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The Digital Darkroom (part 1)
Once you get the pictures off the digital camera and on to the PC, you are in a position to really reap the benefits of digital photography. Although nothing in this chapter is essential to create stunning images (hopefully we’ve emphasised the importance of capturing a great image to start with), there is also no photograph that can’t be improved in some way by some photo manipulation. Whether it is a subtle tweak to the contrast of the image, adding a colour tint to a sky or creating a wild photo-montage, it is worth investing the time (and money) to getting some good photo software and learning how to use it.
As there is so much to cover under the heading of Digital Darkroom, we have decided to split the section up into 3 parts.
Part 1 looks at the more basic adjustments such as cropping, sharpening, brightness and contrast. We'll also look at two of the most important controls in any photo manipulation software: levels and curves. Selective image editing will also be covered.
Part 2 introduces the concept of selection and layers and how they facilitate non-destructive editing. We'll also look at cloning and some modern interpretations of traditional dark room techniques such as dodging and burning, and black and white photography.
Part 3 is for all the stuff we missed in parts 1 and 2. You may find some interesting gems here. We also cover aspects of image management.
Software Available
To get the most of our your digital photography and to try out the topics covered in the next three chapters you are going to need some image editing software. There is plenty to choose from ranging from the freely available open-source packages like ‘The Gimp’ through to the professional programs such as ‘Photoshop CS3’. Most of them work in similar ways although some of the more advanced manipulations may not be available on the budget / free software. Here are some of the ones to look out for…
Adobe Photoshop CS3 is the best and the most expensive. Used by professionals throughout the world. However be prepared to invest the time as it has a very steep learning curve. Has excellent RAW conversion tools and image management. You also have the advantage that most turorials you find on the web will explain how things are done in photoshop.
Adobe Photoshop CS2 was the best until CS3 came along. If you can pick yourself up a copy of this cheaply you won’t be disappointed. Not the most user-friendly but there’s plenty of books and tutorials out there to help you along.
Photoshop Elements is a cut down version of the full package and should be enough for the vast majority of non-professional photographers. All the important features are included and there’s very little in this book that you won’t be able to do in Elements.
Paint Shop Pro (PSP) is also quite a powerful image editing program which is currently on version X2 (12). It has features to rival many in Photoshop however since the development of the software was taken over by Corel Inc. (most famous for it’s drawing software) it’s never quite been the same. Stability is a problem and a serious lack of testing means versions 11 and 12 have some infuriating design flaws.
(one of the authors used to be a big fan of PSP until the Corel took control - now we would highly recommend Photoshop Elements over PSP.)
Adobe Lightroom - no experience of this yet. It's supposed to be pretty good so if anyone wants to give us their opinions, then please do.
The Gimp is one of the best packages in terms of value for money ... since it's free. If you can’t afford one of the big name pieces of software but want some of the power, then give this a try. As it is freely available from the internet, you have nothing to lose.
Picassa - not very powerful but has a swish, easy to use interface. We would not recommend this package if you want to get the most out of your photography, but as a browser and for simple editing, it will do the job.
Microsoft Photo Info is not a photo editing package, but it is a useful utility, and it's a free download from www.microsoft.com. It allows you to right-click on an image in Windows Explorer and create/edit the metadata in the image file. It also supports many types of RAW files.
All examples on this website are illustrated using Adobe Photoshop CS3, although most can also be done in earlier versions of Photoshop as well as Photoshop Elements and later versions of Paint Shop Pro(if you manage to use it long enough before it crashes!)
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