How much editing is acceptable?

[AndyMulhearn]

Re: How much editing is acceptable?

Perhaps I should have used the word "adjustments" rather than manipulations. All what I would like to know is "how much is acceptable" for a reasonable skilled photographer (certainly not me!), to adjust images. I am not refering to say wedding photography and similar where one has to go for the best possible result/s.

Oh, that's where I've been going wrong. I should stop wasting my time trying to turn out the best quality photograph of a bird that I can because it's not a wedding.

[Nathaniel]

Re: How much editing is acceptable?

I don't think "careless" can be construed as "offensive" in anyway- quite a different interpretation to what I know that the word means! I myself am much more relaxed when I set my camera to shoot in RAW & Jpeg for any special event- i.e a one off event. As I have the image in RAW I know I can make mistakes and correct the image later on in PP.. This is what I mean by being "careless"!

[AndyMulhearn]

Re: How much editing is acceptable?

A dictionary definition of careless that I've just looked up is "not giving sufficient attention or thought to avoiding harm or errors." If you didn't mean that, don't say it.

[Nathaniel]

Re: How much editing is acceptable?

Oh, that's where I've been going wrong. I should stop wasting my time trying to turn out the best quality photograph of a bird that I can because it's not a wedding.

That is your choice. We live in a free world. I personally will not bother with a "bird"!

[Nathaniel]

Re: How much editing is acceptable?

A dictionary definition of careless that I've just looked up is "not giving sufficient attention or thought to avoiding harm or errors." If you didn't mean that, don't say it.

I can agree with that 100%. Perhaps being "relaxed" ,(as I have the comfort of the RAW image), would also ensure that I need not perhaps give sufficient attention to prevent/avoid any errors.

[Paulstw]

Re: How much editing is acceptable?

Nat, I've noticed over several posts now over the last few months that you seem to be having issue with post processing as if it's some sort of witchcraft. Using in camera jpgs SOOC or editing a RAW file later is user preference.

I for one, prefer to shoot JPG, balance my exposure in the football and then crop, edit and upload after or during the game for speed, however, I will shoot RAW for everything else to maximise the impact of the flat RAW file.

Trying to get everything right in camera is something the pro's tell students to keep them away from the secret that they are nearly using every plugin and preset under the sun. Colin Prior is a classic example of this. Panoramic stitching using a telephoto lens. Tell me you can do that in camera?

Shooting RAW has a more important implication that nearly everyone forgets about. Say you take a nice picture, and loads of people steal it. How are you mean to prove that you took it? You don't have the RAW file, the negative if you will. Anyone can change exif data, but if it's embedded in a RAW file then proof is there.

You don't create an image with the press of a shutter release. There's a beginning a middle and an end. Planning, capture and edit. Editing is like cooking, add ingredients to taste, and not everyone will like your soup, but if you do then be happy.

[Woolley]

Re: How much editing is acceptable?

Definitely not 'careless' or 'relaxed' about RAW. I shoot to get it as right as possible in the first place so that very little needs doing to the final file.

However, the difference between RAW processing and jpeg is that in the latter the camera makes the decisions and in the former I do. Sometimes the RAW is shot with the final adjustments (B&W for instance) in mind and I shoot to enable that, but the initial shoot is still carefully thought out.

By adjustments, I simply mean black/white points, any fill in light, the amount of sharpening I want that I feel is appropriate for the image and colour saturation. All the sort of thing you would do with prints if you were doing them yourself rather than leaving it to the processing shop who simply take an average.

[Nathaniel]

Re: How much editing is acceptable?

Paul,
I have no phobia or anything like that with RAW images and PP. All what I am trying to find out,for my own satisfaction, is how much editing should an average photographer like me,aim for. The bottom line is that the picture should look nice and pleasing to the eye, and as close to the image that I saw and photographed. This means no blue skies where it was dark and dreary, no sun where it was all shadows. I hope I am not asking for too much.

[planetc]

Re: How much editing is acceptable?

Nat, it's also something to consider that shooting raw and post processing is no different to shooting jpeg and adjusting camera settings. The only difference is that you are processing in the camera, according to how it is set up, instead of out of the camera.

[antoeknee]

Re: How much editing is acceptable?

Well you've certainly opened a can of worms Nat.

If you're shooting Jpeg then depending on how the camera is set up there is a lot of 'manipulation' being done in camera. Shooting RAW means that changes, if required, are decided by you and of course more scope for rescuing an image compared to jpeg.

Personally I shoot RAW but still try to get the image I want at the time of composition and I'm sure that's the case for most people.

As to whether you shoot jpeg or raw and how much pp is done is up to the individual and we shouldn't get too wound up about it.

[Dave s]

Re: How much editing is acceptable?

Nat im quite perplexed regarding your statement about being relaxed or careless when shooting raw that's one thing that has never even entered my mind ,as others have said i use raw to capture as much detail and get as much right within that detail as possible to develop at a later stage. can't see how that can be described as relaxed or careless.
One more point if we take your lion picture which is a decent shot, do you think if it had been taken in raw and been developed in Lightroom or Photoshop it could be made in to an even better photo? In my humble opinion i do.

[the black fox]

Re: How much editing is acceptable?

nat as i consider myself a personal friend now ,i hope you take this the right way .i feel that your using this to back up your own viewpoint/laziness on using j.peg rather than spending your time editing raw files ,it might even be lack of skill or the right software thats causing the glitch in your system i can't quiet fathom it out .for the last 5 + years i have shot solely in raw and over that time advanced my editing skills in line with that ,yes i still make cock ups we all do ,but i don't brood on it tomorrows another day .
if in this case as a for instance you go to my photo of the mandarin duck on the grass shown here
one of the welsh wombles by blackfox wildlife and nature imaging, on Flickr

the original shot has been cropped in to a square format ,it has been tastefully i hope enhanced in colour and saturation there was a OOF duck behind and another in front that have been cloned out as well ,again i hope tastefully to enhance the impact of the subject ,the subject is the picture imho .
i have also layered the bird into a separate layer and applied noise reduction to the background layer only then sharpened the bird only again to give it impact .
the whole processing took me around five minutes start to finish and although i took around 300 shots of one bird yesterday morning i won't use them all so that five minutes on a choice one is worth doing .and that is the whole crux of it really i know i will NOT use all my shots around 95% will be slowly deleted till i,m just left with the cream ,i shoot solely for pleasure competing does not come into the equation so whats the harm .
i will shortly upload the j/peg original file for the above shot make your own mind up
here you go a j/peg as your advocating to ,MILORDS I REST MY CASE
664O8848 by blackfox wildlife and nature imaging, on Flickr

[Stan]

Re: How much editing is acceptable?

nat as i consider myself a personal friend now ,i hope you take this the right way .i feel that your using this to back up your own viewpoint/laziness on using j.peg rather than spending your time editing raw files ,it might even be lack of skill or the right software thats causing the glitch in your system

well I am very glad someone has said - just what I was thinking but I had no wish to cause and upset, not knowing Nat well

Stan

[Parsen66]

Re: How much editing is acceptable?

Crikey!

Although I am of the view of all those that are in favour or RAW over jpeg, I will not duplicate or repeat what have already been said.

As much as I love to go out and take pictures, I equally love to get those home into my Mac and imported in LR so that I can 'see' them properly, not on the small 3" screen. From here I can delete (most are!) or choose to adjust or 'reshoot' them using all of the tools available. Taking pictures is an art form and in my opinion so is adjusting them to suit my personal tastes.

I want others to like my pictures but more importantly I want to like them too.

In answer to your original post Nat, if you like them out of camera then great. If you don't feel the need or desire to have a tinker then equally great.

[Paulstw]

Re: How much editing is acceptable?

Nat a reflection of what you saw by way of in camera processing or editing later is all anyone can ever hope to achieve. Our memory for the given scene might be a little jaded by the time we get back to the computer though lol. I actually prefer the LCD jog render most of the time. You upload to LR and then it's gone lol