Some Photo(shop) Magic

Some people don't believe in "photoshopping" pictures, saying that it's a sign of a bad photographer who has to "fix" or compensate for mediocre shots. Some guy on a forum wrote he wanted to be known for his photography skills and not his photoshop skills. I don't believe this.

The top is the original out-of-camera image. The bottom is after a little photoshop retouching - cross processing (contrast/brightness adjustments), teeth whitening, vignetting, sharpening, and border treatment. Of course Seungyeon is already beautiful (I didn't have to remove any blemishes!), but a little digital makeup doesn't hurt. This is the part that takes the longest time that makes the photo "pop." I don't consider this cheating or compensating for a bad shot, but enhancing the photo. In fact, my camera by default underexposes/undersharpens for this purpose. This doesn't take away from the way a photo is framed, posed, or the timing of the capture, which is the creative element unique to each photographer.

Don't be afraid to play around with photoshop curves and levels to flavor to your own taste. Other programs I like are Nikon Capture NX, Photoshop Lightroom and even Microsoft Digital Image Studio.

Speaking of Seungyeon, I FINALLY received all the photos, including the 11x14" print. They look great and the paper is nice (Kodak) but it took sooooo long. I can't wait to deliver them.