How should a beginner start learning photo editing and RAW processing?
Asked 1/21/2013
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I'm new to photo editing and want to learn how to process RAW files to improve my photos. As I gain experience, I'd also like to learn basic portrait retouching, such as skin softening and brightening eyes or teeth. What are some good beginner-friendly books or learning resources to start with?
Originally by Photography Stack Exchange contributor. Source · Licensed CC BY-SA 4.0
Photography Stack Exchange contributor
13y ago
2 Answers
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For a beginner, I think the Scott Kelby books are probably easiest to understand, and if you don't mind his corny sense of humour, they are well written and organised.
The Adobe Photoshop Lightroom 4 Book for Digital Photographers
The Adobe Photoshop CS6 Book for Digital Photographers
Since you specifically mentioned portraits, his Professional Portrait Retouching Techniques for Photographers Using Photoshop is very good. Does not really teach you post-processing basics, more along the line of skin softening, eyes/teeth brightening and so forth. If you are a beginner you'd want something to familiarise yourself with the basics first I think, although his techniques are easy to follow.
I also recommend his 7-Point System for Adobe Photoshop CS3. This takes you through many different images from start to finish. You can download all of the images used in the book, so you can work the same images yourself.
For more in-depth books I'd suggest something by Jeff Schewe (RAW processing)
The Digital Negative: Raw Image Processing in Lightroom, Camera Raw, and Photoshop
or Martin Evening (for Photoshop)
Finally, lynda.com and kelbytraining.com have very good, in-depth online tutorials. These can be several hours long each. Cost is around $29/month, and for many people I think these would be easier to learn from than books.
Originally by user4191. Source · Licensed CC BY-SA 4.0
user4191
13y ago
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A good way to start is with beginner-friendly books that teach a simple workflow for RAW processing first, then move into portrait retouching later.
Based on the recommendations here, Scott Kelby’s books are a solid starting point because they’re easy to follow and well organized. Good first choices include:
- The Adobe Photoshop Lightroom Book for Digital Photographers for learning RAW processing and general photo improvement
- The Adobe Photoshop Book for Digital Photographers for Photoshop basics and editing workflow
If you later want to focus on portraits, Professional Portrait Retouching Techniques for Photographers Using Photoshop is useful for cosmetic edits like skin softening and brightening eyes or teeth, but it’s better after you understand basic post-processing.
A practical learning path is:
- Learn exposure, white balance, contrast, cropping, and color correction in a RAW editor.
- Practice on your own images regularly.
- Move to Photoshop-style retouching once basic editing feels comfortable.
In short: start with RAW processing and general editing fundamentals, then add portrait retouching techniques afterward.
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