Basic Photoshop

[Ally]

Anyone who had been reading my post's lately will know that I'm really pushing to try and improve my PP skills at the moment. I've got a half day of digital imaging at college at the moment where I've learned alot. I'm wanting to share with everyone what I've learned and how it can really help your photographs. I've taken some photographs that I shot from last year at around this time and I just wanted to edit and share what I had done to them to hope it will help.

Before I got involed in studying photography at college I had no idea how big an impact PP can have on photographs. I still hold the view that photographers should be photographers not digital artist’s and that most of your work (If not all) should be done in camera. I've learn somethings that I feel have if used peoperly have the ablity to take not just my photography but alot of peoples to the next level. My first thing is WB. IMO white balance is what sperates the pro from the amiture. If you have a well composed shot that is fine, but if the colours aren't right it distroys the image. I've really been pushing myself to improve my WB. Not just in camera but the small adjustments you can make computer wise.

Heres an Example :-

The first shot has a yellow cast to it. The shot is well aviradge and sharp. The second shot has had the white balance changed using the colour balance tool in Paint Shop Pro 9. I use this tool because you can adjust the 3 primery and secondery colours (Red, Green, Blue - Yellow, Magenta, Cyan) in the highlights, midtones and shadows so it gives me full control over the colour. As you can see the shot still has a yellow tint closer to the floor because of the refection onto of the yellow floor onto the white strip, But IMO that WB change has taken the image to the next level?

The same in this Image the first shot has a horrible yellow cast again the shot is sharp and not to badly framed. The scond shot has had the yellow cast taken away, Its not the best ever but someone with more practice could make it better. But my point again, It adds another level to the image having the realism of colours with a proper WB.

I'm not a master at this I'm not even that good to perfictly honest but these are things that I've learned and that I fell if I can apply them properly they can take my images to the next level, I hope that they can help more people like myself who don't really have a great knowlege of PP but its something simple that really can improve their shots.

All the best
Ally

 

[ppp]

Excellent the difference is quite amazing

 

[Jimmy_Lemon]

wow impressive While I agree with you about white balance being a big issue and that getting it wrong can spoil an image, I would also say that you have to be carefull not to make some things look un-natural. I dont think you have here, but that setting is a good example of what I mean - If you are photographing something under artificial lighting that is very yellow or tungsten then I am not always overly keen on making the whites look completely white. I think its important to try and match what you can see with your eyes. For example in you first shot there is the yellow reflection from the floor and I think its great that you didnt try and remove that too, because that would have made it too false in my opinion. With the second shot I would maybe have been tempted to leave a little of the yellow in, because as you shot now shows the floor (which I can image is that kind of yellow wood anyway) is starting to turn white, and now begins to look a little blown out. Of course this can be fixed with a little PP maybe be using most of image as a mask and just playing with the floor. So yeah anyway, thats not really meant for you but just though I would say that as you had some great examples

One thing that I am guessing you will come to eventually is that I have found the blur tool in photoshop (not sure what it is in other software) very usefull for noise on shots like this. Just a little selective bluring of legs can really reduce the look of noise and not leaving everything looking out of focus.

Great work though I think PP work can be fun and really rewarding to just finish off that great shot!

 

[photostar_1]

Thanks Ally, always useful to see before and after pics. I agree WB can make or break a shot....one of the reasons I always shoot RAW.

 

[I MAG images]

I agree if you shoot in RAW you can use DPP to alter WB post shot before you transfer to PS for finer adjustments

 

[Ally]

Thanks for the comments everyone

wow impressive While I agree with you about white balance being a big issue and that getting it wrong can spoil an image, I would also say that you have to be carefull not to make some things look un-natural. I dont think you have here, but that setting is a good example of what I mean - If you are photographing something under artificial lighting that is very yellow or tungsten then I am not always overly keen on making the whites look completely white. I think its important to try and match what you can see with your eyes. For example in you first shot there is the yellow reflection from the floor and I think its great that you didnt try and remove that too, because that would have made it too false in my opinion. With the second shot I would maybe have been tempted to leave a little of the yellow in, because as you shot now shows the floor (which I can image is that kind of yellow wood anyway) is starting to turn white, and now begins to look a little blown out. Of course this can be fixed with a little PP maybe be using most of image as a mask and just playing with the floor. So yeah anyway, thats not really meant for you but just though I would say that as you had some great examples

One thing that I am guessing you will come to eventually is that I have found the blur tool in photoshop (not sure what it is in other software) very usefull for noise on shots like this. Just a little selective bluring of legs can really reduce the look of noise and not leaving everything looking out of focus.

Great work though I think PP work can be fun and really rewarding to just finish off that great shot!

Totally agree , Like I said you can do things in photoshop to help an image, but I still believe photographers should be photographers and get it right in camera everytime rather than have the attitude "I'll fix it in photoshop later"

I agree if you shoot in RAW you can use DPP to alter WB post shot before you transfer to PS for finer adjustments

I agree with you that that is a way, but would you push to do make sure its right incamera in the first place?


Thanks guys I really appricate the comments

 

[I MAG images]

Yep without a doubt, but sometimes light plays tricks with you. I done a job yesterday in a theatre and the light was changing rapido and the best results I was getting was setting the camera to cloudy. I tried tungsten and florecent but the lighting seemed bluish in the screen and being in a dark area and having to grab the shots you have to pick quick. Just nice to know that you can rescue post shot.