Do we have any hobby photographers here?

[NutellaEllaElla]

I've circled back to it after several years and boy has it changed! AI, mirrorless, processing software other than Lightroom exists.

If there is anyone around, please tell me which RAW processing and editing software I should use. I've got no clue.I've been watching and reading comparisons of Lightroom/photoshop, Luminar Neo, Affinity, Darktable and more for days and my eyes hurt.

Oh and I don't understand the big deal about lightroom's cataloguing features. I always stored my photos on my computer!

Following with interest OP!

Bumping in case it catches anyone else's attention!

Aww I think it's just you and me bab

😂 tumbleweed

Sorry, I can’t help you with the editing because I don’t use anything like that and I don’t know how but I do like taking pictures of flowers occasionally so I’d say I’m a hobby photographer

Hey sorry I don't check this thread often! I'm a fan of lightroom. It's easy to pick up and feels far simpler than photoshop. There are limitations to it, but I felt like I needed a degree in Photoshop just to understand the basics whereas lightroom is easier. Also people often offer 'presets' for free so you can really have fun with editing and it's only one button.

I'm not 100% sure but I think the catalogue basically compresses everything with your edits, favourites etc so you could go back in and completely reedit that photo from scratch if you wanted. Rather than saving it as a jpeg which kind of wipes the memory of what happened to that image. Also good if you're taking a lot of photos and need to store them. For example wedding photographers now often say your pictures will be available for 5-10 years after the wedding if you wanted a reprint or them to send the gallery again. The catalogue takes up a lot less space on a harddrive than saving all the photos as jpegs.

Hope that helps. I'm not an expert but that's.my understanding.

Me!
Though I've had a long career as a graphic designer/now UX.

I studied photography at uni manly many years ago, I also did some digital photography as a hobby over the years.

I've recently taken it back up, but loathe the use of 'post' so am using film.

I can advise on Photoshop and Lightroom etc as I use them daily for work

Ah nice to hear from you! I did buy Affinity and did not gel with it one bit. I ended up going back to Lightroom and Photoshop. I've been watching how to videos on youtube but am still at the level of playing with sliders and hoping for the best! Thinking about tuition maybe...

@NutellaEllaElla what are you trying to achieve?
I'm happy to share some of my processes here with you.

Thank you @BobShark. Is there any theory I should know about 'processing' photos? I feel a bit blind playing with sliders. I see incredible before and after photos online and i'd love to achieve their level.

I would start by looking at photographers whose work you admire, there is a great British landscape photographer, I think he lives in wales called Finn Beales.

He actually offers for you to purchase some of he filter presets on his website which may be a good place to start.

https://l.instagram.com/?u=http%3A%2F%2Fmadebyfinn.com%2Flinks%3Ffbclid%3DPAZXh0bgNhZW0BMQABptHwO5ZGxHOLSZ6H5JCBgqRtnTWy1aKxah36gdsEV55cdk1Td4Es64SVgaemmATvyEvbLLzoU5KjLHZGwMUpbdMRAgfLOjQtqlBxaSNSzokaAR0sUmsbkK5wR5rD7q30&e=AT2myk8P-a6pQTJsV6Ks6AGjyz7965tnahjJl1sRKeldNmJFa553pi4topElbFZris7lnkKESwsFYDGiy4u0flNPkvYjOQtoGBhzXLz0pFwYCnaDFdd_Hw

Are you interested in landscape or portrait, or street photography?

You need to know what you are trying to achieve before you start working on post production.

I'm a photoshop girl, but I've heard affinity is a good budget option that should give you what you need.

There are also some great YouTube videos from a guy called Sean Tucker, he breaks things down really simply.

Thankyou @BobShark , i'll take a look at Sean Tucker - I really appreciate the recommendation, there are so many out there it's like a needle in a haystack. Wow that Finn is a helluva artist, his pictures are stunning. I abandoned Affinity already and am back to Lightroom/Photoshop.

I do very little in terms of processing.

I got back into it after a break of a few years by doing the A Year With My Camera course. It takes you right back to basics.

I’ve been into photography for years, and staying organized is a big help. Keeping track of thousands of photos can get messy fast, which is why I started using free digital asset management for photographers. It makes sorting, tagging, and finding my shots so much easier without spending extra money. If you're tired of wasting time digging through files, this kind of tool is a simple way to keep everything in order.