Some photographers think this is where the fun begins. Some think this is where it ends. To me this is the greatest challenge in photography. This is the place your artistry, talent, and knowledge combine to skillfully create the best possible photo you can produce. It is a process.
As an under graduate student we would debate and question whether photography was an art. At that time I was not sure if it should be considered an art, but I was unwilling to say it wasn’t an art. Now, five decades later, I know that photography is an art. The process I use as a painter commission portrait is a little different that the process I use as a photographer. Painting is a continual process of painting and reflection. When the painting stops, I will just look at the painting for a time. My mind is visually analyzing and criticizing, asking what do we do now? I say of this reflection period that the painting will tell me what to do. When It does, I start painting again. This process continues until the painting is finished. As the photographer, I wander around with a camera and a pack of supplies that may be needed until a visually interesting image arrests the eye. Out comes the camera and whatever else is needed. I take the shots and then wander off to find the next inspiring visual image. This safari continues until it is time to go home. At some point I transfer the images to the computer and start working to find and produce the right visual images as the final product.
Photo-editing software gives the photographer the opportunity to work with the images in three different ways. Enhancing a photo. Adjusting several elements of a photo. Finally applying special effects to the photo.
Enhancement
Enhancement is a basic fix that takes care of a problem in one click of a button. For example one click enhancement is a program with predetermined settings for color, brightness, contrast, and focus with one click. The removing of red eye from people is another basic fix. Cropping is a very important fix. Best left to a later time in the process. It can improve the placement of form to create a better composition for the image.
Adjustment
Adjustment of several elements of the image give the photographer the opportunity to use use his perception to introduce drama and emotion into the visual image. Increasing brightness or decreasing brightness can introduce an element of tension or emotion to the image. Increasing or decreasing contrast can modify the feel of the picture as a whole or call attention to a certain area. Altering colors can improve an image. Changing the hue of color can soften an area or make it bolder. Blurring or Sharpening an image can add importance to one area over another. These adjustments give the photographer an enormous amount of artistic freedom.
Effects
The pencil drawing effect is startling. I am reminded of the Camera Obscura that has been around for over two thousand years. Embossing is another effect that is sometimes used. The sepia gray scale is reminiscent of the sepia prints of early photography. The mirror image gives you a reverse image. The black and white allows you to increase or decrease the effect of each color independently. This effect can have a momentous impact on an image. Give a photo an oil painting effect or Watercolor painting. Add or take away a film grain effect on some photos.