits:
Deeper shadows and blacks
Increased pigment in the blues and greens
Color mixing the orange to make it more red
Adding clarity and dehazing
Added grain
Architecture
Name: Zig-Zag
Location: Los Angeles
Write-Up: The building itself was very interesting and the boldness of the geometry stood out from the flatness of the sky. It feels very edgy but also bright because of the stylized sky color. I just thought the building looked cool in contrast with the sky so I took a picture.
Edits:
Less exposure
More shadows and deeper blacks
Color mixing the blue in the sky
Adding grain
Balance
Name: Golden Bear
Location: Five Below
Write-Up:: The colors look really bright and the adjusting of the photo makes it balanced. It has a child-like color scheme that is reminiscent of candy, but the deeper shadows and grain give in a grungier vibe. I really like mixing bright colors with darker undertones or elements so this picture is a personal favorite of mine
Edits:
Lowered highlights and deeper shadows
Added pink tint
More saturation and vibrance in colors
Decreased clarity and texture
Lots of added grain
Cropping and aspect adjustments
Black and White
Name: Checkers
Location: Santa Ana Mall
Write-Up: I think it was a cool photo that is actually still in color it just featured black and white in the picture. It’s a cool background but it has elements of blues and greens to add some breathing room between the colors. I thought the floor was cool and it matched my shoes.
Edits:
Increased whites, highlights, contrast
Deeper blacks and shadows
Blue temperature with a green tint
More vibrance and saturation
Added grain
Candid
Name: Bright Out
Location: Irvine Spectrum
Write-Up: I really like how the coloring came out with the neon and it looks like a really good picture. It’s a dream-like, cyberpunk color scheme so it makes the person in the photo look cooler or edgier. Neon signs or neon in general is one of my favorite things and photos with people in them are always so cool to me. I wanted to try and do one myself and it came out really good.
Edits:
More contrast
Less highlights and more shadows
Increased whites
Pink tint
Increased vibrance
Decreased the saturation
Blue, pink, purple color mixing
Less texture
More clarity and added grain
Framed
Name: On the Fence
Location: Huntington Beach
Write-Up: The sky looks pretty and cotton candy-like mixed with the darkness of the bars and sand makes it stand out. The sky being bright and colorful surrounded by the dark environment feels inspiring for some reason . The added grain also gives it a "taken on an old camera," grunge vibe. I somehow take a lot of beach pictures even though i’m not a huge fan of the beach.
Edits:
Less highlights and whites
Warmer temperatures with pink tint
Color mixing the oranges and yellows to add a warmer tone
Color mixing the blue to make it more seen in the sky
Added grain
More texture and clarity to bring out the clouds in the sky
From Above
Name: The Hydrant
Location: Mountains in Orange, California
Write-Up: It was a cool view and the hydrant stood out among the blue and greens. The way the image is shot makes you focus on the hydrant, but when you look ahead you can see the view. There was not much attachment to the image, but running out of the car to take the picture was pretty fun.
Edits:
More exposure, less contrast, shadows, whites, and blacks
Cooler temperature with pink tints
More vibrance and saturation
Color mixing the sky and the reds in the hydrant
Lots of texture and dehazing, less clarity
Added grain
Color noise reduction
From Below
Name: Sky Rise
Location: Downtown Los Angeles
Write-Up: It makes the viewer seem small compared to the rising buildings. LA is important to me and it always feels like you’re so small compared to the personality and size of the city.
Edits:
Added contrast
Less shadows and blacks
Cooler temperature with pink tint
More vibrance and saturation
Color mixing the blues, greens, and yellows
Group
Name: Swinging
Location: beach
Write-Up: As much as the original picture looked nice, I wanted to try and stylize the colors and lighting a bit more. I made the shadows darker and gave a different blue color to the sky and water. It feels more like a picture from a time period rather than something just taken on a phone.
Edits:
Higher contrast
Less whites and blacks
More saturation
Color mixing blues to a teal
Added grain
Group Posed
Name: XPLR
Location: Victoria Beach, Laguna
Write-Up: The gradient from the sky makes the location look cooler and different. The emotion from this photo feels happy and seems like a memorable time. I am in this photo but I also took it with a self-timer on my phone, so I thought I did a pretty good job.
Edits:
Less black
Warmer temperature with pink tints
Slightly more saturation
Color mixing blues and reds
Less texture, more clarity
Added grain
Humor
Name: Walk Button
Location: Irvine Spectrum
Write-Up: I was just walking back to my car and noticed this sticker on the crosswalk button and decided to take a picture. I thought it was cleverly placed and thought it could be interesting to share. I am a fan of stickers or graffiti on outside structures and whenever I see something I take a picture of it.
Edits:
More exposure
Less contrast, highlights, shadows
Cooler temperature
Pink tint
More vibrance and saturation
Less texture
More clarity
Added grain
Interesting Cropping
Name: Throwback
Location: OC Local Market, Laguna Hills
Write-Up: The original photo showed more of the pinball machines and the room they were in. I thought to crop it focused more on the inside of one board so the details from the inside can be seen. It focuses on the machine and the game inside rather than the environment it was in.
Edits:
Less exposure
More contrast
Less highlights
More shadows and whites
Less black
Added saturation and vibrance
Color mixing with more luminance
Added dehaze
Added grain
Landscape
Name: City of Dreams
Location: Downtown Los Angeles
Write-Up: I took this picture in my car on the freeway and the sun was just setting. It added this warm highlight to the buildings and made the sky all dream-like. LA and its whole energy means a lot to me so this picture is one of my personal favorites.
Edits:
Less exposure and contrast
More highlights, shadows, and whites
More vibrance
Less clarity
More dehaze
Added grain
Leading Lines
Name: Palm Tree Streets
Location: Downtown Los Angeles
Write-Up: One of the classic, movie-like features of LA is the streets lined with palm trees; The leading lines in this photo are created by the buildings going into the distance as well as the trees following them. It creates a distant mood and that the street would go on for miles.
Edits:
Less contrast
Less shadows
More white
Less black
Slight saturation
Less clarity
Added grain
Monotonous Content
Name: Gender
Location: Regal Movie Theater, Irvine Spectrum
Write-Up: Monotonous to me is something that is not paid too much attention too or can be kinda boring. I was looking for things to take pictures of and when I went to the movies, I thought the newly designed bathrooms looked cool with the neon signs. I made the normal image a little more interesting by adding the pink coloring to the lighting to represent the gendered stereotypes people have.
Edits:
Added exposure and contrast
No highlights, shadows, whites, and blacks
Warmer temperature with pink tint
Lowered vibrance and saturation
Slight color mixing of pink, purple, red, and yellow
Added texture
Added grain
Pattern
Name: Geometric
Location: Area 15, Las Vegas NV
Write-Up: It was hard trying to find a pattern in daily life, but this art arena had plenty of interesting backgrounds to take pictures of. The bold, black lines really stand out against the bright green lit background. Even the less noticeable pattern within the bigger triangles adds to the overall image.
Edits:
Less contrast
Less highlights and shadows
Less whites
Cooler temperature with a pink tint
Slight color mixing of green and cyan
Less clarity
More dehaze
Added grain
Plant/Flower
Name: Moth or Butterfly?
Location: Some bush in Orange, CA
Write-Up: I noticed these colorful, little flowers in a big bush on the side of the road so I went to take a picture of them. But as I took the first couple pictures, a moth or butterfly (don't know which) flew onto the flower and I managed to snap a picture of it. This really showcases the idea of waiting for the perfect picture instead of getting one quickly and moving on.
Edits:
More exposure and contrast
Less highlights and shadows
No white
Less black
Pink tint
Added texture, clarity, dehaze
Added grain
Rule of Thirds
Name: Two Wrongs
Location: The Great Park, Irvine CA
Write-Up: I noticed the sign was turned upside down so I went to go look at it. Then I saw that it said "wrong way" while also being upside down and I knew I had to take a picture of it. Road signs interest me so much and I wanted to get a picture of it while also showing the sky and mountains in the back.
Edits:
More contrast
Less highlights
Warmer temperature with pink tint
More vibrance and saturation
Color mixing red, orange, yellow, and blue
Added texture
Less clarity
Added grain
Simple
Name: Soup
Location: Irvine CA
Write-Up: Simple was difficult to photography since I personally like to get pictures of interesting, out of the ordinary things. This restaurant gave its soup in little tea cups and the plain white dishware seemed very clean and simple.
Edits:
Less exposure
More highlights, shadows, whites
Less black
Cooler temperature with pink tint
More vibrance and saturation
Added grain
Single Person Portrait
Still Life
Name: Win Big
Location: Las Vegas NV
Write-Up: I really like the colors that came out from the slot machines and how vibrant it looked. The colors and lights are very inviting and interesting to look at.
Edits:
Added exposure
Lowered highlights
Added shadows and white
Cooler temperature with pink tint
Color mixing red, orange, green, and purple
Added texture
Added grain
Sunset
Name: Parking Lot Party
Location: Irvine CA
Write-Up: The sky this day was really pretty with the colors and the sunset reflecting on the clouds. The image is very dream-like and has a cotton candy type color scheme. I sometimes have parking lot parties with my friends so this was a picture from then.
Edits
Low exposure
Less highlights and shadows
More whites
Cooler temperature with pink tint
Color mixing red, orange, yellow, and blue
Added grain
Sunrise
Name: Not a Sunrise
Location: Top of the World, Laguna Beach CA
Write-Up: The mundane foreground of the plants and signs hides the interesting looking sky so it is peeking in the little spaces in between. I went up to get a picture of the sunset but the clouds covered it so there was an interesting muted color within the clouds.
Edits
Low exposure
High highlights and shadows
Less white
Added black
Added vibrance and saturation
Added clarity
Added grain
Symmetry
Name: Light Circle
Location: Las Vegas NV
Write-Up: The pattern within the circle was very intricate and symmetrical. The lights from behind added cooler colors and made the image pop.
Edits:
Added contrast
Added whites
More vibrance and saturation
Added texture and dehaze
Added grain
Texture
Name: Shine
Location: Las Vegas NV
Write-Up: the texture is this shiny, holographic ribbon that was bunched up. I added flash to the picture to make the colors bright and add highlights to the reflection.
Edits:
Added contrast
Added shadows, whites, and blacks
Warmer temperature with a green tint
Added texture
Added grain
Thought Provoking
Name: Footprints in the Sand
Location: Laguna Beach CA
Write-Up: I was walking the beach at night and there were footprints deep in the sand from the water. I tried to brighten the photo as much as I could to be able to show the definition in the prints.
Edits:
Added exposure
High contrast
More blacks and shadows
Cooler temperature with pink tint
Added dehaze
Added grain
Unusual Viewpoint
Name: Star Bars
Location: Irvine, CA
Write-Up: I took a walk down the Jeffrey Trail and thought the architecture of the bridges were cool to take a picture of. But, I've seen plenty of photos on these bridges so I tried to find a new angle to take a picture in. The connection points of the bars were interesting to look at and the brown color stood out against the blue sky.
Edits:
Less exposure
Added highlights
Added shadows and whites
Color mixing blue
Up-close/Macro
Name: Spark
Location: Lamps Plus, Irvine CA
Write-Up: I went to a lamp store and thought the aesthetics of all the lights was super cool. I focused in on one of the lights and tried to get as many other lights in the background. I stylized the photo with a pink tint and brought out the saturation to make it more interesting and colorful.
Edits:
Added contrast
No highlights
Added shadows, whites, and blacks
Cooler temperature with pink tint
Added vibrance
Lowered saturation
Added dehaze
Added grain
Your Choice
Name: Bakehouse
Location: Gideon's Bakery, Orlando FL
Write-Up: I chose this photo because it is one of my favorite places to be in (and eat in) because the aesthetic and decor is so unique. The room itself is very dark but has lots of accent, red lighting to make it more eerie. It then showcases its beautiful cakes behind a scary looking bookshelf with spiderwebs and skulls. I just really like the juxtaposition of the location and what it's there for.
Edits:
Added contrast
Less highlights and shadows
Less blacks
Color mixing red
Less texture
Added clarity
Added grain