An estimated 1.4 trillion photos were taken in 2021, but not all of them were of the same quality. Whether you are taking photos for the family album, social media, or professionally, it is always good to brush up on your photo editing skills.
Photo editing software aims to enhance your style, the image, and make the most of the composition. But with so many photo editing tips out there, where do you begin?
Read on for five photo editing tips for photographers to get you started.
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Consider Presets
When you first begin to edit photos, it can be useful to familiarize yourself with the ‘auto’ button that photo editing software includes. It helps automatically enhance your photo and helps you understand what edits were needed.
Once you master the auto button, you can also use presets, which are essentially custom filters that you can automatically apply to your image. It makes editing photos easier, and you can begin to understand key editing tips for photographers.
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Understand Lights and Darks
There are many different ways to edit photos. However, you can start by focusing on lights and darks.
Switch your photo to monochrome to notice areas you want to lighten or darken. Then you can begin to adjust highlights, shadows, brightness, and contrast to enhance your photo in the best ways. You may even decide to keep your photo in black and white.
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Resize Appropriately
Resizing and cropping your photo are also essential steps to enhance the composition of your image best. Usually, photo editing software includes cropping tools, so you can use a grid to crop with the straight lines of the photo. However, use an image resizer for more advanced edits.
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Consider the Message
It is important to understand the different photo editing tools available, such as what vibrance, saturation, and sharpening will do to your photo. You can play around with the different settings, but also consider what message you want your photo to convey. For example, do you want details highlighted or dramatic contrasts?
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Focus On Colors
One of the top photography tips is not to over-saturate colors in photos. It becomes obvious that you edited the photo, and it detracts from other details in the image.
You can even consider desaturating if you have some bright colors in the images. You can also study your photos and experiment with enhancing different colors in the image, making the overall composition more colorful.
Use These Photo Editing Tips
It can feel overwhelming to know where to begin when editing photos. But start with these photo editing tips, and before you know it, you will feel more confident editing your photos.
Often, less is more when it comes to edits. Start by understanding what the different photo editing tools do, and play around with how they impact your photo. You can edit photos in many ways, so take the time to find your photo-editing style.
Did you like this article? Check out our other technical articles for more tips to enhance your work.
