Replacing the sky

PaulStat

PaulStat

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I'm sure this is a pretty common thing to do when you have a dull sky but nice foreground.

So how do you replace the sky in Photoshop? :)
 
Show us the picture you want to replace the sky in, just to give us an idea what you are talking about. It can be done, sometimes it is easy, but usually it needs a lot of skill and time to get it looking realistic.
 
:agree:

Usually its not easy. It requires knowledge of selections, layers, masks, channels etc..
 
PaulStat said:
I'm sure this is a pretty common thing to do when you have a dull sky but nice foreground.

So how do you replace the sky in Photoshop? :)
Click to expand...

Not many photographers here do. I never replace the sky in mine. I only enhance the light I was given to play with.
 
:agree:

I certainly never have and do not know anyone that will. Tweaking the levels to gain more detail is one thing but replacing it altogether ?

Surely replacing the sky will give an unnatural look to an image ?? A clear blue sky, with a few scattered clouds could give the impression of a bright sunny day, but the foreground would be dull and poorly lit with no sun or reflections to be seen anywhere ... It would look obviously fake would it not ?
 
There was an artile in a photo mag earlier in the year where they did it. They had a pretty boring sky and replaced one with a sky full of cloud. Although the test images they used were very well chosen, the new sky matched the forground and was chosen so the lighting direction was identical to that of the origional pic. Although, as with others, sure you can do it, buy why would you bother.
 
Yes . it would be a fun thing to fiddle about with on a boring rainy ..day... but Id not present the shot anywhere.

Rather go back and get the real thing properly in-camera.
 
Replacing the sky is great for processing practice, and you'll learn a lot by doing it, but totally replacing a sky to rescue an otherwise duff shot is not something that most photographers would wish to do. There comes a point at which it's just not a photograph any more. ;)

Replacing the sky or otherwise manipulating an image to that extent for a particular purpose, and where it's an obvious manipulation, e.g. like many advertising shots we see, is a different matter.
 
I aggree I don't normally replace the sky, but I did a NT colour guide a few months back at work and it was a summer/stormy day, the image was of a front of a building bathed in sunshine (early morning/evening) but the sky was as black as the ace of spades, so I was asked to retouch in a nice blue sky.

Found the image on NT webiste, this is the original, but I'm not at work so can't show you the retouched version...

http://www.ntpl.org.uk/thumbnails/00000000142/71499.thw
 
Agreed, prefer to use what was there or wait for a better day. However, have done it once, for an external shot of some holiday apartments I was doing the interiors on [not good to show holiday apartments with grey skies really and couldnt guarentee getting back there on another day before brochure was due to go to print]. Sky was blue with sunshine behind me, but faded to grey cloud in front of me, or in other words, above the buildings. So a simple replacement with the clear blue sky from another shot, using layers and masks to select the right bits to move over onto the better sky. As everyone has already said though, its not something most people would chose to do without good reason, usually some clever editing can improve things if need be.
 
Glen said:
I aggree I don't normally replace the sky, but I did a NT colour guide a few months back at work and it was a summer/stormy day, the image was of a front of a building bathed in sunshine (early morning/evening) but the sky was as black as the ace of spades, so I was asked to retouch in a nice blue sky.

Found the image on NT webiste, this is the original, but I'm not at work so can't show you the retouched version...

http://www.ntpl.org.uk/thumbnails/00000000142/71499.thw
Click to expand...

Glen, that's a real shame that they had you put in a blue sky. The dramatic clouds and contrasting cheery light on the building are so much more interesting.

- CJ
 
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