AFTER:
All I used was the editing you can do when you click 'fix' on Windows Photo gallery. I have played around with the free Photoshop, and Gimp, but could not understand Gimp and with the free Photoshop I had to jump through hoops to figure out how to post it.
My problem with my editing photos is that I can only use the free ones right now, and the ones I have found are either too simple, or too complex.
Also, I am a big fan of the photos not looking soooo edited. I really enjoy most of my sooc shots, but what can I do to make them look better without looking fake?
5 comments:
I'm not sure what kind of camera you have, but if you have one that has manual settings, my biggest suggestion to you would be to use flash as little as possible. Flash really washes out skin tones, and it's hard to bring back those tones without it looking somewhat fake. In dark settings, to avoid using flash, you would want to use a wide aperture (small number) and a high iso.
Another suggestion is to look into buying an older version of Photoshop Elements. One version back (6) is only $27.50 (including shipping) on ebay right now. Although free online programs can be good, like you said, you have to jump through so many hoops and/or it can be time consuming. For a very small investment, you can have a really good program in your hands that gets things done much faster. I own Photoshop Elements 6 & 7, and honestly, Elements 6 is almost the same as 7. Getting a decent photo editing program is totally worth it. :)
Thanks for sharing, and I hope you get lots of great advice throghout the day.
Hi Jana! What a cutie you have!
I've taken a look at your exif data. You've shot at 1/60th of a second at f/4 and ISO of 400. It also looks like you might have used a flash. I'm not sure if you're using automatic, which works all that info out for you, but if you feel like venturing into manual, you might want to use a larger aperture (lower number!) as much as your lens allows. This will let you shoot at a faster speed, helping the subject be in focus. Also, the color looks slightly off in the SOOC camera shot. Have you considered changing your in-camera settings for more saturated colors and higher contrast? Just something to think about!
As an I ♥ Faces contributor, I've played with the photo myself. I couldn't correct the coloring well, so I converted to b/w and sharpened a little. You can find it here: http://i302.photobucket.com/albums/nn88/racheldurik/tutorials/DSC_1386copy.jpg
You've done a wonderful job and good for you for trying to learn more! I wish you all the best in your photographic pursuits!
I recommend Paint.net for a free editor with more options than Picasa and not as confusing as the Gimp. As a bonus, it's set up and commands and such are virtually identical to Photoshop's, so I've found that I could pretty easily follow any PS tutorial and reproduce the results in Paint.net without too much brain-power. Which, with two kids, I have none of to spare :)
I use Corel Paint Shop Pro X2. They have a fully functional 30-day trial, and lately they've been having sales on the program. I bought my copy at Target for $40, so it can be had for a bargain if one shops around.
For making them look better without looking fake, I'm finding curves adjustments to be the biggest help (I'm not new to photo editing, but it's sad how many functions I've just never bothered with before). You can adjust the light/darkness of the picture there, as well as the red/blue/green channels.
Masking also helps out a bunch since you can use masks to limit the area of effect and see how your curves adjustments will look in the overall photo.
My edit of the photo is here:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/27406072@N03/3712341120/
I'll be interested to see what you decide to do. I have an old copy of photoshop around here somewhere and I've been dying to pull it out and figure out how to use it. I know next to nothing about photo editing other than cropping and playing with the balance. HA!
Hugs,
~Shaye
P.S. What a little cutie!
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