The most important editing setting once you’ve cropped your raw image

We all know that one of the, if not the most important tool in your photography editing toolkit is the crop tool. It can really make a composition better, and even create multiple compositions from a single image, cropping into various sections. However, the next most important setting is one that some people skip for various reasons (usually they say they want full control over the editing, or it’s the computer editing and it’s not for them). And those people simply don’t understand it’s power because of this ignorance. 

We’re talking about the “auto” button today (although some software may have a different name for it). Usually a little button in amongst all the develop section or module sliders that also contains adjustments for exposure, highlights, shadows etc, just sitting there. A button that can bring seemingly magicical results, and shorten your time at the computer while editing photographs. 

However, the auto button is NOT what you think it is. It is not a one click and fix all workflow, it’s not a special button that will instantly give you a masterpiece, and it is not a button that in any way will hinder your work.

Any professional photographer, or advanced amateur will tell you, it is a starting point. A simple starting point that does in a click, that usually takes you a number of clicks and slides of the sliders. It works within boundaries, so you won’t get clipped highlights, or deep shadows, and you won’t have messed up colours. You’ll have a starting point that makes your image easier to work with from the outset for most, if not all of your workflow.

What the “auto” button isn’t. 

• It is not a one-click-fix-all remedy. 
• It is not a button to finalise your image. 

What the “auto” button is. 

• It takes a super-flat raw file to a starting point that you usually try and achieve. 
• It is a time saver that is actually beneficial.
• It is a consistent starting point for your images.
• It is a “preview” of what could be. 

The great thing about the “auto” button is that with one tap you turn your flat raw file into an image that has depth and character that you can work from quickly, and with a second tap, you revert back to the previous state (to the state it was before you pressed the button).

Once you realise the benefits of that button, your editing takes on a whole new depth, and in many situations it also improves your editing because you have a more solid base to start from.

Conclusion

The chances are, you are one of three kinds of people when it comes to the power of the auto button. 

You can see it in your development tab, but you don’t use it because you wrongly think it is doing the work for you, that you should be doing as you don’t realise it is just a starting point. 

You use the auto button as a one stop fix. You simply press it and you are happy with the results. I know people who do this a lot, and it’s not surprising, as the results can be genuinely great for a lot of situations.

You use the auto button correctly. You know it saves you time and you know that you’ll only need minor adjustments once you’ve pressed the button. You know that you can easily press the auto button a second time and you have the original image before you pressed that button, so you can compare were you image was, where it could be, and where you’d like it to be. 

Of course, this can go for any “auto” option button in your editing software button, it’s worth a press because you can quickly revert if you don’t like it. It’s not cheating, it’s using your brain and your time effectively and giving you options that you may not have thought about.