How to tell if a photo has been post-processed?


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WuffRuff

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Jan 10, 2007
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Wonder if there is a way to find out if a photo has been post-processed... from the jpeg copy with exif.
 

all digital pics are post processed - in or out of cam - or else u cannot see them.

what exactly do you mean "post-processed"?
 

While it is technically true that most images out of the camera are processed to some degree (especially in compact cameras), I guess the originator of this post meant post-processing using software like Photoshop, GIMP or Paint Shop Pro Photo, etc.
 

Yes, that's right. I meant processing the photo using software like Photoshop, etc.
The reason I asked this is becos I saw a photography competition's guidelines say "Entries should not be digitally-manipulated."
That set me wondering how they would ever find out if a photo has been digitally manipulated. Of course if you're gonna add dramatic effects with filters, etc that would be obvious. But for things like cropping, sharpness, colour, contract manipulation, etc... where you can't tell from the photo... how would they know??
 

For what i know,
manipulation involves changing the details of the image i.e. cloning/healing out unwanted details, adding blur, etc etc.
Simple processing like setting wb, increasing levels, contrast, curves, do not constitute as manipulation. But i could be wrong, since once you save a picture using PS, it will show in the exif, and its hard to tell if manipulation had been done.
 

How about converting a RAW file to a jpg file? Is that considered post-processing? The process is pretty much similar to in-camera processing, except there are more options.
 

RAW processing is outside the camera and RAW bypass all internal camera processing. So is that post processing?

And you can "manipulate" quite a bit just with RAW processing. For example with Abode Camera Raw (ACR) there is the curve tool, which alone can make very different pictures.

Of course what you can't do in ACR - perhaps for now or maybe not with another software - are things like clone/patch or compositing or liquify or lens distortion correction and some more.

So what is post processign? And now what is image manipulation?

And finally why should the limitations of film photography defines what is digital photography?

As to the competition, my view is that what is manipulation is what the judges can detect whatever they deemed manipulation. And I suppose subconsciously or unconsciously this is whatever film and the darkroom cannot do.

As to the EXIF you can save your file without EXIF data.
 

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