Planning - Editing Photos

So within class this week we have been really enjoying getting to grips with using SLR cameras. We went outside, and tried our hand at a variation of different camera angles/shots by using the different settings that the camera provides.
Following on from that, we downloaded our pictures onto the iMac computers we have in our Media classroom, and picked our favourite one to edit.

Once we had chosen our preferred photo, we opened it up in a program called iPhoto, and were let loose like toddlers in a sweet shop to explore the many ways in which we were able to edit our photos.

Now what I would first like to discuss, is the specific reason as to why I picked this particular photograph to edit. I loved it! And was very proud of it - as it was a photo I took my self. I don't say that to boast; it's merely because I have never used such an expensive camera before: and I have never been one for photography - so I think it's fair to say for someone of little photographic experience, I was proud of my efforts.
The photo pictured on the left is the original image I took outside. And the one you will now see below this text - is the final edited version.


I hope it is quite evident as to what drastic changes have been made.
The immediate change I wanted to make, was to make the photo appear much more bright, happy and lively. I love summer! It's such a gorgeous season. And, I have to admit - when September struck - I was quite sad at the thought of warm sunny days coming to an end.
So, I first changed the brightness of my photo - increasing it notch by notch until I was happy. Then, to avoid losing any colour from my photo, I increased saturation, to deepen the colours and make them richer; I did this to really enhance the amazing colours of the berries on the bushes. Furthermore, just to enhance the summery feel of my photo - and the gorgeous colours that little bit more - I then added highlights to my photo, creating more of a glisten and shine where the sunlight naturally hit the berries.
However, at this point I found things were getting a little too bright in my newly edited photo - so, I added a tiny bit of shadow as well; in the hope it would soften the intensity of colour and brightness ever so slightly, so that it wasn't too overpowering.
Lastly, as the berries were really my main muse when taking this photograph, I wanted to make that more evident by using a 'blurred edges' effect on iPhoto to - as the name suggests - blur the edges around the photo, and make them less clear: just so the berries came more into focus. Overall, I am very proud of my finished edit, and this was a post I really enjoyed writing.