The more my interest in photography expands, the more I learn. Which, in a lot of ways, is super exciting...the only problem is, it makes me want to go back in time and do a whole bunch of pictures over. I look back at even some of the pictures I have posted on this blog in the past and kinda cringe because I have since learned better ways the shot could have been taken. I guess we all have to learn the hard way, right? I still have a LONG way to go and my pictures have lots of room for improvement, but I'm having fun learning and experimenting. My latest interest is in editing. It took me quite a while before I even started experimenting with anything besides cropping the pictures. I would look at pictures taken by photographers that I really like and think to myself "how on earth did they do that." It wasn't until I started getting more into it that I realized that a lot of the cool and artistic effects I find myself drawn to are done in the editing stage. So...I did a little investigating and found that several photographers that I like use Photoshop CS3. I then found myself wanting to try it out...I was super excited when C.J. downloaded a trial version for me to play around with (because who really wants to spend $700 on something they're not even sure if they like?). Ok, seriously people...do you take classes on the darn program or what? It is SO beyond me. I have spent quite a bit of time playing around with it and am realizing that using Photoshop itself is an art form that has to be learned and improved upon. At this point, I can do nothing more than adjust exposure, colors, etc... the very basics that even iPhoto can do. So, I'm pretty much at a stand still at this point unless anyone wants to give me some lessons. But, I AM realizing that photos (at least mine...maybe if I were an incredible photographer this wouldn't be the case) can look a WHOLE lot better with just a little bit of editing. And this is one thing that I look back on and cringe...I have taken so many photos that would look quite a bit better if I had only spent a bit more time editing. Here is an example. This is a photo I posted of Grant a while ago (I originally did no editing to it and just posted it right out of the camera):
And then I went back and played around with it a little. What do you think? I personally think it has a bit more pop and doesn't look nearly as dull and flat with a little bit of editing:
Now if I could just figure out how to fully utilize Photoshop. The adjustments I made above were only done in iPhoto, which is quite limited. I know that Photoshop has some awesome features, I would just LOVE to know how to use them. But for now, my point in all of this is that I am realizing that a little bit of time spent editing a picture can go a long way...I just wish I had known that a while ago!
3 comments:
Hi Jen,
I dont know if you remember me, my name is Lyssa and I am one of Carly's friends. I found your blog through hers and have been admiring your photography for some time. In fact, Carly told me what kind of camera you use and I got it for myself for Christmas. I use Photoshop CS4 for work mostly for graphic design stuff but I have been wanting to expand my knowledge with it and have been looking for recources. On the Adobe website they ahve several tools - including how to find local classes on their software. I know there are a ton of books out there but I am hoping to take a class as I imagin that is probably the easiest way to learn such a complex program.
What tools have you been using to learn more about photography and improve your photos? I find that I am awful at taking pictures of people moving and in pretty much anything but full light and have been looking for resoures to learn more.
Jen, I have a copy of Adobe Photophop from like 2002 or something, it probably doesn't have all the bells and whistles of the new program but I've always liked doing digital scrapbook pages and being able to change the color and sizes of pictures. If you want I can burn you a copy and you can play around with it.
Thanks for the tips! So far I am really liking the camera. Even on the auto settings it is such a big difference from my canon point and shoot. It definitely makes taking pictures more fun!
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