Wednesday, March 23, 2011

Editing Makes a Difference

So I was puttering around Aperture, the software that I use to edit and manage my photo library.  I've been trying to learn more about how some of the different functions work.  While I learned a few things reading some blogs and articles online, one of the best ways to learn is to practice on your photos.

This was one of the photos that I took of Tim when we were visiting the Forbidden City in China.  Well, they actually call it the Imperial Palace now, as people aren't forbidden to enter, as evidenced by the fact that I managed to see it.  In any case here is the photo straight out of the camera.


China.January.2011- 899 - Prior to Editing

There is a pretty big range in light on this shot making it more difficult or even impossible to correctly expose the entire shot.  The foreground with Tim is very bright and is over exposed.  The inside of the building is much darker and under exposed.  When I saw the photo, I passed over it.

I decided to make some edits in Aperture to compensate for the under and over exposure.  One of the nice features that I learned about Aperture 3 is that most any adjustment can be made either photo wide, or selectively with the brush.  After some editing, here is what I came up with.  Its certainly not perfect, but its a lot better than where I started.

China.January.2011- 899 - Edited

The building's interior is really beautiful, and you can actually see it in the edited shot.  Additionally, Tim doesn't look washed out.

This was a good reminder that sometimes my first impression of a photo is not the same one that I will have later.  And while its great to delete photos to save some hard drive space, sometimes a little editing can turn a not-so-hot photo into something that you really appreciate.

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