Post processing. It’s something that is always hated in the beginning, but eventually loved, as one learns how to use the tools. Some just never seem to be friends with it ever. So what is all the hype with it anyways? Can’t we just press the shutter button and then display the result without needing to make any changes? Well….yes and no. Sometimes the shot we get out of the camera needs nothing done to it as it is perfect the way it was captured.

An example of this would be this shot I took of a new leaf. All I had to do was compose the right shot with the right settings and everything else was taken care of for me. Sure I pulled it into Lightroom to try and tweak it a bit but everything I tried didn’t seem to add anything to it, so I just left it as is. I didn’t even change the exposure.

Leaf

A good example as to why post processing is important is this next photo:

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To me this photo looks like just a mere snapshot with over exposed areas and a few harsh shadows on the left. The composition works, but there’s nothing that really stands out to me that leaves me with not remembering this shot for more than a few minutes after viewing it never to return. Because in this shot I wanted to focus more on details of the stairs and the railing of the bridge, I decided that some work needed to be done if I wanted to at least try to make an impression and to be able to remember the photo.

Here is the outcome:

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As you can now see the harsh shadows on the left are no longer a distraction and the brightness of the stairs are replaced by a much more appealing view of the details of the stonework. Now the viewer is more focused on path that is set before them, a trip over the bridge into the unknown, rather than a snapshot that tries to express the purpose of this photo, but falls a bit short. Color may have worked, but I would have found the trees a little distracting as the main subject I wanted to portray in this work was the stairs and bridge rather than the surrounding area.

Happy shooting!

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Why Post Processing May be Important

/ Justin Avery / 13 Comments

13 thoughts on “Why Post Processing May be Important”

    • No problem Lilka. I am happy that I can help you out in any way. I enjoy posting little tid bits of information like this from time to time. I’m hoping to be able to possibly make it a weekly thing if I can find the time, but I have found when I make commitments, then I have a harder time meeting them. So for now I’m just creating these posts as I am able to.

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  3. I love post processing. As long as it is not overdone. But having said that, I am often accused of overdoing it. But, I am trying to make a point. Maybe I should learn subtlety! I love your work! Post processed or not!

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    • Thanks Emilio! I believe that there is no such thing as over doing it, just a persons taste or opinion. I don’t think a photographer’s style should be dictated by what other’s think because if it is, then it’s no longer their own work. When it comes down to it you need to ask yourself, are you doing this for you or for others? If you are trying to run a business then you will need to care what others think, but if not, then who cares? I photograph for me. I choose to share with others whether they like it or not.

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        • For what it’s worth, for my tastes, I don’t find your work to be over processed. I think it is done in a nice way that portrays what you want the photo to be. I’ve seen other’s work that I consider over processed far greater than your’s. But then again, that’s just my opinion.

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          • Thanks, again. There have been one or two that I’ve experimented with to achieve a certain effect. But it’s funny that the one that is probably the most processed, nobody noticed. Maybe because it did look so natural.

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