Post-production of photos is extremely important in product photography. In this blog, we will examine Photoshop and its uses and misconceptions.
What Photoshop is NOT: Photoshop is not divine intervention to airbrush your photo and make it suddenly incredible. There is a common misunderstanding that by using Photoshop, any photo can magically become amazing. This is most definitely not true.
What Photoshop IS: Photoshop is a wonderful tool that can help make great photos even better by modifying certain facets of the photo.
It is crucial to begin the post-production with an effective photo that conveys a compelling story relevant to the product. The old saying “garbage in – garbage out” is a very basic way of saying that if you begin with a poor photo, no amount of Photoshop in the world will be able to make that photo great. As a photographer, I do not cut corners during the shoot. I take my time and focus my energy to create the best photo possible. I am then able to enhance this photo with the various tools available in Photoshop.
Here is a list of things that Photoshop cannot fix, taken from the blog “Six Things You Can’t Fix in Photoshop,” by Shutterfinger:
- Camera position – if the camera is too close to the product, it is impossible to “back it up” in post-production
- Lighting direction and quality
- Focus
- Blurred image due to motion of the camera or subject
- Lost data
- Lack of creativity/spark/intent
