Photoshop

Before

With group photos it's always hard to get everyone looking at the camera at once, let alone having their eyes open or smiling. In addition to people looking in different directions and not smiling, this photo is also missing one person as well as a very special front porch sign. When shooting this group photo, I had my camera set up on a tripod and took a series of about 5 photos. To get started with editing, I chose the photo that had the most people looking at the camera. 

This original photo was taken in the 1970's. Luckily there is not much restoration to be done other than reversing the yellowing affect. The photo also contains one person too many for a nice family photo. 

I love getting creative with holiday photos! This photo was taken specifically for a family Christmas card in a suburban backyard. The idea and final goal was to have it look like the family was out in the country camping. The busy background of trees, houses, and shrubbery was not ideal for this vision.

This product shot was shot and used for my thesis project which explored the techniques of commercial photography. Like the Christmas card above it, this image does not have the ideal background for its purpose. To get the proper lighting, I experimented with different flash settings. Unfortunately, the perfect lighting for the cup and fire created a large glare on the bottle. 

This image was also used in my exploration of commercial photography. As you can see, it has many obvious issues for a clean commercial product shot. For starters, the background is very busy and not the typical setting for a soccer scene. The cleats are also well worn with scuff marks. Because I was shooting in direct sunlight, I had an assist hold up a light diffuser which created a reflection in the soccer ball and two different shades of green in the grass.  

Photographing families is always fun but can prove difficult when you have a fussy toddler. This image was one of the best from the shoot but was lacking that 4th smile. In addition, there are a few technical tidy-ups such as straightening the horizon and removing the phantom tree branches in the top right corner. 

Environmental factors play a big role in the way an image will come out. The above photo was shot in a fitness studio under very warm lighting. Although the background and ceiling were white, the left wall was painted a very warm rust orange and the wooden floor reflected the warm lighting from above giving the photo a yellow glow.  

After

Because I had multiple photos to work with, I was able to take bits from each photo and merge them together to make sure everyone was looking at the camera and smiling. I also added in an additional person who was not present when the photo was taken. A few days later I recreated the lighting and shot a few images of the additional person and added them in as well. I also added in beloved porch sign that had been forgotten. With both additions, I played with temperature, focus, contrast, and lighting to get them to match the original photo's environment. 

To correct the yellowing image, I used color balancing as well as a cooling filter. I was able to eliminate the person in the back right side of the photo by reconstructing the tent seen in the background by using the cloning stamp. I also removed the cable seen in the bottom right hand corner that partially blocked a face. 

Here, I constructed the background with 3 separate photos that I took previously (moon, stars, and tree line). I eliminated the remaining trees to clean up the background so that the viewer's focus would only be on the family. To make it look like a night scene, I darkened the foreground, brightened the Christmas lights, and added a warm glow in and around the campfire.

To declutter the background, I replaced the trees and houses with a dark, cloudy sky from another photo which not only complimented the blues in the bottle also contrasted well with the orange in the fire. I then decided to darken the image down to make it look like dusk, the ideal time for a s'more. As a final touch, I added the bottle label from a duplicate image to remove the distracting glare. 

In the after shot, you can see that I removed the scuff marks, as well as the reflections in the soccer ball. I also cropped the image in so that the product was bigger inside of the frame. Like previous images, I removed the distracting background and replaced it with a simple sky. I also cloned the grass to make it all one shade. For a finishing touch, I boosted the contrast and saturation to make the bright colors pop. 

To begin fixing this image, I used the selection tool to select the horizon and level it out. I then moved on to crop the image to remove the extra space in the foreground and the phantom tree branches in the top right corner. Luckily, I had a great expression of the little girl from a previous shot and was able to cover up the grumpy pout to make this a Christmas card to remember.

The main edit to this photo was cooling it down. I wanted the overall temperature to match the cool blue/gray that you see in her shirt as well as the medicine ball. The coolness also give the photo a natural light vibe which plays well with the windows behind the subject which flood that back corner with beautiful light from outside.