What can I do to improve this pic of my son (5 mo.)

[PropilotBW]

I cropped the image down to reduce excess background. The temperature and exposure are the original shot. I have decreased the clarity of the pic to soften the skin, and added some sharpness to crisp up the eyes.

What would you suggest?

 

[cgipson1]

It is a little underexposed for one thing....

more like... (all I changed was brightness)

 

[PropilotBW]

Here's another one of my favorites.

 

[PropilotBW]

It is a little underexposed for one thing....

more like... (all I changed was brightness)

View attachment 37571

This might sound like an amateur question. When you changed brightness, were you referencing the histogram to properly expose the picture, or were you just using what looked good to your eye?

 

[kathyt]

Good edit Charlie. PropilotBW, your son is adorable and that shot is really cute.

 

[Photographiend]

What editing software are you using? The fixes for these seem very simple. Just the brightness like cgipson did.

Great shots BTW.

 

[PropilotBW]

I have both CS6 and Lightroom4. I really only use Lightroom4, since it's so amateur-friendly.

 

[cgipson1]

It is a little underexposed for one thing....

more like... (all I changed was brightness)

This might sound like an amateur question. When you changed brightness, were you referencing the histogram to properly expose the picture, or were you just using what looked good to your eye?

eyeballed it.. on a calibrated monitor (that is probably where the problem is... your monitor is not calibrated, correct?)

 

[ghache]

calibrate your monitor. it will improve. drastically.

 

[Rick58]

Great photo. Nice edit Charlie

 

[PropilotBW]

It is a little underexposed for one thing....

more like... (all I changed was brightness)

This might sound like an amateur question. When you changed brightness, were you referencing the histogram to properly expose the picture, or were you just using what looked good to your eye?

eyeballed it.. on a calibrated monitor (that is probably where the problem is... your monitor is not calibrated, correct?)

I have not calibrated it, no. What would you recommend for settings?

 

[Photographiend]

How to Calibrate Your Monitor: 12 steps (with pictures) - wikiHow

 

[cgipson1]

This would be a LOT more accurate:

Amazon.com: X-Rite ColorMunki Smile CMUNSML: Camera & Photo

 

[JenR]

As Charlie has said, these are both underexposed. They may also need to be warmed up a smidge, but I hesitate to comment on color since it is time for me to recalibrate.