4/25/2011

How To Edit Photos - Cropping For The Perfect Picture

By David Peters


The composition of a photograph can either draw the eye to your work, or fail to get across the desired message to the viewer. Many elements are needed to create a wonderful photograph, but composition is one of the most important. Composition deals with how the various elements of the photograph work together in both placement and interaction to convey what the photographer sees and feels.

Good composition can turn an average snapshot into a professionals photograph. Composition is comprised of many factors. Some simple elements of composition are the framing and cropping of an image.

Improving the composition of a photograph is simple through the cropping tool available in Photoshop. With this, you can swiftly cut out areas of the photo that you wish to be removed, or that take away from the photo's subject. Photoshop enables you to measure the portions to by cut, to ensure accuracy.

One of the major advantages of the cropping tools in Photoshop is that correcting mistakes or even starting over after cropping is easy. All you have to do go back to the beginning and try again. You can basically try out with an infinite number of possibilities.

The following are some tips for better cropping.

Consider the Rule of Thirds

If you spend much time looking at the work of professional photographers you will notice that they rarely center the subject in the picture yet amateurs almost always center their subject. By moving your subject off center you can create a much more profession and eye pleasing image. Imagine lines across your image breaking it up it thirds and then consider cropping your picture so that the subject is in one of the outer thirds. Don't be afraid to experiment but before you do make sure you make a copy of the original image and save it in a separate folder.

Cropping to Traditional Print Sizes

Standard photo sizes such as 4x6 are easier to frame, so make sure to check the sizing when cropping a photo. Should your image not conform to standard dimensions, simply cut off or add back a little of your photo to meet these sizes. Without this, a photo lab may crop off more than you would want or in the wrong area of the photo to make them print the right size.

Framing becomes a thing of photography days gone by thanks to the ease by which Photoshop allows you to crop photos. All you have to do is edit images via computer. Dont worry about what your version of Photoshop is. The technical aspects of using the cropping tool are basically the same from Photoshop Elements to the more advanced version, Photoshop CS.




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