Page 160 - (DK) Advanced Photography Guide

158 EXPLAINING | EDITING SOFTWARE

USING EDITING SOFTWARE

The software that you use to edit your photos is very much a personal choice. You can often
download a 30-day trial version of commercial software, which is enough time to find out
whether it suits the way you work. Many cameras also come with free software on a disk,
or available to download. Another option is open-source software, which is often inexpensive,
sometimes free, and can even rival commercial software in terms of features.

Global and local corrections SOFTWARE PLUG-INS

There are two broad types of corrections that you Some image adjustments involve several different steps
can make to a photo: global and local. A global and are time-consuming, but you can save time by using
correction is applied to the entire photo and affects presets to automate tasks, especially complex adjustments
each pixel in the image equally. A local correction is that you make regularly. Adobe Photoshop and Adobe
just made to a specific area of the photo. As a rule, Lightroom also support plug-ins. These third-party “mini
apps” are added to the software to increase specific editing
you should make global image corrections, such as capabilities, such as making black-and-white conversions
WB or exposure, first. Once you have done this, you easier. Plug-ins often use a custom interface that differs
can then start to fine-tune specific areas of the photo from the standard interface of the host software. This
that need extra work, using tools such as the dodging means you have to learn another way of working, but
and burning brushes. the time you save makes this worthwhile.

GRADUATED FILTER
Lightroom’s Graduated filter
lets you locally adjust exposure,
sharpness, and saturation.
Select the Graduated filter tool,
1 then click and drag the image
to add a gradient. You can add
multiple filters for different
2
adjustments. To remove one,
click on its pin and press delete.

1 You can rotate Graduated
filters, using the pin as
the rotation point. You
can also drag the pin to
move the filter around.

2 The two outer lines
of the Graduated filter
define the gradient.
Pulling the lines apart
softens the effect.

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