Fear of post processing

[sarahbelle]

Although I've been taking pictures for a number of years, I have only recently started to be more serious about it. I've learned a lot from this site, both from the articles and posts in the forum. In general, I've become more comfortable with the basics, but I'm very intimidated by the thought of post processing. I have used very simple programs to do things like fix red eye and crop and change to black and white, but the idea of staring at the computer for hours to enhance my images quite honestly scares me. In order to become a good photographer, is this a skill I'm going to have to have? My main goal is to be able to document things like trips and family events and everyday life for my little girl, but I also enjoy shooting wildlife and landscapes and would like to produce the kinds of images that people might like to see in a book or hang on their wall. I think the way I put it in my photo journal was that I'd like to go from just taking pictures to creating photographic art.

I guess what I'm really wondering is if post processing tends to make any kind of picture better, or if I can learn to take good pictures simply by using the tools available to me on my camera (I've got a Nikon D3100). I'm not opposed to learning more about Photoshop and such, but at the moment it seems very overwhelming and I have no idea where or how to start.

[IABoomer]

You don't have to spend hours on an image. Watch some of Jared Polin's weekly RAW file edits to see how five or ten minutes in Lightroom can take a kind of plain image and turn it into something that pops.

Photography, Digital Camera & Lightroom Tips — FroKnowsPhoto RAW

With Lightroom, you've also got the ability to synchronize settings between images. So, if you took a bunch of pictures with the same settings in the same light, you can tweak one until it has the look you like, then sync those settings to the rest of the images. It's a huge time saver, and still lets you elevate your images to the next level.

[ravncat]

In my opinion; Post processing is generally used in at least 3 different ways.

The first - is simply photographic and is akin to "developing" This is raw conversion (which is pretty easy once you get used to it) and includes the following basic adjustments -

Contrast, Color/white balance, exposure (brightness), saturation, sharpening and noise reduction.

The second - is "cleanup / rescue and is often akin to "printing" It is about fixing what errors can be fixed, adjusting the image to it's stronger points and some creative infusion. It helps to have an idea of how to make your shot stronger, or like what you remember seeing in the field It tends to revolve around

cropping, removing dust and specks, touching up skin, cloning out phone lines, rotation (straightening horizons), Hilight/shadow, Dodging and Burning (adjusting brightness of area's of the image. Selective sharpening (making only parts of the image sharper). Graduated ND filter effects, color toning.

The third - artistic vision. This is akin to mixed media and advanced darkroom / printing techniques. Knowing what you want your image to look like is required. It's about trying to make an image before you press the shutter. It tends to revolve around any trick of illustration or cloning or copying images, merging images, cropping, anything really - this is the most open ended and where we are no longer afraid of leaving "reality" behind for your own vision.

-
So, maybe it seems daunting - but it's not so tough, it requires learning the tools and if you break that process down, it gets easier. I recommend starting with raw conversion, and I recommend lightroom. Lightroom's develop tools are generally done from top to bottom, and you can start with the "basic tab" and then the Tone curve tab first, to learn. Lightroom is really apt for the first type above - and has some tools to help with type 2. Photoshop is capable of every type, but is fairly daunting.

Post processing can make just about any image better, but the programmers motto of "Garbage in - Garbage out" is pretty apt. It can make an excellent photo superb, but an old tire with holes in it, that is washed, is just a clean old tire with holes in it... so to speak.

Post processing is in my opinion about gaining more control of choices, to help you bring an image to reality. (Others will say to bring reality to an image).


If you don't go with learning raw first, I suggest you learn the following types of tools first. Levels, Contrast, Saturation, Dodging. Burning. Unsharp Mask. It's much easier to deal with color in Raw via white balance, but still possible to adjust color on a jpg otherwise.

Don't be afraid, just attack each image with a plan - the real difficulty is there are a billion choices. If you have a plan, and practice with the basic tools, it will get easier alot faster.

[sarahbelle]

IABoomer - thank you for the link, the videos look interesting, and the edit comparisons are great for seeing the different things you can do with post processing. I also like it because it shows how everybody will see different potential in any given photo and that will affect what the resulting photo will look like after post processing. It's nice to know there's no one 'right' way to do it.

ravncat - I appreciate your suggestions; I suppose the best way to get over the fear is to just jump in and experiment! I liked that you divided the 'tasks' into three different groups, that will make it easier to figure out where to start. The first group I have a tiny bit of experience with, so I can take what I know and apply that to new skills.

Are there more simple programs available that I could use to learn a few basic skills and be sure I'm going to stick with it before making a more significant software investment? Also, are there other sites that offer step by step tutorials, or perhaps some recommended books for somebody just stepping into the post processing world?

[faeriegodess612]

Originally Posted by sarahbelle

Are there more simple programs available that I could use to learn a few basic skills and be sure I'm going to stick with it before making a more significant software investment? Also, are there other sites that offer step by step tutorials, or perhaps some recommended books for somebody just stepping into the post processing world?

I would suggest Picasa 3. It's a free download from Google. If you want something more advanced, I'd download Gimp. Gimp is a free download, and is a lot like Photoshop.

Or, you can also download many of the Photoshop series free for 30 days. It's the full version, and you can play with it, get to know it, see how you like it,...then decide if you want to buy it or not. I use Picasa and I had Gimp for quite a while. Then finally broke down and got Photoshop Elements.

Which btw,...you might be a lil put off from editing software because of the price,..but Elements 9 is only about $100. When I bought my copy, I had checked the price online at first. Bestbuy.com was showing the same price as Amazon. But when I got to the store, it was the normal $99.99. I had to ask an employee if they had anymore, as the shelf was empty, and asked him about the price difference. He checked online, and I got my copy for the $69.99 that was online. I fell in love with it,... it makes things SO much easier. The user interface of Elements is really easy to use, and a lot quicker in my opinion.

Oh,.. .and there are a plethora of tutorials out there for PSE9. All you gotta do is type Photoshop Elements 9 tutorials into Google.

[inkista]

Originally Posted by sarahbelle

Are there more simple programs available that I could use to learn a few basic skills and be sure I'm going to stick with it before making a more significant software investment?

Picasa and iPhoto are good ways to start out. But their functionality is ultimately pretty limited. To me, processing software isn't processing software unless it offers you Curves adjustments.

Also, are there other sites that offer step by step tutorials, or perhaps some recommended books for somebody just stepping into the post processing world?

This is just me, but I use Lightroom for my processing. That may be more than you want to pay (~$200), but there's a 30-day free trial you can download from the Adobe website, and if you can qualify for student status in some way (even just taking a free community college course can do it) you could get a substantial student discount on Adobe software (Photoshop or Lightroom; e.g., the student/teacher edition of LR3 is $80).

I love Julianne Kost's video tutorials for Lightroom and Photoshop, and would highly recommend her Getting Started with Lightroom 3 series if you do decide to play with the Lightroom trial.

[aebohlin]

I would recommend to not start everywhere, this book inspired me a lot! Amazon.com: Advanced Digital Black & White Photography (A Lark Photography Book) (9781600592102): John Beardsworth: Books

Oh and lightroom is great, really easy editing software, although some things really is better done in photoshop. But i recommend taking that book for a spin, helped me out with my b/w's.