Photoshop How To

Some photographers think all that’s involved is a decision to frame a scene in either a vertical or horizontal orientation. But as you’ll see in the tutorial below, there’s much more that factors into the equation. One is creative cropping, and another is whether to modify the native aspect ratio of the camera you use—which varies from one model to another.

Most Shutterbug readers are familiar with a Photoshop feature that automatically detects and creates a mask for an object, thanks to the tutorials we’ve posted in the past. But that capability pales in comparison to a “hidden” masking tool that you’ll learn how to use below.

This tutorial is about a common image-killing editing error that you may be guilty of yourself, and demonstrates how easy it is to fix. It’s all about using the wrong Lightroom slider for certain simple tasks when there’s a better approach that’s just as easy to implement

Over the years we've discussed why some photographs are more compelling when converted to b&w and how some processing methods are more complicated than others. And this holds true for landscape scenes, portrait photos, nature images, and other popular genres.

One key challenge when processing our images is to achieve maximum dynamic range to enhance details in shadows, highlights, and everything in between. This is important with color images and perhaps even more critical when processing b&w photos for maximum impact.

One of the challenges facing landscape photographers is dealing with the wide range of tones from deep shadows to bright highlights that often exist in outdoor scenes. With this broad dynamic range, high-contrast edges are very common.

Something interesting happens when it comes to using our photo gear. On the one hand, most photographers calmly and eagerly familiarize themselves with everything their camera can do. But when it’s time to learn even the most basic flash techniques, fear often sets in.