There are currently over 280,000 graphic designers in the United States and learning photo editing is a crucial piece of the job. The image editing world may seem complicated, as the tools have been around for quite some time. It may feel as if there’s no real way to figure out where to start.
Don’t fret, because, with this introductory guide, you’ll know everything you need to, to get yourself off your feet with photo editing.
Exposure
There are three components to exposure: aperture, shutter speed, and ISO. Exposure helps bring out details in extremely bright areas.
A key way to know if you’re “over-exposing” the image with a photo editor is if you start to notice bright areas losing detail. These bright areas also tend to take away from the rest of the photo.
If you find the background is too bright and it doesn’t matter what exposure you set it at, then you’re going to want to try and make background transparent.
Contrast
Contrast tends to focus on the opposite, areas that are extremely dark. Getting the correct contrast helps highlight the main area of the photo and makes it shine.
Without proper contrast, your image tends to look soft and almost outdated. This is because it lacks dimension because the blacks of the photo aren’t dark enough and start to look like they were almost edited in.
Color Correction
Color correction refers to problems where the camera made the other colors different from how they actually appear in real life. So if someone’s eyes tend to look a little gray or of their hair more silver than blonde in a photo, you’ll want to use color correction to help correct this.
If you’re using a program such as Adobe Photoshop, there are automatic options that tackle the color adjustments for you. If not, you’ll need to work with the darkest and the lightest portion of the photo. The lightest portion of the photo is known as the “highlights” while the darkest portion doesn’t necessarily have a name.
Brightness
The simplest of the adjustments you’ll need to make is brightness. The main adjustment tools in photo editing tend to focus on the entirety of the photo, but there are certain tools you can use to only brighten up certain areas. Keep in mind that you may need to correct exposure after you’ve brightened a photo.
Photo Editing Doesn’t Have To Be Hard
Photo editing software has a lot of tools, but that doesn’t mean photo editing has to be hard. Start with these simple areas until you get the hang of it, and then you can start moving onto more difficult projects. Soon enough, you’ll be joining the thousands of graphic designers out there with highly competitive skills.
If you want to learn more about photo editing, then be sure to check out the rest of the blog. Know someone interested in getting into photography? Share this article with them so they can master photo editing at the same time.