Is It “Cheating” To Edit Photos?

[Reefer Matt]

What’s up Reefers! Like many of you, I like to take photos of my tank inhabitants. I think we can all agree that there are abuses in sales posts in the realm of editing sometimes. However, if done correctly, I think that post editing adds art and clarity to a photo. But there may be those that disagree. What do you think? Are camera lenses better or worse than our eyes?

Here’s a photo before and after editing. This was taken with an iPhone 15 Pro Max. An Orphek lens was used for color temp correction and magnification.

Original

Cropped and edited

 

[PM Corals]

It’s all instagram is. So I wouldn’t be too concerned.

 

[Reefer Matt]

It’s all instagram is. So I wouldn’t be too concerned.

Yeah, I call that the “Land of Make Believe”. I tried to be real on it, but quickly realized what it is. I’m not on it anymore.

 

[DED65]

Yours look good! You have just emphasized the details in the picture. It’s the colors that you know don’t exist in nature that get me.

 

[Gumbies R Us]

As someone who does photography on the side as a hobby, I edit almost every photo I take. Editing allows you to bring out details that aren't fully there, remove unwanted elements, and portray the style/emotion you are going for. I think you can overedit photos and make them look unreal, but simple edits make a photo look better

 

[rhitee93]

I worked my way through college as a photographer. (Back in the olden days of film cameras)

Most of my work was done in the darkroom. Almost every print I made had some "Burning and dodging" going on to even out the exposure. There were also ways to tweak contrast and soften the focus of elements. If it wasn't cheating then, then why should it be now?

Now, representing something falsely to trick others into giving you financial gain is where I start to have issues with it.

I think the OP's photo is well within the realm of tasteful editing! It's also a nice pic

 

[AlyciaMarie]

To me, pictures can take away some of the finer details and beauty of the subject (colors, textures, etc). If you've ever tried photographing a sunset or the moon, you know what I'm talking about. If we're talking just about photographing livestock to sell items and/or submit contest entries, I think the editing should be done with a focus on restoring the natural beauty that may have been muted by taking the original picture. I don't see a problem with that.

Over-editing to make something seem better than it is for profit is where most people start to have a problem with editing.

 

[Reefer Matt]

To me, pictures can take away some of the finer details and beauty of the subject (colors, textures, etc). If you've ever tried photographing a sunset or the moon, you know what I'm talking about. If we're talking just about photographing livestock to sell items and/or submit contest entries, I think the editing should be done with a focus on restoring the natural beauty that may have been muted by taking the original picture. I don't see a problem with that.

Over-editing to make something seem better than it is for profit is where most people start to have a problem with editing.

I agree. What about photo contests? There are some that may believe that “Photoshopping” shouldn’t be allowed for that.

 

[rhitee93]

I did a lot of darkroom work for people entering photos in contests back in the day. I put just as much work into tuning those prints as they did setting up the exposure and composition. Why should it be different today just because the tools are better or easier to use.

It does change the game, but that isn't all bad. However, you're not going to compete well if you don't adapt to the new tools.

Back in the day I refuse to move to autofocus cameras for a long time because I thought it was cheating. An old pro pulled me aside one day and told me I was being foolish. He said I didn't get any extra credit because if focused the camera myself, but I was sure going to get dinged for any shots that were out of focus.

 

[luis angel]

The term cheat should be used when someone is selling and you are looking at a photo and when you see it in person it has nothing to do with the photo you see, for me that is cheating, otherwise it is up to each person's tastes I think, I like to edit photos but I also take photos with a phone, for example, if I enter a photo competition that by rule prohibits editing, there is no way I could compete against someone who takes photos with a camera.

 

[mfinn]

As someone who does photography on the side as a hobby, I edit almost every photo I take. Editing allows you to bring out details that aren't fully there, remove unwanted elements, and portray the style/emotion you are going for. I think you can overedit photos and make them look unreal, but simple edits make a photo look better

The only problem I see with the edit process ( in sales) is you can end up with a picture of a coral that doesn't look like the picture posted when you look at it with your eye.

I recently bought a large chunk of raw opal ( etsy) that looked nothing like the picture posted.
When I confronted the seller, he said all you have to do is use my phone camera with a flash setting to see the same rock as was in the picture.

 

[Gumbies R Us]

Before edit (iPhone 11)

After edit

 

[Gumbies R Us]

The only problem I see with the edit process ( in sales) is you can end up with a picture of a coral that doesn't look like the picture posted when you look at it with your eye.

I recently bought a large chunk of raw opal ( etsy) that looked nothing like the picture posted.
When I confronted the seller, he said all you have to do is use my phone camera with a flash setting to see the same rock as was in the picture.

I agree; it is annoying when you see something available to buy online that does not look the same in person due to photo editing.

 

[IntrinsicReef]

I agree. What about photo contests? There are some that may believe that “Photoshopping” shouldn’t be allowed for that.

Digital cameras and phones that shoot .jpg pictures are already using software to edit and compensate the image. I think in the digital age, it is tough to make a "purist" argument.

Also, in our hobby we are shooting photos in unnatural low light. Color compensation is needed to make the picture match what our eyes see.

 

[GARRIGA]

Outside of selling. Photography at it's root is all about self expression and why PS so popular. Perhaps a disclaimer to avoid the photo police from temper tantrums

 

[Reefer Matt]

Digital cameras and phones that shoot .jpg pictures are already using software to edit and compensate the image. I think in the digital age, it is tough to make a "purist" argument.

Also, in our hobby we are shooting photos in unnatural low light. Color compensation is needed to make the picture match what our eyes see.

Yeah, I learned the most about editing when shooting in .raw on my dslr. I realized just how spoiled I was with the camera software on my phone pre editing the photo. But now I went to the iPhone and heif compression, and it’s pretty good, but not as good as my eyes.

 

[IntrinsicReef]

Yeah, I learned the most about editing when shooting in .raw on my dslr. I realized just how spoiled I was with the camera software on my phone pre editing the photo. But now I went to the iPhone and heif compression, and it’s pretty good, but not as good as my eyes.

Exactly. Same with me. Shooting. Raw and .jpg simultaneously is pretty eye opening

It's all about perspective too. I saw a video of a color blind painter the other day. They used extremely vivid colors. I have several color blind clients and they see their reef differently than me. I would be curious to see the photoshop sliders in the hands of a color blind person.

 

[paragrouper]

Short answer: no

If you look at your tank and say to yourself “wow, that looks amazing, I think I’ll snap a photo” you will likely be less than satisfied with the results.

I use orange and yellow filters, fiddle about with the f-stop, and anything else I can do to bring a picture inline with what I see with my eyes.

 

[Reefer Matt]

Oh, and as a beginner tip, something I learned is to take a lot of shots when trying to get a good photo. Especially if there is movement from the subject or background. I take at least ten, sometimes fifty, if I’m really trying to capture something. Rapid fire is a lifesaver here. I just delete the photos I don’t want later.

 

[MoshJosh]

For sales/WYSIWYG I say editing is probably a no no. But everything else. . . meh it’s probably fine.