Being in the wedding photography business for a number of years now has made me realize that the world of photography isn’t only a talent but a skill that requires intricate craftsmanship and experience. It isn’t something that occurs overnight but years of exposure to perfect.
When it comes to covering weddings and carrying out bride and groom portrait sessions, there are a number of things that can totally attenuate the way a certain picture is clicked. And at the end of the day, it’s this that matters most. In case you haven’t guessed it by now, editing and retouching is what I’m referring to.
Retouching can be carried out in a number of different ways. Very few are good at perfecting the art of editing wedding photographs, giving an end result that’s seamlessly natural.
Below, I’ve outlined all the retouching styles I use when finalizing my wedding shoots. I feel the more clients get to know my style of working, the greater the bond they can form with their photographer.
Lightroom- Every wedding photographer’s retouching guide
When it comes to editing, I prefer to keep my photographs as natural as possible. It’s all about that finesse and immaculate skill that comes with experience of working in the wedding industry for a good number of years now.
Lightroom performs powerful yet less obvious edits that revolve around adjusting the white balance, contrast, color, brightness and exposure. But that’s not only. The software lets me perform a series of creative effects that include retouching, adjusting sharpness, noise reduction and adjustments in tone curve too.
I usually prefer to batch edit my wedding portrait as it’s not only a faster process but super effective too. I made sure the portraits are similar to one another in terms of retouching. Any couple would hate to look one way in a certain picture while being edited to look another in some other portrait.
Photoshop- A classic that never seems to get old
I usually don’t rely too heavily on Photoshop because I feel it can sometimes lead your portraits to appear too artificial and far from what the reality is. Remember, my focus has always revolved around giving couples photography that reflects the true nature of who they are as people and not what they imagine themselves to be. Other than that, Photoshop is very time consuming and requires a good chunk from your schedule just to get your images downloaded.
Splitting tones- Many couples can’t get enough of that traditional black and white photograph. This effect works to tint your picture’s shadows as well as highlights, giving you a seamless image that’s two toned. I love using this to retouch.
I strongly believe that hand editing makes all the difference in the world
Even if it takes me an hour or more, I believe that hand editing using software such as the Lightroom gives my pictures that extra edge over all others. I like to take my most favorite images and then copy the edit on to the pictures in the surrounding. I ensure my exposure is spot on as that makes a world of a difference.