Color is a complex thing. It doesn’t get its intensity solely from saturation, but also from contrast. This can include color contrast with colors on opposite sides of the color wheel, brightness contrast between bright and dark colors, and another type of contrast we can call ’saturation contrast’. This is where you contrast strongly saturated […]
General
Subscriptions vs single fee software: the pros and cons
It’s a topic that divides opinion to this day, and those who object to subscription software do so on principle while those who embrace it do it out of practicality. That’s two different sets of reasons. But anyhow, let’s just spell out the differences between these two means of payment for software, see how the […]
For this shot I cheated. I didn’t use a computer at all
That sounds an odd thing to say. Most people associate digital manipulation with ‘cheating’, but it’s all about the context. This site is all about digital manipulation and I didn’t even use a computer.
10 myths about RAW files – and why they’re wrong
Almost any photographic expert will tell you that you should shoot RAW files not JPEGs, and that RAW files are innately superior. The trouble with this kind of wisdom is that it’s repeated and passed on without question.
Photo retouching: how it works, cloning, healing and erasing explained
Photo retouching is one of a handful of basic and necessary adjustments for photos that photographers will rely on repeatedly to correct flaws or faults ahead of any creative adjustments or ‘looks’.
Perspective correction explained
Perspective correction is not necessary for most photos, but there are times when it will make the difference between an image that looks professional and one that just looks amateurish.
Cropping and straightening photos
Very often your photo editing software will be able to straighten and crop images at the same time, but there are still times you might want to treat them as two separate tasks.
BAN adjustments… Basic And Necessary image corrections to do first
BAN (Basic And Necessary) adjustments are for fixing obvious flaws in your photos. They will help you decide if images have the potential to be ‘keepers’ and prepare them properly for creative effects later.
HSL color editing and how it works
You’re probably used to digital images being in the RGB mode, where the full range of colors is generated with red, green and blue color ‘channels’. But most photo editing programs offer a color editing mode based around the HSL (Hue, Saturation, Lightness) color model, and this is where it gets really interesting.
One subject, six different LUTS: choosing a ‘look’ for your images
I’m a big fan of LUTs (lookup tables). They are used in cinematography to give movies a specific ‘look’ but they’ve now crossed over into stills photography, where they are used for everything from vintage effects to film simulations.