Does anyone NOT use Post Processing?

[Alastair]

Maybe a stupid question on a forum like this, but does anyone not use post processing? Not talking about simple stuff like cropping etc.

Al

Is it even possible not to do any post-processing?

Even if you shoot digital jpg you're choosing to let the idiot-in-the-box apply a huge range of processing after you press the shutter button - without which the image wouldn't be viewable.

With film there's the development process occuring after the shutter is pressed and that has a huge range of variables. Even peel-apart instant film is influenced by how long you leave it before peeling apart, and the temperature you keep it at.


Discussions on post-processing yes/no are rarely useful. There's no clear definition on what it means, and it usually only serves to polarise/reinforce divisions. Do what you think it takes to get the image you want. How you get there is not important. The only important question in photography is, "Is the image interesting to look at?"

 

[Al1944]

Thanks for all the input. I've found most of the replies interesting and useful. Thanks to those who took the trouble to give a straightforward answer.

Al

 

[Nod]

I invariably shoot JPEG at top quality and size. The D700 gives extremely good results like that - incidentally, I also almost always use P mode which still allows me to tweak the settings using the thumbwheel.
Once they're in the computer, I do nothing at all to them apart from prepare them for whatever their final use - resizing for Flickr for the few I post on forums and resizing for printing (which I do at home). I'll go over them with a fine tooth comb checking for dust bunnies and possibly, for an A3 print for the wall, do a little cleaning up, maybe even removing overhead lines if the detract from the image. Of course, files for printing also get whatever sharpening is appropriate.

 

[higgeh]

if i cant do it on lightroom i ditch the photo. most i do is adjust colour and exposure but im not a fan of the whole changing backgrounds, adding features etc.

I took 300 pics at leuchars at the weekend and working through them at the moment im basically going to bin half of them because i reckon i dont want to spend the time post processing them. I also think it helps you learn more

 

[Phil V]

Maybe a stupid question on a forum like this, but does anyone not use post processing? Not talking about simple stuff like cropping etc.

Al

NO!
No-one doesn't use post processing. Whether they take any active part in it? That's a different question.

The camera, importing software, printing machine all do some processing to what started out as the RAW data from the sensor.

If people are happy with taking no part in that process because what they're getting is 'good enough' that's fine. But if they hand over all of that control and then believe it makes them a 'better photographer' because their shots are 'straight out of camera' they're at best naive and at worst stupid.

 

[ShoeQueen]

Every digital image needs some processing.

If you shoot in jpeg then you let the camera decide what processing to do.
If you shoot in raw you have to do some processing yourself. Contrast, levels, colour saturation, sharpening, white balance.

Image manipulation - a lot of cropping, cloning etc - is different again.

Personally I shoot in raw, do basic adjustments but I also sometimes add a vignette, toning or convert to black and white. I don't crop that often but sometimes I need to straighten!

I very occasionally clone - usually a green lit up emergency exit sign in shot that I couldn't avoid in shot. I do over 99% of what I need in LR.

To me, shooting in jpeg and doing no processing is like shooting in auto. Its ok but its missing out on a lot of the control you can have over an image.