Blog
02.03.09
Just what is Retouching after all?.
Photo manipulation is the application
of image editing techniques to photographs in order to
create an illusion or deception (in
contrast to mere enhancement or
correction), through analog or digital
means.
Types of digital photo manipulation
Historical tools used for photo manipulation.
In digital editing, photographs are usually taken with a digital
camera and input directly into a computer. Transparencies,
negatives or printed photographs may also be digitized using a
scanner, or images may be obtained from stock photography
databases. With the advent of computers, graphics tablets, and
digital cameras, the term image editing encompasses everything that
can be done to a photo, whether in a darkroom or on a computer.
Photo manipulation is often much more explicit than subtle
alterations to color balance or contrast and may involve overlaying
a head onto a different body or changing a sign's text, for
example. Image editing software can be used to apply effects and
warp an image until the desired result is achieved. The resulting
image may have little or no resemblance to the photo (or photos in
the case of compositing) from which it originated. Today, photo
manipulation is widely accepted as an art-form.
There are several subtypes of digital image-retouching:
Technical retouching
Manipulation for photo restoration or enhancement (adjusting colors
/ contrast / white balance (i.e. gradational retouching),
sharpness, removing elements or visible flaws on skin or materials,
...)
Creative retouching
Used as an art form or for commercial use to create more sleek and
interesting creative images for advertisements. Creative retouching
could be manipulation for fashion, beauty or advertising
photography such as pack-shots (which could also be considered
inherently technical retouching in regards to package dimensions
and wrap-around factors) One of the most prominent disciplines in
creative retouching is image-compositing. Here, the digital artist
uses multiple photos to create a single composited image. Today, 3D
elements are used more and more to add extra elements or even
locations and backgrounds. This kind of image composition is widely
used when conventional photography would be technically too
difficult or impossible to shoot on location or in studio.
Types of digital photo manipulation
In digital editing, photographs are usually taken with a digital
camera and input directly into a computer. Transparencies,
negatives or printed photographs may also be digitized using a
scanner, or images may be obtained from stock photography
databases. With the advent of computers, graphics tablets, and
digital cameras, the term image editing encompasses everything that
can be done to a photo, whether in a darkroom or on a computer.
Photo manipulation is often much more explicit than subtle
alterations to color balance or contrast and may involve overlaying
a head onto a different body or changing a sign's text, for
example. Image editing software can be used to apply effects and
warp an image until the desired result is achieved. The resulting
image may have little or no resemblance to the photo (or photos in
the case of compositing) from which it originated. Today, photo
manipulation is widely accepted as an art-form.
There are several subtypes of digital image-retouching:
Technical retouching
Manipulation for photo restoration or enhancement (adjusting
colors / contrast / white balance (i.e. gradational retouching),
sharpness, removing elements or visible flaws on skin or materials,
...)
Creative retouching
Used as an art form or for commercial use to create more sleek
and interesting creative images for advertisements. Creative
retouching could be manipulation for fashion, beauty or advertising
photography such as pack-shots (which could also be considered
inherently technical retouching in regards to package dimensions
and wrap-around factors) One of the most prominent disciplines in
creative retouching is image-compositing. Here, the digital artist
uses multiple photos to create a single composited image. Today, 3D
elements are used more and more to add extra elements or even
locations and backgrounds. This kind of image composition is widely
used when conventional photography would be technically too
difficult or impossible to shoot on location or in studio.
Source Wikipedia: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Photo_manipulation