Learn more and more about editing digital photographs

By David Peters


The editing programs today can do wonders to images. One of the most popular programs is Adobe PhotoShop, since this editing program is one of the most sophisticated tools. Most pro photographers will use this program, since you can create websites, book covers, images, movies, and more. Adobe is also used to design manuals, graphics, commercials, fliers, and more. This particular program I miss. I lost my copy during a severe virus attack, and the downside is it costs around $1000 to $1500 to replace. Outside of lightning effects, you can also setup brick backgrounds, or whatever background you choose. If you own this program you know what I am talking about, however if you have never had the experience and can get the opportunity to try out Adobe I promise you will have loads of fun. A common misconception is that Gimp lacks many more features that Photoshop has. In fact, with the exception of features that depend on patented algorithms, Gimp is 99% on par with Photoshop in capabilities. It's just that Photoshop users try Gimp, are immediately lost in the baroque interface, and leave in terror. Having the features doesn't do you much good if you can't find them! The real hanger is the user interface.

- Photoshop - This digital picture editing program is certainly not cheap, but is considered to be the awesome editing tool of professional digital photographers. Unfortunately Photoshop is also not so easy to learn completely to benefit from the high cost for most photographers. The good news is that due to the popularity of the program, and the real benefits Photoshop offers serious digital photographers there are many ways one can comfortably learn Photoshop techniques either in your own time on the internet or off line though regular classes offered by certified professionals. Photoshop is in reality the desk top darkroom for digital photographers. Photoshop takes digital photography to new levels by going beyond necessary photo editing requirements. Photoshop users are able to take their not so successful photographs to become the base of new digital art by allowing the user to apply extreme manipulations and effects turning a useless image into an artistic creations.

Sometimes, clear lines that separate the images in the panorama may appear. It is possible to blend the lines so that they disappear. Select the Advance Blending option located at the right of the Photomerge window, then select Preview. Inconsistencies in color will be calculated by the program. At this point, the images will blend together. Photoshop will combine all the individual images for your panoramic into a single layer. If you select the Keep as Layers option it is easier to edit each image individually. This is a great help if one of the images is brighter or darker then the other images. You can select that image in layers and adjust the brightness for just that image. It is a good idea to save the layers as a .psd file so that you can always come back and correct any mistakes or make any changes later. It's a real pain to have to redo everything from scratch just if you made a mistake or want to change something later. You can also distort the pictures so that the scene will look like it is in perspective. Choose the Perspective option on the bottom of Settings. You can also do this by choosing Set Vanishing Point in the Photomerge window, then click to an area in the panorama.

When it comes to exporting its images, Photoshop allows seamless program shifts among other Adobe software used in image editing, authoring and animation such as Adobe Illustrator, ImageReady and After Effects. Photoshop files (.PSD or Photoshop document format) may be manipulated to produce special effects such as adding textures and changing backgrounds. Non-linear editing is also a breeze. Another advantage of Photoshop is that it can work with several color models such as RGB, CMYK, Lab, Bitmap, Duotone and Grayscale. This allows any user a lot of flexibility in terms of image editing, giving him the power to play with every type of photo image there is. The newest version of Photoshop is v. 10, also known as CS3. It's integrated with Adobe Creative Suite, hence the 'CS'. The most popular, though is the CS2 which was made available in 2005. It has successfully integrated new tools and former plugins like color replacement, warping and multiple-layer select.

If you are a home user or hobbyist, save your money and go with Photoshop Elements instead of Photoshop CS. It has all the features of Photoshop that you are likely to ever need. Some of the features in Photoshop CS that are not included in Photoshop Elements are: CMYK and LAB color modes, More tools and features that work with high-bit (16-bit and 32-bit) images,Combine multiple exposures to create high dynamic range (HDR) images Channels Palette, Recording custom Actions (for batch processing), Adjustments: Color Balance, Match Color, Layer Masks, Layer Comps, and Quick Mask mode, Smart Objects, Smart Guides

The Eyedropper tool (the icon in the Toolbar) is used to sample a color from an image to use this color further. It's practical as it facilitates color selection, for example, an appropriate color for the skin or the sky. Tip: When you pick a color with the Eyedropper tool, it appears as the foreground color in the Toolbar. If you want to pick a color for the background hold the ALT-key while selecting the color with the Eyedropper tool. Below you see the foreground/background palette of the Toolbar.

You can do a lot with filters, they can change the mood or tone of a photo, or they can add a completely different effect altogether. As you work with your photo you can add a yellow filter, or a black and white filter or even a sepia filter. What the sepia does is it will actually create a warmer mood for the picture by making the colors more warm. Most, if not all, photo editing program contain filter effects. If you dont have photo editing of your own, you can always try a free program such as Picasa.

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