Workshop
"If I knew how to take a good photograph I'd do it every time." Robert Doisneau
= PDF ..... requires Adobe Reader = Powerpoint Presentation ..... requires Powerpoint Viewer, or Powerpoint or Open Office. = Web Link I will add links to useful tips and tutorials here but not necessarily adding them to the menu system (which can take a lot of time). Future updates of the menu system will probably not list individual links, so you need to look carefully in here regularly.
Title	Description		Links
Photographic Basics and Camera Use
Absolute Beginners	Some mental hurdles you need to clear!
Exposure Triangle	Aperture/Shutter/ISO Summary
F Numbers	What's an F stop and why it's important to know about them
Exposure Modes	Manual, Auto, Program, Aperture & Shutter Priorities
DSLR or P&S?	Do you really need a DSLR and, if so, which ones are for you? Would a P&S work?
White Balance	White Balance and all those options - what do they mean?
Metering Modes	What's the difference between all those 'metering modes' (Spot, Centre-weighted, Evaluative)?
Filters for Digital Cameras	Still useful - perhaps even more on digital cameras.
Better Focus	1. Focus and Sharpness 2. Manual Focus		1. 2.
Updating your Camera	"Firmware" updating
Raw and JPEG Formats	Confused? You needn't be!
Photo Styles and Techniques
Composition See also a book recommendation below	1. The Elements 2. Basic 'Rules' 3. More Points		1. 2. 3.
Holiday Pictures	Hints for summer holidays Travel Photography
Macro Photography	Some hints for everybody
Animals/Pets	Top Ten tips for getting good pet photographs
Wildlife	Some more tips for a range of critters.
Panoramic Photography	Guides and Hints, two videos.
Photography in the Snow	How to get Snow White(?)
Photography in the Cold	Some tips on keeping warm enough to use your camera.
'High Dynamic Range' Photography	A "How to" Guide
Photographing Architecture	A brief guide
Photographing Wildflowers	Some basic tips for the Spring
Photographing Food	Something useful for the cooks
Photographing Children	Some articles on the Digital Photography School site - with further links
3 Photo Projects	Suggestions for ways to improve your photography
Summer Vacations	Useful tips for making the best photographic effort on your family holiday in the sun.
Digital Photo Editing
The Basics in Elements	Easy improvements in Elements (applicable to other programs) (Video)
New! 7 Essential Edits	My biggest tutorial ever.... how to make the basic edits to your images. A large PDF. Free!			work file (zip)
20 Essential Photoshop Tutorials	If you are using full Photoshop but don't think you're getting the best out of it (considering the cost) try these tutorials.
Tutorials in Lightroom	Using Lightroom? Good choice - but are you getting what you want from it? The link here is to a site that has most of the best LR tutorials around.
Basic Editing with PaintShopPro	Some of you may use PSP - an excellent and much under-rated program. Here are some basics to get your teeth into.
Layers	The key to good editing
Levels and Histograms	The easiest and fastest way to improve your pictures in your graphics software.
The Orton Effect	A technique for occasional use
Photo Colour Explained	A Complex business!
Split Toning in PS Elements	A useful technique
Cropping your Images	An aid to composition
DPI and PPI	The myth of DPI and how print shops don't always know what they mean
Re-Sizing in Software	Photoshop (Video)
Ditto	Photoshop Elements (Video)
Ditto	Paint Shop Pro (Video)
Repairing Old Photos Digitally	Fix up old pictures with Photoshop (or Elements)
Save for Web	Photoshop Elements (Video)
Correcting Under and Over Exposure	Photoshop Elements (2 videos)
Ansel Adams	A video showing some of Adams's techniques and his darkroom
Watermarking	Some ideas for watermarking your images, for copyright and style.
Shooting RAW on a Canon?	Work on your composition with Canon's Digital Photo Pro software.

Even More Technical Information.....

Do you get confused by various features of your camera, or do you just want to understand some of the technicalities a little better? The above list of resources, some on this website and some from around the web, will be added to as we go on. If anything else is troubling you (after looking through the weblinks, pdfs and presentations above) please post your questions on the Questions and Answers (Q&A) page. The answer may eventually find its way onto the list above.
The best single online technical resource that I've found is at Cambridge in Colour. Shutters, apertures, histograms, exposure, depth of field, colour management.... it's all there.

Some Golden Rules......

1 Read your camera manual. If you don’t have it anymore, you can probably find it online. Learn every feature and aspect of the camera you have. It will take amazing pictures if you know how to use it properly.

2 Take your camera with you everywhere you go, and take lots of photos. Take photos of everything. Find something uninteresting and find a way to make it interesting. That is the essence of art.

3 Practice in manual mode. All cameras have a manual mode take a photo and change a single setting. Then change that one setting and take another photo. In my opinion this is the best way to understand the manipulation of light.

4 Make each photo count. One of the biggest downfalls of digital photography is the ability to take so many photos so easily for so little monetary investment. So we buy a cheap camera and snap away, hardly taking a thought to what is in the view finder. STOP! Think about your next photo, then take the time to make it amazing. You’ll start thinking like a photographer and your photos will improve ten fold. [On the other hand, don't be afraid to experiment! This is where the digital camera has a great advantage - instant feedback and the possibility of trying out many things until you are happy with the result."]

5 Keep your best photos in a special place, discard the rest. Professional photographers take thousands of pictures and show only their best to the client. Take photos for you, you are your own client. One day you’ll look back and be amazed at your work.

Composition

Now, for something completely different, I'm going to recommend a book.

Remember those? Paper, words, pictures? Something you can read at the cottage, in the garden, in the bath even. This one is just about the best book about composition you'll find - "The Photographer's Eye" by Michael Freeman. I'm sure you can find it online and it's certainly in all the best bookshops. It's around $20 online, a bit more in a shop. The author has also written many other books, among which "The Photographer's Mind" and "Understanding Exposure" are outstanding. Highly recommended.

Resizing Pictures for the Web and eMail

We sometimes ask for pictures to be sent, for competitions, slideshows or illustration purposes. Generally, it doesn't matter how big your picture files are, but your email provider may get indigestion when encountering huge files. However, just how 'big' is a 'big file'? Well, it should be borne in mind that No normal computer monitor can display at more than 100 (but usually 72) pixels per inch - any more is wasted. So, adjust the ppi of your picture(s) to a maximum of 100ppi, and preferably 72ppi. (This is usually done in the Image/Size control of your graphics software). Other than that, there's no real limit in dimensions...... set resolution at 72ppi and it will be small enough for email. Have a look at the table of Resources above..... there are videos for resizing and saving for the web and email.

Attaching pictures to email.... Every email application has the ability to add 'Attachments'. When you click on 'Attachments' you will have a dialog box asking for the location of the file you wish to attach. (So you'll have to know where you saved the file). You just find the file and click 'Attach' or OK. Another method uses what is known as "Rich Text", and you can place a picture within your text (technically, it's still an Attachment).

On the subject of re-sizing images......

In preparing images for the March Competition slide show here, I needed to correct nearly all of them for four editing/resizing errors..... These errors would result in less than useful images for competitions etc because they would just appear wrong. So it's worth you getting these right, so that your masterpieces can be shown at their very best.

• Wrong ppi or resolution. No image online can be shown at more than 72ppi (except with a few top-end monitors) and certainly not on the club laptop which is used with the projector to display images for presentations and competitions. Saving an image at 300ppi and 3 inches wide will not work - it won't show at better than 72ppi and will be tiny.
• In conjunction with the above, wrong physical dimensions This is usually the result of not reducing the resolution of the image, or rather the ppi of the image, to 72ppi. But think about it - an image width of just 4 inches?
• Wrong Colour Space (or no Colour Space at all)..... Colour Space (the range of colours in an image) can be selected for a digital image by changing it in your editor.... and the projector we use (and the normal colour space used online) is sRGB. You actually need a special web browser to be able to view anything in AdobeRGB or PhotoPro spaces. The AdobeRGB has a wider 'gamut' of colours and is great for home printing but can look quite washed out on any other device. The projector that we use can be set to sRGB or to a custom colour setting - but that would mean changing the setting for each and every image that's not using the same colour 'standard' - if everybody saved in sRGB, we could keep the projector to sRGB and then all images would show at their best and nobody would be at a disadvantage.
• Wrong bit-depth This is probably the result of processing your Raw image and choosing to open it in an editor at 16-bit depth. You cannot save an image in 16-bit as a Jpeg, so the image was saved as a TIFF.
• One image in the bunch had the 'Grand Slam' of wrong choices.... A 16-bit file, 4 inches wide, saved at 300ppi as a TIFF, and in the wrong Colour Space.

So remember.... Competition Standard.....

Not just in the club but for nearly all other digital competitions - unless otherwise directed - you need to get these right.

• Saved in the Jpeg format
• 72ppi
• Dimensions around 10" (or up to 1024pixels) on longer sides. BUT SEE NOTE BELOW.
• Colour Space sRGB
• 8-bits.

NOTE: For images entered in the main club competitions (not the online competition), and therefore to be shown on the projector, note that you need the vertical sides to be no more than 780 pixels..... otherwise parts of the image could be chopped off and/or your image will appear small.

Local Photo Courses etc.

Mieke Van Geest

St. Lawrence College Creative Photography courses

Creative Photography courses with Mieke Van Geest, at St. Lawrence College. Contact Mieke if you are unsure of your level.***

Level 3: Exploring your Creative Directions Wednesdays October 6 - November 10, 6-9pm
This course will push your boundaries in creativity.  We will work with photographs you have already made and from what these show us, you will be encouraged in your individual directions and learn to draw on your own resources.  You will be challenged in a non-threatening and enjoyable experience.

Level 3 may also be arranged as a class outside of the college, if a minimum of 5 are available to register. Contact Mieke.

Level 2: Creative Photography: the Next Level Tuesdays  November 9 - December 14, 6-9pm + one photo shoot
This course assumes a good understanding of shutter speed, aperture, and depth-of-field. We will focus more in depth on them, along with composition and exposure, in the context of the assignment work you bring into class. Your creativity and ways of seeing will be expanded.

Level 1: Creative Photography
Tuesdays Sept 14 - November 2,  6-9pm + two photo shoots
This level includes many beginning students, but there is much to be learned about working with aperture, shutter speed, exposure, etc., with lots of attention to composition.

Contact Mieke by email or go to St Lawrence College website for more information; register at 613-544-5400, ex. 60.

It seems that nobody is currently teaching PS Elements at the college.... a bit of a shame - very few people really need the full Photoshop (which would explain why so many used to 'drop out' of Photoshop classes and join the Elements group).

However, if you are interested in using (full) Photoshop, there are courses available:
Also two Introductions to Digital Photography
Details on the SLC website.

Jonathan Sugarman

Jonathan usually runs several different courses through the year, at his home in Kingston...
Details are available on Jonathan's website. Course details for 2010-2011 available, with a new course on flash photography, plus Jonathan's Frame Sale.

Janice van Dijk

Don't forget that Janice has many courses and workshops running through the year - check out Janice's website for details.
Contact Janice for further information - janice.vandijk (@) bellnet.ca

Three Camera/Photo courses in Picton, with Peggy DeWitt

August through November 2010

1-Day Basic Camera Courses in Belleville (21 Aug) and Picton (8 and 15 Sep)

Six Week Photography Course in Picton starting 22 Sep

See Full Details and Peggy DeWitt's website and Newsletter

Rob Kennedy course in Prince Edward County

Oct 21st to 24th, plus 31st

"I'm a professional Photographer/Instructor who has led visual design workshops for over 7 years & I am now extending my services to Prince Edward County Oct 21- 24th 2010.
Workshops concentrate on the art of seeing, interpretation & creating in the field. Participants receive hands-on daily teaching with personal assignments for fun & focus. An Evaluation day is held at a later date for valuable critique of images. Space is limited to 8 participants for quality learning. All welcome." $350. Go to website or call 905 206 9363

Don't forget the lending library of various books held by the KPC. You can rent a book for a 2 or 3 week period (from one meeting to the next) for a paltry $2.00. The club will purchase more books to keep the library current.

One of the common problems that many new digital (and film) photographers have is ‘camera shake’ where images seem blurry – usually because the camera was not held still enough while the shutter was depressed. This is especially common in shots taken in low light situations where the shutter is open for longer periods of time.

Adding to camera shake is a poor technique that is increasingly common with digital camera users of holding the camera at arms length away from them as they take shots – often with one hand. While this might be a good way to frame your shot when using the LCD screen on the back of a compact 'point & shoot' camera, the further away from your body you hold the camera the more chance you have of swaying or shaking as you take your shot. If you've got a viewfinder, use it. Of course, then you'll see press photographers waving their cameras all over the place at arm's length..... but these are very desperate people!

Tripods are the best way to stop camera shake because they have three sturdy legs that keep things very still – but if you don’t have one then another simple way to enhance the stability of the camera is to rest your camera on something firm and steady, use a monopod or hold onto it with two hands.

Exactly how you should grip your camera will depend upon what type of digital camera you are using and varies from person to person depending upon preference. There is no real right or wrong way to do it but here’s the technique that I generally use:

• Use your right hand to grip the right hand end of the camera. Your forefinger should sit lightly above the shutter release, your other three fingers curling around the front of the camera. Your right thumb grips onto the back of the camera. Most cameras these days have some sort of grip and even impressions for where fingers should go so this should feel natural. Use a strong grip with your right hand but don’t grip it so tightly that you end up shaking the camera. And, just like rifle shooting, squeeze the shutter don’t jab at it).
• The positioning of your left hand will depend upon your camera but in in general it should support the weight of the camera and will either sit underneath the camera or under/around a lens if you have a DSLR.
• If you’re shooting using the view finder to line up your shot you’ll have the camera nice and close into your body which will add extra stability but if you’re using the LCD make sure you don’t hold your camera too far away from you. Tuck your elbows into your sides and teach yourself to stand still. It's worth adding that controlled breathing always helps as well - I find that it's good to press the shutter just as I've exhaled.
• Add extra stability by leaning against an object like a wall or a tree or by sitting or kneeling down. If you have to stand and don’t have anything to lean on, for extra support put feet shoulder width apart to give yourself a steady stance. The more still you can keep your body, the more still the camera will be.

Gripping a camera in this way will allow you flexibility of being able to line up shots quickly and will also help you to hold still for the crucial moment of your shutter being open.

Of course each pl have their own little techniques that they are more comfortable with and ultimately you need to find what works best for you – but in the early days of familiarizing yourself with your new digital camera it’s worth considewill ring your tbe echnique.

Camera Care

Whether you use a film or digital camera, point and shoot or SLR, there are some basic tenets of camera care. The 3 main enemies of your camera are:

• Dirt
• Shock
• Water

Dirt

Dirt is everywhere! It's in the air, it's under our feet, and all too often it's on (and in) our cameras. While dirt on the outside of your camera is not a problem (excepting the lens of course), it's the potential the dirt has for getting into your camera that is the problem. Dirt in a camera can affect moving parts, damage mirrors, clog electronic contact points, get on film, and stick to digital sensors. The best course of action for dealing with dirt in your camera is to avoid it. The vast majority of shooting situations will not cause a dirt problem for your camera. However, some areas are more prone to dust and dirt than everyday usage. In order to protect your camera it's best to use a rain hood for your camera. Rain hoods are vinyl/nylon pouches made for specific cameras that allow you to still reach camera controls while protecting the camera from environmental conditions. You can purchase these at your favourite camera shop or make your own using a large zip bag. To make your own cut a hole for your camera lens in one side of the bag and use the zip end to put your hands through to the controls. You will have to carefully secure the bag to the camera lens using tape or a rubber band. Be sure to use a large enough bag to allow for lens movement. Lens changes and film loading. If you are not careful when changing lenses or loading film a lot of airborne dust/dirt can enter the camera body. To minimize dust during lens changes turn the camera facing down and press the lens up into the camera. This prevents dust from falling into the camera body. Also check out www.cleaningdigitalcameras.com for all the information you need (and some you don't!)

Shock

Outside of fully encasing your camera in shock resistant materials, all you can hope to do is avoid camera shock. There are some very common causes of camera shock....

• Broken Camera Strap
• Camera Bag Left Open
• Non-Use of Camera Strap
• Using the Camera on Unstable Support

The best way to avoid these problems is to just pay attention. Check your camera strap and its connectors regularly for wear or signs of damage. Make it a habit to double check that your camera bag is properly closed before picking it up. Use the camera strap whenever using your camera. It is there to catch the camera if you fumble it. Never use questionable support for your camera. Fence edges and railings at scenic overlooks are not acceptable support. Use a tripod on stable ground - and all but the sturdiest of those can be blown over.

Water

Water doesn't react well with film or digital sensors. Nor does it react well to batteries or any electronic parts. If your camera is not made for underwater use or encased in a waterproof housing, keep it out of water. Use a rain hood during bad weather (even heavy fog can cause problems for some cameras). If conditions would cause eyeglasses to fog when moving from indoors to outdoors or vice-versa, there is a good chance your camera could suffer internal condensation. Use a camera bag to insulate your camera and allow it to change temperatures gradually. If your camera does get wet (more than a few raindrops) there are only a few things you can do.

• Open the camera (if possible) and turn it so that the water can drain freely.
• Wrap the lens in a very absorbent towel once all water has drained that will drain. Do NOT blot or wipe the camera's internal workings.
• Take the camera to the nearest professional repair shop immediately.

40 Questions that we should be asking ourselves before taking a picture.

Well, OK, you may not be thinking that you're doing this, but some decisions have to be made at some point, some automatically, some taking more thought.....

So I’m walking along with my camera and I see a wonderful scene that would make a great photo… before I hit the shutter, some decisions need to be made.....

• 1. What mode do I want to shoot in? Manual, AP, SP, Auto or a pre-programmed mode? This will depend on the subject to some extent..... am I after a narrow or deep Depth of Field (less in focus or more)? Or do I want to freeze the action or allow some blurred movement?
• 2. If I’m using a pre-set, what F-Stop or Shutter Speed am I going to use? (For the above reasons)
• 3. What format do I want to shoot in - RAW or jpeg? (Check the learning resource on this subject on this page - in odd lighting you may need to correct the exposure or white balance later, so Raw would be the choice)
• 4. What’s my ISO? Is it fast/slow enough? (More importantly, while I want the best quality - and lowest 'noise', will it still give me a shutter speed that I can handle if I don't use a tripod?)
• 5. If I have a high ISO, will it give too much noise for the shot? (Or something that doesn't matter too much?)
• 6. What White Balance am I set on? If Auto (AWB) will it handle the mixed lighting?
• 7. Do I need to set custom White Balance? (Based on the lighting and subject)
• 8. Did I bring my 18% Grey Card? It will help an overall correct exposure, but what in the scene will the exposure be based on? If it's a light area then the meter will decide on a shorter exposure and the dark areas will be underexposed - a camera, on its own, will decide that a shot with lots of snow needs an exposure value to make grey; lots of dark areas and it will overexpose that sky. Consider Filters, like a Graduated Neutral Density.
• 9. What Metering Mode should I be on? (Do I want to make sure that, say, somebody's eyes are in focus, an overall scene or something between the two?)
• 10. What Colour setting do I need? (If shooting Jpegs, colour can be adjusted with Saturation controls)
• 11. Am I going to use Manual or Auto Focus? (A scene with little contrast is difficult for the Auto mode, but generally you'll be OK in Auto).
• 12. Do I want to Bracket the shot? (Just to make sure I get a decent one - or maybe make a mix in editing)
• 13. Am I going to use a Flash? It will freeze the subject more easily.
• 14. And how am I going to use it? (Fill-In? Overall? Should I consider '2nd Curtain' Flash?)
• 15. What story am I trying to tell? (So am I in the best position for it?)
• 16. Do I need to change lenses? (Framing, distortion, compression, DOF - all side effects of different lenses).
• 17. If so, which one?
• 18. Am I shooting in Landscape or Portrait perspective, or even a jaunty angle?
• 19. Do I need to use a Tripod? (If you do, don't forget to turn off the Shake Reduction)
• 20. Will I use the Rule of Thirds or break it?
• 21. What other rules should I be following?
• 22. Are there Leading Lines I can use in the shot?
• 23. What about finding an S-curve for the leading line?
• 24. Is there any thing I can use to Frame my picture? e.g. Tree branches.
• 25. Will I change this to B&W, Sepia or something else post production? (B&W will require stronger elements and cannot rely on colour alone to give 'punch')
• 26. Do I have a Focal Point?
• 27. Is my subject Moving or Stationary?
• 28. For Moving Subjects, do I want to pan the shot, blur the background or blur the subject?
• 29. Is there a Pattern I can pick up on?
• 30. How’s the lighting? Are the shadows strong or weak?
• 31. Do I want to emphasize them?
• 32. Is the light too strong?
• 33. Will it wash out detail?
• 34. Is my horizon straight?
• 35. Can I get this at a better angle?
• 36. Should I wait for better lighting?
• 37. What does the light meter read? If it's a dark area then the camera will expose for that (try to make grey), if a light area then the camera will expose for that (try to make grey). One way or another, a scene with both strong darkness and strong brightness will get one of them wrong (or make a reasonable 'average' where neither area is perfect - check out Filters and Metering Modes on this page). 
• 38. Should I increase shutter speed or open up the aperture? (We're back to the beginning!)
• 39. Is it in focus?
• 40. Did I just miss a great shot? (Maybe - while you were working out the answers to the above questions!)

Of course, we don't ask ourselves all these questions for each and every shot.... we tend to get a feel for what's required as we go. But imagine you're taking an exam and have one chance to get one photograph as near to perfect as you can. There will be a fair amount of chin-scratching going on until you've waded through all the above questions. I once did a photography course with the Royal Navy - the test was to use just one (film) exposure to get something perfect - just one chance, one shot. Of course, a couple of the above questions were avoided because it was film (several, in fact, as it was a fully manual Hasselblad 500C/M) but there were other questions that took their place.

Having taken that stringent test on the Hasselblad, I was then issued with one to take to sea. First time I used it I think I managed to get a good exposure, sharp, well framed, everything about right. Except that I'd loaded the film in back-to-front! (Actually it still worked - just a bit strangely).

Your Digital Darkroom

Give yourself the best chance of producing top quality photos by building a powerful but affordable digital darkroom.<

Your digital darkroom is where the magic happens - where you transform the image captured by your camera into the dynamic masterpiece you envisioned behind the lens. You may only need to make a few tweaks to achieve the desired results, but you'll still need the right hardware and software setup. You will also nee

Part 1 - Hardware

How much power?

There are few things more agonising than watching your computer struggle to open image files because its processing chip, operating system and/or memory isn't up to the job. It's important, therefore, to verify the system requirements of your chosen software before buying any new computer. Get the most powerful one you can afford, ,bearing in mind that it will give you about five years of life before you have to start thinking of a new one. Whether it's a PC or a Mac, get a minimum of 4Gb of RAM.

Which Screen's Best?

Most computer screens today are LCD flat-screens with a choice of matt or glossy finish. Matt screens produce less glare, but care with placement is still needed to avoid images appearing flat. Whatever you opt for, it's crucial to calibrate it to ensure accurate colour assessment. What size? I suggest a minimum of 19", but now you can get 22" or 24" for not a lot more when it's bought as part of the deal.

How much storage do I need?

You can work out the average gigabytes of storage you'll need per year based on your shooting format and the volume of images that you shoot each month. Remember, Raw files require around four times more storage than Jpegs and don't forget to factor in the number of back-ups that you'll want to make. I'd recommend 160Gb, though in five years that could seem quite cramped so, again, get what you can afford.

Laptop or Desktop?

Laptops are more fragile, more expensive and can be less powerful than desktops. The screen will make it more difficult for you to assess colour and tones, while repairs and upgrades cost more. It's probably going to have 'mobile' features..... but if you like the idea of being able to take your digital storage on location with you, the much smaller Notebooks are now incredibly cheap and will allow you to move images from your camera's memory cards into a safer place (huge memory cards are available but if one gets corrupted that's a LOT of pictures lost!) They will also let you at least discard those pictures which don't come up to scratch, but they are usually too under-powered for heavy image editing. Notebooks now have built-in wireless connection so you could find a wi-fi 'hotspot' on your travels or, more expensively (about $300 annually), take an 'internet stick' with you to connect online from almost anywhere. Both Laptops and Notebooks have deficiencies in their power or capacity to store and edit images, so many people would benefit from a small Desktop outfit - not incredibly expensive nowadays, with huge amounts of storage, more accurate screens - they're like the 'tractor' of the desk.... many different tools and different software etc. can be added. A couple of recommended extra items for using with Laptops and Desktops... a larger back-up disk, a Multi-Card Reader (you're bound to be given a card by somebody and asked to edit their pictures) and a drawing/graphics tablet.

Part 2 - Software

Whether you want to just tidy up your images prior to printing or posting online, or you plan to do some serious image manipulation, an image-editing program is essential. If you're working with lots of files you may wish to consider buying dedicated library software too.

Free Software with your Camera

The software that came with your camera (if you have any) usually consists of a very basic image editor and browser that will allow you to look through your files, perform simple exposure and colour adjustment, correct red-eye, crop, sharpen and save. This is ideal for the beginner who just wants something accessible to get started with but more advanced users will find the limited options a serious hindrance. If you don't own any other editing software, it's worth checking what else is in the box, because camera manufacturers often bundle new cameras with trials of more advanced programs. Canon's software, "Digital Photo Pro", is excellent. It can convert Raws for you to edit and do several other things and it's free. Other manufacturers also have free programs to do the same but note that Nikon's software, "Nikon Capture NX", costs quite a bit of money.

Pros: Will get you started, handy in emergencies or 'on the road'.
Cons: Severely limited and basic set of editing tools.

Editing Programs

Adobe Photoshop is the 'big daddy' of image editing software, offering unrivalled power and flexibili7y plus advanced Raw conversion tools. It is, howe7er, very expensive and few amateurs could justify the expense. It's also a tough learning curve to get anything like the best out of it. The Photoshop discussion groups on Flickr are full of questions from people who have obviously jumped in at the deep end and find themselves totally confused (many people seem to get a digital camera, buy a computer and then choose Photoshop because they've been told "it's the best". It probably is, but it has many rivals, mostly a lot cheaper (or free) and many of them are far more usable by the beginner.
One budget alternative is Adobe Photoshop Elements - it follows the same editing principles originated by its big brother (so if you want to eventually have 'full' Photoshop, getting used to Elements makes the transition easier) but tries to simplify the tasks (sometimes, rather annoyingly, even to the point of hiding various tools). It also has an excellent catalogue program ('Organizer') and as well as being a much easier program to learn it's perfectly good for many professionals..... though it can only work properly with 8-bit files. It has the advantage of a lot of support from magazines, books, online resources etc.
Other contenders......
Corel Paint Shop Pro Photo, easy program, as good as PS Elements in many ways (and handles 16-bit files), similar price. Follows its own editing techniques which don't transfer to other programs.
Serif Photo Plus... a clone of Photoshop, very cheap, good documentation - good place to learn.
Gimp It's Free! But it can be difficult to learn if you've become used to the way that Photoshop works. It does everything that Elements can do, probably more, apart from catalogue.
Pros: Offers virtually every image-editing tool you could ever need.
Cons: The full Photoshop is very expensive and the accompanying 'Bridge' catalog software is limited.

Raw Converters

The primary function of a Raw converter is to process and convert the non-standard, otherwise unreadable Raw files that your camera generates into universally recognised, standard image files such as Jpegs and Tiffs. On of the most well-known converter is Adobe Camera Raw, which comes as part of Photoshop, PS Elements and Lightroom (see later). Apple's Aperture also features a powerful Raw converter. Camera manufacturers produce their own bespoke Raw conversion software and there are also third-part options, such as 'Bibble'. Some people prefer the camera maker's own software5 but Adobe Camera Raw (ACR) is regularly updated.... although there is a trap - Camera Raw is updated every two or three months, to include the ability to process the (slightly different) forms of Raw files that each camera comes along with. So you could buy a new camera and get the latest version of ACR. However, you may then find that the latest version of ACR is not compatible with the version of PS or PS Elements or Lightroom that you are using. You still have some options, though...... you could upgrade your (expensive) editing program, or use the camera maker's own software, if available (like Canon's Digital Photo Pro, or Nikon's Capture NX) or your camera may be able to take 'DNG' files - a raw format (often called "Digital Negative") developed by Adobe in an effort to standardise the whole Raw situation. You could also use Adobe's free 'DNG Converter', which will convert your Camera's Raw files (the CR2s, NEFs, PEFs etc) to the DNG format and then you can process it further in any version of ACR.
Pro: Offers dedicated Raw file conversion and enhancement
Con: Other image-editing options such as selection are usually unavailable, can be slow or just a plain hassle.

Library Software

It's easy to get into a kerfuffle when you're working with hundreds of photo files. A specialist library software package such as Microsoft's iView MediaPro or Extensis Portfolio will help you to streamline your workflow. Solutions on offer typically include keywording, cataloguing, backing-up and easy file-sharing solutions, such as slideshows and web galleries. You don't get any image editing tools but, with the exception of all-in-one imaging solutions, (see below) the library options offered by image editors such as Photoshop can't match the power and flexibility of a dedicated library program.
Pro: Offers a wealth of powerful asset management tools.
Con: Image-editing tools are not included.

'Do-it-All' Solutions

'Do-it-All' solutions aim to provide everything the photographer needs to download, organise, edit and showcase their photographs. They provide a complete workflow solution, so that ideally no additional software is required. Apple Aperture and Adobe Photoshop Lightroom are two such programs, both catering specifically for photographers who shoot in Raw. Because of the advanced nature of many of the tools on offer and their extremely powerful system requirements, these solutions are usually only favoured by professionals, but more and more people who 'don't really want to get into editing' are finding them very useful and easy to use.
Pro: All the tools needed to manage, edit and share photos in one program
Con: Require relatively powerful computers to run successfully.

Part 3 - Working with RAW Files

RAW files hold the key to unrivalled photographic quality if you understand how to process them correctly.

The great thing about RAW files is that they capture more image information and offer greater scope for recovery than any other format. Because no settings are applied in-camera, they put you in complete control of the image-editing process.

I'll describe the use of Adobe Camera Raw, which comes as part of Photoshop, PS Elements and Lightroom. The version that works with Photoshop is a lot more advanced than the version that works with Elements, as only Photoshop can exploit the more detailed areas. If you can master 'ACR' then you may find that the software that your camera manufacturer bundled with the camera can do an even better job. (See above concerning versions of ACR and PS/PSE). ACR can also be supplemented by a free download from the Adobe website called "Camera Profiles".  See also DNG files, above. As above, ACR will, if it is up to date and later than the release of your camera model, not only open Raw files from your camera but also, in conjunction with another free download "Camera Profiles", recognise your camera - it will show up in the 'Camera Calibration' tab to give the best result, even before you start making any corrections.

Exposure Correction

The 'Basic' tab offers several tools for refining the shadows, highlights and overall exposure of your image. You can fix minor problems and make subtle enhancements using these, but there are limits, e.g large exposure increases can increase noise in the shadow areas, whereas large exposure reductions can block up shadow details and make highlights appear posterised.

Colour Enhancement

You can correct colour casts via the white balance ('or Tint') sliders or eyedropper, plus fine tune the hue of colour ranges. This is the same as altering White Balance in-camera. There is powerful colour enhancement in the form of Saturation, Vibrance and Clarity tools, plus saturation of individual colour ranges. Just standing back a moment, these subtle colour alterations are all well and good, but completely useless unless you have a monitor that is calibrated to reflect the true colours you are altering (and, if printing, you will need to make sure you are set up properly there too, with print profiles). At this point, we are beginning to wander into 'colour management' territory.... a subject that is beyond the scope of this website. See the Links page for detailed technical matters, particularly 'Cambridge in Colour'. However, if anybody is having problems with their home printing, using PS or PS Elements, feel free to ask me - I've been there, got the T-shirt.

Sharpening/Noise

ACR offers sharpening and noise reduction, but the controls are more limited than those offered by dedicated plug-ins, like 'NoiseNinja', or 'NixSharpen'. Frankly, I don't bother touching this tab in ACR.

ACR with (full) Photoshop

This version also has tools for Tone Curve, Hue/Saturation/Luminance, Split-Toning, Lens Corrections and Presets

Other ACR notes...

You can open a Jpeg and run all the controls on it.... just go to "Open As" inside PS/PSE and choose your jpeg, choosing "Camera Raw" as the File Type.

You can adjust several Raw files at a time by opening them all together and using 'Select All' in ACR (however, you can only open one jpeg file in ACR at any one time).

ACR has no multiple layers or selection tools - all adjustments are applied 'globally'.

You can choose to open your file (which is probably a 12-bit file) as either an 8-bit or 16-bit file in PS/PSE. However, bear in mind that PSE (and even PS) is severely limited in how much it can edit in 16-bit and cannot use layers and/or several of the filters.

Just hit 'Open' when finished with the file(s) in ACR and the file will open up in PS/PSE. (Using the 'Save Image' button will save the file directly but I find that it's best to see it in the editor and save from there.) Note that, though it 'says' that you're still working with the Raw file, you are, in fact, working with the Raw file plus a 'sidecar' file (.xmp) which contains all the information about what you've just done to the Raw in ACR. When you've finished editing, you won't be able to Save the file as a Raw - only your camera can do that - so, to keep all the details, quality and editing (and even the layers and selections), at this stage it's best to save as a PSD or TIFF file (though they can be very large).

There's a very useful 8-page set of hints here for using Adobe Camera Raw (the simpler, Elements version).

Part 4 - Editing your Pictures

For consistent results get in the habit of asking yourself the following questions when editing each shot:

Is it well composed?

The first step is to ask yourself whether your shot is perfectly framed as it is. If the answer is no, you may well be able to improve matters using the Crop and Rotate tools in most software (including Adobe Camera Raw). Cropping out excess sky or a distracting element on the edge of the frame, for example, could turn an average shot into a great one.

Are the Levels OK?

'Levels' is the way to find out if any parts of the picture are 'clipped'.... the highlights are 'blown' or the shadows completely void of detail. A Levels adjustment will usually bring an image to its best range of tones, by use of a Histogram. So, assess the exposure in Levels. If the highlight/shadow ends of the tone curve don't reach the corresponding end of the horizontal Levels axis, pull the white/black point slider across until it does. The Midtones slider can alter the appearance like a change of exposure. Note, you should check the Levels even if you've edited your image in Camera Raw, because you may find the exposure is slightly off and need re-editing. The Curves adjustment, if you have one, will also affect the contrast and is worth learning to use properly. Curves adjustments are often best left to quite late in your editing process.

What about colour?

Is there a colour cast on your image? If so, and you're in Camera Raw, adjust the White Balance using the Temperature and Tint sliders. In your main editor, you can alter the saturation of the three channels by use of the Hue/Saturation controls, or you can add a Photo Filter adjustment layer.

Is it sharp?

The last step is to assess the sharpness of your image. It's really quite pointless to rely on the sharpness controls in Camera Raw and you're better off relying on the sharpness of your lens and leaving software sharpening to the very minimum - if at all. If you need to sharpen then the best option in Photoshop is Smart Sharpen, while in Elements and most other programs you need to learn how to use the Unsharp Mask well. Another method is to use a High Pass Filter - make a duplicate layer, set in Overlay or Soft Light Blend Mode and go to Filter>Other>High Pass, set to about 5px. Unlike the other methods, this will not leave artefacts or increase chromatic aberration.

Right.... that's it for now

I won't bore you any further so perhaps I'll deal with other questions as they arise (I understand that at least three members actually read this website!)