Best photo software for pp and editing.

[Nikonzen]

This is an example of some of the power of LZ. Image was made very late in the evening almost dark, on the spur of the moment, grab the camera spin the dials and manually focus it while they are there. I whistled at them to get them to look my way. Camera is D5K Nikon with probably 105/2.5 opened up pretty wide...maybe was 85/1.8 though. WB??? (doubt I had time to use the Lally cap) ISO 400 (should have went up to 800) Shutter at 1/60 which is not good etiquette really but I am into pushing the envelope that is how I roll...actually I bracketed the shot to get best exposure but I used this underexposed version to illustrate what I am trying to show you. Modified image is cropped because I just wanted to do that. Hopefully this little exercise can expand your bank of knowledge a bit. I studied the software pretty hard this past year or so and I feel I am beginning to master it. One has to work at it though it doesn't come easily.

So here is first original SOOC jpeg converted to bmp (don't even get me started on this one because it always freaks people out but it is just the method I have found to be superior for my usage)



Second image through the LightZone and GIMP

 

[zaren]

This is an example of some of the power of LZ. Image was made on the spur of the moment, grab the camera spin the dials and manually focus it while they are there. I whistled at them to get them to look my way. Camera is D5K Nikon with probably 105/2.5 opened up pretty wide...maybe was 85/1.8 though. WB??? (doubt I had time to use the Lally cap) ISO 400 (should have went up to 800) Shutter at 1/60 which is not good etiquette really but I am into pushing the envelope that is how I roll...actually I bracketed the shot to get best exposure but I used this underexposed version to illustrate what I am trying to show you. Modified image is cropped because I just wanted to do that. Hopefully this little exercise can expand your bank of knowledge a bit. I studied the software pretty hard this past year or so and I feel I am beginning to master it. One has to work at it though it doesn't come easily.

So here is first original SOOC jpeg converted to bmp (don't even get me started on this one because it always freaks people out but it is just the method I have found to be superior for my usage)



Second image through the LightZone and GIMP

I normally use Photoscape and Irfanview.
e.g.

 

[brapodam]

LightZone and GIMP all the way baby. Once you have a decent command of LZ you'll be amazed at how powerful and well suited it is to post production. There is a learning curve though it takes time.

Best thing is they are both FREE!!!

You can maybe lift some shadows, relight, or go HDR effects with the LZ software and maybe get yourself a little closer to getting some decent night snaps...

My experience with open source "Lightroom alternatives" is that they have good functionality (sometimes even more than Lightroom) but are a lot less user friendly, so they take a lot longer to do the same thing, or require multiple steps to do something Lightroom does in one. This is why I've switched back to Lightroom after learning RAWTherapee and darktable on Linux.

As for re-lighting, I think Lightroom is very good for that already. Adjustment brushes and the radial filter tool can do a lot to re-light, particularly if you know how to use them well.

 

[rhino123]

Actually... I have been using the software provided by the manufacturer when I got my camera (Canon and Olympus) for ages before I finally got the LR. I find that the provided software is good enough for most of the uses and confirm support the camera that you have. Learn the basic from there before jumping to other photo editing programs.

 

[Nikonzen]

Actually... I have been using the software provided by the manufacturer when I got my camera (Canon and Olympus) for ages before I finally got the LR. I find that the provided software is good enough for most of the uses and confirm support the camera that you have. Learn the basic from there before jumping to other photo editing programs.

Very good advice.

 

[brapodam]

Actually... I have been using the software provided by the manufacturer when I got my camera (Canon and Olympus) for ages before I finally got the LR. I find that the provided software is good enough for most of the uses and confirm support the camera that you have. Learn the basic from there before jumping to other photo editing programs.

True enough, except I find Lightroom easier to learn due to the abundance of online video tutorials compared to other post-processing software. (Good) online video tutorials are useful because they not only teach you how to use the tools for their obvious uses, but they also teach you how to use those tools to do stuff you never thought of doing before.

 

[Nikonzen]

There are many Lightzone videos...for GIMP as well...GIMP has a whole vast forum where you can learn everything about it even it's nuances...you just have to do the work.

However LR and PS are the industry standards as has been mentioned I think.

 

[SeAnCoLd]

I too used Canon's DPP for a year or two before switching to lightroom and photoshop. Lightroom's pretty user friendly. Photoshop will require some learning. Like the others have said, there are lots of written and recorded tutorials on the internet. We can learn a lot online

Actually... I have been using the software provided by the manufacturer when I got my camera (Canon and Olympus) for ages before I finally got the LR. I find that the provided software is good enough for most of the uses and confirm support the camera that you have. Learn the basic from there before jumping to other photo editing programs.