Continued....The modern editing software makes it remarkably easy to adjust and alter photographic images. But how legitimate and valid are these adjustments?
Picture 4: Adjusting the image using the Curves tool
I then made adjustments using the Curves tool. The key focus for this work was on the face of the young man which happened to be in the shadow area. I wanted to bring back to light his face expression which I noticed whilst taking this picture.
I used the brightness/ contrast function on the selected areas and then deselected to see the results. I then selected the young man’s face and used the curves tool again to make adjustments on the smaller area.
Picture 5: Adjusting the image using the Brightness/ Contrast function
Picture 6: Selecting a smaller areas of the image and making adjustments with the Curves tool
Picture 7: Deselected image after the adjustments
Finally, I increased contrast and adjusted tones to make the shadow stand out more. This is how I remember the street scene to look on the day so I considered this adjustment to be legitimate on this occasion.
Would these adjustments be legitimate?
This means that the street scene that I saw with my eyes had a greater level of detail (including details of the young man’s face expression) and at the same time a greater level of contrast than that recorded by the camera.
So, by making these adjustments (for example, adjusting the level of brightness and bringing to light the young man’s face expression), I think I brought the picture closer to the real street scene that I witnessed in Marrakesh.
However, my view is that it all depends on your personal interpretation. In some ways, the original image is more interesting: the shadowy siluette of the young man is intriguing and as one can not 'read' the expression on his face, it adds to the mistery and the atmosphere of the image. The smoky-blue, semi-transparent quality of the shadows fits the mysterious element of the image.
Where the final image gains the clarity and description, it looses this 'mystery' element in some degree. Whether it makes it more or less interesting...well, this is something that the viewer would probably be the best judge.
Picture 8: Final image
