Tuesday, September 15, 2020

From Blah to Boffo

 


You have heard me sing the praises of Lightroom before, and this is one more example. Compare the Before image below to the main image above. They are the exact same RAW image, just improved greatly in Lightroom.

This was shot indoors at Longwood Gardens, so the lighting was soft and even. The beauty of these orchids was incredible, but the original RAW image here was really not exciting.


The bright spot in the background draws your attention away from the flowers. In addition, the background, even though very soft, is still distracting. So how was this image improved? It was pretty simple with just a few steps in Lightroom. The first step was cropping to eliminate the background issues. Then just a little tweaking of the Whites and Blacks, followed by a small reduction in Clarity (minus 22) to soften the flowers a bit more. I increased Vibrance a bit to punch the colors, and then used the Graduated Filter to darken the edges which added some drama. So in only 6 basic steps this image was transformed. 

The magic of Lightroom never ceases to amaze me. And it is quick and easy.

TECH SPECS  1/320 sec at ISO 800. LensBaby Sol 3.5 lens, 45mm on Canon 5D Mark III body. Handheld.

TODAY'S QUOTE: "A flower blooming in the desert proves to the world that adversity, no matter how great, can be overcome."  -- Matshona Dhliwayo   

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