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A camera is a machine for recording light. It sees the world differently than humans do. And the right processing allows you to show the merits of the frame, to reveal the potential of the image, to show the world how you saw that moment. Let us use the analogy of cooking: you can eat any food raw, but after proper processing, you will get something much tastier. It’s the same with an image. A “raw” picture from a camera is not the final product, but the source, the starting point for finished work. This is why it is important for the photographer to learn not only how to use the camera, but also how to “develop” the resulting material.
In this article, we will give some basic tips for working with images. Programs and techniques of retouching change, but our recommendations will remain relevant and will be useful both at the stage of mastering the processing and in the long run.
Start with a great picture
No amount of editing will fix a photo that wasn’t taken well from the start. You don’t need to be a professional photographer to create great photos for Instagram: turn on your phone camera and learn all the features.
Develop your own photo script
The technological process of creating a photo begins with generating an idea, planning and organizing the shoot, making arrangements with the model, or buying airline tickets. The moment you press the shutter button is important, but far from the last. Here’s a sample list of the stages of creating a finished photo, which is done after the shoot, on a PC:
- selecting and cataloging the footage;
- RAW conversion;
- retouching and color correction;
- resizing and preparation for publication.
But every photographer works with photos in his or her own way. It is important to find the most convenient and fastest scenario for yourself. How and where do I save the source files? Where do I send the copies that are already prepared for publication? In what programs and in what order do you open the photos? By asking these questions, you will find the best options to solve them. For example, some tasks can be done online without opening the photo editor, as in the case of replacing the background with free Retoucher Online.
This is the essence of photo processing in one style: you match the colors in the photo to the colors you use in your profile. After editing a few images, the Instagram feed will look harmonious.
Make a plan of action
Often a photographer, after opening an image in an editor, doesn’t know what he wants to get in the end and starts twisting all the settings in a row. This approach is probably good for the first stages of learning the functions of photo editors. But later it will have a negative effect on the result: the processing will turn out unnatural, pictures will look different.
Therefore, before you start, make a plan, describe what you want to fix in the picture. And after that, go ahead. My landscape photography usually starts with adjusting the dynamic range, white balance, exposure, horizon, and perspective distortion in a RAW converter. In Adobe Photoshop I remove unwanted objects (dust on the sensor, for example) and work with curves: I slightly increase the contrast, adjust color rendering. In Adobe Photoshop, thanks to masks and layers, the possibilities of making local adjustments are much wider than in the RAW-converter. It is possible that you can improvise, but it is better to stick to the original plan. And if the plan does not work, start with a new algorithm.
What you should not do during processing
- Use all the tools in a row on one photo unnecessarily. A beautiful picture shows your professionalism.
- Wasting time on bad shots.
- Make faces in a portrait unrecognizable (e.g. with high contrast and darkening) if there is no such a task in the first place.
View the result of editing on different displays
Not all of your viewers will view your images on a screen with flawless color reproduction. So before I publish, I try to look at the images on other, non-perfect displays as well. I make sure to open the pictures on my smartphone and television so that I can see how others will see my picture. Often I make corrections based on the results of such testing so that the picture looks good on any screen.
Don’t post a picture right away after you’ve processed it
Color perception may change throughout the day. So don’t be in a hurry to publish or send a photo “with a bang”. If time permits, keep the photos and look at them again the next day, or at least a couple of hours after they have been processed. After the pause, you will see the shots differently, and you’ll be able to notice the nuances you missed.
Conclusion
As with any creative activity, there are styles, trends, and fashions in processing. The same photo can be processed in different ways, and all options will have a right to life. Once you’ve learned not to make mistakes, start looking for your recognizable style, not only in your photography but also in your processing. It will determine what programs, methods, and tools you will use.
It may happen that for example you take photos in one style, but you stubbornly do it in another. That’s even a good thing. However, to form your own taste in processing, you need to look at quality photos more often.