Oilpaint version for Wk 3 – Click to Embiggen
For Wk 3 of the March One Four Challenge I wanted to do something textural around the tree but selecting all the branches to deal to them individually was just beyond my patience and capability.
So I mucked around with filters in Photoshop and finally went to my favourite Oilpaint but this time the sliders got a real workout and somehow it managed to apply it so that the tree got enough paint effect to make it interesting and a little bit creepy 🙂
But the background and the water only got very subtle smudged effects. I bought the background texture up just a smidge so you got a hint of that slightly 3D effect from the oil layers in the sky. You really need to view the large size to see the detail.
I used the combined image from last week that a lot of people commented favourably on, this week I am calling it Ghost Tree, cos I think it looks a little haunted and tortured this time around!
All comments and feedback welcome!
Learning to See Light 
the effect on the tree is very cool. Sorry to hear about your car…
Yes it was not an ideal way to start the day on the way to work, worse thing is there isnt a loan car available either so Im carless!
Haunted and tortured–yes! I just love this photo so I went back to Wk 2 to compare. I think it looks just wickedly divine.
its just subtle enough to not be entirely obvious til you take a second look which I liked 🙂
What an effective edit Stacey! And you are right, it really needs to be seen in the larger format to appreciate the beautiful details in the tree branches and the water. I love the sky too. Very nice work!
Thanks Chris, yes its a more subtle edit than I normally do but I quite like it 🙂
Lovely and spooky and slightly evil – I love it!
Thanks, its a bit different this time around 🙂
Excellent! A nice, subtle but very effective edit, as you say, it needs to be enlarged to get the true effect
Thanks Sue, yes it is a much less in your face effect, different from what I normally do 🙂
Those branches look almost alive, there s a sinister feel in this image. I like it a lot.
Thanks Lore, yes other people have commented that they look alive too, wasn’t quite what I saw in the image but I see it now 🙂
I really like you kept the colours from last week. The oil filter has really added a new component and has transformed the tree to be something smooth and sinister.
Thanks Ben, yes I kinda had to stay with the colours from last week, they really seemed to appeal and the darker tones are responsible for that sinister feel I think 🙂
Very thorny subject!
Isn’t it, I thought it made the tree look like big thorns too and liked it that way 🙂
I love spooky!! go figure!! I love this edit best so far Stacy!!!Light and shadow on branches are perfect and the brooding sky!!
Thanks Cybele, Im glad I managed to come up with an interesting variation!
I really like what you did to the branches of the tree. They look both more alive and more spooky at the same time.
Thanks Joanne, yes I agree, like they might reach out and grab you if you get too close!
The effect just really adds a lovely movement to those branches! I am happy you stuck with the colors from last week, they are great. Interesting edit, I really enjoy it.
Thanks Carrie, yes I had to stay with those colours, they were so popular and added extra depth and atmosphere here. I had fun playing with the oilpaint sliders all the way up and dow.
Hi Stacey, clicking in tells a completely different story! I love the textural feel and there is something kinda sinister about the tree, like it could come alive at any moment, clawing at whoever is nearby 😃 Do like these tones again too. Amazing how this has changed. Great edition!
I love the affect this week. Very ghostly
It was fun playing with the sliders to get this effect, I need to be brave and prepared to go outside my usual comfort zone more often.
Sometimes a light touch can make a huge difference.
I really like the spooky branches! And like everyone else I’m glad you used the tones from last time, this is a really nice edit. I like dark and brooding, this is perfect. 😀
Thanks Nic, yes I had to use the darker version, and I really like how it came out in this variation. God knows what I do for the next one!
Spooky and tortured are definitely good words to use for this edit. I’d also add nightmarish. Some of those branches (particularly those on the right) have quite a sinuous appearance, like it’s a creature stretching out tentacles. Great edit. 🙂
I saw the tentacle effect after someone made a similar comment – I think the pale one on the left is really reaching out to grab something tasty to bring in and be absorbed LOL