A Little Before & After Magic
All photographers strive for perfect shot in camera. It makes the editing faster. But, perfect shots in camera are not always possible. There are so many factors that go into the perfect shot. Lighting, composition, expressions, angles, white balance…the list goes on and on. When all those things align – you get the perfect shot in camera – when they don’t editing becomes your best friend.
I shoot in RAW. Why? Well, RAW files capture all the image data recorded by the sensor and the best part, it’s not compressed. RAW files are a higher quality image. I don’t give my clients RAW files, so what do I do to create a JPG? Well friends, that’s where ACR and Photoshop come in!
First, I do quick adjustments in ACR (Adobe Camera Raw), like white balance and overall light. Then that baby goes into Photoshop for all the magic! I have a very set workflow that I have tweaked over the years. But, it pretty much hasn’t changed in the past three years. And the end result, a beautiful JPG that is client ready!
Studio Newborn Sessions take a little more work than other session because of newborn skin. Anyone who says they want skin like baby isn’t talking about a newborn! They are splotchy, have baby acne, some have stork bites (which I let the parents decide if it should be left alone or removed). Not to mention all the red undertones or sometimes all that yellow – jaundice is not a newborn photographers friend. The end result after my magic – creamy, beautiful skin.
Studio Newborn
BEFORE
AFTER
Lifestyle Sessions
In-home Lifestyle Sessions (whether newborn or family) need a bit less editing, BUT I’m using natural light with these sessions, so sometimes my settings create a bit a noise. No they aren’t loud pictures! Noise is grain in the image. I actually don’t mind a bit of grain, but I do try to minimize it in editing if I need to. Crops may need to be changed in Lifestyle Sessions – sometimes I’m dealing with fast moving kids and tight spaces and the crops need a tweak. I try to move things that are distracting out of the way when I’m at the session, but sometimes I miss something! Like the lamp cord below.
BEFORE
AFTER
Outdoor Sessions
And my outdoor sessions! Well, I certainly get better light than inside someone’s home, but lighting can be tricky there, too. I really strive for PERFECT lighting in camera when I’m outdoors. But I do let my camera auto white balance, which means my colors can be a bit off. That’s the first thing I fix! I do clean-up skin a bit, especially cuts (like dad’s hand) because those are not permanent. Who wants to remember a random cut or bruise? Cropping usually needs a to be fixed – I’m the queen of a crooked shot. This images was correctly cropped – YAY me!
BEFORE
AFTER
I know a number of photographers who use various companies to edit their images in their style. I am way too much of a control freak! I like having full control over every part of my sessions. They are your memories captured by me! There are also LOTS of editing software out there and it has less to do with which software you use and more to do with the skill of the photographer!
Do you have editing questions? Shoot me an email or comment below!
