As promised I am back with another PicMonkey photo edit that can be done in under 30 seconds. PicMonkey is a free service that you can use to edit a photo quickly, there is also an upgrade available that offers a bigger selection of what this program can do for either $4.99 per month or $33 per year. Personally I feel it is worth the yearly subscription for all it has to offer, and it is very simple to learn. Play around will the free version and see all that it can do. Remember there are several ways to achieve a photo correction or a certain look, I am going to show you what can be done to improve a photo in under 30 seconds, not everyone will be going for the same look but this is how I would approach improving this photo quickly.
Here’s what we started with Straight Out Of The Camera (SOOC). It’s not necessarily a bad photo, it just lacks any luster and would certainly not capture anyones attention. Now with 3 easy steps this photo can be greatly improved upon to look like this.
Big improvement, right? The photo now pops off the screen and you can see the depth in the photo. See how the berries and twigs look as though they are in 3D? I say “Why would you not take the time to do a little photo editing if you could see such huge results?” There is never a photo on my blog that is SOOC and I must say it again the only things you can’t fix are photos that are OUT OF FOCUS or a photo that is BLOWN OUT. So make sure you get those two things right, and you will be able to do so much more in post processing. Below are the 3 steps, I used to achieve this look.
1. Adjust your Exposure (in the basic settings) by raising the “Brightness, and the Highlights.”
2. Use the Orton (in the effect setting) and raise your “Bloom and Brightness” by 50%.
3. Adjust your Sharpness (in the basic settings) to 10.
Make sure you hit the “Apply” button after every adjustment, the “Apply” button is just like a “Save” button. Another little tip is the “Orton” effect is great for food photography, it gives it that bright, colorful, I wan’t to eat it look. If you missed the first lesson in the series you can see it here: How to Correct Photos with Picmonkey in Under 30 Seconds.
Also my new blog, “Life In Focus 365” has launched. It is a place where I showcase one photo a day, and tell you the camera setting I used. Stop by and follow along:) If you ever need a reminder of where to find “Life in Focus 365” just click the camera icon in my side bar of this blog, below is what you will be looking for.
Also I am taking request for any areas you have trouble with in your editing process. So far the request are “back lighting” and “curves”. I will be back with tutorial on both these subjects but please let me know if you would like other editing explained with a tutorial.
Great tips Donna.
One thing that I liked in Photoshop was the bevelled edges. I don’t have the Mac version and use Pixelmator and that option isn’t available there without going through all sorts of hoops to end up with it. Does PicMonkey have anything like that? I guess if I explored it a bit more myself I would find out. But others might like to know.
Linda, yes you can make your photo corners rounded to any degree in PicMonkey:)
Hi Dawn,
I have used these tips in Pic monkey and they are so easy to do and they do make your pictures so much brighter and clear. Gotta love Pic Monkey!
Kris
Kris, yes any photo editing program makes a huge difference.
Great tip Dawn! I need to start using Pic Monkey.
Dee, it is so easy to learn and free.
Dawn, this is great!! I’ve been using Picmonkey since I started blogging last month for every single photo, just like you.
But — I did not know about the Orton feature. That’s huge as I will start photographing more food. I’ve just done it once and this would have been great to use then.
What a help you are!! Thank you.
Dana, my favorite program is Lightroom but I know most people like the free version of PicMonkey.
Great post, Dawn. I use all those things and more on PicMonkey. Every photo I put on my blog has some editing done in PicMonkey. And for free!
xo
Claudia
Claudia, mine too I couldn’t live without an editing program.
Wow…terrific information Dawn!!! I will give it a try!!
Thanks!
xo Kris
Kris, I will be back with more so stay tuned.
You’re the smartest one, Darling, and thank you for this. Your snaps are always gorgeous!
Be a sweetie,
Shelia 😉
Thank you Shelia, you are to sweet.
Love PicMonkey. Thanks for the tips, Dawn. xo Laura
Welcome Laura, anytime.
Thanks Dawn, I’m trying to work with PM each day to try and improve my shots. Your tutorial is a big help. Thanks for sharing.
You are welcome Char, let me know if you would like a certain tutorial type.
Very interesting! I’ve been using Picasa, but I think I’m gonna try Picmonkey.
Susan
Susan, it is free so you may has well give it a go.
Susan, it is free so you may has well give it a go.
Beautiful, Dawn. Yes, always good to edit the photos.
Kim, Thank so much for taking the time to look.
Great tips! I do love what you can do with picmonkey!
Tammy, me too it is perfect for free.
Dawn, thank so much for the tip about using the Orton effect for food photography! I didn’t know about that! I cringe at some of the food pics that are on the blog from the early days!
Jane, I have to laugh too and hope no one goes back years into my blog, there are some horrible photos Im sure.
Hi Dawn! Hope you’re doing well and thank you for popping in to see my little grandson! 🙂
Be a sweetie,
Shelia 😉
Dawn,
These are great tips, and so useful. I could not have gotten this far without you or PicMonkey!
Kim, for free it is an awesome program.
Wow…thanks Dawn…I have been playing around a bit with PicMonkey…your pic turned out awesome!!!
Shirley, it is such an easy program to sue and for free you can’t beat it.
Hi Dawn, just wondering if using PM i will still be able to enlarge my photos without loosing picture quality. I have found sometimes that i have had to change my file size.
Thank you for any feedback
Jen it should be fine still.