During my trip to Dubai this year, I embarked on a personal project to capture photography of some of the city's famous tourist spots. The objective of this project is to edit these photos to achieve a film-like aesthetic and to practice my photography compositions in the process.
Software used: Adobe Lightroom
Museum of the Future, Dubai, UAE
The Museum of the Future was one of the tourist spots I visited during my trip. Keeping in mind the rule of thirds, I framed this image to ensure that the iconic structure occupies a prominent position within the composition.
Dubai Frame, Dubai, UAE
Throughout the gallery, I have applied vignettes around the corners of the images to enhance the cinematic feel and draw attention to the central subjects.
Dubai Harbour, Dubai, UAE
City Line, Dubai, UAE
I also added noise to these images to create the overall look of the film. However, I ensured not to overdo it, as excessive grain/noise can result in a very blurry and distracting appearance.
Burj Khalifa, Dubai, UAE
Some of the challenges I faced when editing these photos was adjusting the shadows and highlights of the images. This image is slightly fading in the center due to these adjustment.
Adjusting the shadows and highlights is something I still need to improve on when editing photos.
Burj Al Arab, Abu Dabi, UAE
During this photoshoot, I learned that using a polarizer filter helped remove flares caused by sunlight. The sunset formed the backdrop behind my subject, making it challenging to eliminate the circular light flares on my camera.
To emphasize the Burj Al Arab building, I utilized the middle and middle lower thirds of the frame. Simultaneously, I aimed to capture people enjoying the sunset view.
Gold Souk, Dubai, UAE
Lastly, this picture was taken at Gold Souk, Dubai. It stands out as one of my favorite shots because I had the opportunity to relish a beautiful breeze during a boat ride while capturing it.
My intention was to create an image centered on leading lines and a focal point, while adhering to the rule of thirds once again. Employing these techniques was crucial in enhancing the overall sense of motion in this composition, a fundamental aspect of photography.
This image guides the viewer's eyes towards the left side, which serves as the destination of my main subject: the boat carrying people.