RapidRaw is going from strength to strength, and I have released numerous editing videos on my YouTube channel for the software. Today I present a simplified version of an edit of a bee using RapidRaw 1.5.9.
Each step talks you through getting the best from an edit. This is a bare-bones edit, and usually I would do more masking, but it to just give you a quick and simple idea.
STEP 1
Load up your images into RapidRaw and choose the image you would like to edit. It will look like this when you open the image.
STEP 2
The next step is to hit the auto-adjust button on the right on the word “Adjustments”. This will give you a starting point. Feel free to adjust the sliders in this section to get the best results for the image.
STEP 3
Using the crop tool (which is always the most useful basic tool in your toolbox as a photographer) crop or straighten your image as needed, plus check if your lens correction has taken place (if needed)
STEP 4
Add light to the image. This is most important to ensure your image looks professional and natural (cameras do not always capture the scene as it actually is). In this case the light was coming from the left. I always choose a radial mask for adding light initially, making sure to turn the feathering up fully.
Step 5
Once you have finished adding any light, it will be time to add darker areas to give the image a bit of “pop” and make it look more dynamic and natural. Hear I have added a Linear gradient and slightly reduced the exposure to the right bottom of the image.
STEP 6
Next step you can colour-grade the image as you wish. For this image I simply adjusted the warmth and added a bit of saturation and also adjusted the sharpening a little bit.
Side-By-Side
Here is a little before and after side-by-side of this bee. This is just a random image I chose for this demonstration, and yes, the focus is on the bee’s back and wings, but they just look cool!
TIPS
The idea of this guide is just to show you that editing does not have to be very complicated. Often less-is-more. Masking (dodging and burning in particular) is an important part of bringing your photograph to life and making it look less flat and more natural. Do not overdo it, just keep it simple.
When editing, get out of the habit of zooming in 200% and edit the image at viewing distance and try and avoid zooming in if you can. The reality is that very few, if anyone, will be zooming in to look that closely at your image. If it is on social media or photo sharing sites, chances are it will be compressed too. If it is for yourself, ask yourself what you are doing with the image. Is it for a print? Then you won’t be pixel-peeping a print! If it is just for digital use, again, after your initial look, it won’t matter. Your image should stand by itself, it should not be about zooming in so close that you lose the story.
Do not be afraid to experiment, mask more, play with colours and enjoy yourself. Don’t forget I have a few videos on YouTube that you can watch and learn even more.
Finally, just have fun!
My name is Mark G Adams and I run Photography By Mark G Adams. I am a professional photographer from South Wales, shooting weddings, events and portraits as well as running meets and workshops. For fun I like to shoot landscapes, wildlife and occasionally do street photography. Enjoy my website as I share my knowledge learned over decades of working and having fun in photography – This Is My Personal Website
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