Ever since you submitted the idea for today’s blog post, I’ve been visualizing this really epic stand-off between two parties: standards waving in the wind, rows upon rows of cavalry men ready to start the charge…

Clearly I read WAY too many fantasy novels, because to provide more of a background, your suggestion was actually just to compare the camera versus the program (Photoshop), and of course my mind has been working in overdrive, imaging the forces of “camera” standing against the forces of “Photoshop” on this really legit battlefield.

I’m such a dork.

Anyway, to the real question: Who will win this stand-off? Which force is better? Which one is more critical to the successful execution of a piece?

Of course, the answer isn’t simple. Sometimes the camera wins and sometimes Photoshop wins. And it all depends on the photo. So jumping straight into this, here’s what I think:

The camera ALWAYS wins when there is not much editing required. For example, when the lighting is already really flattering or interesting, the landscape or setting is stunning on its own, or when I’ve spent a lot of time creating the props and costumes beforehand and don’t need to add them in with Photoshop later.

The reason the camera always wins in these scenarios is because real is always going to look, well… real! And the less you have to play around with an image, the more incredible it appears to the unbelieving eye. Here is what I mean by that:

In this image, the only changes I made were to warm up the tones slightly and saturate it, as my camera tends to shoot cooler and more desaturated than reality. The wind was really there, tousling her hair and skirt in the most beautiful way. The landscape stretched out incredibly around us and the warm sunshine lent this ethereal feeling to the afternoon we spent at the Cliffs of Moher. When you stare at this image you can’t believe this wasn’t shot in a fairytale world or in some daydream. But the fact that it IS real just makes the image that much more incredible.

Again, everything in this image is also really there. I only changed the color of the skirt, and again just warmed up and saturated the image a bit. That light was really interweaving itself through the fringes of the model’s hair and that tower bridge proudly stands in that same spot today. I think part of what makes this image so magical is the knowledge that you can actually go here and relive this photograph yourself.

Now, there are of course MANY times when an idea I have in my head just has to let Photoshop win, and that is when a lot of editing is required. Sometimes it’s because the lighting is terrible or not as surreal as I imagined. Sometimes it’s because I didn’t have access to the type of location or props I needed. And sometimes, it’s just because I wanted magic in my photo and, as much as it breaks my heart to say this, magic doesn’t exist in our world. So Photoshop comes to the rescue, taking an ordinary photo and making it incredible. Here’s some examples of what I mean:

This first image was a case of many of the issues I raised above: I needed a sinister cast to the image and the lighting was absolutely terrible for that. I also needed to create all kinds of magic. With the help of Photoshop, I was able to take what I would venture to say was just shy of a crappy photo (I really hated the lighting THAT much that day), to something I really, truly am proud to say has a most sinister feeling to it. Photoshop almost entirely alone created the dark, sinister vibe and the creepy tendrils of mist and magic weaving around the subject. This image as it is today would 100% not have been possible if it weren’t for Photoshop.

As another example, this image really became something special with the help of Photoshop. Shot in early Spring, the trees were so bare that there was a very distracting, light background peeking through the bare branches (not at all providing the ethereal mood I love) AND, again, I needed to add some magic. The original photo just looks like a girl sort of awkwardly holding a huge flower in the air, but with Photoshop, it actually tells a story!

Of course, at the end of the day, what it all comes down to is finding that perfect spot where the magic and feelings created in Photoshop can interweave seamlessly with the reality of a photograph. In some cases, that balance lies strongly with Photoshop and in others, the photograph itself. It’s not a black and white sort of thing, for which I am grateful, as every image creates its own unique set of challenges and opportunities for me to grow as an artist.

So, with all of that being said, I hope you enjoyed this reader-submitted topic! If you have more ideas for what you’d like me to chat about, comment below and let me know!