ascough silver actions

Welcome

Thanks for your interest in my work and actions. 

Over the coming months I'll be expanding the content of this blog to help you get more out of my actions, and digital imaging in general. There will be hints and tips, workflow suggestions, sample pictures and so on. I want this to be more than just about my actions, so please bookmark this page.

I have a feedback section set up where you can leave comments or questions specifically about the actions. The actions themselves have been beta tested by some of the world's best wedding photographers, and the feedback has been so positive that it has really taken me by surprise.

I am really proud of this set, and I'm delighted to make them available to other professional photographers.

Jeff

**Please note that these actions are only available to professional photographers, regardless of whether you have purchased previous action sets from us. When ordering please ensure that you use a professional email address, or supply your website details**

JVS reviews Ascough SILVER Actions

Joseph Victor Stefanchik needs no introduction when it comes to wedding photography. His use of external lighting within wedding photojournalism is, in my opinion, the best in the world. So it was a real treat to find out that he using and reviewing my actions - and he loves them!!

To read his thoughts on the actions, and also to see a real master of his craft in action go offcameraflash.com

The importance of good colour

I get quite a few emails from photographers asking why their black and whites don't look as good as they could do. Nine times out of ten, the original image is at fault especially if it has been shot in tungsten or mixed lighting. I cringe when I hear comments like "Don't worry if you can't correct the colour, you can always turn it into black and white!"

One of the most important aspects of getting a great looking black and white, is to make sure that you start with a great looking colour image. Even lowly desturation works surprisingly well if you have a great colour image. The white balance has to be good, but so does the contrast and density. The easiest way to make sure that your density comes up to scratch is to let the histogram guide you. Look to get a a full histogram without clipping the important highlights or shadows. Use your exposure slider to move the highlights to the right of the histogram, and your black point/shadows slider to move the shadows to the left. If the image looks too bright, then use the brightness slider to adjust the brightness level.

Here is a great example;

The first image has been shot in tungsten lighting and hasn't been colour or density corrected.

This is the straight b/w conversion on this image. Look how flat and muddy it looks.

This is a corrected colour version of the same image

Now look at the same b/w conversion on the colour corrected image. This gives us a much better black and white, with a good tonal range, and plenty to work with if we wanted to enhance the image further.

Obviously this is an extreme example, but it clearly shows how much of an effect having a poor colour image has on your b/w conversion. So next time you have a shot with a dodgy colour balance, try to correct it first before you turn it to black and white!!