Digital Photography

After four years of owning Studio C I am realizing how much I have learned. The digital learning curve has been the steep one!

To say I was drug kicking and screaming into digital photography would be an exaggeration, but not by much. I loved 35 mm photography. I loved using available light, reflecting light, using back light for hair accent and generally being creative. But I knew that while I can remain a purist at heart, digital photography was a major but necessary shift. And so, I leaped. For me, it was leap and learn.

My daughter was married a few weeks ago and we were fortunate to find Rosa Digital and Juan Carlos to agree to shoot the wedding and then hand over the RAW images. It was both a professional and personal budget decision because I knew that though I would save some bucks,  it was going to mean that yours truly was going to be challenged to deal with the images. I have always shot in large jpeg. RAW images and managing and editing the files was intimidating.

This past week the images arrived and the learning curve went vertical. But oh the fun  and gratification when you can to turn this image:

... into this image:

Amazing isn't it?

I am so grateful to Rosa Digital for the professional courtesy they extended me in not only accepting the job but in sharing in the ownership of the images. I have learned much. Not the least of which is that photography is only half done with a camera. The rest is done with the software on your computer that allows you to correct all the mistakes the camera makes or can't control  to make the final product more accurate for color and more beautiful.

Yes there is some manipulation of the image that isn't "true". Wind blown hair has been tamed. Over-exposed decking has been "re-stained". But the integrity of the subjects has not been compromised. That is what counts in the end. That, and having a beautiful picture to hang on your wall with pride.

So I take off my hat to Rosa Digital! Juan saw the spot to shoot this image. He saw the back ground and the back light. He directed  the composition. But Studio C found the cropping balance, removed the distractions, and made the color real. Win. Win.