Dealing with overhead cables in a photograph
Archive - Originally posted on "The Horse's Mouth" - 2008-09-21 16:02:43 - Graham Ellis
I'm always amazed at the mass of overhead wires that you find in the USA, and what a darned nuisance they are to photographers who want to get a clean picture. Lisa's a past master at painting them out with Photoshop ... but I'm inclined to take pictures in such a way that I lessen their effect in the first place - such as changing my camera angle. There's a very serious wider question as to whether or not it's acceptable to doctor pictures, and if so to what degree. In the UK, Estate Agents have got themselves into trouble for publishing misleading pictures - even undoctored ones - of properties they are selling, for example taking pictures on the one quiet day of the year, or waiting for the gasholder behind a house to be empty and down before taking the picture.
My view? Look at why the picture is being published and let that be the guide as to how much you can or should doctor it. If it's just a "record" picture that few people will look at, don't bother. If it's a record picture that a lot of people may look at, then I'll crop it and sharpen it - perhaps rotating it a bit - but little more.
I include "Where's this" type competitions - such as pictures I sometimes put up on the Rail Forums in my record picture category - though I may permit myself the extra edit of painting out a name board. And I WILL blank out faces and car registrations for privacy purposes if I have to.
Beyond the "record shot" - pictures published to make a point and making no pretence of reality - then any thing's fair game. The image that illustrates this item? Why - that's far from original as I have gone out of my way to emphasise the cables. But - even here - I don't feel that it would have been right for me to add in extra wires (besides - there are already plenty of them!)