Comments on: Photoshop is not DIGITAL PHOTOGRAPHY

By: Tum Buckly

Tum Buckly — Tue, 06 Oct 2009 17:16:37 +0000

I was searching online and I found your site on google. Just finished reading a few of some of your other posts here. I’ve already added your site to my Google News Reader. Thanks for your good and educative posts and please keep up the good work as I look forward to reading more of your posts in the future.

By: jeff

jeff — Tue, 02 Dec 2008 03:14:31 +0000

A mighty AMEN to that Barry!

By: Barry Hillman

Barry Hillman — Mon, 01 Dec 2008 17:28:37 +0000

Too many beginner photographers become totally overwhelmed by the technology of photography and they quickly lose their way. Of course photographers have to understand the technology, but the amount of time spent learning the technical side should not be out of balance with the amount of time taking photographs. I think too many photographers have become slaves to technology. Let’s step away from the computer and stop trying to make the technically perfect image try to making a meaningful unique images in our camera.

By: Peter Dremstrup

Peter Dremstrup — Sat, 26 Jul 2008 23:00:12 +0000

I once recieved a book on digital photography at Christmas.. Only, when i opened up the book, all it said was 20 different ways to screw up your photos in photoshop (make a person look like Shrek, do a lightsaber, etc.). I went straight to the bookshop where it had been bought, and traded it in for a book on another subject, simply because i decided that buying books on photography at those kind of stores was a waste

By: Jason D. Moore Photography » Blog Archive » P&P Weekly: #86

Jason D. Moore Photography » Blog Archive » P&P Weekly: #86 — Mon, 21 Jul 2008 11:03:41 +0000

[...] Jeff of PhotoWalkPro – “Photoshop is not DIGITAL PHOTOGRAPHY“ [...]

By: John Larson

John Larson — Thu, 17 Jul 2008 13:56:43 +0000

Because many photographers see post-processing as an integral part of the journey, they shoot in RAW and set their Picture Control to “Neutral” (or its equivalent) and put settings such as sharpening, tone, saturation, etc. to “0″. This doesn’t mean that the capture phase isn’t primary. Taking a well-composed, well-exposed, well-focused (for whatever depth of field desired), etc. shot is fundamental. But Ansel Adams’ words about visualizing the final print include work done in the digital darkroom. Good photographers generally have a pretty good idea of “what” they will be doing in post-processing. In other words, post-processing is not primarily about “fixing” screw-ups; it is an essential stage of the creative journey.

By: Mike Noble

Mike Noble — Wed, 16 Jul 2008 17:21:27 +0000

I think that I have to take a slightly different view than has been posted. I believe that “processing” is part and parcel of photography. If you think about film photography, nothing would be visible without the processing – whether negative or transparency. Because our images are digital, we can see them before processing (RAW) or right after the camera does the processing. But a photograph is not finished until it has been processed. Just as Ansel Adams beautiful work was not finished until he made the print (with a lot of work and manipulation involved.) Hence, there is no photograph until that happens. Photography as a whole is art & science. Recording the image in the camera entails both – selecting the aperture, shutter speed, lighting, etc., is the science; composition, manipulating the lighting is the art. Same for processing. Understanding what Photoshop does and how Photoshop (or other software) does it, is the science. Creatively and effectively applying these tools is the art. The end result is photography.

Just my 2 cents. Great topic.

By: Mike Palmer

Mike Palmer — Wed, 16 Jul 2008 01:20:42 +0000

Mr. Myer , When ever your up for it, the Key Lime Martini’s at Coastal Flats are on me – well the first 2 each they are = ) Liquid Pie my Friend – and there is one at Tyson’s, so its about half way from Springfield and Potomac – and maybe we can get Jeff to glide up 66 from Manassas, if they are not hooking up his Fios that day. = )

Jeff, gotta say – great topic for comments – I think everyone made good points

By: Andrew

Andrew — Tue, 15 Jul 2008 20:04:30 +0000

It’s something that will be said even thought you specifically told us not to say it. Digital Processing IS part of Digital Photography! If you want to learn about flash and exposure, buy a regular photography book. One of the major selling points of digital cameras is the fact that the images can be easily manipulated and fixed afterwords using computer programs like… you guessed it… Photoshop! The RAW format available in high quality digital cameras is used precisely for that purpose.

And though you are right in assuming most people using digital cameras don’t bother with Photoshop and just take there photos to different outlets to be printed, you forget that these kinds of people aren’t the ones reading through Digital Photography books in the first place.

By: Eric

Eric — Tue, 15 Jul 2008 18:54:26 +0000

There’s still any number of books out there from the 35mm era which would cover exclusively what you’re looking for. There might be some info on film and darkroom techniques which are now obsolete, but I still have one or two old ones on my bookshelf which deal exclusively with “photography” as you’re defining it (They weren’t written for any audience that would have been doing their own darkroom work). I imagine newer ones are merely responding to the market, and covering the subjects audiences are demanding to be covered.

I look at photography as a three stage process. There’s everything you do before you snap the shutter, snapping the shutter, and then everything you do after you snap the shutter. I think it’s useful to study each separately. The art of setting up (or finding) a scene, using lighting, and everything else that happens outside a camera is one topic. The nuts and bolts mechanics of shutter speed, aperture, ISO, lenses, and optics is another topic. And post processing (be it Photoshop or a darkroom) is another.

The relative importance you ascribe to any of those three stages depends on the individual. Personally I like balance – I try to get the scene right, and use the right settings when I take the picture – but I’m not afraid (and see nothing wrong with) a little post production to make it better where necessary.