Editing Photographs

As much as I love taking photographs, I have to confess that I am pretty excited to open them up in Lightroom and create a little magic.  Often, even as I am taking a picture, I am thinking of best way to present this image -- with a subtle glow effect, in black and white, with a vignette. These styles are romantic and bring out new feelings in the pictures.

  It's late afternoon on a gray, cloudy day, so not much dramatic lighting. But look at the expressions on the guys' faces. I really wanted to hone in on that.

 
And here is the final edit. I especially like how I cropped so only part of the first bridesmaid is seen. I think that really adds to this picture.  I also added a little brightness and saturation.  

Here's the original shot straight out of the camera on the left, and then I brightened it up a lot and really made the colors radiant in the after. Sometimes, the original is just too raw, doesn't really capture the beauty of the bride (Jane). But a little editing, and voila! Now she looks radiant just like she did on her wedding day!

 I shot family photos of Briawna and Dale just before Christmas.  I liked their expressions in this picture, but I thought it would resonate better with a little bit of something.

 Using a slight glow effect, I was able to help this photo evolve into a more romantic shot.

Another closeup of the bride, and this time while shooting the shot, I knew I wanted to do a high-key black and white edit where it really focused on Jenny's gorgeous eyelashes. For me, it just really turned out nicely!

In Jody's lovely backyard wedding, I wanted to get a shot of her here at her backyard doorstep just before she walked down the aisle. When she looked down, I knew I had the right shot. Later, I just had to remove some things from her garden and add a little blur to give it a dreamy, ethereal look.