21 July 2011

photo friday. ten. edits.

 (sooc = straight out of camera)

I'm typically a very conservative photo editor. I strive to get everything just right in camera, and I like that my photos can reflect exactly what I saw that was so important to capture. I like to call it “honest editing.” I'm not creating anything that wasn't there, or hiding flaws in my photography techniques.

Now, some people have other, less conservative editing styles that look really great. I'm not trying to say my way is better than theirs. We all have to find our own styles, and honest editing is mine. I just get a kick out of making my camera capture the exact quality of light, color, and sharpness I see with my eyes.

That being said, it can be fun to punch things up a bit sometimes. Hubs and I went for a long walk after dinner on our last date night. I brought along my other date—my camera. I took some shots as the sun was setting. I really liked the texture of the clouds, but was bummed that the sunset wasn't more colorful. So I took the photos into Lightroom and played with the temperature and color sliders. I could have gone much more colorful, but the clouds started to look artificial, and I wanted to keep them looking realistic. This next sun flare photo is pushing it a little:
But I do love that I was able to amp up that little bit of color on Mt. Hood. You know, I've looked at that mountain almost every day of my life, with the exception of my time away for college and our Army experiences (and really cloudy days—ha ha). I never ever get tired of it, and it always gives me a sense of calm and perspective.

Have a great weekend!