A Photo Re-Run of a Cool Friend
I ran this photo a couple months ago but wanted to bring him back for a new look. The reason is that I am now using a new photo editing program from Apple called Aperture. I was surprised at how intuitive and easy it is to use this program. While this photo didn't require very much in way of post processing, it is one of my favorite photos and I did use the cropping, white balance vibrancy and sharpening tools. Most of us that have feeders out for our Hummingbirds know that they vary in color because of the reflective nature of their feathers. In subdued light or shade, they are much less colorful than they appear when flying about in full sunlight.
This is the way I posted the original photo. I simply added my © and up into the post it went. It was a bit dull looking but I was really excited to show this hummingbird with his tongue out and that was the basis for the story line. It was much less vibrant and not as tack sharp as it could have been reflecting better the way the bird actually looked but I was so excited to get the photo in the first place and that was what I was sharing.
Once I realized that the photo needed white balance correction and sharpening to show more detail of birds feathers and especially around the eye area to make it stand out because that was more my actual experience, I decided to go back and correct it. I applied the crop tool to make him the real focus of the photo. Since I also like the creative aspects of showing off this guy with whom I still enjoy a daily ritual of interaction, I wanted to add a frame much like I would for a portrait when sharing his image.
The editing program, Aperture, is not quite as comprehensive as Photoshop in re-composing a photo but it is easier to learn than the professional Photoshop versions. For adjustments, Aperture is very easy to use and compares to editing in RAW in Photoshop Bridge where the photos can be post-processed with adjustments and stored or exported. Aperture also allows for easy adjusting of the white balance which greatly enhanced this photo when I softened the white balance to more resemble the actual appearance and the birds natural coloring is now more greatly exposed. After these adjustments, the photo can be stored as a project or it can easily be exported back to where you want to store the completed file. After these slight corrections, I did send this photo to Picnik.com for a little frame work but otherwise, it was brightened ( adjusted the white balance) and sharpened in Aperture. While I have enjoyed post processing photos in Picnik.com and will maintain my pro version membership, I prefer having the photo editing program resident on my computer. Now, with the "Log Me In" app and being able to access my desk top computer from my iPad, I can now more easily post photos to my ActiveRain blog from my iPad.
For those of you with iPads that want to use your iPads for posting of your photo blogs, this is the best solution I have found thus far. When the new operating system iOS5 for the iPad comes out in a few weeks, we will see how the photos issue is handled for posting to our blogs and if other solutions might be available.
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