PHOTO HELP
Need to Edit Photos?
Of Course !
Try GIMP acclaimed to be as good as Adobe Photoshop and its FREE and works on Windows, Linux and MAC platforms.
Need Scalable Vector Graphics
Inkscape is a FREE editor similar to Illustrator, Freehand, CorelDraw, or Xara X. Features include shapes, paths, text, markers, clones, alpha blending, transforms, gradients, patterns, and grouping; plus meta-data, node editing, layers, complex path operations, bitmap tracing, text-on-path, flowed text, and direct XML editing. It imports raster formats and exports PNG and multiple vector-based formats.
Digital photography is fantastic, but most people only use half its capability. They take hundreds of pictures, no longer worrying about the cost to develop and print images that they don't want, which is the first rule for successful photo journalism, but they never edit their collection, which is the second and more important rule.
Editing has two tasks. First, scan your collection and delete obviously bad images. If you have been clicking away, not everything is a keeper. Get rid of them; don't think about sharing them. When you share garbage, people get the wrong idea of your skill. Next, discard those pictures that don't contribute to your story or have no secondary secret worth. Your friends have seen themselves in thousands of photos. It is very unlikely you have something new. Also, the world probably already has many scenic shots of that hill. So if it doesn't fit; don't commit.
Second, get out that computer and your photo editing software. Almost every snapshot can be improved with simple editing to crop extraneous content that distracts from the topic of the photo or to reformat it according to the rule of thirds.
Most snapshots are improperly exposed. "Point and shot" cameras average the lighting. Unusually bright or dark regions in your composition incorrectly shifts the camera settings. Your software lets you lighten, darken, or adjust contrast. Use it. Some pictures may have complex lighting issues, requiring you to burn or dodge sections of your photo to balance the exposure. It's not that difficult to do, but does take a little more technique. Give it a try. You'll be pleased with the result. You may save images that you would otherwise have to discard.
Got a photo question? Mail to fogbees@gmail.com and will print the answer here.
