Pictures speak louder than words. In every social media platform, professional website, and online business, photographs have taken center stage. As much as photographs are imperative, their photo editing is just as equally an indispensable commodity.
Have you decided to purchase your first professional camera to establish yourself as a photographer? Or perhaps you simply want to learn how to edit photos in a big way for your albums. By following these eight simple photo editing tips for stunning photography in a subtle way, you can take your photography work to a whole new level. Professional photographers, it was thought, preferred Lightroom, Adobe Camera Raw, and Photoshop for post-processing. As a result, I’ve decided to share some tips on the most widely used photo editing software. So, without further ado, let’s get started on our list of photo editing tips, which is particularly important.
Here are a few simple photo editing guidelines to entice viewers with your beguiling pictures.
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Don’t always center the subject
Believe it or not, the main subject doesn’t necessarily have to be in the middle of the frame for them to be declared the protagonist of your picture. A model standing on one side of the frame or the focal point appearing from a side is just as eye-catching, or perhaps more!
Of course, this means that the rest of the photograph needs to be adequately edited so that it doesn’t steal the spotlight from the main subject. Make the surroundings blur but not dull; adjust colors so that a dim background is highlighting an illuminated foreground.
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Straighten the picture
An askew photo does not pertain to just a crooked horizon, but also to a slanted perspective in which all horizontal and vertical lines are tilted. Turning on the “Grid” of your camera or mobile phone ensures a straightened image or it can later be rectified through photo editors like Photoshop.
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Aligning the horizon
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Click “Ctrl/Cmd+C” (crop tool).
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Bring the cursor down – click and hold on the ‘horizon’ and drag from one end to the other. Auto rotation of the picture will take place.
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Click “Return” and “Enter” and voila! The ‘horizon’ will be fixed.
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Perspective distortion tool
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Go to “Filter – Camera Raw Filter”.
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Press “Shift+T” or select the “Transform Tool” placed at the top of the “Camera Raw” dialogue box.
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Now, opt for any of the four “Upright” modes in the dialogue box – “Auto”, “Level”, “Vertical” and “Full”. They all offer different results; choose what suits your taste (though “Auto” brings out the best balance when correcting the perspective of an image).
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After selecting one setting, further refine the look by adjusting the sliders available below, namely “Vertical”, “Horizontal”, “Rotate”, “Aspect”, “Scale”, “Offset X” and “Offset Y”.
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If you want to change it, hold the “Alt/Option” key on your keyboard and the “Cancel” option becomes “Reset”. Click it to begin again.
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Cropping extra space
Any additional area around the main subject can easily divert the viewer’s attention. Cropping it will, hence, ensure that no distracting elements are present to fight for attention.
Use the “Rectangular selection tool” to make a selection around the area you wish to keep.
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Select the “Crop” tool from the tool palette or click “Ctrl/Cmd+C” and the unselected portion will disappear.
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Do not tick the “Delete Cropped Pixel” option as Photoshop automatically deletes the cropped part of the image; if you want to revert your crop, it won’t be possible as it would have been deleted.
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“Shadows” and “Highlights”, and “Contrast”
Strong sunlight can significantly underexpose or overexpose of a stunning setting. Following are the general steps that are followed for every such picture to recover their details:
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Decrease the “Highlights” by moving its slider to the left – the white or lightest parts of the image recover their features.
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Increase the “Shadows” by moving its slider to the right – the constituent components of the black or darkest tones are restored.
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Increase or decrease the “Contrast” as required – it accentuates the difference between the darkest and lightest shades or mellows down the glaring contrast created, respectively.
The extent to which these sliders are moved depends on the degree of “Shadows” and “Highlights” correction required on the picture.
Note that;
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A “RAW” image retains a much wider dynamic and color range, therefore, making the recovery of details of the under or overexposed areas very feasible.
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A “JPEG” format, on the other hand, contains compressed data, proving it is not an ideal option for the recovery of details, though an appropriate image quality remains.
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“Saturation” and “Vibrance”
Colors give a photo life, but their dimness can instead suck the life out of them entirely. Avoid such underwhelming effects by adequately adjusting “Saturation” and “Vibrance”.
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Saturation – colorizing an otherwise dull-looking photo, polishing an image by enhancing its overall colors. Underexposed areas can considerably diminish the grandeur of an impeccable scene. “Saturation” is, hence, a great tool to give a photograph an invigorating feel.
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Vibrance – unlike “Saturation” which intensifies the whole picture, “Vibrance” focuses solely on the muted areas of the image. This is especially suitable for improving skin tones which can become overexposed through “Saturation”.
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“White Balance”
As the name suggests, “White Balance” is what makes white appear as white. On the other hand, it balances the other shades as well by adding their complementary color temperatures.
In some photo editors, the “White Balance” option is present on top of the “Adjustment” panel, while in Photoshop, it will be found by going to “Filter – Camera Raw Filter”. This will open a dialogue box, offering the “White Balance” adjustment settings (Temperature and Tint sliders), including other color correction modes (Exposure, Contrast, Highlights, etc.).
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Move the sliders of “Temperature” (changes the yellow or blue hues), “Tint” (regulates green or magenta), and “Vibrance” (though not part of “White Balance”, decreasing it at the end gives a pleasant naturalness) to achieve “White Balance”.
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Or you can simply use the eyedropper tool placed above the “Temperature”. Select it, click any spot on the image that is white and it will automatically adjust the “White Balance” of your photograph.
Note that in a “JPEG” file, you will have to go to “Filter – Camera Raw Filter” to open “White Balance”, while for a “RAW” file, a “Camera Raw” will automatically open.
Lastly, this isn’t a tip, but for those who don’t wish to spend money on photo editors – Adobe Photoshop, for instance, which is available only through the Creative Cloud subscription requiring a monthly or annual fee – opting for free photo editing software (Adobe Lightroom and VSCO) is also practical. They offer the same high-end services, not to mention, there are some also available on mobile phones! Examples include Snapseed and Lightroom Express (a smartphone version of Adobe Lightroom). Talk about making life easy! Or you can make it even easier by handing over your photo editing tasks to professional photo editing services.
Lifestyle photography allows for a closer look at people and events that would otherwise be distant; it portrays them as personal and familiar. If you own a company, you understand how important your image is. It not only brings in new customers, but it also keeps them coming back. Are you still at the point where it sounds difficult? There are numerous methods for promoting your business, as well as numerous methods for developing your image. As a result, you may be wondering what it has to do with lifestyle photography.
