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Lecture Notes for Lecture 5: Processing Photos
Processing Photographs
Developing a digital workflow
What is a digital workflow?
- The term ‘workflow’ refers to a set of steps that a photographer commonly walks through from capturing the image to final printing of an image.
- Workflow varies by photographer and by the hardware and software used.
Key Components (workflow)
- A workflow begins by going out and capturing images. You must have images to work with.
- The next step generally involves downloading images to a computer (usually into a specific software package: Picasa, iPhoto, Lightroom, Aperture)
- Next, you will post-process images, correcting for errors, cropping, rotating, making black and white, etc.
- Finally you output your photos to a desired media, sometimes this is online to a blog or online album (flickr.com) or to print.
What is your workflow?
- Do you already have a workflow?
- What software do you plan to use? (Always think about how to back up your images!)
- What kind of post processing do you typically need to do?
- Are there any steps you can automate ? (This is an advanced topic)
- How will your photos be used?
What software?
- Windows or Mac? Personal Computer, lab computer, or online? Non-destructive editing?
- Free (0 – 10,000 images) or Professional (usually 10,000+ images)
Software (free options)
Google Picasa
- Free
- Easy to use,
- Contains built in backup tools
- Allows for easy organization by albums
- Easy to publish to web, print & send out for printing at local store
- Non-destructive editing Few advanced editing features
Adobe Photoshop Express
- Free
- Easy to use, presets help you select appropriate settings
- All images stored/organized online in albums Easy to email, download, or order prints online Some advanced editing features/filters Must have connection to internet
- Destructive Editor
Picnik.com (online)
- Easy to use, presets help you select appropriate settings
- Easy to email, download, order prints online, or integrate with Flickr, MySpace, Facebook, Photobucket
- Can only edit 5 photos at a time, no online storage of images
- More advanced editing features/filters than Photoshop Express. Very powerful tools for its price tag.
- Must have connection to internet Destructive Editor
iPhoto (Mac)
- iPhoto Free on any Mac
- Non-destructive editing of images, can turn on or off corrections, filters etc without affecting original image.
- Advanced editing features including histograms, curves, selective dodge/burn, etc.
- Extensive Meta Data support Albums, Events, Faces to organize images Mac only
Software (professional options)
Adobe Lightroom (Win/Mac)
- Expensive
- Non-destructive editing of images, can turn on or off corrections, filters etc without affecting original image.
- Very advanced editing features including histograms, curves, selective dodge/burn, etc.
- Extensive Meta Data support Albums & Folders to organize images
Apple Aperture (Mac)
- Expensive
- Non-destructive editing of images, can turn on or off corrections, filters etc without affecting original image.
- Very advanced editing features including histograms, curves, selective dodge/burn, etc.
- Extensive Meta Data support Albums & Folders to organize images
- Built in Archive & Backup tools so you never lose photos
- Stacking of images with “selects” Mac only
Organizing Images
Meta Data
- Data about the image that is stored within the image file itself.
- Generally contains camera information (including lens, aperture, shutter speed, ISO) as well as the date & time the image was taken
- Can also contain a GPS location for the image
Folders, Albums, Faces & Places
- A variety of organizational structures have been developed in the various software packages
- These include Folders, Albums, Events, Faces & Places
Folders
- Most basic form of organization
- Generally manual organization (you place an image into a specific folder)
Albums
- Similar to a Folder
- Generally manual organization (you place an image into a specific album)
- Smart albums allow you to specify a criteria and all images in the album adhere to that criteria
Events
- Groupings of images that occur during a similar timeframe
- You can specify that timeframe (1 day, 1 hour, etc.)
Faces
- New advances in software allow for facial recognition
- Once a person is recognized, all (most) photos of that person appear under their name
Places
- Organizes photos based on geographic location
- Requires GPS in camera or manual attachment of location data to image during post processing
- Generally shows images (or icons for images) on a map
Typical Adjustments
Crop/Resize
- Adjust composition to make a better image
- Remember principles of composition from last lecture
- Make image smaller (only!) for desire output (for web)
Exposure
- Adjust improperly exposed images
- Lighten dark images to show more detail
- Darken light images (this is difficult unless you shoot in raw format)
Brightness/Contrast
- Adjust overall brightness of the image Adjust the image to have stronger darks and lights
- This is a basic tool, better to use Levels & Curves (discussed later)
Color/Saturation
- Adjust for improper white balance
- Tint an image to a specific color
- Add more or less saturation (color) to an image
Black & White / Sepia
- Make an image black & white (compare a variety of options for which looks best)
- Sepia is an old fashioned style image similar to b&w
Focus
- Sharpen the image to make edges stand out
- Slightly blur the image for a soft focus effect
Red-Eye Reduction
- Remove “Red-Eye” from flash photos of people
Levels (advanced)
- Adjustment of image so that there is both true black and true white in a given image
- Can be done in better image organization programs
Curves (advanced)
- Selectively adjust parts of an image without changing other areas of the image
- Generally done in Photoshop
Final Results (printing/web-export)
- Final images can be printed at stores or from your home computer
- Final images can be posted to the web
Web Galleries
- Flickr
- Picasa Web Album
- Photoshop.com
- Your own site!
- Many others…
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