Photography is fast growing into an essential job profile for various companies such as ad firms, ecommerce industries, fashion, marketing, etc. Also, the requirement is not limited to just clicking great pictures. Your job will also include the presentability of these pictures. Hence, photo-editing is equally essential as having an eye for clicking good images. The best way to edit photos is by using photo-editing software that allows you to change various features of your picture either manually or automatically.
One of the first steps of learning how to edit photos like a pro is to identify if a photograph is edited or not. This should be your target as a photographer or editor. However, to reach such proficiency you will first need to understand some critical points that will improve your photo-editing skills.
Image taken from Strikingly’s user website
Tips to Improve Your Photo-Editing Skills
If you seek to become the best photographers or editors, consider some of the basic photo editing tips suggested below.
1. Develop a Personal Style
The best way to edit photos is knowing that there’s no “right” way to edit photos. It is a subjective field where professional photographers follow unique techniques to edit their photos. Even some of the most experienced photographers play with their pictures to find the best shade or texture to represent their image. Hence, learning how to edit photos is not the same as developing photos, which follows definite steps.
The best way to edit photos is to play with the photograph, such as the vibrance and saturation of the colors, or stick to black and white photography. If you have a particular theme for a photoshoot and have requirements from your employer, you might need to adhere to their guidelines. In other cases, it depends on your style of photo editing. Some photographers have defined a style for themselves and have associated themselves with certain photo editing styles, such as dark and moody undertones.
You start identifying and defining your style by following famous photographers on social media and other photography portfolios. Identify critical changes and techniques that various photographers have, such as changes in composition or the photo’s look.
2. Take Advantage of Automatic Modes
The easiest or the best way to edit photos is by using preset filters or modes. These filters use advanced algorithms that combine various pre-set combinations for automatically post-processing images. These features can analyze an image and suggest changes that enhance some basic parameters of the picture, such as contrast, color balance, etc.
But one thing to remember here is that this is an automated process, and your photos can appear generic. The best way to learn how to edit photos like a pro is to adjust these features manually. Though it is time-consuming, it can give the image an authentic look while simultaneously improving your photo-editing skills.
Image taken from Strikingly’s user website
If you look at some of the most famous photographers, you will notice that most of their images are manually edited. However, it doesn't mean that auto-edited photos are not considered for commercial use. There are lots of platforms that have generic requirements. The best way to edit photos would be to use automatic modes and filters to be faster and less time-consuming.
3. Crop the Scene
Cropping is one of the essential skills to learn how to edit photos like a pro. Cropping a photograph is not just about making the image smaller than the original. It involves many aspects, such as removing the unwanted edges of an image and making the main subject of your photo take the frame’s focus. If you have just started learning how to edit photos, we suggest that you practice this skill thoroughly to make the difference between an average image and an award-winning image.
While cropping your images, you need to keep in mind the focus of your image. Think about what you want to highlight or want people to notice. It will take you some practice before you become an expert at cropping images perfectly. Just be sure to focus on the subject of the image before you start cutting your image.
4. Bring Colors to Life
Colour is critical to an image. Be it black and white or the entire spectrum of colors, maintaining a balance between them is key to making your photograph stand out among the rest. Some photographers use a lot of bright colors, while others stick to darker hues in their pictures. Regardless of your style, adjusting colours will make your photos look more professional.
Image taken from Strikingly’s user website
There are many tools for doing this. You can generally adjust features like contrast, saturation, and vibrance in most photo editing programs. If you’re clicking pictures in the RAW format, adding contrast will be the first step in adding dimension to the image
5. Adjust the White Balance
The white balance is another vital image parameter that can now be automatically adjusted. You must understand the different types of photo tones as it helps to set the mood for any image. White balance is what makes your image warm or cool. In other terms, it adjusts the shades of yellow and blue, which make the picture appear gloomy or bright.
Image taken from Strikingly’s user website
The images appear complete when you fill in the right amounts and gradients of colors and bring focus to specific images and objects in the image.
6. Remove Spots and Clutter
The best way to edit photos is by improving your attention to detail. You need to pay close attention to the details of an image to identify tiny inconsistencies that might ruin the overall look of your image. The most important of these inconsistencies appear in the form of spots or background clutter. To make your photo perfect, you need to recognize and remove these imperfections.
Any best free photo editor online is equipped to remove spots and background clutter. This can be rather generic. But if you want advanced changes in your images, such as removing people from a crowded setting or altering the appearance of a building, you might need to use Adobe Photoshop to clean the images. It is by far the best way to edit photos for professional purposes.
7. Choose a Photo Editing Program
Technology is developing at a rapid pace. So if you want to find the best way to edit photos, a good place to start is by choosing the best photo editing software. Unlike a few years ago when it was challenging to get your hands on the top photo editing software, software today is remarkably compatible on various devices. Editing digital photos have never been more accessible, as there are now many photo editing programs to choose from. Some of the most popular photo editing programs are rather simple to use and allow for basic tweaks. Others might require a level of proficiency to make changes.
Choosing the right photo editing software is a challenge not because it’s difficult to find one. But because if you pick a complicated one to start with, you might end up missing out on some of the important basics. That’s precisely why we have listed some photo editing software that can help start your journey of photo editing.
5 Best Photo Editing Software for Beginners
In today’s digital era, it is easy to get your hands on photo-editing software. Your phone or tablet most likely has an inbuilt photo editor. But if you want to become an expert photo editor, you might want to check out some of these best online photo editor software.
1. Adobe Photoshop Express
Clearly the best online photo editor for years, Adobe Photoshop is an all-in-one photo editor. Initially created for professional photo editing, most photographers and designers have become the go-to tool. Unfortunately, there isn’t an easy or best way to edit photos on Adobe Photoshop. You need to learn the software before you can use it to its full potential.
To help young photographers and editors, Adobe has come up with Photoshop Express - a mobile version of their powerful photo editor. It’s an excellent place to start if you’re just getting the hang of photo editing and want to learn how to edit photos on Adobe Photoshop. Photoshop Express does not have the complete functionality of Photoshop but is an excellent option for those looking to do minor editings such as contrast, perspective, and exposure adjustments.
2. GIMP
Gaining popularity as the best online photo editor, GIMP features a wide range of editing tools that even advanced users might appreciate. The features provided by GIMP include content-aware resizing, animated gifs, curves, custom brushes, layer masks, etc. Unfortunately, the application requires some level of expertise before starting editing photos like a pro and the application is not compatible on a mobile phone.
This makes it harder for young photographers to get an opportunity to use and learn how to edit photos. But once you learn the basics, you’ll know why it is the best online photo editing software for ambitious photographers.
3. Paint.net
A reminiscent of Microsoft Paint, the software that started it all, PAINT.net is a more intuitive version of the latter. It is hands down the best free photo editor online. Beginners need to have Paint.net. It helps inexperienced youngsters get the hang of other complicated photo editors they might have to work with in the future. Unlike other editors, where you have to follow a guide or take an online course to begin editing photos, Paint.net makes things remarkably simple. The best way to edit photos and become a pro is by practice.
And with Paint.net this is a walk in the park. The software is built on the same user-friendly interface as the previous version, keeping things simple as they come. The software has improved to include a wide range of features such as unlimited undos, curves, levels, contrast, gradients, and brightness. An additional feature that makes the software’s functionality to the next level is downloadable plugins that enable you to use more advanced editing capabilities such as 3D rotate/zoom.
4. Pixlr Editor
Pixlr is another powerful photo editing tool with a unique feature that allows you to open image files from a URL or a particular device. This is especially advantageous if you need to edit existing images on your website. The user interface and experience are quite similar to Adobe's photo editor. Thus, it’s a great editor for beginners to learn the art of photo editing. The only disadvantage with Pixlr Editor is that it runs on Flash. Thus, compatibility may be an issue for some devices and platforms.
5. Strikingly Editor
The list of articles we mentioned above deals with apps that are exclusive photo editors. On Strikingly, you get most of the basic photo editing features that most of this software offers. Plus, at a much lesser price than them. With Strikingly’s photo editor tool, you can change aspects such as size, pixels, color, contrast, etc. You can also add text or special filters that enhance the appearance of your image. The images obtained from Strikingly’s image editor are on par with some of the best online photo editor software.
Image taken from Strikingly
So if you want to find the best way to edit photos, look no further. Create a free account on Strikingly and start editing your images. An advantage is that you can also create a free website on Strikingly to have a platform to display your collection of photos. Sign up to Strikingly and create your free website now!
