Is Photoshopping reaallyyyy that important?

[Snow_One]

hi all i was just thinking is it reaaaalllyyy really important to be a real wizard with photoshop to be a good photographer? i just started getting serious with photography and realised the auto-fix feature in Photoshop Album SE works wonders on my shots haha.

then i did a bit of research in the library and found out that the modern digital photographer's concern is not only out there but back in the computer room as well! ay i feel lazy to start digital image editing can someone either comfort me or go ahead and splash some cold water.

heh.

Nope, not really important (commercial photography aside). It another tools to further express your visions just like printing in a traditional darkroom.

When most of us are shooting film (negative), we give up the rights to a good lab to print out what they think we want. Now with digital.... with more control comes more fun to learn the post-poccessing tools available.

 

[philshots]

... is it reaaaalllyyy really important to be a real wizard with photoshop to be a good photographer?

Assuming ...You just returned from a holiday and have taken hundreds/ thousands of shots. Are you going to PS every shot? I think you'll go nuts after a while... Know your equipment and the results you are likely to get (must practise more). Learn to anticipate the portions of your frame that will likely be under or over exposed and take a few more -1, -2 or +1 or +2 shots - after all, digital pics cost you nothing. At the end of the day, just keep those that you and delete the rest ... its unlikely you'll return to the same spot (the place you took your shots) unless you're willing to. IMHO, I like to get it right - straight out of my camera than to edit my results all the time - this is just me Enjoy photography and keep shooting

 

[nemesis32]

We normally post a thread like "when do you sleep?" and find out the convenient hour to break in someone's house to steal any software we need to enhance whatever we want to enhance in this enhanceable world.

HA... do i sense a jab at someone...

Anyway, photoshop has many functions and each photographer's need is different. Depending on skill level and intent, the importance is thus varied.

Like Clown mentioned, darkroom and lab are also consider PS.. but PS's scope is slightly wider as you can do healing brush, layers etc which in darkroom or lab is almost impossible to achieve.

 

[mpenza]

not really important. many are doing at least some form of post processing but it's always better to get it right at the start.

 

[idor]

if you want to create certain kind of artistic(questionable) effect..... or you dun own any filters and you wanna simulation certain filter effects.... or maybe wanna create high Dynamic Range pictures... then PS is very important... but if you want pics straight out of camera and your skill is pretty okay.... then PS loses its importance.....

In a nutshell... it all depends on what you wanna do to your pic.

 

[LittleWolf]

For me, I always try to get the shots right so that the pictures are the most original.

There are many things that just cannot be reasonably controlled before/during exposure. The response of image sensors to light is fixed, and with film there is not much more freedom (e.g. control the gamma by development, which is AFAIK practical only for B&W film). Controlling global or local contrast has always required darkroom tricks like dodging, burning, and masking.