The Importance of Post-Processing (and why the photo isn't done after you press the shutter button)

A lot of people think that a photographer's job is done after the click of the shutter button. This couldn't be farther from the truth. The fact is, there is still much work to be done...enter "Post-Processing".

There is no doubt that the cameras of today are pretty darn good. The can meter a scene and get your exposure pretty darn close to what it needs to be. For the everyday person, it's good enough. For us photographers it's not quite there.

Let's look at a photo you might take when you are on vacation at say....Disney World.

The shot above is not a bad shot. I really like it...but of course it's mine.

Point being, a lot of people look at it straight out of camera and think "Hey that's pretty good". Well...yes and no. If you haven't seen the photos in a while or if you're the average person just taking photos, it probably is "good enough". For my fellow photographers out there...it needs help.

Here is the same photo a few min later after  a little work in Photoshop.

Ahhhh yes, this is much better. Sometimes a little work in Photoshop is all the difference you need.

So, as you can see, even your vacation shots can do with a little touching up.

How about we also look at some portrait work?

Here is an image I recently took of a dancer, straight out of camera.

Again, a lot of people would be ecstatic to get an image like this. Sure my softbox is sticking into the frame a bit, but we can crop that out.

To me, the looks great, but there is much more we can do. Here is the list of what I did:

  • Straightened the image

  • Cloned out the rest of the sofbox

  • Toned down the highlights

  • Added some warmth to the skin tones

  • Selective burning on the shadows

  • Added some overall warmth on the photo

Here is the final image I came up with

I don't know about you, but seems to me that it looks much nicer.

This is why it's important to not just accept what comes out of the camera. You can always make small changes that make a big impact. Take the time and do it right...especially when you're doing them for clients.

I know I owe it to my clients to give them the best images I can, and that's precisely what I do.

So the next time you are wondering "why does it take so long to get my photos back?". Just remember that I am sitting at my computer for hours after the shoot bringing out the very best for you.

That's all for now, if you have questions, you can certainly get a hold of me.