Is there a way to lighten up a photo without expensive software?

Every now and then, I get a pretty good group photo where everyone has
their eyes open and no one has a weird expression on their face. Sadly,
the image is a little too dark. This is often because of back lighting
and I forget to select that setting.

I found a lot of tutorials for how to do it with Photoshop, but I don't
want to spend $600 for a tool that I won't use more than 1% of.

Is there any way that I can just lighten up the photo without having to
buy Photoshop? If there is nothing cheaper, I'd be willing to spend up
to $50 or so.

I have Irfanview. I found two options that seem to do what I want, but I
am not sure how to use them. Is there a tutorial somewhere?

1. Auto Adjust Colors (Shift+U). I tried this on a few photos. It takes
a few seconds and seems to generally lighten everything. It can be done
more than once, but doesn't seem to have any other adjustments.

2. Color Correction (Shift+G). This brings up a second view of the photo
side by side with several sliders underneath: Brightness, Color Balance
(RGB), Contrast, Gamma Correction, and Saturation.

Brightness lightens everything the same amount. This might be useful if
the whole photo was too dark.

Color balance seems like I should leave it alone.

Contrast is a little harder to use. I'm not sure what the contrast is
between.

Gamma Correction starts out at 1.00. I am also not sure what it does.

Saturation seems to control how close it is to grey scale.

Can anyone offer any hints about how to use these adjustments?

Is there any tool that will scan the photo and make its best guess at
what to do?

Thanks

On Sun, 15 Dec 2013 19:08:37 -0800, Jennifer Murphy
wrote:
: Every now and then, I get a pretty good group photo where everyone has
: their eyes open and no one has a weird expression on their face. Sadly,
: the image is a little too dark. This is often because of back lighting
: and I forget to select that setting.
:
: I found a lot of tutorials for how to do it with Photoshop, but I don't
: want to spend $600 for a tool that I won't use more than 1% of.
:
: Is there any way that I can just lighten up the photo without having to
: buy Photoshop? If there is nothing cheaper, I'd be willing to spend up
: to $50 or so.
:
: I have Irfanview. I found two options that seem to do what I want, but I
: am not sure how to use them. Is there a tutorial somewhere?
:
: 1. Auto Adjust Colors (Shift+U). I tried this on a few photos. It takes
: a few seconds and seems to generally lighten everything. It can be done
: more than once, but doesn't seem to have any other adjustments.
:
: 2. Color Correction (Shift+G). This brings up a second view of the photo
: side by side with several sliders underneath: Brightness, Color Balance
: (RGB), Contrast, Gamma Correction, and Saturation.
:
: Brightness lightens everything the same amount. This might be useful if
: the whole photo was too dark.
:
: Color balance seems like I should leave it alone.
:
: Contrast is a little harder to use. I'm not sure what the contrast is
: between.
:
: Gamma Correction starts out at 1.00. I am also not sure what it does.
:
: Saturation seems to control how close it is to grey scale.
:
: Can anyone offer any hints about how to use these adjustments?
:
: Is there any tool that will scan the photo and make its best guess at
: what to do?
:
: Thanks

What kind of camera (make and model) are you using, and are you shooting RAW
or JPEG? There are lots of photo editors around (Irfanview is a pretty good
one), but which one is best for you may depend on your answers.

Bob

In article , Jennifer
Murphy wrote:

Every now and then, I get a pretty good group photo where everyone has
their eyes open and no one has a weird expression on their face. Sadly,
the image is a little too dark. This is often because of back lighting
and I forget to select that setting.

I found a lot of tutorials for how to do it with Photoshop, but I don't
want to spend $600 for a tool that I won't use more than 1% of.

Is there any way that I can just lighten up the photo without having to
buy Photoshop? If there is nothing cheaper, I'd be willing to spend up
to $50 or so.

you don't need the full photoshop.

photoshop elements fits your description perfectly. it's usually about
$50-60 and it will handle raw photos if you shoot raw.

however, if you're shooting a lot of photos, lightroom is a much better
choice because it combines the usual adjustments (exposure, colour
balance, sharpening, etc.) with an easy way to manage all your photos
and find the ones you want, and it can make web pages, print, etc. it's
around $100, but is occasionally less. it was just on sale for $70, an
amazing deal.

On Sun, 15 Dec 2013 22:37:11 -0500, Robert Coe wrote:

On Sun, 15 Dec 2013 19:08:37 -0800, Jennifer Murphy
wrote:
: Every now and then, I get a pretty good group photo where everyone has
: their eyes open and no one has a weird expression on their face. Sadly,
: the image is a little too dark. This is often because of back lighting
: and I forget to select that setting.
:
: I found a lot of tutorials for how to do it with Photoshop, but I don't
: want to spend $600 for a tool that I won't use more than 1% of.
:
: Is there any way that I can just lighten up the photo without having to
: buy Photoshop? If there is nothing cheaper, I'd be willing to spend up
: to $50 or so.
:
: I have Irfanview. I found two options that seem to do what I want, but I
: am not sure how to use them. Is there a tutorial somewhere?
:
: 1. Auto Adjust Colors (Shift+U). I tried this on a few photos. It takes
: a few seconds and seems to generally lighten everything. It can be done
: more than once, but doesn't seem to have any other adjustments.
:
: 2. Color Correction (Shift+G). This brings up a second view of the photo
: side by side with several sliders underneath: Brightness, Color Balance
: (RGB), Contrast, Gamma Correction, and Saturation.
:
: Brightness lightens everything the same amount. This might be useful if
: the whole photo was too dark.
:
: Color balance seems like I should leave it alone.
:
: Contrast is a little harder to use. I'm not sure what the contrast is
: between.
:
: Gamma Correction starts out at 1.00. I am also not sure what it does.
:
: Saturation seems to control how close it is to grey scale.
:
: Can anyone offer any hints about how to use these adjustments?
:
: Is there any tool that will scan the photo and make its best guess at
: what to do?
:
: Thanks

What kind of camera (make and model) are you using, and are you shooting RAW
or JPEG? There are lots of photo editors around (Irfanview is a pretty good
one), but which one is best for you may depend on your answers.

It's a Nikon Coolpix S8200. I get JPG images. I'd get a better camera,
but I can barely use this one. I think P&S is best for me.

In article ,
Jennifer Murphy wrote:

Every now and then, I get a pretty good group photo where everyone has
their eyes open and no one has a weird expression on their face. Sadly,
the image is a little too dark. This is often because of back lighting
and I forget to select that setting.

I found a lot of tutorials for how to do it with Photoshop, but I don't
want to spend $600 for a tool that I won't use more than 1% of.

GIMP is free.

If you have a Mac, you can do it in Preview (which comes with the kit).

Isaac

On Sun, 15 Dec 2013 22:59:35 -0500, nospam
wrote:

In article , Jennifer
Murphy wrote:

Every now and then, I get a pretty good group photo where everyone has
their eyes open and no one has a weird expression on their face. Sadly,
the image is a little too dark. This is often because of back lighting
and I forget to select that setting.

I found a lot of tutorials for how to do it with Photoshop, but I don't
want to spend $600 for a tool that I won't use more than 1% of.

Is there any way that I can just lighten up the photo without having to
buy Photoshop? If there is nothing cheaper, I'd be willing to spend up
to $50 or so.

you don't need the full photoshop.

photoshop elements fits your description perfectly. it's usually about
$50-60 and it will handle raw photos if you shoot raw.

I downloaded the trial version of Elements several years ago. I think it
was recommended to me by someone here. I never used it enough to get the
hand of it. Every time I needed to do something, I had to relearn it all
over again.

Would the adjustments provided by Elements do a better job than what
Irfanview can do with my skill level?

I don't think my P&S camera (Nikon Coolpix S8200) will give me raw
images. At least I don't know how to do it. I get JPGs.

however, if you're shooting a lot of photos, lightroom is a much better
choice because it combines the usual adjustments (exposure, colour
balance, sharpening, etc.) with an easy way to manage all your photos
and find the ones you want, and it can make web pages, print, etc. it's
around $100, but is occasionally less. it was just on sale for $70, an
amazing deal.

I do shoot quite a few photos, mostly of the grandkids.

How does it "manage" the photos? It would be handy to have some sort of
organization. I have them in Windows folders by date and event:

\2013
\20130122 Name of event
\20130203 John's birthday
\20130225 Disneyland

etc.

On Sun, 15 Dec 2013 20:38:58 -0800, isw wrote:

In article ,
Jennifer Murphy wrote:

Every now and then, I get a pretty good group photo where everyone has
their eyes open and no one has a weird expression on their face. Sadly,
the image is a little too dark. This is often because of back lighting
and I forget to select that setting.

I found a lot of tutorials for how to do it with Photoshop, but I don't
want to spend $600 for a tool that I won't use more than 1% of.

GIMP is free.

I tried that once and found it impossible to use. The windows kept
jumping all over.

If you have a Mac, you can do it in Preview (which comes with the kit).

I have a PC.

On 2013-12-16 04:33:41 +0000, Jennifer Murphy said:

On Sun, 15 Dec 2013 22:37:11 -0500, Robert Coe wrote:

On Sun, 15 Dec 2013 19:08:37 -0800, Jennifer Murphy
wrote:
: Every now and then, I get a pretty good group photo where everyone has
: their eyes open and no one has a weird expression on their face. Sadly,
: the image is a little too dark. This is often because of back lighting
: and I forget to select that setting.
:
: I found a lot of tutorials for how to do it with Photoshop, but I don't
: want to spend $600 for a tool that I won't use more than 1% of.
:
: Is there any way that I can just lighten up the photo without having to
: buy Photoshop? If there is nothing cheaper, I'd be willing to spend up
: to $50 or so.
:
: I have Irfanview. I found two options that seem to do what I want, but I
: am not sure how to use them. Is there a tutorial somewhere?
:
: 1. Auto Adjust Colors (Shift+U). I tried this on a few photos. It takes
: a few seconds and seems to generally lighten everything. It can be done
: more than once, but doesn't seem to have any other adjustments.
:
: 2. Color Correction (Shift+G). This brings up a second view of the photo
: side by side with several sliders underneath: Brightness, Color Balance
: (RGB), Contrast, Gamma Correction, and Saturation.
:
: Brightness lightens everything the same amount. This might be useful if
: the whole photo was too dark.
:
: Color balance seems like I should leave it alone.
:
: Contrast is a little harder to use. I'm not sure what the contrast is
: between.
:
: Gamma Correction starts out at 1.00. I am also not sure what it does.
:
: Saturation seems to control how close it is to grey scale.
:
: Can anyone offer any hints about how to use these adjustments?
:
: Is there any tool that will scan the photo and make its best guess at
: what to do?
:
: Thanks

What kind of camera (make and model) are you using, and are you shooting RAW
or JPEG? There are lots of photo editors around (Irfanview is a pretty good
one), but which one is best for you may depend on your answers.

It's a Nikon Coolpix S8200. I get JPG images. I'd get a better camera,
but I can barely use this one. I think P&S is best for me.

That camera does not give you the benefit of shooting RAW. However,
since you are reluctant to spend too much on decent editing software, I
suggest you start with what Nikon has given you bundled with your
camera, ViewNX2. Without getting too complicated this software should
give you the ability to make rudimentary image adjustments.

Also that camera has an in-camera editing feature called "D-Lighting"
which gives you the ability to make some adjustments to detail in the
shadows & highlights.

My recommendation for you is Photoshop Elements, but I am going to
suggest that you look at what you already have.


--
Regards,

Savageduck

On 2013-12-16 04:42:03 +0000, Jennifer Murphy said:

On Sun, 15 Dec 2013 20:38:58 -0800, isw wrote:

In article ,
Jennifer Murphy wrote:

Every now and then, I get a pretty good group photo where everyone has
their eyes open and no one has a weird expression on their face. Sadly,
the image is a little too dark. This is often because of back lighting
and I forget to select that setting.

I found a lot of tutorials for how to do it with Photoshop, but I don't
want to spend $600 for a tool that I won't use more than 1% of.

GIMP is free.

I tried that once and found it impossible to use. The windows kept
jumping all over.

;-)

If you have a Mac, you can do it in Preview (which comes with the kit).

I have a PC.

....and that's OK.

--
Regards,

Savageduck

In article , Jennifer
Murphy wrote:

Every now and then, I get a pretty good group photo where everyone has
their eyes open and no one has a weird expression on their face. Sadly,
the image is a little too dark. This is often because of back lighting
and I forget to select that setting.

I found a lot of tutorials for how to do it with Photoshop, but I don't
want to spend $600 for a tool that I won't use more than 1% of.

Is there any way that I can just lighten up the photo without having to
buy Photoshop? If there is nothing cheaper, I'd be willing to spend up
to $50 or so.

you don't need the full photoshop.

photoshop elements fits your description perfectly. it's usually about
$50-60 and it will handle raw photos if you shoot raw.

I downloaded the trial version of Elements several years ago. I think it
was recommended to me by someone here. I never used it enough to get the
hand of it. Every time I needed to do something, I had to relearn it all
over again.

Would the adjustments provided by Elements do a better job than what
Irfanview can do with my skill level?

if you tell it to apply the same adjustments, the results should be the
same. there might be some minor differences if you analyzed it but it's
highly unlikely you can see a difference.

what matters is if the app is easy to use.

I don't think my P&S camera (Nikon Coolpix S8200) will give me raw
images. At least I don't know how to do it. I get JPGs.

not as far as i can tell, but maybe your next camera will.

however, if you're shooting a lot of photos, lightroom is a much better
choice because it combines the usual adjustments (exposure, colour
balance, sharpening, etc.) with an easy way to manage all your photos
and find the ones you want, and it can make web pages, print, etc. it's
around $100, but is occasionally less. it was just on sale for $70, an
amazing deal.

I do shoot quite a few photos, mostly of the grandkids.

that'll do it.

How does it "manage" the photos? It would be handy to have some sort of
organization. I have them in Windows folders by date and event:

\2013
\20130122 Name of event
\20130203 John's birthday
\20130225 Disneyland

etc.

that way is a lot more work for the user than is needed. the computer
is *really* good at searching and indexing photos so you can search on
content.

it's similar to how you might search for photos using google's image
search. you search on what you want photos of and it gives you images
that match. however, unlike google, you get what you want.

for instance, you could search by location (e.g., disneyland) and get
all photos in that location. you could search on birthday parties and
get john's party and any other birthday parties, or search on birthday
parties of just john. photos can be rated 1-5 stars, so you can search
of only the best ones. it's very flexible.

some apps can even do face recognition which makes finding photos of a
particular person extremely easy, but lightroom doesn't do that (yet).

the way it works is you train it on a few photos for each person and
then it processes the rest of the library. picasa does it (multiple
platforms), as does apple's iphoto and aperture (mac only).

let the computer do the work.