Group: Insects Face To Face

By now, if you have seen these pictures on this Group Page, you might realise that my images are cropped heavily. With the inception of Digital Photography, most computer users can get access to a range of Applications ( as an ex-computer systems engineer, I really grind my teeth at the fashionable title "Ap" used in modern parlance! :( ), both free or of low cost. To my mind you are missing an important tool which goes with your photographic hobby if you don't use one to get the best out of your pictures. Now some of these Applications are of the "All Singing, All Dancing" variety with a price to match, but there are many useful Applications available which are less complicated and don't cost the Earth, so why not have a go? I use a program called "Paintshop Pro", which I've used for many years, but there are many versions of this software, and I have, out of preference stuck to "Paintshop Pro 5". It works on Windows XP, but after Version 5, the later versions are much more complicated. There is a web-site which lists all the older versions as free downloads, so it might be worth a visit to try a copy.

You would be surprised how much nicer you can make a raw picture with a bit of post-processing ( just like in the film days), and you have much more control over what viewers actually see. Throughout all my images posted, I have done two things above all else - 1. Cropped out detracting bits of the picture, and 2. Re-sized the picture downwards to a 1024 x 768 pixel format (horizontal or vertical), this means that uploading pictures are quicker, and as most pictures are going to be viewed on a Computer, the resolution is ample for normal use.

How often have you got a cracking picture of that elusive insect, only to find at the instant of taking the picture, a leaf or a blade of grass edges into the picture? With post processing, this can be removed, with care. Inadvertent colour casts can also be removed, or contrast and brightness adjusted, even with some of the simpler programs. You can also remove blemishes , scratches, and even "repair" ripped or missing parts of wings with a little practice, so there are lots you can do to make your subject "whole" again. At odd times I've ever transferred a good picture of an insect from a terrible background to a much more photogenic one, but that would take a lot more practice to make it convincing, and inevitably takes a lot of time and attention to detail to achieve it.

However, care must be taken to avoid adding artefacts into wing patterns or body parts, as this may well mislead identification, so take care when doing corrective work.