There's a bit of an auto correction that occurs when I go to edit the pics in LR re: barrel distortion, but perhaps it's not enough. You can see it kick in as you scroll through the pics in an import the first time. Maybe I should go with Ken Rockwell's settings? (snark here for some of the folks on the forums
)
Also, re: the foot. Good thoughts! My thought would be to just mask it out, as messing around with it a tad this morning, the extra bit of color outside of the frame just reached out and punched me in the face. I'll see what I can mess with tonight.
I will say this though, with the simple tools I have to apply layers and get that effect, I'm wishing there was an easier way! That Intensify Pro is a fantastic tool so far, but it doesn't have the auto-mask features of LR that would make it so much easier, and I haven't figured out how to get the preset look for both the color and B&W portions in LR. I've gotta hit a TON more tutorials online it would seem!
Why can't ya just create a custom shape with some drag and click options and be done? LOL
Sorry for being a little picky on your shot, but I actually really like it, and really want to like it more than I do because there are just these minor things that keep me from loving it.
Thanks for the kind words, and know this: Apologies aren't necessary at all. It's comments/critique like this that I was looking for when posting the pic here, in the photo evaluation and critique section, so I appreciate all of the insight!
I'm just now diving into this huge world of photography, and I'm
driven to improve. Can't do that without some input and guidance from those who have been where I am and advanced well beyond, right?