Friday, August 10, 2012

Editing changes a photo's story

A picture is worth a thousand words.
Napoleon Bonaparte

I agree with Napoleon. A picture IS worth a thousand words... but the best edited picture is probably worth TEN THOUSAND words! Vacation photos do more than just capture places and faces. They tell the story of the journey. With just a few photo edits, the story can be told a number of different ways. You decide how to tell it best.

Original Photo: We spent four, cold, windy hours exploring the Eiffel Tower. Here's an original photo of my son hamming it up for the camera. LOVE those rosey red cheeks! This picture is okay, but some cropping can improve it.





Option One: Crop the photo to pull him more into the picture and to eliminate some of his jacket. His face is a bit more prominent, but the photo still clearly shows the architecture of the Eiffel Tower.




Option Two: Centered in the photo, the structure of the Eiffel Tower still shows, but Mr. Smiley is the focus of the shot.




Option Three: Off-setting the subject in the photo allows both my son and the Eiffel Tower to be prominent. Cropping the photo so the angles of the structure are more prominent in the photo, they both can star.



Playing with photos to capture just the right feel is one of the greatest aspects of digital photography. Take your shot, then make it great with some simple cropping. Cut out "noise" from the background. Consider the "balance" you desire. Then, crop away. It can always be undone!

Of these four shots, I have a definite favorite. Care to guess which one? OR how about you tell me your favorite?

Join me at the Budget Travelers Sandbox for Travel Photo Thursday and learn great tips from other photographers! I'll see you there!

Happy travels!




15 comments:

Mommys Juice said...

Nice photo work & advice on how to make it work!

Karen Dawkins said...

Thanks! My favorite edit (which I won't disclose here) was actually selected for a store display. When they're done with it, I get a 16X20 canvas print to hang on the wall. HAPPY DAY! :)

Mitzi said...

Wonderful photos..and the edits are a wonderful way to show how you can change the focus. Good job!

Amy @mommetime said...

I love having the option of editing digital photos... especially cropping. I pick option 2.

mail4rosey said...

Two is my favorite. It's the perfect blend of your son and the great scenery.

We went to Paris when it was cold too, and I loved it. NO LINES for any of the tourist attractions was my favorite thing.

Family Travels on a Budget said...

Rosey,
Our only cold, blustery day was Eiffel Tower day. By the afternoon, the sun finally appeared and we warmed up. I got some great photos at Luxembourg Gardens without the jackets!

If I could redo the trip, I would make the Eiffel Tower a sunny day priority -- and rearrange the rest of the schedule to accommodate it. But, no rain though it was forecast every day, so I am NOT complaining!

Karen

www.babysleepconsulting.com said...

These are great Photo tips. I have so many photos that I think could be improved with these ideas.

Susan said...

I'm guessing #4, the last one...up close and personal.

Anonymous said...

You did a great job, love the editing of the pics!!

Nancie said...

I like them all. The last one if my favorite. Welcome to Travel Photo Thursday!

Family Travels on a Budget said...

Thanks, Nancie!

Brian said...

I'm a real stickler for closeups too. I like to see some background to get a feel of where you are but... Sometimes I see a photo, with a teenie, tiny ant-sized person at the bottom of the photo and it looks really pointless. Why not just leave the person out, and do all landscape. I try to balance to two when I am photographing people with a landscape background. I like to at least be able to see their eyes, I figure that is close enough to make them distinguishable in the image. Thanks for the great post.

Kristine said...

Thank you for the tips and I like what you did with the photos! I want to know more on traveling on a budget so I'm following you now in GFC. Thanks for sharing!

Family Travels on a Budget said...

Brian and Kristine,
Thanks for the follows!

Brian, I don't have a blogroll yet, but when I add one, I'll certainly add yours to it.

Thanks!
Karen

Epic said...

Thanks for the great tips, option 2 looks really good!
Cheers,
Char