Before - RAW File Out of Camera, Canon 60D, 50mm f/1.4, 1/500 sec at f/2.0, ISO 200 — *Before - RAW File Out of Camera,* Canon 60D, 50mm f/1.4, 1/500 sec at f/2.0, ISO 200

After - Image Processed Using Adobe Lightroom & onOne Perfect Effects 8.                                                … — *After -* Image Processed Using Adobe Lightroom & onOne Perfect Effects 8.

Ever have a chance to photograph a bleeding heart? These are awesome plants! The plants are beautiful when in bloom and I couldn't help but photograph this one. This is a quick before/after tutorial to show you how I arrived at my final image. After taking a few shots of this plant, I liked this one the best so lets get started!

Camera Setup & Settings

It was an overcast day with full cloud cover, just before a rain storm. Cloudy days provide great light for photographs because the clouds cause the sky to act like a big soft box giving off nice even and diffuse light. This image was shot with the Canon 60D using a 50mm f/1.4 lens. The settings I used to create the image were 1/500 second at f/2.0, and and ISO of 200. Every image I shoot is in RAW format. I always recommend using RAW format since this will give you the highest quality and the best ability to modify images down the road if necessary.

Lightroom

The first thing I did with this image was to bring the RAW file into Adobe Lightroom 5. Next, I went into the develop module and applied some general adjustments to the image. Starting at the top of the Basic panel, I worked my way down. Exposure was increased by +.20 to help brighten the bleeding hearts a bit. I reduced the contrast a because I love the dynamic contrast feature in Perfect Effects 8. I'll use the dynamic contrast filter later on to bring back contrast in the image. I pulled back on the highlights to insure there was no detail lost in the bottom section of the flowers. Shadows were increased a bit to help bring out the entire flower. Whites and blacks were adjusted a bit to help round out the image.

Quick Tip:

When adjusting Highlights, Shadows, Whites and Blacks, you can hold the option key on Mac and alt. key on a PC to show you the clipping points for each slider. It's helpful in determining how much of each slider you use.

Perfect Effects

With these few global adjustments made, I'm now ready to bring the file over into Perfect Effects. In Lightroom go to File > Plug-in Extras > Perfect Effects 8.

Once the image is opened in Perfect Effects, The first filter layer I'm going to add is Dynamic Contrast - Natural. There are a few modifications I want to make on the Dynamic Contrast layer. On the right side of the window, under Filter Options, there is a section called 'Detail'. Here you have the ability to adjust how the Dynamic Contrast is applied to the image. 'Small' makes contrast adjustments to all of the small or fine details within the image. I used a setting if 10. Next, 'Medium' effects the contrast of the medium or mid size-details within the picture. Most of the areas I want to see more contrast in are within the medium range. Therefore I used a setting of 25 to get the amount of contrast I liked without over doing it. 'Large' effects the larger areas and textures in your image. Here I don't want to add much contrast to the background, so I use a setting of 2. You might be thinking - how do I know what settings to use? The best thing to do is play with the sliders and see what you like. Experimentation is the best way to see how things work and are affected by different settings.

Perfect Effects 8 - Bleeding Hearts Image with Dynamic Contrast Applied.

Next, add 2 new filter layers by clicking the '+' in the filter layer stack. I want to enhance the color of the image, so I'm going go to the Filters on the left side of the window, then find 'Color Enhancer'. For the first filter layer, lets choose 'Increase Color'. Reduce the layer opacity to 40% so the effect is not over done. On the next filter layer, again go to 'Color Enhancer' and choose 'Red Enhancer' to help bring out the magenta in the bleeding hearts. Reduce the layer opacity to 20%. I also made some adjustments in the filter options of the 'Red Enhancer' layer. Under 'Color Range' I increased the saturation of both Magenta and Green just a touch to help it all pop a little more.

Perfect Effects 8 - Color Enhancer Filters

The next adjustment is to add a 'Sunshine Filter'. The sunshine filter really helps warm everything up and gives it a slight glow. It helps convey a warm, happy feeling through the image.

Perfect Effects_Sunshine_Bleeding Hearts

Next we need to apply some sharpening to the image to help tighten everything up. To do this, add a new layer in the Filter Stack. Then, look under 'Sharpening' in the Filters list on the left hand side. Select 'Amazing Detail Finder'. Reduce the layer opacity to 90%. Finally I think a vignette will finish off this image nicely. Again, add a new layer in the Filter Stack. Choose 'Vignette', then select 'Subtle'. Now the image is complete. Click 'Apply' at the bottom right hand side of the window and the filters will be applied and brought back into Lightroom.

I hope this tutorial helps you to further understand how Adobe Lightroom and onOne's Perfect Effects can be used together to create great images. If you have any questions, leave a comment below. Thanks!

Post Processing

Canon 60D:  1/250th @ F5.0, ISO 800                            Out of Camera Raw File — Canon 60D: 1/250th @ F5.0, ISO 800 Out of Camera Raw File

Many images can benefit from some general retouching and color enhancing. When shooting in RAW format, it is always necessary for some level of post processing. Above is an example of a photograph I shot in the winter of 2012. The image was shot with my Canon 60D with an 18-135 Kit lens. On the left you see the original RAW file as it came out of the camera. To the right, you see the same photograph processed in Adobe Lightroom. Modifications made in Lightroom include adjusting contrast, highlights, shadows, whites, blacks, a touch more vibrance and lens corrections.

After making some global adjustments in Lightroom, I used Cmd+E on the Mac to take the image over to Adobe Photoshop for some retouching. In this case, I removed the people, the car and evergreen tree from the photograph. I also had to reconstruct the train rail where the people were removed. I wanted the focus of the photograph to be the old rustic train car and I felt the items I removed were distractions to my overall vision for this image. The tools of choice in Photoshop were the clone tool, healing brush, layer masks and adjustment layers. With the retouching work in Photoshop complete, I saved and closed the file, which brings it back into Lightroom.

Now that I essentially had the image I wanted, it is time for some finishing touches. I have been using onOne Software's Perfect Effects 8 and I have found it to be a great tool. To bring the image from Lightroom into Perfect Effects, in Lightroom go to File > Plug-in Extras > Perfect Effects 8. I then added some dynamic contrast, color enhancers, and sharpening. Once I was happy with the final product, I applied the settings and sent the image back to Lightroom. Below is the final image after all of the processing is complete. Many times the image I see in my mind when I press the shutter button is not what comes straight out of the camera. With the help of some great tools, the image in my mind becomes a reality.