The Wonders of Photoshop

I used to be really snobby about photoshopping photos. I used to think, well, that’s not how it really looks, why should I make it look prettier or different from what it is? But photography is an art, and photoshop is an artist’s tool.

I still try not to play with it too heavily unless I’m doing a certain type of project, but photoshop and other photo editing software can come in very handy. Here are some before-and-after shots edited with Lightroom and photoshop, (left is before, right is after).

Here I changed the colour temperature to make the pink in this plant pop a little more, and to make the greens match what I saw in real life.

Playing around with 'shadows' and 'blacks' made this photo more interesting.

I liked the original, but some experimenting gave me this bluer, colder image, and I liked the ethereal quality of it more.

Exposure adjustment made this photo go from boring to interesting.

By adjusting the 'highlights' and 'shadows', this photo achieved an HDR effect that really enhanced all the details and textures.

I loved this photo, but I found the presence and glare of the sign and mail slot to detract from the overall antique effect of the doors, so I photoshopped them away. 

These are just some examples of how photo editing software can be used to enhance the photo you take to match your vision or aesthetic. Still, photoshop can't do everything; it's important to take a good photograph.