thunderd
9th July 2005, 06:16
At the risk of getting lots of flames let me put another point of view on old photographs. Out of respect for Ron and the great contribution he has made to the quality of images on this site I have tried my hand at retouching an old “crossing the line” certificate and have posted the before and after.
The whole thing took me about 20 hours and I know with practice I would be able to do a ten times better job in a lot less time.
First let me say I found the whole process totally boring and would rather sit and watch paint dry, it’s just not my cup of tea, I would much rather spend the time fiddling with my short wave radios or working with a nice piece of timber down in my workshop
Secondly I think the Mandersonised version doesn’t look or feel authentic, it’s a bit like an aging lady of the night all tarted up, on the original I know every stain and it’s history.
To me fiddling with something like that is like getting a beautiful old Chippendale antique chair and slobbering red enamel paint all over it.
Sometimes when I see on this site a photo of a beautiful old ship that someone has put a lot of time and dedication into improving I feel like asking the person who posted it for a copy of the original, warts and all, with all the character of it’s stains, creases and scars.
I know I’m in the minority here and out of respect to the members I do not post any more of my old photos (don’t worry you’re not missing much), I’m also aware that Ron in his usual generous manner would willingly retouch any photos for me.
Also please do not feel the need to leap to Ron’s defence because I have the highest respect for what he does for this site and I have already stated publicly and in private messages the esteem I hold him in, I just wanted to put forward another point of view.
The whole thing took me about 20 hours and I know with practice I would be able to do a ten times better job in a lot less time.
First let me say I found the whole process totally boring and would rather sit and watch paint dry, it’s just not my cup of tea, I would much rather spend the time fiddling with my short wave radios or working with a nice piece of timber down in my workshop
Secondly I think the Mandersonised version doesn’t look or feel authentic, it’s a bit like an aging lady of the night all tarted up, on the original I know every stain and it’s history.
To me fiddling with something like that is like getting a beautiful old Chippendale antique chair and slobbering red enamel paint all over it.
Sometimes when I see on this site a photo of a beautiful old ship that someone has put a lot of time and dedication into improving I feel like asking the person who posted it for a copy of the original, warts and all, with all the character of it’s stains, creases and scars.
I know I’m in the minority here and out of respect to the members I do not post any more of my old photos (don’t worry you’re not missing much), I’m also aware that Ron in his usual generous manner would willingly retouch any photos for me.
Also please do not feel the need to leap to Ron’s defence because I have the highest respect for what he does for this site and I have already stated publicly and in private messages the esteem I hold him in, I just wanted to put forward another point of view.