Most photographers have produced images that are less than perfect when viewed on a computer screen, even though they may have looked pretty good when displayed on the camera's monitor. But there are also times when you can see straight away that a shot won't turn out as you wanted and make adjustments to prevent the more serious problems.
... [more]In the summer many photographers set off to visit iconic places. Often these are once-in-a-lifetime trips where you would like to take pictures without hordes of other tourists getting in the way.
... [more][Subscriber only: From Photo Review Issue 45] Most photographers will remember occasions when the dynamic range in a subject was too wide for the camera to capture. If you've shot raw files, you can generally recover a fair amount of highlight and shadow detail when processing the shot in Adobe Camera Raw.
... [more]Selective Colour adjustment appears to be unique to Photoshop. You may be able to achieve similar effects with other image editing programs but the Photoshop tool is very easy to locate and use - and produces excellent results. This tool is designed to let you vary the amount of process colours in the primary colours in a digital image - without affecting other colours in the picture.
... [more]Sometimes an otherwise perfect digital photo contains a minor flaw that can be easily corrected in editing software. The most commonly found problems include unsightly red eyes in flash shots, skin blemishes and dust spots that produce highly-visible dark marks. All these problems are easily corrected.
... [more]Although many cameras provide a range of filters and special effects that can be applied to images as they are captured, it's much better to shoot pictures without effects - and add the effects afterwards. There are two reasons for taking this approach:
1. If you don't like the effect, it's easy to go back to the ‘straight' image and start again.
2. A much wider range of adjustments is provided in most image editors.
Filters and effects are not only fun to use, they can also add creativity to your digital photography.
... [more]Although most simple software applications allow you to add frames and borders to your digital images before printing them, in most cases you can only choose from pre-determined templates. No creative flexibility is provided. In this features we'll outline some simple ways to add fancy borders that can be used by everyday photographers and scrapbooking enthusiasts to customise their favourite pictures.
... [more]For optimal results, when applying any form of sharpening to your digital images, follow these rules:
1. Make sharpening the LAST step in your editing. If you wish to apply brightness, contrast or colour corrections or correct distortion - or make any other changes, these should be done BEFORE you reach for the sharpening tools.
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