Anyone who has ever worked with Photoshop knows about the amazing corrections which can be made and the more difficult changes to photos using the tampon tool which enables one to wipe out small distracting details. However, the last two versions have included a tool, which until then, existed only in the realms of sci-fi. I refer, of course, to the Content Aware tool. For those who have never tried it, it is like having an X-ray machine which sees through solid objects. Of course, it is nothing of the kind, but is a remarkable piece of software which tries to work out what is hidden behind the objects one wants to eliminate. It won't show something totally hidden, but will create, in seconds, a logical framework on which one can work.
To give an example; a few weeks ago I met a couple who have an African Grey Parrot (Psittacus erithacus erithacus) which I wanted to photograph but which was in too bad a mood to let out of its cage. The logical method would be to take 2 photos from different angles and use parts of one to replace what is hidden behind a bar of the cage. Several hours work, with the problem that living creatures tend to move.
This is the original photo;
Using the Content Aware tool in PS I came up with this (minimal changes to show how it works) in just a few minutes;
Of course, it's not perfect and several errors are visible when blown up to full size. However, it does give a good template to work from.
So, how many of our really serious photographers make use of this amazing tool or is it just looked on as a gimmick?
To give an example; a few weeks ago I met a couple who have an African Grey Parrot (Psittacus erithacus erithacus) which I wanted to photograph but which was in too bad a mood to let out of its cage. The logical method would be to take 2 photos from different angles and use parts of one to replace what is hidden behind a bar of the cage. Several hours work, with the problem that living creatures tend to move.
This is the original photo;
Using the Content Aware tool in PS I came up with this (minimal changes to show how it works) in just a few minutes;
Of course, it's not perfect and several errors are visible when blown up to full size. However, it does give a good template to work from.
So, how many of our really serious photographers make use of this amazing tool or is it just looked on as a gimmick?
Are you referring to the Spot Healing Brush tool and using the option to select content aware? I make heavy use of this for smoothing out the stage floor in the theater photos I mentioned in another thread. It works really well for small blemishes--I also use it to remove electrical wires when a better vantage point isn't available when taking photos.
