Wahawk Loc: NE IA

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jadeast Loc: Virginia

Some of the images I create are diificult if not impossible to create any other way so I'm thinking of the PP process before I press the shutter release.

MtnMan Loc: ID

I agree.

I also don't beleive there is anything wrong with seeking to get the best composition and rendering in-camera as you possibly can. Seeking to contrast that with post processing strikes me as a false argument. It is probably actually a logical fallicy but I don't know the right word for it.

One of the first things I do with many pictures is crop them. That is sometimes to overcome the limitation of the fixed format ratios the camera designers have selected and the limitations of the lens I have selected for that particular shot. With wildlife I am often cropping to increase "magnification". With other scenes just to get a better selection by trying alternatives.

I also take landscapes. Many (some suggest more and more as we continue to pollute our air) are troubled by haze. Much of my post processing works towards reducing haze.

Then there are other more interesting and fun things such as creating panoramas, selective sharpening, and dodging or burning to bring the viewers attention where you want it and remove distractions or to increase the dynamic range of the photograph to better approximate what the human eye can see (and today's cameras can't yet).

The last thing is usually some amount of sharpening. Many pics improve with some post sharpening. I suppose I could crank up the in-camera sharpening but so far haven't explored that.

I suspect the "purist" claim might sometimes be an excuse to not learn. I have compassion for what they are missing by this self delusion. But I respect their right to delude themselves if they wish.

outsider Loc: Antelope Valley, California

I use to shoot film and because of that I was forced to pay strict attention to all aspects of photography. I had to take notes or remember the shooting conditions to understand why my exposures were coming out they way they were. Back then you didn't have a Lcd screen on the back of your camera to see if the exposure came out the way you wanted it to. You had to take all your experience and knowledge and apply it to every exposure. Because of that experience with film I now apply it to digital and I am able to spend minimal time processing images on the computer and more time out in the field or doing what ever I want. If you take the time and get the white balance, contrast, saturation, exposure, and composition right you won't need to do much post processing and at the same time you'll learn about photography all by yourself and be able to share that knowledge with others. It really isn't that hard, it just takes some time.

jimni2001 Loc: Sierra Vista, Arizona, USA

I agree with everything you said but, I shoot mostly landscape type scenes and I shoot everything in the raw mode which has to be processed to even be viewed. I also enjoy the processing as much as I did darkroom work before digital.

Mudshark Loc: Illinois

First...this topic is beat to death.
Second...if you shoot digital and you can see the image with human eyes it has been post processed somewhere.
Third...who cares? If you want to shoot without any further manipulation that is certainly your choice. I might add, it is a fine thing to attempt. It forces you, just as the view cameras once did, to really think about every shot.
Fourth...those of us who do this to eat can not be bothered with such. Our goal is to provide the image desired by our clients in the most efficient manner possible and collect the money...

Harvey Loc: Pioneer, CA

Reading all these posts brings me back to why I "LOVE" digital editing in my case photoshop. I stated befor how I sat in 8 yrs (once a month) of contest nights with live pro judges - they rotated so maybe once a year you would get a retuning judge. Well when they would be doing thier C&C I kept hearing them say " If you had your own dark room you could do this or that to improve the photo" then in '99 I saw my first demo of photoshop & I was hooked - I could do "ALL" those things that one could do with thier dark room but without the big $$$ and time involved.
Now I could darken bright distracting spots, remove limbs and trash - ya powerlines LOL - I started with Arcsoft that came with my cheapy Vivitar and moved up thru PS - I now use
PS7 & CS4 and like most have said - a little sharpening, light & contrast adjustments do a whole lot for almost evey shot.

FLandWVMIKE Loc: Daytona Beach, Fla.

To us, who shot with film, for fifty years and did our composing with the camera, we really had pride in that rare shot, when everything just came out perfect. These photos remain in our mind forever.
I just do not think that you can feel that same satisfaction in a photo that you manipulated with the computer.

Harvey Loc: Pioneer, CA

I feel that way because I get so many nature shoot it now or it's gone - shots that would have had to dump because of lighting or "trash" in the image. Intill one has used just three tools -clone, brightnes/contrast and shadow/highlights one cannot truly understand the miricles of PP.

oldmalky Loc: West Midlands,England.

The word purist keeps popping up and always by the ones who love their PP but to say im deluding myself because i dont use PP to the degree that a great many on here do is foolish because for one i do try to use it but only in a small way and you could always recognise the place i have photographed because it looks just like the photo.

outsider Loc: Antelope Valley, California

Don't get me wrong, I do post process and I love the digital darkroom. I just think some have the attitude, "It doesn't matter if I get it right, I'll just correct it in Photoshop". I just think you don't learn much doing photography that way. You learn a lot about Photoshop or whatever program you use but the finer aspects of photography are lost. I'd rather enhance an exposure in Photoshop than fix it. I wouldn't consider myself a very good photographer if I always had to fix my exposures for lack of paying attention or desire to improve myself or my work. Post processing should be used for enhancing your work more than fixing it.

henrycrafter Loc: Orem Utah

I carefully construct the images that I make.
My perceprion is that digital editing has actually become a new art form based on photography.
I use this art form extensively to create pictures that I like.
Again let me state that there is no "end all be all" in our art.
So let each of us use that which most appeals to us and to our public and customers.
Remember Keep Shooting!

2x25mpg Loc: Long Island NY

Why can't they make it easy and simple so the rest of us can understand it? ??

steve40 Loc: Asheville/Canton, NC, USA

As far as post processing goes, it all depends on how you determine what that entails. If you are talking extreme manipulation, like making an image that never existed from layering several others together. This goes a little beyond post processing to creative art, which in my personal opinion; is no longer photography.

Now I have stated on several occasions, I have never seen an image from ANY digital camera, that could not be improved by some post processing. I don’t care who the photographer is, or what kind of camera it is. Anyone that makes the statement “I never post process”, is either pulling your chain (lying), or using images of less then optimal quality.

If the industry ever produces a digital camera, that can take prefect images. If I could afford it, would be the first in line to buy one. But since I could not afford it, and they will never make that camera; even if they could. I will depend on post processing to overcome to some extent, the shortcomings of my cameras.

And in the meantime, I will attempt to get the best from my cameras, they can give. By concentrating on composition, good exposure, and understanding my cameras to the best of my abilities. By doing this, you will get a much higher percentage of images, that just need a little touch of post processing here and there.

Mudshark Loc: Illinois

Do you understand women? When you get them figured out...perhaps you can start on computer technology...