5 Editing Tools EVERY Photographer Should Know How to Use

[@omniart5714]

Excellent video, do more of this, for people who are new in the photography...

[@sacred406]

Wow. This was so simple and informative. I've worked with curves and levels in MAC Photos but recently upped my anti (for more creativity) and purchased Affinity Photo. A whole new game. It has everything needed: anyone can afford it, no fees, it's fast, takes little space on my old MAC OS, has everything needed for post processing and creativity etc. and this tutorial will apply equally well in Affinity. Thank you!

[@chepo1956]

Outstanding tutorial! You have a gift my friend: Great teacher.

[@rkuns]

This type of video plus your commentary on other artists are the best.

[@JamesLavish]

Agreed. Ted's knowledge is pretty broad, but deep!

[@lightbox617]

For years, I have taught rudimentary Photo shop. I tell all of the students that there only ten things you need to do/know. There are also ten different ways to do each of them in Photo shop. Nice, clear and concise explanations. Thanks

[@dirkluchtman]

Great as usual. For Luminar, maybe discuss the speed and stability of the program, as for me (version 3, latest update), it is frustratingly slow (eg loading and exporting a photo).

[@craigmorris8322]

Dirk Luchtman my experience exactly the same. Almost like a freeze. Great until export then I give up

[@MisterTolley]

You can "edit" the histogram directly in lightroom (or at least you can in my old non-subscription copy). Get the cursor into it and drag left and right at various points

[@PixelDinosaur]

Hello Ted,i use nik collection for photo adjustment, the Tonal Contrast Filter in Color Efex Pro is very useful for enhance detail in photo.For black and white i use the silver efex pro in nik collection.Both of them have control point tools for easy masking.

[@sam7479]

Great video. I’ve been using Capture One for a year. I struggle to understand the difference between the Levels tool and the Color Balance tool. They seem to be two different ways to achieve the same result.

[@nobsoul2179]

Definitely the video I needed. I am starting to take photography seriously and going to purchase a xt30 right when i get off work today at b&h (im in nyc) I plan on shooting street, portrait and events..any lens recommendations that could sort of bridge the gap between these?

[@rebeccamoore4177]

Thank you! Basics but every bit if clarity helps me to understand how to get the results I want. And thanks for making it universal. I’m learning Affinity.

[@lylestavast7652]

In LR - shift-double-click on Blacks, Whites ...Shadows, highlights- that'll usually give you a good starting point better than "Auto" and it's kind of Levels-esque ... alt-while dragging Black and White lets you see set black/white points emerge ... Always amazing how many people don't know you can drag around the areas on the histogram to put it where you want it too - it grey bands on the histogram to show which values you're affecting ... I'm not too down on sliders in LR actually - you can key in values if you want, but you can also tweak the resolution of your movement by holding down shift to go in single units, and use the scroll wheel to jump by 5's... lots of granularity options - in addition to just keying things in. Good video !

[@cosmogang]

I was really interested in a program called ON1 Photo Raw 2019 last year. I purchased the software, and honestly, I would use it for every bit of my editing needs (no subscription, like LR+PS), but no matter what computer I tried it on, it was so unbearably slow I just couldn't stand it. These days I use Photoshop from start to finish. There's just nothing like it, and I finally have a good workflow

[@MichalC07]

cosmogang Hi, try Affinity Photo 👍

[@Pr0m3th3usCZ]

Would be nice to see Luminar's performance between PC and Mac. Personally, I had quite some issues on PC, but none on Mac.

[@stkuj]

I'd love to have a comparison between Luminar 4 vs ON1 2020...

[@nixilpix]

Very informative as always - love your videos. Any plans for more assignment videos?

[@philbrown8181]

Great overview tutorial Ted. Thanks for taking the time to make and post.

[@MakinMovies7]

I think you're bloody great. Informative,

[@nicholasellam3282]

Hi, I would be interested to know if Luminar 4 has more comprehensive printing control than Luminar 3, particularly if you can soft proof, and/or use colour profiles to improve print accuracy. Thank you.

[@RimantasLiubertas]

WRT Luminar: how do you cope with its slowness? ;)

[@gregstevenson7401]

Great content Ted. Very interesting cross cut across tools to achieve the end product. Not seen anyone do that before. Well done.

[@AndiMeyer]

Another great tutorial getting everything to the point ... or slider, curve. You really help me improving my work.

[@4partmedia]

I like the default Curves bandwidth view because I see which area is being affected by the width of that spot.

[@hughwolfe1176]

Good explanation of the basics, thank you... And I learned a few things.

[@sabinaradu776]

aren't colour wheels sort of like hsl?

[@fenna_pel]

Thx for the video :) great to isolate the specific tool from an application and discus it as the tool it is! regards, Fenna

[@trubadorphotography2541]

Being a nacient advanced amateur with a DSLR (been using an old Canon T3i for 5+ years, but will be upgrading to the new 90D in Oct), I've used Pixelmator on my Mac for editing (similar to PS Elements) to good effect, and have tended to use the sliders for much of my controls. This video helps to make me break out that box and gain more control on my adjustments. I've always been intimidated by the Histogram, but this helps to dispel the myth and mystery about it. I also need to boost my knowledge and abilities regarding use of layers, as well as how to properly make adjustments within an image (e.g., adding or removing shadow or image blur to a specific spot in an image) and how to properly convert a color image into a dynamic B&W or sepia tone image (I've been told to desaturate the image before converting to B&W, and to create my own sepia tone rather than using the "sepia" option that's offered within your editing program). Another thing I need to learn is how to easily implement a good but not too obnoxious watermark for images I put up on a website to help prevent ripoffs of my images (with an image having no watermark only on a version of an image or print that is created/sold to a specific customer). Thanks for the helpful insights! ~Mike

[@navicto]

Great video, Ted. Is there a difference between levels and alt+highlight/shadow sliders in Lightroom?

[@philindeblanc]

Few people can make me watch what I already know and use for over a decade...lol...nicely put, and gives me a nudge to jump back into using C1 , even for less important work.

[@GermanAutoNut]

Hey Ted! As always - love the contributions. Truly interested in Luminar 4 - however, I was wondering what their workflow looks like. Although we have Lightroom and Capture One - what a lot of us seem to struggle with is workflow. Anything you could do around workflow would be greatly appreciated! Cheers!

[@BSLKB]

Great vid, any artist profiles we can look forward to?

[@darkdetroit12]

I'm a beginner in photo editing and would like to know what you think the best photo editing program for someone like me so I don't get lost

[@9epsilon]

You have a talent for explaining how things work. Have you considered producing a lightroom/premiere course?

[@tchebotarev]

Thanks, love the editing of this video Ted!

[@TheVideoSteve]

A tv personality, that was a painter, once said...'You have to have dark to show light'. I've remembered that when I shoot B/W... it's all in the light and dark and everything in-between...

[@MartinFroland]

Excellent Tutorial video

[@Khajakkodian]

Hi Ted, thanks for this video. Maybe you can make a full on workflow of editing a landscape and a portrait photo starting with Lightroom then taking it to Luminar 4 using Luminar's sky replacement for the landscape and the skin retouching for the portrait. Thank you so much. All the best.

[@LuisGGomezPhoto]

Great tutorial, I just found out thing I did not know. Thanks for your tutorial, it was of much value. So long.

[@philipshucet9481]

Thanks Ted. Nice, useful video tutorial.

[@toniskokovic]

Great video Ted - watching this on the road, over my morning coffee. Can't wait to get home and try some of this out on, wait for it, my negative scans (in scanner software). Thank you!

[@jamesohara4295]

Extremely informative, excellent effort.

[@mariners_platter]

Your thoughts on Darktable? Is it comparable to Photoshop?

[@philipshucet9481]

I wanted to add just a bit more here. I don't do much editing, but I do relate to what Ted is covering here. I make photographs in DNG and use those files in Capture One. I start with a few standard adjustments to contrast, highlights, and shadows that work for my intent most of the time. Then I pull the saturation down to 0 for bw image. I'll bounce between levels and curves until what I see satisfies my eye. Then I'll look up at the histogram mostly out of curiosity. I may or may not do anything based on the histogram alone, but I like looking at it at the end. I'm more swayed by my gut feeling of where things should ultimately land. I generally get through all of this in maybe 2-3 minutes. If I'm not happy after a few minutes, I'll mark the photograph and come back to it later. For me, straightforward videos like Ted's, and others, help me remember what's important so I can stay focused and not get lost in the technology. Thanks again, Ted!

[@OMGILOVEBANANAS]

You're such an awesome dude!

[@lelitj89]

I'm wondering if it's possible to do frequency separation on Luminar...

[@snowwalker9999]

Can Luminar support Canon's CR3 files?

[@MichaelMa]

I think ACR has levels sliders. Aren't they there is lightroom? They aren't implemented well. I much prefer curves.

[@stuartbaines2843]

Great Clear and concise walk through of core image program tools 👍 Is it possible to resize the tool Pallets in Captureone? My eyes need a helping hand 😅

[@gregcampbell4467]

Well selected, although I am a bit surprised that you did not include layers and layer masks in this first class set of tools.

[@brucemccredie2689]

Great explanation Ted. Demystifying the mysteries of the curves panel.....

[@thetalkingfly]

Great info thank you. Steve aka TheTalking Fly

[@kdub-1200]

Good information, thanks Ted!

[@johnleftwich650]

Hey Ted. I don't believe Luminar 4 is out yet. I pre-ordered it but have not been notified it is available. Do you have a pre-production copy?

[@jamesonnorth]

Definitely interested in someone's thoughts on Luminar. I was given a copy from SmugMug, and while I've been a Lightroom user for almost 10 years, I'm always open to new tools. I poked around and it seemed a little consumer-oriented and focused on too trendy looks. But it seems to have a better handle on image management than LR. I hate having to import, so it's nice to not worry too much about folder structure.

[@UmmNathan]

I am interested in trying Luminar, but I am told that it can be slow. Can you talk about how it performs vs lightroom?

[@SanAntonioZJ]

Great Job as Always!

[@arnoldleonard886]

I would like you to address the use of Luminar 4 as a plugin to Lightroom. You might mention installation, the interface between Lightroom and Luminar, any limitations or warnings, recommended workflow between the two, etc.

[@drewrobertson6286]

“I think sliders are very obvious “. Of course they are, & the best sliders aren’t in lightroom, they can only be found in White Castle 🏰... road trip anyone?! 🍔

[@sabinshrestha327]

me

[@Fontsman]

There's also Affinity which is very powerful.

[@BARCH-wp5vl]

Skylum Luminar ❤️

[@sergeantcrow]

Excellent.... Thank you...

[@AceHardy]

📸

[@pjcornelius]

I think you should have pointed out that there are equivalents, even if they don’t work exactly the same, in Lightroom for pretty much everything you showed in Capture One. The levels is essentially reproduced by the highlight, shadow, white, and black sliders. (and Capture one Levels uses sliders too, they just look different). And the functionality of the color wheels in Capture One is essentially handled by the color adjustment sliders in Lightroom. It is absolutely fine to prefer one interface over another, but it is wrong to imply that you cannot do the same things in both apps.

[@alexanderpons9246]

I'm glad you made this video Ted Forbes! Many people snobed digital versus analog because of all the image manipulation programs and how its perceived that things get done magically. But in reality in order to make all those editing tools work the person must have some knowledge of how things were done in a Dark Room or Lab. Thanks for loving Photography so much and share it through your wonderful channel!

[@TheLonesomeBricoleur]

Solid foundational info for all photo-folks! That "film look" idea always flummoxes me a bit, though. What exactly do y'all mean? There were always different film options and lots of darkroom techniques... 🤔

[@RobertHolak]

houselab The film look that most people refer to is color grading to look like a movie: - Cool down the shadows - Warm the highlights - Reduce contrast by bringing in the black and white points a bit. There are tons of color grades of course but that’s the most common look people are talking about.

[@TheLonesomeBricoleur]

@@RobertHolak Gotcha. Thanks! Since I don't have to maintain a pro workflow for quick delivery, I usually just process my images individually after letting the selects sit for a couple weeks or months (or even years) - that way I can reconnect with the subjects, reflect on everything and approach each frame more like someone else might upon seeing it for the first time.

[@Nicolas-rd2qk]

First ! Great and interesting work !

[@MSACoachMike]

At 10:06 of the video, it was stated that the opposite of red is cyan. In CIEL*a*b* colour space, isn't green the opposite of red? The opposite of blue is yellow. Blue + Red = Magenta; Red + Green = Yellow; Blue + Green = Cyan.

[@crappfoto]

You have won the first price, at least in fast speaking 👍👍

[@jonathanpeter1385]

5 am in New Delhi and this is what I’m doing.

[@sergeantcrow]

Hello India... 00:35 in Ireland !

[@photographynerd5639]

Hello India, 7:20 PM New York

[@alexanderpons9246]

Next thing you'll know is that its 12 noon and you are still at it, its adictive! Lol!

[@jonathanpeter1385]

lol. Wasn’t the best idea to down a cup of cappuccino post dinner😂😂

[@mixiepalms8338]

great video

[@Kit2Canada]

Excellent !

[@okaydom]

Looking into buying a new chair. What kind of chair is that? Thanks, Ted.

[@rickymarin872]

I believe that is a Herman Miller chair

[@noahcwb]

I would absolutely love it if adobe added levels to lightroom!

[@CraigKratovil]

Thanks Ted.

[@Made_by_Matthew]

Vectorscope and waveforms are must for colour grading. Such a shame lightroom doesn't have them. Histograms don't tell you anything useful, only what values are in the scene not where they are

[@lylestavast7652]

I'm using that feature in the FOSS darktable... it's really handy for stills work.

[@riverman9813]

What no mention of Darktable. Darktable is a free open source alternative to Lightroom. All the the functionality of Lightroom plus more controls. The only thing missing is DAM but another free option for management is Digikam.

[@riverman9813]

And lots of youtube channels for Darktable - Rico's Story, Bruce Williams Photography, TJ FREE, Shane Milton.

[@vmoleirinho]

Much love

[@davidjones8070]

Those of you that have not used Luminar before be aware that Luminar 3 has issues with loading. Unfortunately it has carried over some issues that are in the program itself that Skylum needs to remedy...as of now i will continue to use Capture One Pro and Affinity photo. I really hope these issues get resolved because the program has some great benefits to enhance your workflow. Just an FYI for those who maybe thinking of purchasing the program.

[@paulbarnard5267]

David Jones yes Skylum is heavy on hype and light on integrity and prone to bugs. That said Luminar3 has pretty much replace all my other applications like LR, DXO and CaptureOne. I’m looking forward to Luminar4

[@davidjones8070]

I’m happy that you are satisfied with Luminary’s it’s just not for me..it runs slow and isn’t as responsive as Capture One..maybe it’s my system.

[@fenixtech1342]

@@davidjones8070 It's not just your system. It's been acknowledged from Skylum and many people have the issues (Windows mainly)

[@allendrexel7622]

Another awesome lesson, Ted. Thank you!!

[@rogerhuston8287]

I don't use Lightroom for editing, I use it for the catalog. Wish there was a better program for image management.

[@mariuspettersen-no]

Ever tried out Photo Mechanic?

[@markjarrett9400]

The big issue I have with the histogram occurs when I make a photo book. On my computer the picture looks right, the histogram looks good, but the pictures in the book are woefully underexposed. Part of that is because of the screen brightness. If I could get around that and also work out how to link the exposure in the book to the histogram I would save a lot of money and disappointment. I have just got 100 prints of what looks good on my computer then increased the exposure (between 1 and 1.5 stops) and reprinted the pictures. The original pictures don't look that dark (I turn the auto adjust off in the shop machine). The second set of prints are much lighter,; the highlights are not blown. However, the images on my screen look garishly over exposed and the colors look over saturated. I have just sent away for a new book. Here is hoping that I have got things right this time. Somehow I have got to work out how the histogram relates to the book pictures rather than why I see on the screen

It seems you need to calibrate your screen first. Ted has a video about that.

[@markjarrett9400]

@ Thank you. I will watch that

[@hcp0scratch]

A+++!!! TY!!!

[@CJMajesty]

I find curves too global. Seems I can’t change one thing without affecting something else I did not want to change. I prefer sliders.

[@kjbill]

Affinity Photo is also a great app

[@themoneyguy7323]

Ted Forbes, Photography's version of Alton Brown... (for those who are not familliar with Alton Brown, its a good thing)

[@SteveP_2426]

ONPhoto1 RAW 2020 out soon

[@omniart5714]

Also, i have a idea - do review of entry level, sub 1000$ or even sub 600$ cameras... HUUUUUGE number of people start with them, or are budget photographers... Thank you

[@KevAlberta]

Start with smartphone

[@lars-goranabrahamsson9337]

Gud va tråkigt..

[@michaelandrews4403]

All images, if shot with a camera or seen with the eye, must/do/will contain a range of light, from the darkest point, (for light), which is Black, to the brightest point, (aka, 'White'); there may not be an actual pure White tone in a scene but there will be, absolutely, a 'brightest' point. In the Levels Tool absolute Black is at pixel 0, while White is at 255 pixels. Pixel 1 is not Black but the darkest Grey before Black; Pixel 254 is the lightest Grey before White. Any, and all, photographs should be set to Pixels 0->255 to place the entire shot, accurately, within the parameters of light that were present at the point of shooting. By leaving the Levels in any other position not only is the light rendered inaccurately but any other colour, along the scale, is also misplaced. E.g. - If Black or White are set 5 pixels out then a Red, Blue or Green that should, for example, be placed at '225' pixels will find itself at 220 or 230 pixels; i.e. 'the wrong place'; a different shade of Red, Blue or Green. Best practice is to make sure your levels are set from 0->255 pixels, in the Levels, and then adjust the Contrast in the Curves tool which allows lightness and darkness to be controlled while retaining the fixed Black and White points. Curves/Levels Contrast adjustment with correct Levels set is interpretive photography. Curves/Levels Contrast adjustment with incorrect Levels, (not 0->255 px), is bad photography.

[@halfglassfull]

at 9:48 ....memories of my Instamatic childhood...

[@Tururere2345]

Lightroom DOES have levels adjustments, they are the "Whites" and "Blacks" sliders and they control where clipping to black and to white happens.

[@orsoncart9441]

I don't understand why levels,colour wheels are different from curves. It just seems to me a different way of doing exactly the same thing!

[@ItsWillLee]

@13:42 ooops hehehe ;-p ..no, no we didn't, lol

[@RondenBreems]

I think your videos are very interesting but this time in particular I really think you're speaking so fast as if you want to reach light speed (pun intended) It makes your presentation very nervous and I really can't keep focused. Why the rush? Catch your breath sometimes at the end of a sentence PLEASE.

[@MichaelMa]

Somehow the industry is regressing in to 3rd party filters again. Remember Alienskin Eye Candy? Now its Portrait Pro, Landscape Pro, Luminar, etc. Maybe this means Adobe has been lazy.

[@vicibox]

I have always had a low opinion of Adobe software, especially LightRoom which I think is the pits but, this video has left me reassessing Lightroom even lower. I cannot believe you had to switch software to demonstrate a basic function in image processing. I find it even more unbelievable that people actually pay extortionate fees to use this rubbish. Hardly surprising people are switching to other more professional packages. If your package doesnt have these basic functions then you should find some software that does; there is plenty to choose from stretching from open source to the sublime capture One. If it doesnt have direct controls and only offers sliders then its best moving on. Sliders, the last refuge of the clueless amateur ;-)

[@grrrrrgh]

$10 a month for Photoshop is exorbitant? PS blows all these tools away if you take the time to learn it, its not as hard as most people make it out to be.

[@ath3263]

Photomechanic 6