Railfan Technology > Using Photo Shop To Improve Photos Esp RAW Files

I have doing some shooting in RAW and am now trying to learn how to process photos. Please take a look at this thread where I went back and did a second run over my photos to try to improve them. http://www.trainorders.com/discussion/read.php?1,3479890

Both versions are photoshopped but the 2nd versions are the second time through, using instructions found via a search engine.

Please share your critiques and helpful tips for editing RAW files.

Thx.

Slider

I don't have any particular tips but, I just started using it more and more until I became comfortable with it. I now shoot 100% RAW and use Bridge to browse and edit and Adobe Camera Raw to process into jpg's. Photoshop (CS5) is used for any retouching and final touchup.

Keep practicing!
John

FrensicPic Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> I don't have any particular tips but, I just
> started using it more and more until I became
> comfortable with it. I now shoot 100% RAW and use
> Bridge to browse and edit and Adobe Camera Raw to
> process into jpg's. Photoshop (CS5) is used for
> any retouching and final touchup.
>
> Keep practicing!
> John


Thanks John. Yes, I should say that I am using Camera Raw to edit these photos. Which variables to you most often edit?

Slider,
I'll start off with white balance, either the Auto or As Shot preset. If there is a good neutral (gray) in the scene I'll eyedropper it to see how that works. Many times "As Shot" seems to work best. The the presets for Daylight, cloudy, etc. do not produce good results in my opinion. For exposure, contrast, etc. I'll start with Auto (yea, I know all the opinions on Auto) for a STARTING point. From there, I'll work my down the panel starting with exposure and recovery and on through.

I do use Spot Removal as needed (mainly for dirt on the sensor)and some cropping (most cropping I do in Photoshop. One feature I really like and use frequently is Lens Corrections - Manual tab to correct the perspective in buildings, signs, rotate the image, etc.

Just some random thoughts here...

1. I'd start by making sure that my monitor was calibrated. It takes a little gizmo (colorimeter) and some software. A calibrated monitor will show colors and dynamic range in a standardized manner... Hopefully everyone else has their monitor calibrated ;-)

2. IMHO, there are several reasons for RAW vs JPEGS that come out of the camera:

a. Better dynamic range from RAW. The guys who spent months slaving over the software (firmware) in the camera to render decent jpegs from the camera's RAW sensor never get it right for our subject matter (but they do get it right for grandkids...) I'm better off taking pains to expose shots so that are well-exposed -- no tails from the histogram getting cut off on either side of the graph. At the worst, expose for the highlights and pray for the shadows (Ansel Adams, I believe). Heh! If you are really editing a RAW image, you are editing in 16 bits (or better)

b. A RAW image is better scaled (resized) than is a jpeg out of the camera: less 'jaggies.'


3. It goes without saying, but shoot sRGB, and process sRGB.

4. Color / saturation are a personal thing: suit yourself.

... and have some fun when you're out snapping away :-)

John.

Your second attempts are consistently better. Colors are more saturated and cleaner looking.

The shots need more contrast. The best one are the first series of the UP train, but it may be unlevel just a hair CW. But the contrast is noticeably lacking.

thx folks. Some good tips there.