Stop just moving sliders….
Start editing your images with INTENTION!
90% of the success of an image depends on what you do before the click. But what you do later while editing your images can have a profound impact as well. Haphazardly moving the sliders, hoping something amazing will appear isn’t going to result in frequent success — more likely frustration and failure. Instead, learn to edit with intention
Powerful images possess a distinct, clear subject. They do more than merely depict a likeness; they communicate an idea, a unifying theme, or an emotion. Such images often reveal something unique, perhaps typically concealed or unnoticed, about the subject. When you discover that “something,” you move closer to discovering your unique personal vision. Your vision, in turn, reflects your identity and your perspective of the world
Imagine there was a way that could assist you in discovering and focusing on that singular idea, theme, or emotion, aiding you in realizing your vision for an image, from the moment before the click to the processing that follows after the click
Editing with intention helps you express your personal vision
Shooting and editing with intention begins with asking questions. Questions like, “What is it about this subject caused me to stop and raise my camera? What am I trying to show the viewer? Asking the right questions helps you uncover that single idea, theme or emotion. Finding answers to these questions allows you to understand your internal vision for an image, and to work intentionally toward realizing it.
All digital images require some post-processing
If you shoot in-camera .jpg files, your camera is processing your images according to the whims of the engineers working for your camera manufacturer. Purposeful editing completes the artistic process with you in control of the final expression of your vision. If this is your goal, you need to take control of the editing process and understand how it fits into an overall process of artistic expression.
After the ClickRefining Your Vision with Adobe Lightroom Classic
Presents an approach to editing intentionally based on the idea that a photograph should reveal something greater than a mere likeness of the subject
230+ pages fully illustrated,
5+ hours of video tutorials,
downloadable RAW files to follow along
Introductory Price
$US 24.95
A Lightroom book that’s not really about Lightroom
How is this book different?
Most books or other online sources on editing digital images are either a step-by-step description of each control and how it works, or a detailed description of how the author edits their images.
The first approach is fine if you are just starting out with editing your images, but sooner or later you will begin to question how all those dry descriptions of each control fits into an overall approach to image-making that is authentically you.
The second approach is fine if you want your images to look like the author’s images.
Neither approach helps you discover and develop a personal vision for your image-making. Whether you are a beginner or a more experienced photographer, at some point you’ll start asking yourself, “How can I create I images that go beyond just the likeness of something? How can I create images that evoke an emotion or images that convey the feeling of what it was like to be in a place, at a moment?” You’ll likely ask yourself as well, “How does a tool like Adobe Lightroom fit into that creative journey?”
If this is your goal, then the common approaches to learning image editing in Lightroom because they emphasize process over vision, will not serve you well. To me, these approaches have always seemed precisely backward. Vision should drive Process, not the other way around.
Process without Vision is meaningless
So… How can I Refine My Vision Using the Tools in Lightroom?
In many ways — for example:
By enhancing or diminishing the visual weight of different elements in an image.
By creating a sense of depth and dimension.
By using colour to create or enhance a mood.
By creating a visual path to keep the viewer’s eye moving through your image.
Each of these are great opportunities to refine the over-all story of your image in Lightroom.
“Visual Weight” refers to the tendency of our eye to be drawn more strongly to certain elements in an image rather than others. For example, we are all hard-wired to be drawn to warm colours over cool. Refining the visual weight relationships in your images can greatly enhance their impact.
What’s covered in this book?
On the surface this is a really deep dive into just the Develop module of Adobe Lightroom Classic. But, it’s much more than just this.
It’s really about helping you uncover your own vision — your own unique way of seeing the world around you — and expressing that vision in your images.
Sure… understanding how the controls in Lightroom affect your image, and how they interrelate with each other, is important. But, it’s far more important to understand what you’re are trying to reveal about your subject, and to understand how these tools of post-production can enhance, strengthen and clarify the message in your images.
This is is the central focus of “After the Click”
Just a few of the topics discussed….
Why Photograph?
Vision, Intention and Style
Photography vs. Reality
Understanding how we see
Visual Weight: what creates it and,
— how it affects the way we look at an image
Technical Qualities of a Great Image
Basic Panel or Tone Curve — how are they different?
Local Adjustments and Masking
Difficult Lighting Situations High vs. Low Contrast
Sharpening and Noise Reduction: two sides of the same coin
Using Craft to Realize Vision – some examples …
You Need a Plan!
Randomly moving sliders and haphazardly combining Global and Local Adjustments is not part of working with Intention.
Learn how to organize your editing process,
Begin with understanding what you are trying to show the viewer — what you are trying to say with your image — and then learn how to build an editing plan around that goal.
You’ll be amazed at how applying just a little discipline, combined with an in-depth understanding of how each Lightroom editing control works and how they interrelate with one another will improve the efficiency and effectiveness of your editing efforts.
“If you don’t know where you’re going…
How will you know how to get there?
Let alone, if you have arrived?”
Who is this book for?
If you want to move beyond capturing a basic likeness of your subject, this book is written for you. If you want to communicate what something feels like rather than just what it looks like, this book is written for you.
Originally created to support a popular online course I have taught hundreds of students, this book has been continuously revised and updated for clarity and ease of understanding based on student feedback. It has grown to encompass over 200 pages of detailed, yet easy-to-understand discussion of the tools in Lightroom, and how they can be used to strengthen the message in your images.
Even if you consider yourself an advanced Lightroom user, you’ll find new information here to up your editing game even more.
But, I’m a Lightroom beginner, is this book right for me?
Definitely! As long as you understand how to open the program and import images into Lightroom, you’ll find this book, along with the included 5+ hours of video tutorials easy to follow and understand.
Don’t Just Take My Word For It…
Praise for the Online Course and eBook on which it is based:
“In a word, WOW! And then a few more words: WOW, WOW, WOW!!! I have been blown away by this course. I am learning so much. When I first began this course, I didn’t spend much time on my shots because I was so focused on the technical side, isolating it from any artistic vision I might have. But you have rightly insisted they should not be separated. This is precisely what I admire so much about your approach to photography – you have a much larger vision than I’m accustomed to – which is why I appreciate it all the more. I appreciate how you weave together the technical and the artistic – and at every level.”
— Sara, California
“I learned a lot more than just Lightroom techniques. Your comments were both insight and thought provoking for me – I believe my perspective has changed based upon your input.”
— Jim, Arizona
“I have really enjoyed this course and been challenged by it….you have done a great job of compiling and editing a vast amount of material and I really have a lot of admiration for your technical expertise.”
— Jack, Idaho
“Thank you so very much for this course. It’s allowed me to take the blinders off and present my images for what I want them to be without being a slave to the “reality” of the camera. I would also add that in conjunction with your printing course, this has been the most useful course I’ve ever taken. Your notes are more than comprehensive and your comments and critiques are direct, clear, and always directed to the improvement of the art.”
– Bill, Nova Scotia, Canada
“This course has been an invaluable learning experience on so many levels. Your instructive materials with detailed examples were excellent and worth reading and re-reading. I learned more about how to use LR effectively and don’t feel the need to go to PS to tweak my images as much now. Too, your critiques of my work and that of others were so very helpful. This class has really made a difference in how I will view and edit my photos in the future. Thank you!”
– Anne, USA
“I have learnt so much about Lightroom in the last four weeks, and I will recommend your course to all my photo friends. You explained so many things that seemed impossible before, in a way that even Lightroom newcomers could understand them. Not all teachers can do that. I wish that all the [photography] teachers had your qualities.”
– Dianne, Austria
About the Author…
A self-described life-long learner, Mark is a photographer, educator and writer who is committed to helping photographers develop their image-making to reflect their personal vision more authentically. Actively involved in photography for over 40 years, he has spent the last 15 years teaching photography and post-production through Bryan Peterson’s online school at www.bpsop.com. He is a former nationally accredited member of the Professional Photographers of Canada (PPOC). Now retired, he spends his time writing. travelling and working on personal photographic projects. He is still passionate about passing on his knowledge and helping other photographers realize their vision.
I have no financial relationship with these companies but rely on their products every day
