Part of the art of digial photography is post-processing. Instead of having to go to a darkroom and work with smelly liquids and expensive materials, the joy of “developing” can now take place in front of a computer. I love this part of photography. I like to take an image straight off of camera (SOOC) and play up its strengths by toying with contrasts, colors and screen effects. This is very time consuming… if you give each photo the attention it deserves, it could be anywhere from 5 to 20 minutes per photo…if you take 900 pics at a wedding, you do the math….
Anyway, that is where Photoshop Actions come in handy. They are previously recorded “actions” that with a click of a mouse, you can run on a photo. Here are some examples. I recently purchased Totally Rad Actions . I didn’t have much time the other night, but I put them to work on a few of Tisha’s Extreme Bridal photos.
Here is the picture SOOC, but with a bit of a contrast kick with curves. (Standard routine for photos).
Here it is with the two actions called Grunge and Magic Glasses:
This is with the Technicolor Dream World (without glow) and a soft light screen.
Which one do you like better?
Here are a few more:
SOOC
This is with Oh Snap! action and Techicolor Dream World.
This one is my preferred effect. The name says it all: Grunge Rock
Anyway…actions are all about using the strengths of Photoshop to harness the strengths of original photograph…all while saving the photographer time.
