Basic image touchup in PS. AKA what you should do to every photo

Hello. Today I'm going to share a few simple steps that you should be doing to digital photos in order to make them them look better. Straight out of the camera is never going to give you the best results. Remember, however, that Photoshop only develops a photo; you cannot make a poor photo a good photo. It all starts with proper composition and exposure.

The two basic adjustments you need to make to every photo is to add contrast and sharpening, and both are simple procedures.

Step 1: Open up your photo in Photoshop.

I'm not going to get into cropping at this point but you should crop your images 8x10 or less using the standard presets. Cropping them to standard sizes ensures that they will print correctly on the paper. Custom sizes are a different story.

Step 2: First, let us add contrast. Open up the curves dialog Image > adjustments > curves.

Make a simple S curve by clicking on the line. You want to add a point on the bottom left and drag it down ever so slightly. Add another point near the upper right and drag it up just a touch. Make sure you have the Preview button checked so you can see what is going on in real time.

Step 3: Now all you have to do is sharpen it a bit. Go to filter > sharpen > unsharp mask. Yes, it says unsharp but it will actually sharpen. Don't ask. Once the dialog window is open, start with 60 4 and 1 as your base numbers. There are other base nember methods but this is the one I learned from Adobe's Scott Kelby.

Depending on the image, the range you probably want to stick with for the first number is between 55 and 70.

Here is the final product.

Subtle but effective. The things you want to avoid are adding to much contrast and over sharpening. If your highlights are blown out then your curve is too extreme. If you see a glowing halo around your subjects then you have over sharpened.

Keep in mind that every image is different, and therefore the same adjustments will not work correctly on every photo. Play around with these settings but do not go too extreme. These simple steps will do wonders for your out of the camera images.

Increasing your value as a graphic designer.

A good friend and I were discussing the topic "what makes a designer better than another designer?" the other day. In my observations, the talent gap gets very narrow once a designer reaches a certain level of technical competency. Think about it. If you understand contrast, repetition, alignment, and proximity, are fairly knowledgable with typography, proper imaging and color usage, and have the skills to execute ideas, what makes you better or worse than the next person? What can you do to separate you from the pack? The answer is obvious; it's the extras. Fill in the blanks: I specialize in________, and I also can do_________. Maybe you have multiple extras. I specialize in publication, and I also do web design, photography, and am very good with Photoshop. I am good in Illustrator, but my friend Melissa is really good. She is also a good photographer. Those are her extras. I have a designer friend who is a print guru, another who does wedding materials. Yet another who has great communication skills. Starting to get the picture? The famous designers that have inspired me are known for things such as logo creation, typography, and branding. You probably are already aware of your extra skill(s), so why not take advantage of them? Make sure that your portfolio mainly contains examples of whatever field you are trying to get in, and then have the extras prepared. For example, a publication oriented person could have advertisements, brochures, multi-page layouts samples etc., and then a booklet showcasing photography skills. The photography booklet shows that the person is familiar with image processing and can communicate ideas with the photography staff with confidence. It also highlights creative skills that can transcend across the board. Think about your extra skills and how to use them to increase your worth to a potential employer.