{"id":940,"date":"2021-07-12T19:25:44","date_gmt":"2021-07-12T19:25:44","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/anandagarden.com\/eye\/?p=940"},"modified":"2025-03-13T18:26:15","modified_gmt":"2025-03-13T18:26:15","slug":"how-to-improve-your-photos-fast","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/anandagarden.com\/eye\/2021\/07\/how-to-improve-your-photos-fast\/","title":{"rendered":"How to Improve Your Photos FAST!"},"content":{"rendered":"

It\u2019s easier than ever to improve<\/strong> most photos, thanks to advances in photographic editing technology. I\u2019m not talking about making gallery-quality photographic art, but just the kinds of everyday pics you might want to post online.<\/p>\n

Here\u2019s an original photo that I downloaded from the wonderful Unsplash <\/strong><\/a>website that offers high-quality images at no cost \u2014 you only need to credit the photographer.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>
Photo: Grateful thanks to Brian Erickson on Unsplash!<\/em><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Looks promising! Here\u2019s the final image after some quick and simple edits. I confess, I edit like an illustrator, more interested in color and drama than an exact rendering.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a><\/p>\n

Now, the thing is, it was dead easy and it took perhaps two minutes to make the changes.<\/strong><\/p>\n

First I applied a quick edit with Radiant Photo<\/a><\/strong>. Radiant Photo is a bit pricey, at $129, but it has saved me untold hours over the years. You get a standalone version as well as a plugin for Photoshop and Lightroom, and an external editor for Photos for Mac, Capture One, and Aperture. There\u2019s also a mobile version<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Something I like about RP is that you can adjust the automatic corrections, or create a simple preset that will apply only the effects you find yourself using most often.<\/p>\n

For the photo above I opened RP in Photoshop and applied the \u201cOutdoors\u201d effect, then I adjusted the effect with the Image Ambulance slider. I then edited it slightly in Photoshop with Filters > Camera Raw Filter where I applied a bit of Texture and Clarity.<\/p>\n

A Clarion Cry for Cropping!<\/h2>\n

Something that drives me crazy is how, whenever I post a gallery of photos for my designer friends, they invariably fail to understand that every single one of the photos, with rare exceptions, needs to be CROPPED.<\/p>\n

When I browse the Flickr<\/a> photo hosting site, I\u2019m powerfully struck by the degree to which many images could be improved by cropping.<\/p>\n

I\u2019ve been dabbling in video for the last couple of years, and I\u2019ve been impressed by how much impact many photos can gain by being cropped to the popular cinematic aspect ratio of 1:2.39 \u2014 as shown in the photo of the runner.<\/p>\n

It\u2019s easy to try the 1:2.39 crop on your photos:<\/strong><\/p>\n

    \n
  1. Open an image in Photoshop and choose the Crop tool (or press C).<\/li>\n
  2. Right-click anywhere in the photo and choose \u201cUse Crop Box Aspect Ratio.\u201d You\u2019ll see \u201cRatio\u201d in the toolbar at the top of the Photoshop window.<\/li>\n
  3. In the first box to the right of \u201cRatio\u201d type 2.39, and in the second box type 1.<\/li>\n
  4. The crop box will change to the cinematic 1:2.39 dimensions so that you can drag the photo around to get the cinematic effect you want.<\/li>\n
  5. To clear the fixed aspect ratio and go back to cropping freely, click the Clear button in the top menu.<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

    It\u2019s easier than ever to improve most photos, thanks to advances in photographic editing technology. I\u2019m not talking about making gallery-quality photographic art, but just the kinds of everyday pics you might want to post online. Here\u2019s an original photo that I downloaded from the wonderful Unsplash website that offers high-quality images at no cost … Read more<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"generate_page_header":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"yoast_head":"\nHow to Improve Your Photos FAST! - Ananda Garden Eye<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"You can give your photos more impact with just a few clicks using these powerful tools.\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/anandagarden.com\/eye\/2021\/07\/how-to-improve-your-photos-fast\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"How to Improve Your Photos FAST! - Ananda Garden Eye\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"You can give your photos more impact with just a few clicks using these powerful tools.\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/anandagarden.com\/eye\/2021\/07\/how-to-improve-your-photos-fast\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Ananda Garden Eye\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2021-07-12T19:25:44+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2025-03-13T18:26:15+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/anandagarden.com\/eye\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/07\/brian-erickson-ukqBUIYk6zM-unsplash-original.jpg\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"Rambhakta\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"Rambhakta\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"3 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\/\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"Article\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/anandagarden.com\/eye\/2021\/07\/how-to-improve-your-photos-fast\/#article\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/anandagarden.com\/eye\/2021\/07\/how-to-improve-your-photos-fast\/\"},\"author\":{\"name\":\"Rambhakta\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/anandagarden.com\/eye\/#\/schema\/person\/a4dc450ba4e51365065988f4059b93fd\"},\"headline\":\"How to Improve Your Photos FAST!\",\"datePublished\":\"2021-07-12T19:25:44+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2025-03-13T18:26:15+00:00\",\"mainEntityOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/anandagarden.com\/eye\/2021\/07\/how-to-improve-your-photos-fast\/\"},\"wordCount\":486,\"commentCount\":0,\"publisher\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/anandagarden.com\/eye\/#organization\"},\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"CommentAction\",\"name\":\"Comment\",\"target\":[\"https:\/\/anandagarden.com\/eye\/2021\/07\/how-to-improve-your-photos-fast\/#respond\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/anandagarden.com\/eye\/2021\/07\/how-to-improve-your-photos-fast\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/anandagarden.com\/eye\/2021\/07\/how-to-improve-your-photos-fast\/\",\"name\":\"How to Improve Your Photos FAST! 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