choosing software good for portrait photography

**ice** · 06-09-2010, 3:40pm

Hi guys.. i haven't bought software yet for my new Canon 550D, but i'm in need of one soon because i have portraits stacking up that i need to edit! Most particularly, i want to be able to whiten teeth/ eyes, remove unwanted objects, fix lighting etc, and how to make 'eyes pop' by overlaying (darken iris outline and pupil and lighten iris) etc.

Other than that, i'm not too fussy.. but i cant find the whitening feature on any of the free programs- can someone help me out with a good software package or download that would be good for portraits?

Thanks!!

**robcran** · 06-09-2010, 3:55pm

Is it a requirement that the software be free? You might have some trouble finding a suitable program.

To do all that you are going to need a pixel editor so you'll be looking at Photoshop, Photoshop Elements (cheaper), or Corel's offering - forget its name at the moment.
You can get trial downloads of most commercial software to try out before you pay.

I'm not familiar with Canon's packaged software that comes with the camera. Would that cover your requirements?

**Kym** · 06-09-2010, 4:03pm

Try Picasa from google for free or The GIMP.

+1 to PS Elements
Paintshop Pro from Corel I've not used

This helps as well (Workflow) http://www.ausphotography.net.au/for...ad.php?t=53310

**Dan Gamble** · 06-09-2010, 4:41pm

Originally Posted by Kym

Try Picasa from google for free or The GIMP.

Will agree wholeheartedly with Kym on this. the GIMP is probably the equivalent of photoshop from a few generations ago but there are a great range of plug-ins and the look, feel and work-flow are very much the same. It has been a good friend to me for many a version.

I could only suggest that "teeth whitening" could be done via selecting the teeth region manually and playing with the hue/contrast/brightness on the area selectively. Depending on the image you could be a little more liberal and modify the global "highlights" values in the "levels" settings dialog but this may have an effect on the whites of the eyes and any other white or saturated areas as well. Can't say i've done it personally to be able to give you a definite tried and tru methiod.

Others may have a less "hack and stab" approach to this as well and I'm sure there would be many general tutorials on how best to whiten teeth in various software environments.

There's always more than one way to polish enamel.

**ice** · 06-09-2010, 4:59pm

thanks for the fast replies guys.. of course i don't mind paying! (i was expecting i would) i just dont want to rush in and buy something without some basic advice first.. PS Elements sounds good.. i might have to youtube the teeth whitening thing- it's pretty important for portrait photography! Cant have a bride with yellow teeth :/

**ricktas** · 06-09-2010, 5:07pm

hmmm. Are you saying you are taking bridal/wedding shots and have virtually no post processing experience? OUCH!

**campo** · 06-09-2010, 5:29pm

if you want free, The GIMP is the only software i know that'll give you photoshop power with pixel editing layers, masks etc.

That said, if you're going to spend money, consider something like Lightroom. It's takes care of 95-98% of my wedding images including everything you said above. In addition it's great for your digital workflow from camera to printer and web. The other few percent of my images end up going through Photoshop for "heavier" editing such as cloning out large regions of shots etc. You could easy complement Lightroom with The GIMP for this purpose.

**I @ M** · 06-09-2010, 6:19pm

ice, I don't want to sound nasty or anything but I would respectfully suggest that instead of relying on software to correct photos that you concentrate a lot more on composition, exposure and lighting so that you can dedicate whichever (necessary) software that you purchase towards developing your images rather than using it to fix stuff ups that correct camera usage could have prevented.

**Dan Gamble** · 06-09-2010, 7:25pm

Originally Posted by I @ M

ice, I don't want to sound nasty or anything but I would respectfully suggest that instead of relying on software to correct photos that you concentrate a lot more on composition, exposure and lighting so that you can dedicate whichever (necessary) software that you purchase towards developing your images rather than using it to fix stuff ups that correct camera usage could have prevented.

Fair points and in Ice's defence...

Some folks DO have some pretty ratty teeth (if any at all) that no amount of photographic and lighting skill can avoid or improve... apart from getting them to perhaps say "Mmmmmm!!!" instead of "Cheese!!!".

**ice** · 06-09-2010, 7:31pm

when i said, 'Cant have a bride with yellow teeth' i more wanted to convey why i would want to use a teeth whitener tool! I am a complete amateur photographer and by no means will i be doing bridal in the near future!! Many people have asked me what i would use it for. Personally, shooting portraits (in my opinion) can be ruined by yellowed teeth and i just want to make sure i get a program that has this feature.

And i dont want to correct my photos, i want to enhance them. I dont think there's anything wrong with that, and im not talking about every photo, but there are just some things you can do with digital imaging that cant be done on just a camera.

**ricktas** · 06-09-2010, 8:10pm

Originally Posted by ice

when i said, 'Cant have a bride with yellow teeth' i more wanted to convey why i would want to use a teeth whitener tool! I am a complete amateur photographer and by no means will i be doing bridal in the near future!! Many people have asked me what i would use it for. Personally, shooting portraits (in my opinion) can be ruined by yellowed teeth and i just want to make sure i get a program that has this feature.

And i dont want to correct my photos, i want to enhance them. I dont think there's anything wrong with that, and im not talking about every photo, but there are just some things you can do with digital imaging that cant be done on just a camera.

Thanks for the clarification.

my suggestion, if you want to become an avid and life-long digital photographer, is to get Photoshop Elements. It is a 'cut-down' consumer version of Photoshop, which is the industry standard. If you take your photography further, using Elements will give you a good insight into how to use the full blown version of Photoshop. There are also heaps of tutorials available for photoshop, which helps when you google how to do something, you are bound to find the answer and instructions.

**WhoDo** · 06-09-2010, 8:16pm

I'll THIRD the recommendation for The GIMP, and when you're finally sure that it won't do what you want at the very high end of your experience with it, then move on to a more professional package like Adobe Creative Suite or Photoshop CS or Photoshop Lightroom.

If you are NOT doing the post-processing for paying work, why pay for the software to take it to the nth degree? The guys around here who do photography for profit as well as fun are pretty much using Photoshop CS (not elements) or Lightroom or both. Adobe Creative Suite has both plus some other great stuff. The rest of us that want to spend every spare penny on better gear can make do with The GIMP and not be a lot worse off IMHO.

**ice** · 07-09-2010, 11:48am

Ok, sorry to ask (im sure its a simple answer) but the links to the gimp on this page... when i download the file, it says 'cannot be opened'? Do you have to download every file, or just the latest 2010 one? confused..

**campo** · 07-09-2010, 12:08pm

Originally Posted by ice

Ok, sorry to ask (im sure its a simple answer) but the links to the gimp on this page... when i download the file, it says 'cannot be opened'? Do you have to download every file, or just the latest 2010 one? confused..

I'm assuming you're talking this page:

http://www.gimp.org/downloads/

You just need the main installer "Installer for Windows XP SP2 or later" or if using another OS, click on the "show other downloads" and goto the right section.

**ice** · 07-09-2010, 12:33pm

Never mind, i'm happy with Picasa

**Kym** · 07-09-2010, 12:57pm

Please note the current version of The GIMP is 8 bits / channel only.
So if you're shooting raw rather than JPEG, you will lose a chunk of dynamic range.

The next major release (3.0) is expected to have 16 bit support
http://www.gimp.org/docs/userfaq.html#16bit

This (for me) is a show stopper for The GIMP as my workflow keeps 16bit until publishing

**WhoDo** · 07-09-2010, 1:25pm

Originally Posted by Kym

Please note the current version of The GIMP is 8 bits / channel only.
So if you're shooting raw rather than JPEG, you will lose a chunk of dynamic range.

The next major release (3.0) is expected to have 16 bit support
http://www.gimp.org/docs/userfaq.html#16bit

This (for me) is a show stopper for The GIMP as my workflow keeps 16bit until publishing

Yes, but does it stop you from whitening yellow teeth?

You may be interested in this "Tip", Kym!

**ameerat42** · 07-09-2010, 1:59pm

Hey WhoDo (Gee, reminds me of a song - ahh! who do I think I'm kidding.) Thanks for that pointer, though I'll now get the latest. Am.

**Bubbleyboy** · 09-09-2010, 8:43pm

So do I have this right ? If were to buy program"s" to begin with that will do most of what I am likley to need as an ameture I should purchase PS elements as well as Lightroom . With these and enough skill I should have enough at my fingertips to manage my photos from camera to computer to printer or storage item and the ability to correct , modify and artify any picture I have or am likley to take ?
PS are these programs able to convert from RAW to JPEG and other formats when you save what you have created.

Bubbleyboy

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