Robert Watcher
Well-known member
Image Processing Vital to my Work
I am a photographer who is of the opinion that taking a photo is only half of the creative process. Darkroom processing and manipulation play a major role in the success of a photograph. It was true in the days when I processed all of my own colour and b&w film and prints in my wet darkroom - and applies exactly the same these days in my digital darkroom.
It is true that the image has to be there in the first place. It is hard to turn a poor photograph into gem. Although it is certainly getting easier with todays digital tools.
I came across an image yesterday as I was going through some of my travel files in Lightroom - - - and came across this image that had passed me by up until now. Obviously the content caught my eye when I passed the scene several years ago - and I made sure that what I photographed had good storytelling and graphic material, lighting and the compositional elements needed for me to make a good print if I desired. But the shot must have gotten overlooked by me, once I moved on to the next days images that I would be shooting and processing.
This is also one feature that I love about my choice of never throwing any files away - regardless. My Lightroom Catalogue contains everything I have shot, and easily accessible to view or process.
So let me show you the original frame that I revisited yesterday. And then how it was processed into a final image that is identifiable as my style and is something that I would print for display.
Image straight from the camera (something must have caught my eye when I shot it):
And now with my artistic liberty in the darkroom to make it a gem (in my eyes anyway):
I am a photographer who is of the opinion that taking a photo is only half of the creative process. Darkroom processing and manipulation play a major role in the success of a photograph. It was true in the days when I processed all of my own colour and b&w film and prints in my wet darkroom - and applies exactly the same these days in my digital darkroom.
It is true that the image has to be there in the first place. It is hard to turn a poor photograph into gem. Although it is certainly getting easier with todays digital tools.
I came across an image yesterday as I was going through some of my travel files in Lightroom - - - and came across this image that had passed me by up until now. Obviously the content caught my eye when I passed the scene several years ago - and I made sure that what I photographed had good storytelling and graphic material, lighting and the compositional elements needed for me to make a good print if I desired. But the shot must have gotten overlooked by me, once I moved on to the next days images that I would be shooting and processing.
This is also one feature that I love about my choice of never throwing any files away - regardless. My Lightroom Catalogue contains everything I have shot, and easily accessible to view or process.
So let me show you the original frame that I revisited yesterday. And then how it was processed into a final image that is identifiable as my style and is something that I would print for display.
Image straight from the camera (something must have caught my eye when I shot it):
![20110317-20110317-E3177210-2.jpg](/forums/proxy.php?image=http%3A%2F%2Frobertwatcher.arwpic.com%2F14442567297350%2F20110317-20110317-E3177210-2.jpg&hash=d4c613f5fba06db956a3b3048898c8ab)
And now with my artistic liberty in the darkroom to make it a gem (in my eyes anyway):
![20110317-20110317-E3177210.jpg](/forums/proxy.php?image=http%3A%2F%2Frobertwatcher.arwpic.com%2F14442567297350%2F20110317-20110317-E3177210.jpg&hash=49589e4eb4d8d60a374250b6815a0997)