This capture provides a rather simple exercise in adjusting exposure, getting pleasing colors, minor cleanup and cropping. Nothing wild is needed here imho, the picture came out pretty much exactly as intended.
RT 5.11
DSC_6587.NEF (24.4 MB)
This file is licensed Creative Commons, By-Attribution, Share-Alike.
Variants with ART:
AgX:
DSC_6587.NEF.arp (60.1 KB)
OpenDRT:
DSC_6587.NEF.arp (60.1 KB)
DCP for Nikon Vivid:
DSC_6587.NEF.arp (60.1 KB)
Auto Matched Curve:
DSC_6587.NEF.arp (60.3 KB)
DSC_6587.NEF.xmp (15.1 KB)
dt 5.1.0+813~gd6ecbdedf8
This is something I’ve recently been grappling with, too much blue in images. The problem is that whenever I dial down blue, images quickly look too “dry” and dusty.
Inspired by your DT edit, I’ve tried to figure out a compromise in RT which desaturates and darkens blue without removing it altogether.
And another one, adding the trusty desaturation/vibrancy effect and slightly shifting the exposure technique (less exposure adjustment, more secondary tone curve).
And for those of you wondering why my edit is relatively bright and saturated, this is the edit directly above with my poor man’s soft-proofing simulation included (in RT: Lightness -5, Contrast -10, Saturation -10), which as it turns out gives me a really good impression (on my monitor) of what an image will look like in print (from the printshop I use):
(For screen edits, I use a compromise between print edits and their soft-proofing simulation variant, so if I were to edit this image for screen display purposes I might go something like Lightness -3, Contrast -7, Saturation -5 from the print edit.)
Not as nice as your edit. Loving the gentle selective desaturation!
DSC_6587.NEF.xmp (21,5 KB)
I appreciate my use of the retouch module might not be to everyone’s taste or ethics. DT 5.1
DSC_6587.NEF.xmp (16.9 KB)
Another one of my longstanding “base” settings has fallen. I used to always have Tone curve 1 set to film-like. No more. This is standard which imho treats the yellow-red part of the spectrum far more fairly.
Even though this image is really about color - and the subject certainly deserves it - I couldn’t help myself and tried a black-and-white version. I’m not 100% satisfied. I imagined it a bit punchier, with deeper blacks.
I’m a bit obsessed with cropping and spend a lot of time adjusting the frame to my taste. I almost never crop freehand - I always stick to standard aspect ratios. In this case, I removed the distracting elements on the left and right just by adjusting the crop. I had actually planned to retouch the cables in the upper left corner as well, but now I quite like them. Nicely black. 
It’s a fantastic photo. It was a pleasure to work on - and I have a feeling this won’t be my final version of it. Thank you!
darktable 5.0.1
