Many times, photographers are asked to pull rabbits out of their hats, so to speak. They are expected to get the definitive shot, of any given situation, at any given moment. Usually because of limited budget and time constraints photographs are usually taken in a “now or never” scenario.
In the past, when dealing with film, the photographer had to get the best shot he could with the limitations at hand and hopefully the client would understand the predicament posed upon the photographer.
With the advent of digital photography, there are a myriad of helpful solutions available. Photoshop has been a “God send” for me. You can be less than perfect with an original photograph and through the aid of these image programs, make it into a masterpiece.
In the days of film, about the only thing you could do to salvage a photograph (particularly black and white) would be at the time of printing it in a darkroom. There was / is a technique called “solarization”, which would occur as you flipped on the darkroom light for a moment. The silver in the print paper would do some wild things. Unfortunately, this process was usually non repetitive, meaning that the results would vary from print to print, making it impossible to recreate it over and over. That was basically it! With digital, you are limited, only, by your imagination.
The 2 images represent one of those situations where I had to make lemonade out of lemons. I had to take a photograph of a courtyard and the weather was not cooperating at all. Although the weather was very overcast and the scent was dark and grey, the client wanted something bright and colorful, of course.
The image on the left was a straight image out of the camera and the image on the right is a enhanced image through the use of Photoshop techniques. As you can see, the image on the right almost looks like it was a nice day, although it was dark and grey. With a few adjustments to the “levels” and some color saturation, the image turned out as good as it could given the circumstances. The client liked it and it was a successful shoot.
If you’re shooting for money, or are thinking of doing so, I would recommend acquiring a program like Photoshop. There are a few out there, check them out and purchase the one that fits you the best.
Good Shooting!
