Is That How Your Camera Took That Picture, or Did You Do Something to It?

I would venture that most photographers have been asked this question at one time.

Straight out of the camera or post processing is such a hot topic. In post processing, photos are downloaded from camera to computer, and using programs like Adobe's Lightroom or Photoshop, the photographer can edit the photo file. Some of the basic edits may include cropping, spot removal, sharpening, adjusting white balance, adjusting saturation, or reducing noise to name a few. Of course, there are many other more sophisticated edits that can completely change the photo.

Recently, I read where editors were requiring their photojournalists to submit only JPEG file format. This was to make sure that no tampering was done to the photo and it was the real deal. I get that. When you look at a photo in a news article, you want to see what really happened.

Steven and I try to get as much right in the camera when we shoot but we do post process. We usually make minor adjustments, like the ones listed above. Steven has a great reason why he post processes. He said that post processing allowed him to adjust the image to match what he saw in his mind. That is the artistic creative side.

Jennifer

Steven's picture, shown here, is a high key photo of me walking along a beach path.