Ancillary Products: Photo Shoot (Editing)

I have begun using Adobe Lightroom to edit the photos taken in the hotel room last week. Lightroom is very similar to Photoshop, but it is specifically for editing photos rather than general graphic editing.

The software includes preset settings which you can use to create effects on your photos, however it also has sliders to change exposure, black, lighting, contrast, brightness, saturation and to adjust the colouring of the images. This software is actually used by professional photographers and includes advanced options and information about all the photos imported. For example, the ISO, aperture  shutter speed and the focal length of the lens used.

On the right is a screenshot of Lightroom. You can see some of the present options available, this enable easy editing for the less experienced user. You can download further Lightroom presets and even create your own if you want to keep the setting for a photo. The other part of the screenshot shows the more detailed editing options, these are also very easy to use and can be learnt simply by 'playing' with the sliders. I have had previous experience of this software and the options as I use it for another subject. These particular settings were actually used in for the individual Adele shot which you can see later in this post. I have also included some further screenshots from during the editing process.

The most powerful shot, in my opinion, is the one of the couple together. The poses are very strong, and the location does shows continuity with our music video. The first edit has a slight blue tint to it, and shows good contrats on both the models and background. The blue tint indicates a dark, depressing mood which is also represented by the actors posing. The photo is very similar to earlier Adele cover art, such as her '19' album cover which is very dark and shows shadows across the face. If we went for a high contrast edit like this, it would be recognisable for Adele fans.

Alternatively this other edit is extremely similar, except it is a simple black and white colour scheme. In Adele's more recent cover art, the colour scheme is often just black and white. Again I think it is important to include both artists on the cover, this means that the cover would appeal to two audiences. It would also highlight that the song is a remix featuring Kanye West. However, a downfall of this edit is that it has no sign of emotion at all. The mood of the song is not represented by colour, but by the posing which isn't totally clear.

The last two images are close ups on the Adele character. Again I have tried to edit this image so that it is similar to Adele's style. You will notice the harsh lighting and use of shadows, you can even see some of the mascara that was used in the music video. As I said before colour definitely has an impact on the mood represented by the photos, I have used a blue tint on both to emphasise the depression of Adele in this song.

In order to decide which image to use the group will have to have a discussion on what we all think is best. We will also need to research previous DVD covers and magazines to find what makes them successful. The screen shot below shows the process of editing in Lightroom, including the photo and the settings used to create this effect.