The Pros and Cons of Digital Photo Enhancement
Wed Sep 13, 2006 2:12PM EDT
See Comments (155)
Did you catch the story about Katie Couric's slimmed-down look in an airbrushed photo in a CBS promotional magazine before she took the helm at CBS Evening News? Lots of folks were upset by it, and Katie and CBS execs mostly laughed it off.
But reader Lisa K. had a different take. The story inspired her to have a recent photo of her taken on the beach touched up to slim and shape her arms. She sent it off to PhotoChop.com (screenshot), and for $5 she has a digitally enhanced photo more to her liking. She's gone back with some more business, once to remove a fresh scrape from her son's nose. Â
Lisa writes: One could argue that we are misrepresenting ourselves through these modified pictures, but the reality is that it can change a picture from something you dislike to something enjoyable. I have no moral hang-up in giving myself a little "enhancing" on my personal photos while celebrities every day are portraying themselves to the public this way.
Good point, Lisa. But I've got two girls, and I don't want them getting more messages that women should be thinner, wrinkle-free, and perfect—whatever that is. (PhotoChop's motto: With PhotoChop, you can be flawless.) So I'm not going to be spreading that message by altering my suspect photos. But, hey, there are lots of times a little blemish removal, stray hair fixing, and other enhancements just plain make a photo better. And the tools are available, so go for it.
Lisa asks if there are other services besides PhotoChop that digitally enhance photos. Do birds fly? Sure there are. Local camera stores can do the work. You can also try some basic photo editing tips and techniques with whatever photo editor you prefer.
But if you want to make finer enhancements, more advanced photo editing software such as Adobe Photoshop or Paint Shop Pro may be the way to go. Here are some tips for using Paint Shop Pro, and a PhotoShop help site. I also found this popular step-by-step "How to Airbrush Your Photos in Photoshop" tutorial on Digg, though the result is a bit too plastic and unreal for me.
Got more tips for online or do-it-yourself photo enhancing? Please share.
Top 5 Posts
Comments on The Pros and Cons of Digital Photo Enhancement
Post a Comment
Join in the discussion. Here you'll see the comments in the order they were posted.
-
2 Posted by olgaocon on Fri Sep 22, 2006 1:31PM EDT Report Abuse
Tip: Touch up your teeth with white soft round air brush tool to create a sparkle!
-
3 Posted by dynamojack@pacbell.net on Fri Sep 22, 2006 1:31PM EDT Report Abuse
something a tad shallow about that.... but then if you do that you probably are not concerned about being shallow
-
4 Posted by oobersli on Fri Sep 22, 2006 1:32PM EDT Report Abuse
Using the patch tool and clone brush in photoshop is the best and easyiest way to photo manip. your pictures. Just make sure the pictures aren't super small or have a low pixel resolution.
-
5 Posted by mikewofsey on Fri Sep 22, 2006 1:33PM EDT Report Abuse
Stupid. Why get rid of blemishes, wrinkles, scrapes and scars? They're what make us beautiful and human. If you want perfection, study higher math ... because the perfection in humans are our imperfections.
Post a Comment
Videos
Tech Close-Ups
Sony's latest noise-cancelling headphones offer excellent comfort and sound. The earcups are incredi ...
Gadgets You Might Like
Also on Yahoo! Tech
| Computers | Home Office | Wi-Fi & Networking | Phones & PDAs | Cameras & Camcorders | TV & Home Theater | Portable Audio |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1 Posted by lmfrankenberger on Fri Sep 22, 2006 1:30PM EDT Report Abuse
My god we all need to get lives so bad!!! Seriously this beauty thing is way out of control.