[kNox]

I'm still slowly learning how to post-process my images in a way that I'm satisfied with them. I feel like this one is my best work yet, but there's a small voice telling me I overdid it. Did I?

[Plantsman]

I'm still slowly learning how to post-process my images in a way that I'm satisfied with them. I feel like this one is my best work yet, but there's a small voice telling me I overdid it. Did I?

You answer your own question my friend -
"post-process my images in a way that I'm satisfied with them"

What pleases you is what counts.
All I would do (to suit my preferences) would be to reduce the colour intensity a little.

Clarity and composition is good and I like the subject

[kNox]

All I would do (to suit my preferences) would be to reduce the colour intensity a little.

That's what I thought, in the back of my mind - I like it like this, but maybe I just like oversaturated images

[EnglishBob]

I like the look and feel of this, as already said, I would tone down the sky a little for my tastes.

[MrB]

Andrei, the really important point is that you produce results that satisfy you. However, as you ask for opinions regarding whether you have overdone it, I would agree with Peter and Craig that the colour here is too intense. For me, it is the blue end of the colour scale that is too strong, giving both the sky and the grass a rather unnatural look. Of course, that might be exactly what you want, and/or it might be deliberately applied to enhance a particular mood.

If you are capturing images as Raw files, and then setting the white balance in PP, the rest of this paragraph is irrelevant. But I wonder whether the bias towards blue tones is the result of the camera's Auto White Balance setting? I nearly always shoot JPEGs, and changing to an appropriate Preset can sometimes give me more natural and pleasing images out of the camera - e.g. Daylight WB for sunny conditions, and Shade WB or Cloudy WB for overcast skies.

Cheers.
Philip

[kNox]

Thanks for taking the time to share your thoughts, Philip!

The reason behind upping the intensity is the fact that I wanted to have a contrast between the grass and the sky - the green/blue contrast looked nice to me, and it wasn't as much when I turned down the blue.

As for the white balance, I shoot JPEGs and have the white balance to Auto in Lightroom - it usually balances it properly.

[EdMak]

?? Ed.

[kNox]

Thanks for the edit, Ed!

[gavioli]

I am afraid you did kNox. The elements for a good picture were all in place until you overcooked the photoshop. It now looks like the end of the world is imminent (but don`t be too downhearted by this - photo magazines are guilty of the same thing, they think it is clever).

I find that if the picture is good in the camera and yours seems to be, all that is needed is slight modifications to brightness and perhaps levels. A light and subtle touch is all that is usually needed and you must resist the temptation to overcook everything. It is a common fault even among some magazine professionals.

If you are able to save your pictures in camera to raw format, this is better because you can do more in post processing but again, keep things gentle. The picture doesn`t seem beyond hope. Go back to the processing and lighten the colours and brightness.

[kNox]

It now looks like the end of the world is imminent

Well, the picture is taken at Auschwitz, that was kind of what I was going for.

[EdMak]

Exactly. Ed.

[gavioli]

Sadly, it was the end of the world for some, so perhaps it is more apt than I realised.