Kim Komando`s Digital Photography Guide

Transcription

®
AMERICA’S DIGITAL GODDESS
Essential Guide to
TAKING GREAT PHOTOS
Contents
Introduction ..................................1
Before You Begin ........................ 2
Photo Editing Sites ...................... 5
Build a Workflow ..........................7
Image Editors ............................. 12
Raw Image Editing ..................... 17
Using RawTherapee .................. 19
Layers .......................................... 24
The Three Rs .............................. 26
Sharpening ................................. 30
Printing ....................................... 31
Color Management ................... 33
About Kim................................... 34
The Kim Komando Show © 2012
All Rights Reserved.
Introduction
How to edit your photos like a pro
THE ESSENTIAL GUIDE TO
CREATIVE PHOTO EDITING
In the first part of my Digital Photography Guide:
and share them in online galleries. To do that, you
The Essential Guide to Digital Cameras, you
need to develop your digital editing skills.
learned all about DSLRs and hybrid cameras and
how they can help you take better photos.
After reading this book, you’ll be making swift and
dramatic improvements to your digital captures.
And thanks to my Digital Photography Guide: The
You’ll also discover that you’re taking yet another
Essential Guide to Taking Great Photos, you’re
fun and creative journey - an adventure that began
shooting at a whole new level. You consistently
when you tripped the shutter.
bring home beautiful landscape images. Family
members and friends love the pleasing portraits
you take of them. You understand the rules of
Let’s get going!
good composition and know when to break them.
You’ve reached a point now where you’d like to
make expressive prints of some of your images,
Kim Komando’s Guide to Creative Photo Editing
1
Before You Begin
Getting Organized
Before you start working on digital photos, it’s a
the free Windows Live Photo Gallery. Google’s
good idea to have a filing system in place that
Picasa is an excellent third-party image-organizing
makes sense for you. I know - you’d rather spend
program that also includes very basic editing tools
time being creative. But it’s hard to be creative
such as crop and red-eye removal.
when you want to work on a photo you took a year
ago and can’t find it.
What’s important is getting into the habit of
arranging your photos into descriptive folders and
Most image-editing programs have very effective
sub-folders. Use a combination of dates and event
built-in organization tools that let you geotag and
names or location names. That works well for most
face-tag images as you import them.
photographers.
If you have a Mac, for example, you can use the
Let’s say you’ve made it a project to shoot the
included iPhoto software. PC users can tap into
Saturday Farmers Market over the summer. You
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just got back from the first one of the season and
need to get your 47 photos off the memory card
and filed away on a hard drive.
Create the folder Farmers Market 2012. Next,
create a month-day sub-folder: 0526. At this point,
you could choose to rename your 47 image files
something like Farmers Market 2012 Week 1. The
program will give each picture that name plus a
sequential number, 1-47.
That won’t help you much in a search later, but it’s
Sometimes, splitting an import into separate
better than the meaningless alpha-numeric
operations can help the organizational cause. Say
numbers your camera assigns to image files. It’s
27 of your 47 pictures from the first week are of a
too tedious to give every picture a unique name at
jazz band that was performing at the market.
this point. You’ll only end up working on a handful
of them anyway.
It would be difficult to remember two years from
now that those band photos are in Farmers Market
What will really help you find these photos later are
2012>>0526. Create a new top folder with the
keywords. Keywords are tags or descriptions that
band’s name. Select the 27 band photos and
become embedded in the image files.
import them to the folder. Then select the 20
vegetable/vendor photos and import them into
Maybe you took some nice photos of strawberries
0526.
and bunches of asparagus the first week. Add
those as keywords when you import this batch.
If most of your photos are of family and friends,
You can add more keywords later to individual
you’ll definitely want to take advantage of your
images and groups of photos.
organizing program’s face-matching technology.
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As soon as you start tagging photos with names,
Organization programs always include a method
the software learns how to apply those name tags
for rating image files with stars or other labels.
to all your other photos.
While you’re reviewing, flag images you know
you’ll want to work on later. Ratings can also be
When you’re done importing a batch of photos,
used as a search filter.
take a few minutes to review them. Delete obvious
clunkers, such as those accidental shots taken of
Finally, don’t trust your computer’s hard drive to
your feet.
keep your image library safe. Hard drives can fail
- often with no warning. Backup your collection
If you’re just beginning photo editing, however,
regularly to external hard drives. For the ultimate
don’t get too zealous about deleting photos.
in backup - and peace of mind - store your photos
Something that looks hopeless now might be
online at a photo-sharing site or use a cloud-
fixable down the road when you have more
based backup service.
experience.
4
Photo Editing Sites
Basic Online Photo Editing
Thanks to online photo editing sites, you don’t
These tools alone are enough to save many family
need any software other than a browser to begin
snapshots and scenic travel photos.
working on digital pictures. These services are fine
for editing small JPEGs that you want to share on
The most creative tool you have at your disposal,
social networking sites. They also provide a
however, is the humble crop tool. Many times, the
convenient way to retouch photos you’ve already
crop tool gives you a second chance to create a
posted online.
pleasing composition.
PicMonkey is a good example. It was created by
The tool superimposes a 3 x 3 grid over your
the same team behind the wildly popular Picnik,
image so you can crop with the rule of thirds in
which was gobbled up by Google. Photoshop
mind. Place important elements in your photo
Express condenses Adobe’s flagship Photoshop
along one of the two vertical lines, one of the two
program into a quick and easy online experience.
horizontal lines or the points where the lines
Signing up for a free account also gives you 2GB
intersect. This will keep your horizon line or subject
of online storage.
from being dead center in the frame.
For something a little more powerful, look at Pixlr
or Phoenix. Phoenix is part of the Aviary suite of
media-creation tools and the built-in image editor
of Flickr.
With a click of a mouse, online image editors allow
you to straighten horizon lines and automatically
enhance colors and exposure. You can also
instantly fix red eye and remove other blemishes.
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Many casual portraits lack impact simply because
Be careful how much you crop, especially if you’re
the subject doesn’t fill the frame. There’s too much
going to be printing later. Today’s 16+ MP cameras
space around the person. Crop to remove
allow quite a bit of room for cropping. Just don’t
extraneous or distracting information and to
expect to make a decent print after cropping a
emphasize faces.
tiny portion of a photo. There won’t be enough
pixels left to form a detailed image.
A landscape photo might benefit from a
“panoramic” crop that reduces the amount of
Images that have a resolution of 72-100 ppi (pixels
visible sky and foreground. Just because a
per inch) are fine for the Web. Ideally, you want to
camera’s native aspect ratio is 3:2 or 4:3 doesn’t
be at 240-300 ppi for a sharp, detailed inkjet print.
mean you can’t crop to a dramatic 2:1 or 3:1 aspect
ratio.
You can’t save every photo with a crop. But you’ll
learn what works and what doesn’t - and this will
Stick to common aspect ratios, however, when you
impact your shooting. Soon, you’ll find that you’re
want to make standard 4 x 6-inch, 5 x 7-inch prints,
cropping less frequently because you’re creating
and 8 x 10-inch prints. The crop tool can be
better compositions in the camera.
constrained to preserve a specific aspect ratio and
print size.
That’s the true power of the crop tool.
6
Build a Workflow
Building an Editing Workflow
When you feel ready to use more-sophisticated
individuality and creativity. It’s just that it’s better
editing tools, you’ll want to step up to desktop
to perform some tasks before others when editing
software. There are several very good programs
digital photos.
that are open-source and free. Not all paid
programs cost an arm and a leg; most also offer
For example: Adjusting a photo’s color balance
30-day free trials.
first often corrects poor saturation and contrast.
After test-driving free and commercial programs
Here are the general steps to take when editing a
for a few weeks, you’ll find the image editor that’s
JPEG photo. Keep in mind that every photo is
the most comfortable fit for your skills and your
different. You won’t need to perform every step on
budget.
every image. Always work on a copy of the file so
you can return to the original and start over if
Whichever program you choose, you’ll edit more
necessary.
effectively if you follow a logical workflow. The
workflow concept isn’t designed to stifle your
Crop
If necessary, crop your image before moving on to
more-advanced edits. When you adjust things like
color balance, exposure and saturation later, your
editing software won’t be influenced by unwanted
pixels. You also don’t want to spend a lot of time
correcting a flaw that ends up being cropped out
of the image.
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Exposure
It’s not always possible or practical to get a perfect
exposure when you’re out shooting. If an image is
slightly underexposed or overexposed, you should
be able to save it.
Color balance
Color Balance controls usually include a
Temperature slider to make a picture’s overall
ambience cooler or warmer. A Tint slider will
correct images that shift too far toward magenta
or green.
Color casts occur when you take photos in shade
or inside using fluorescent or incandescent light. If
there’s a white fence, white shirt or similar object in
The image’s histogram will identify clipped
shadow pixels in blue and clipped highlights in
red.
For an underexposed photo, use the exposure
compensation slider to slightly increase exposure.
Don’t overdo it. If you increase exposure too
much, noise will get worse in the shadows. Try
using the Shadows slider on an underexposed
photo if your software allows it.
the photo, examine it closely. If it looks a little
reddish-yellow or greenish-blue, your photo will
benefit from a color balance adjustment.
If the software offers a “dropper” tool, take
advantage of it. If there’s an area of the picture you
know should be white or neutral gray, click on the
appropriate dropper and click on that point in the
picture. This will re-balance the entire image.
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For a slightly overexposed photo, decrease
exposure and use the Highlights slider if available.
Decreasing exposure too much will draw even
more attention to blown highlights.
At this stage of the workflow, you’ll know whether
you can move on with an image, or stop and try a
different photo. Raw images and Raw image
editors give you more leeway in recovering detail
from overexposed and underexposed images.
We’ll take a closer look at that in the next chapter.
Contrast controls
When you hear someone say “that photo really
pops,” he’s talking about contrast. Unless you’ve
purposely captured a moody fog or rain scene,
Levels Tool from GIMP
most low-contrast images feel flat; the colors seem
Levels allows you to remap the histogram. Move
washed out. It’s time to unleash the magical Levels
the white point slider to the left and the black
and Curves tools.
point slider to the right. The image will now have a
full tonal range and exhibit dramatically better
In an overexposed image, too many pixels bunch
contrast. (Be careful not to go too far and
up against the right boundary of the histogram. In
introduce clipping.) To fine-tune, adjust the mid-
an underexposed image, too many pixels bunch
tone slider slightly to the left or right.
up against the left boundary of the histogram. In a
low-contrast image, the pixels tend to bunch up in
Feel like the image could still use a little more
the middle of the graph.
oomph? Open up the Curves tool.
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Although it doesn’t look like it at first, Curves is
very similar to Levels. The anchor point (small
square) in the lower left corner of the graph is the
black point. The anchor point in the upper right
corner is the white point. Go ahead and click on
the middle of the curve. You’ve just created an
anchor point that corresponds to the mid-tone
slider in Levels.
Unlike Levels, Curves allows you to put as many as
16 points along the curve. That’s rarely necessary,
of course, but it demonstrates why Curves is such
a powerful tool. Even tones that are very close to
each other on the curve can be teased apart.
For now, put an anchor point on the quarter point
and an anchor point on the three-quarter point.
Moving these anchors up or down with the
anchored mid-point will create a gentle S curve or
an inverted S curve.
Saturation
The S curve will darken the shadows a bit in the
Boost Saturation if the overall colors in your image
quarter tones and bump up the three-quarter tone
still seem a little dull. Don’t overdo it, though.
highlights. The inverted S curve will do the
Oversaturation seldom benefits either landscape
opposite. This simple adjustment alone will rescue
photos or portraits. The Vibrance slider, if your
many images.
image editor has it, is a terrific tool. It increases or
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decreases the saturation of skin tones and other
wish to lighten. The dodging tool is also a good
less-saturated colors without affecting colors that
way to whiten teeth and brighten smiles. Do the
are already saturated. The Saturation slider adjusts
subject’s eyes seem a little fuzzy? Spot-sharpen
all the pixels in an image.
the area with a brush.
Selective Enhancements
Create a master file
Up to this stage, all your edits have affected the
By now, you should feel as though you’ve taken
image globally. Now it’s time to inspect the image
this image about as far as it can go. This is a good
for smaller areas that can benefit from local or
time to stop and save it as a master file. Let’s call it
selective enhancements.
Sylvan Lake MF (for Master File).
Get out the healing brush or clone tool to remove
Everything you do subsequently to Sylvan Lake MF
blemishes such as dust specks that were on your
will involve downsizing it for sharing or optimizing
camera’s sensor. (They look like UFOs in the sky.)
it to make a print. You don’t want to repeat all the
hard work you’ve just done. Work on copies of
If an area of the image is a little too hot exposure-
Sylvan Lake MF to create Sylvan Lake Web, Sylvan
wise, tone it down with the burning tool. Grab the
Lake 8x10, etc.
dodging tool if there’s an area of the print you
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Image Editors
Popular Image Editors
Photobie
Photo Editor
Photobie
This is a good step-up program for photographers
Cost
• Free
who outgrow Windows Live Photo Gallery. It has
Compatibility
• PC
Some of the
Best Features
•
•
•
•
•
Photo Editor
Photoscape
Cost
• Free
GIFs in addition to other standard file formats.
Compatibility
• PC
It contains most of the photo-editing tools you
Some of the
Best Features
•
•
•
•
•
Photo Editor
Pixelmator
Cost
• $15 after 30-day free trial
Curves and a host of other color-correction tools
Compatibility
• Mac
to perfect your photos. There are also dozens of
Some of the
Best Features
•
•
•
•
•
tools for all the most-needed picture-editing
functions. More-advanced users can work in layers
for more precision.
Photoscape
Another good intermediate photo editor for
Windows users. It supports Raw files and animated
need, plus fun templates for creating comics and
collages.
Pixelmator
A full-featured, layers-based image editor that
appeals to the artistically inclined. Use Levels,
tools for making selections, drawing, painting and
retouching. Create special effects with more than
150 filters. 30-day free trial.
Basic photo editing tools
Layers
Photoshop filter plug-in support
Photo image browser
Templates and scrapbooking
Intermediate photo editing tools
Layers
Batch editor
Special effect filters
Raw image converter
Advanced photo editing tools
Painting and drawing tools
Layers
150 special effect filters
Sharing to social sites
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PaintShopPro X4
Photo Editor
PaintShop Pro X4
Despite its paint-centric name, this is powerful
Cost
• $80 - $100 after 30-day free trial
Compatibility
• PC
Some of the
Best Features
•
•
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•
•
•
•
•
•
•
Photo Editor
Adobe Photoshop Elements 10
Cost
• $100
Compatibility
• PC and Mac
Some of the
Best Features
•
•
•
•
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photo-editing software that supports a Raw
workflow and adjustment layers. With this version,
Corel added HDR tools and a tilt-shift effect
to create miniatures and photos with extreme
selective focus. 30-day free trial.
Adobe Photoshop Elements 10
This slimmed-down sibling of Photoshop allows
you to quickly and easily fix common photo
flaws. More-advanced tools offer sophisticated
blending and layering capabilities and support
for Raw editing. There’s also a stitching function
for panoramas and a basic tool for creating a
High Dynamic Range photo from two exposures.
Guided Edits walk you through some of the more
involved editing tasks. Family memory keepers
love Elements for its organizational powers and
ease of creating text and scrapbook pages and
cards.
Aperture 3
Aperture combines the streamlined Raw workflow
Photo organizer
Layers
High Dynamic Range tools (HDR)
Raw image editing
162 effects and adjustment filters
Screen capture
Batch editing
Learning center
Photo tagging and organizer
Layers
100 effects and adjustment filters
Batch editing
High Dynamic Range tools (HDR)
Panoramic stitching tools
Raw image editing
Templates and scrapbooking
Video support
Adobe online services
that busy pros need with the easy learning curve
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of iPhoto. With the unified photo library, you
Photo Editor
Aperture 3
can move back and forth between iPhoto and
Cost
• $80
Compatibility
• Mac
Some of the
Best Features
• Advanced photo editing tools
• Advanced photo tagging and
organization
• Nondestructive environment
• Raw photo editing
• Set auto buttons and quick tools
• Batch editing
• Expansive effects library and
custom effects
• Photo books and slide shows
• Video support
• Sharing to social sites
Photo Editor
Adobe Lightroom 4
editing environment encourages experimentation.
Cost
• $150
The newest version offers superior lens-correction
Compatibility
• PC and Mac
and noise-reduction tools, plus enhanced highlight
Some of the
Best Features
• Advanced photo editing tools
• Advanced photo tagging and
organization
• Nondestructive environment
• Raw photo editing
• Special effect filters
• Advanced hue, saturation, and
luminance editing
• Batch editing
• Photo books and slide shows
• Video support
• Sharing to social sites
Aperture without having to import, export or reedit photos. Aperture includes powerful one-click
white balance and curves adjustments, plus brushbased edits on selective portions of photos.
Lightroom 4
Photoshop has a lot of stuff that professional
graphic designers, 3D artists and illustrators
need - and photographers don’t. Adobe built
Lightroom from the ground up for photographers.
It’s a powerful catalog management program and
Raw image processor in one. The nondestructive
and recovery algorithms. A new module makes it
easy to create photo books.
ACDSee
TThis program has been around a long time
and is a favorite of many photographers. The
Pro 6 version for PC ($100) and Pro 2 version for
Mac ($100) aim to compete with Aperture and
Lightroom with nondestructive Raw editing and
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speedy workflow. Look at ACDSee 15 (PC, $50) if
Photo Editor
ACDSee Pro
you want a home photo editor and organizer more
Cost
• $140 after 30-day free trial
akin to Elements.
Compatibility
• PC and Mac
RawTherapee
Some of the
Best Features
•
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curves and highlight and shadows. There are also
Photo Editor
RawTherapee
multiple ways to sharpen and enhance details, as
Cost
• Free
well as reduce image noise. RawTherapee works
Compatibility
• PC and Mac
Some of the
Best Features
•
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without taking your credit card there, too, give
Photo Editor
GIMP
GIMP a try. It’s a free photo editor originally
Cost
• Free
Compatibility
• PC and Mac
Some of the
Best Features
•
•
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•
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•
This is a robust Raw editor. Better yet, it’s totally
free to use. It sports a lot of the same features
as pricey programs like Lightroom and Aperture.
Make sophisticated adjustments to exposure, tone
with most DSLR Raw files, but check compatibility
with your camera before downloading.
GIMP
If you want to take your pictures to the next level
created at UC Berkeley. It has many of the same
features as Photoshop, but it’s 100 percent free. In
the past, GIMP was notorious for its steep learning
curve and hard-to-use floating window palettes.
Thanks to a recent overhaul and a new singlewindow mode, the user interface is easier. The
next upgrade should provide support for 16-bit
image editing.
Photo tagging and organization
Nondestructive environment
Raw photo editing
Special effects and filters
Batch editing
Basic photo editing tools
Photo tagging and organization
Advanced color correction tools
Raw photo editing
Batch editing
Advanced color correction tools
Drawing and painting tools
Layers and channels
Customizable interface
Edit Photoshop files (PSD)
Extensive plugins and support
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Adobe Photoshop CS6
Photo Editor
Adobe Photoshop CS6
Photoshop is the gold standard and the
Cost
• $700
professional’s choice in image-editing software.
Compatibility
• PC and Mac
Some of the
Best Features
•
•
•
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Content Aware technology allows photographers
to patch, move objects and retouch images with
incredible ease and precision. Automatic Saves
in the background speed up the workflow and
reduce the chance of losing edits. Add creative
blurs to images with new tools. Photoshop
includes Adobe Camera Raw - the same Raw
editing engine that Lightroom is based on - and
Bridge for organizing your photos.
•
•
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•
Raw photo editing
Drawing and painting tools
Layers and channels
Auto corrections
Superior High Dynamic Range
imaging and toning (HDR)
Preset migration and sharing
Customized workspaces
Video Support
Auto-recovery
Adobe Marketplace and
Community Help
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Raw Image Editing
Raw Workflow &
Nondestructive Editing
When you shoot a JPEG, your camera sets the
white balance, sharpens the image and makes
some decisions about color saturation and
contrast. Depending on the level of compression
you choose, pixel information may get thrown
away in order to make a smaller file.
A Raw file is more like a digital negative. It contains
every bit of data and dynamic range that your
camera’s sensor captured. A Raw file gives you
more flexibility and editing latitude in the digital
darkroom.
Let’s see why.
Aggressively manipulating the histogram of an
8-bit image with Levels and Curves runs the risk of
causing posterization. Unsightly bands run across
a posterized image because there’s too little tonal
information and the tones are too far apart.
Posterization is revealed in the histogram, too, as
spaced vertical spikes that resemble the teeth of a
First of all, a Raw file starts its journey in the editing
comb.
process as a 16-bit image. A JPEG is always an
8-bit image. An 8-bit image can produce 256
Even if you don’t want to work in Raw, editing in
unique colors, while the 16-bit image has 65,536
16-bit mode where possible will minimize the risk
discrete colors available in its palette. The 16-bit
of posterization. If you have a JPEG that needs
image is capable of producing a lot more subtlety.
some hard editing, for example, change it to a
Because it contains more information, it also holds
16-bit TIFF before you begin, if your image editor
up better in processing.
supports it. (TIFF is a standard file format in
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publishing and can be either uncompressed or
You can change white balance and perform other
compressed without losing information.)
edits without destroying any of the image’s pixels.
Your changes appear in a live view of the image,
In our basic JPEG workflow, everything we did to
but the adjustments aren’t actually applied until
fix blemishes and correct color and contrast
they’re exported from the Raw imaging processor.
destroyed pixels and degraded image quality.
Everything you do in Raw is reversible - and you
always have that pristine, data-rich Raw file to fall
That sounds scarier than it actually is. A well-
back on.
exposed, large JPEG that has been minimally
compressed won’t require a lot of editing. It will
In a Raw editor, you can take advantage of built-in
contain more than enough information to make a
tools to reduce a photo’s noise, apply sharpening
fine print.
and correct lens distortion.
For those times when you need it, though, a Raw,
Here’s how to adapt your workflow using a Raw
nondestructive workflow really comes in handy.
editor such as RawTherapee.
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Using RawTheapee
Edit Raw Images
Using RawTherapee
RawTherapee is a robust - and totally free - Raw
Once you’ve chosen a photo to edit, you can start
editor. Getting started with the program is simple.
adjusting it. Click on the Transform tab to bring up
Once it’s installed and opened, you’ll see it’s made
the crop panel and to experiment with different
up of a few different parts.
options. You can also rotate, flip and straighten the
image.
First is the file browser in the lower-left corner. Use
it to search your computer for your Raw files. In the
Next, click on the Colour tab (the program uses
center is the main image viewer. Here you can see
British spelling). You can adjust White Balance
the picture you’re editing. And finally, on the far
quickly and easily by using the Spot WB button.
right is the adjustment panel. This is where you’ll
Click a portion of the photo that should be white
tweak most of the settings to edit your photos.
or neutral gray. You’ll see the image automatically
fix itself. This typically does a pretty good job on
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its own. But you can adjust the Temperature and
Tint sliders to fine-tune it.
Under the Exposure tab, you’ll see a long list of
tools for fixing exposure. The big ones here are
Exposure, Tone Curve and Shadows/Highlights.
Using the different sliders in Exposure will help
brighten or darken photos. Keep in mind that this
isn’t the same as adjusting Brightness. Instead,
Exposure works to simulate the picture if more or
less light hit the sensor. It will give you more or less
detail.
Tone Curve is an advanced way to control contrast
for the overall image. Like Curves in other
programs, you just click and drag on the curve to
create gentle S-curves and other tonal
adjustments. Each point on the curve affects a
certain tonal range. As you move from left to right,
you affect darker to lighter tones.
Shadows/Highlights will let you adjust the
brightest and darkest areas of your photos. In this
section, you can make the blacks in the photo
Exposure tab from RawTherapee
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darker. Inversely, you can make the whites in the
photo brighter.
Now is a good time to reduce noise if the image
needs it. If you took the shot in low light at a high
ISO setting, it’s likely that the image will benefit
from de-noising.
Click on the Detail tab. You’ll see two noise
reduction options: Luminance and Colour.
Luminance Noise Reduction will blend noisy pixels
based on their brightness value. Colour Noise
Reduction will blend noise based on the pixel’s
hue. The goal is noise reduction - not noise
elimination. A little noise adds character and
increases the perception of sharpness. An absence
of noise will make your subjects look unnaturally
smooth.
All Raw images benefit from “capture sharpening,”
so this important function is built in to Raw editors.
Unlike JPEGs, Raw captures are not sharpened in
the camera. Don’t get the idea that you can save
Detail tab from RawTherapee
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an out-of-focus photo with sharpening. All you’re
doing is bumping up the acutance level of your
photo.
Despite its name, the Unsharp Mask tool is the
classic way to sharpen an image. Derived from an
old darkroom technique, Unsharp Mask lays a
fuzzy copy of the image over the original to help
the algorithm detect the presence of edges. The
unsharp overlay is subtracted away and contrast is
selectively increased along these edges. The result
is a sharpened image.
You can control the overall effect of Unsharp Mask
with the Radius, Amount and Treshhold sliders.
Radius affects the size of the edges; too much
Radius will produce halos around edges. Amount
controls the strength of the sharpening. Threshold
controls the minimum brightness range that will be
sharpened. If set to 0, everything is sharpened,
including noise. A value of 0.8 to 2 works well for
most pictures. Enabling Sharpen Only Edges will
prevent any sharpening of noise pixels.
Transform tab from RawTherapee
22
When you’re done with sharpening, correct for
the horizontal and vertical perspective tools to
lens flaws if your image needs it. Some lenses
straighten up buildings.
cause vignetting, chromatic aberration and
distortion that can be corrected - to varying
Once you’ve finished all of your edits in
degrees - in RawTherapee’s Transform tab.
RawTherapee, you can either save the image or
export it to another editor to make selective
Vignetting often occurs when using a low f-stop,
adjustments. Save it as a 16-bit TIFF if your image
such as f/1.8. Light falls off at the corners, making
editor supports it; make it an 8-bit TIFF otherwise.
the corners darker than the center of the image. A
little vignetting can be desirable in some cases,
To do this, click on Preferences. A new window will
since it tends to draw attention to the subject. If
pop up. Select the Output Options tab at the top.
you want it gone, however, this tool will take care
In the file format area, use the dropdown menu to
of it. Be aware that this adjustment can increase
select your desired format.
noise in the corners.
Bargain lenses often suffer from chromatic
aberration, a failure to correctly focus different
wavelengths of color. It appears as purple fringing
along boundaries that separate dark and light
parts of an image. This tool will reduce the fringing
- but don’t expect miracles.
Extreme wide-angle lenses can distort horizontal
and vertical lines in an image. This usually only
presents a problem in architectural photos. Use
23
Layers
Working with Layers
By using layers in GIMP, Photoshop and some
other image editors, you can make further
nondestructive changes and create composites by
combining different photos. Layers can be a little
puzzling at first, but once you get used to them,
they will become one of your most powerful
editing tools.
Layers are like sheets of plastic that you stack over
an original image. You can increase or lower the
opacity of a layer to show less or more of an
underlying layer. Brushes that paint black (to
obscure) or white (to erase) can be used to block
or reveal an element from a different picture. This
is how black-and-white photos with selective areas
of color are usually created.
Levels, Curves, Brightness/Contrast, Hue/
Saturation and other adjustments can also be
done on layers.
In programs such as Aperture, Lightroom and
Adobe Camera Raw, you can fix sensor dust spots
and other local blemishes nondestructively. You
can’t make selective corrections like that in
RawTherapee. In Photoshop or GIMP, however, you
can create a duplicate background layer to
perform tricky healing, cloning and patching edits
without damaging the original background pixels.
If you edit yourself into a corner, you can always
delete the layer you’re working on and try again.
Layers can be turned on an off with a click so you
can make quick judgments about the effects your
actions are having.
With layers and your available selection/extraction
tools, it’s possible to pluck a nice shot of a bird or
a cloud formation in one photo and paste it into a
24
layer for a landscape photo that needs added
A duplicate background layer is a great way to
interest.
selectively sharpen parts of an image. Sharpen the
entire image on this layer. If you overdo it, scale
When an object’s shape is simple and well-defined
back the layer’s opacity. Next, add a black layer
against the background, it’s pretty easy to remove.
mask. Use a soft-edged brush and a white
If the subject blends into the background or is very
foreground color to reveal portions of the image
detailed - you’re trying to trace around a person’s
you want sharpened. If you make a mistake and
hair, for example - you’ll be looking at hours of
reveal too much, switch to black and re-paint.
painstaking work.
Layers don’t permanently take effect until you
That’s why pros who know a background will be
flatten the image. If you wish, you can save the
removed later shoot against a green backdrop.
master image file with all its layers open. That way,
That way, they can select the background color
you can always fine-tune the adjustments. When
with a single click and remove it.
you go to print, save a copy of the master and
flatten the image.
25
The Three Rs
Resizing, Resolution &
Resampling Images
The Three Rs confuse many photographers who
18MP.) A Small/Normal JPEG will come into your
are just beginning to upload photos to the Internet
editing software with a pixel dimension of 2592 x
and make inkjet prints. With a little practice,
1728.
however, you’ll get to the “aha” moment in no
time.
Even the small JPEG is overkill for posting on the
Web. You need to downsize and resample it.
Every digital image contains a specific number of
pixels along its width and height. The pixel
In Adobe Photoshop or Elements - GIMP handles
dimensions are governed by your camera’s sensor
resizing differently, which I’ll explain later - open
size and the capture quality settings you chose
the Image Size dialog box.
when taking the image.
You’ll see an upper box for Pixel Dimensions and a
Let’s use an 18MP camera as an example. When
lower box for Document Size. The boxes for
image quality is set to Raw or Large/Fine JPEG,
Constrain Proportions and Resample Image
your image size will be 5184 x 3456 pixels. (Multiply
should be checked.
those numbers and you get 17.9 million pixels, or
26
It’s OK to throw out data for Web pictures. You
want them to be a small file size so they’ll load fast
on a webpage.
Adobe offers a variety of interpolation methods
when resampling. These algorithms more or less
intelligently decide which pixels are best removed
or added. Bicubic Sharper usually works best when
reducing image size for the Web. Click OK and
Image Size box from Adobe Photoshop
you’ll have an image that’s resized for Web use.
Change the Resolution value to 100 ppi (pixels per
Use GIMP’s Image Scale dialog box to accomplish
inch). Specifying a resolution any higher than that
the same thing. Make sure the interpolation
won’t improve the display quality of the image on
method is set to Cubic. GIMP uses a separate Print
a computer monitor.
Size dialog box for printing, which disables
resampling.
Most Web images don’t need to be any more than
600-800 pixels on the longest side. Enter a value
Now let’s run down how to prepare an image for
for the longest side, and Constrain Proportions will
printing. Although a digital image contains a
automatically adjust the other side to preserve the
specific amount of pixel data, its specific output
photo’s aspect ratio.
size and resolution is negotiable.
Resampling instructs the software to throw away
Return to that 18 MP image with a pixel dimension
pixels - or add them when you’re upsizing.
of 5184 x 3456. If you uncheck Resample Image,
Whenever you add or take away pixels, image
you’ll see that you’re now prohibited from adding
quality deteriorates to some extent.
or throwing away pixels. To keep the total number
27
of pixels the same, the image editor compensates
by increasing or decreasing the resolution and
document size.
At a resolution of 240 ppi, an 18 MP image will
make a very nice print measuring 21.6 x 14.4
inches.
What if you want to send this image to a custom
lab, and it requires a resolution of 300 ppi?
Change the resolution to 300; print size decreases
to 17.3 x 11.5 inches.
What if you just want to print a 6 x 9 on your home
photo printer? Adjust the width and height;
resolution will increase to 575 ppi.
When resolution increases, pixels become smaller
so more of them can be packed together. The
tradeoff for smaller physical size is a smoother,
higher-quality print.
The trouble is that a 575 ppi image looks exactly
like a 100 ppi image on your computer monitor.
Because it looks like resolution doesn’t matter,
many beginning photographers think they don’t
Image Size box from Adobe Photoshop
28
need to shoot at higher resolutions; or, they
Smoother interpolation method usually works best
downsize and resample an image at the beginning
for upsampling.
of the editing workflow. This can compromise the
image for printing later on.
If your image editor allows, switch your document
size measurement from inches to percent and
For most prints, it’s best to resize your image
enter 110, then repeat. It doesn’t take much
without resampling. Depending on the quality of
enlarging before a picture starts looking blocky
the printer, most larger prints will look good at 240
and blurry.
ppi. Aim for 300 ppi or higher if you’re making a
photo book or making smaller prints that will be
Adding pixels is a much more complex job than
viewed at a close distance.
removing data for editing software. If you’re really
keen on making poster-size images, check out
Many images can be enlarged 10-20 percent
third-party programs, such as Perfect Resize
without too much harm. In this case, you want to
(formerly called Genuine Fractals).
resample the image to add pixels. The Bicubic
29
Sharpening
Output Sharpening
Before printing, your image will benefit from one
last sharpening pass - especially if you upsampled.
Be aware that effective output sharpening can
take a lot of trial and error and will often make an
image appear oversharpened on screen. It can be
done on a duplicate background layer.
For an average image - one that’s neither high
detail nor low detail - a Radius setting between 1.0
and 1.5 is a good starting point. Set Amount
between about 125 and 175, and Threshold
between 4 and 8. Tweak from there.
A finely detailed image requires a much lower
Radius - under 1.0 - to avoid halos. You may have
to go down to 0.3 or 0.4 for some images. To
compensate for the smaller radius, increase
Amount to 200-300. Set Threshold at 4 or less.
It’s important to not oversharpen a portrait or a
smoothly textured image. Use a low Amount
setting of 75-125 and a high Threshold of 8-12.
You’ll probably need a larger Radius of 2-3 to find
and bring out those edges, though.
It’s not a coincidence that automated sharpening
solutions are among the most popular plug-ins for
GIMP, Photoshop, Lightroom and Aperture.
These complex algorithms calculate optimum
sharpening based on print size, resolution, and the
type of printer and paper you’re using.
Topaz InFocus, PhotoKit Sharpener and Sharpener
Pro are some of the leading commercial
contenders in this category. If a plug-in
undersharpens or oversharpens to your taste,
“trick” it by telling it to sharpen at a slightly higher
or lower resolution.
30
Printing
Basic Inkjet Printing
It’s very satisfying seeing one of your images come
to life on paper as a finished print. Thanks to huge
improvements in paper quality and inkjet printer
technology, it’s easier than ever to make large,
professional-quality prints from the comfort of
your home office.
The first step to success is buying a photo printer.
You can make good prints with multifunction 8.5 x
11-inch inkjet printers in the $100-$200 range from
HP, Canon and Epson. Stepping up to a dedicated
Once you decide on the size of your printer, you
13-inch photo printer offers a corresponding leap
need to make a decision about ink type - dye or
in quality, and price - $300 and up. A 13-inch
pigment. Pigment inks can’t quite match the color
printer can handle cut paper sheets of 13 x 19 and
gamut and high saturation levels that dye inks can,
11 x 17 in addition to 8.5 x 11. Some printers in this
but they’re much more stable and archival.
class can also use roll paper 50-100 feet in length.
Paper Choices
Although small printers handle standard photo
Most color landscapes and portraits look best on
papers OK, they’ll balk at heavier premium papers.
semi-gloss papers. These are more subtle than
Prosumer photo printers have 6, 8 or more ink
glossy papers and may even include a bit of a
cartridges in their arsenals to produce exhibition-
textured surface. You’ll also see them described as
quality prints. Ink cartridges are larger, too, making
luster, pearl, silver or satin. They’re capable of a
larger format printers cheaper to operate than
wide color gamut and produce deep, rich blacks.
smaller printers over the long haul.
Matte papers offer wonderful surface textures,
31
which benefit some photos, but produce more
After you’ve made some great prints this way, go
muted colors and weaker blacks.
ahead and dive into the wonderful ocean of thirdparty inkjet papers. Vendors supply profiles of their
When you first start printing at home, buy paper
papers for the most popular printer models. Most
from the same manufacturer as your printer. The
of them are good but may require some tweaking.
major manufacturers go to great lengths to
develop profiles that will help you make prints that
Printing an Image
match what you see on your computer screen.
Printing is handled in your editing software’s print
When you call up a specific paper profile in your
dialog box. First, check that your document is set
print menu, it tells the printer how much ink to
to the right color space - sRGB or Adobe RGB.
spray on the paper and how fast the print head
Next, make sure your editing software is in charge
should pass across the paper.
of managing the color - not the printer. If the
software allows you to choose a rendering intent,
Perceptual works well for images with intense
colors. Portraits and prints with more subtle tones
will benefit from the Relative Colorimetric setting.
Make sure the Black Point Compensation box is
checked.
Don’t hit Print yet. It’s also very important to go to
the Print Driver dialog box and make sure that the
printer’s Color Mode is turned Off. If On, the
printer will take over color management. The Print
Driver dialog is also where you choose your paper
type and print quality.
32
Color Management
Color Management 101
Entire books - and an entire industry - have sprung
up to help photographers get a grasp of color
management. The goal of color management is to
get a very good approximation - not a perfect
match - between what you captured with your
camera, what you see on a monitor and what
comes out of your printer.
It starts with your camera. Most DSLRs and
advanced hybrids allow you to set a color space
when taking photos - either sRGB or Adobe RGB.
sRGB is the standard for color on the Internet and
works great for a JPEG workflow and all-in-one
printers. Most online printing services also prefer
the sRGB color profile.
Adobe RGB is a wider color space that produces
vivid greens and reds. It’s a good choice for
landscape and travel photographers who edit in a
16-bit workflow and use mid- to upper-range inkjet
printers.
If you shoot Raw, color space doesn’t matter until
post-processing. You can decide on a color profile
when you take your photos from Raw to JPEG or
TIFF.
When prints come out of the printer with a sickly
green cast, the computer monitor is usually the
culprit. Calibrating it using your computer
operating system’s built-in controls is better than
nothing. You’ll get better and more consistent
results if you invest in a calibration software
package with a colorimeter. Calibrate your monitor
two or three times per year. Don’t fiddle with any
contrast or brightness settings after you calibrate.
The last stop in the color management journey is
the printer. However, advances in printer
technology have largely eliminated the need for
custom printer and paper profiles. Using profiles
supplied by printer manufacturers and third-party
paper vendors usually provides excellent results.
33
About Kim
Kim Komando’s interest in the digital landscape dates back 20 years to include both her first business
venture and her college education. Ms. Komando attended Arizona State University, which offers one of
the leading Computer Information Systems degrees in the nation. She left her first major in architecture
when research convinced her that the opportunities in CIS were better.
During her college years, Ms. Komando started her first business. She taught people how to use
personal computers. In her classes, she realized how confusing these machines were, especially to
adults. She knew that if she could make things easy and fun, people would listen.
After college, Ms. Komando accepted a position with IBM selling computers. She later
marketed computerized phone systems for AT&T, then mainframe computers at
Unisys. But her dream was to go on the radio and teach many more people to
improve their lives through computers.
Ms. Komando’s reality far exceeded the dream. Her network radio shows
run on more than 470 stations in the USA and around the world on American
Forces Radio. Her Digital News Network delivers more than 10 million
informative and up-to-the-minute digital newsletters to subscribers each
week.
And, as the digital world has expanded far beyond computers, so has
Ms. Komando’s coverage, unraveling the mysteries of smartphones,
apps, tablets, Wi-Fi and more. Leading a multimedia empire, Ms.
Komando, in addition to hosting radio and television shows,
offers a deep, informative and newly redesigned website; offers
the best of digital solutions in her specialized boutique shop
online; and is a prolific writer of books, e-guides, and author of
two weekly columns appearing in more than 100 newspapers
including USA Today.
34
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Kim Komando`s Digital Photography Guide

Transcription

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