The “New Eyes” Photography Challenge

Above: I was in a bad place post-processing wise in 2012. I think it was the mushrooms. Haven’t had a pizza with them since.

I have a simple photo challenge for you…
and while there is no official prize (well, not one from me anyway), it has great rewards and you can absolutely be a winner. Here’s what it’s based on:

If you look back at photos you took and edited back in 2012 or 2013, chances are:

(1) You are much, much better at your post-processing now than you were then.

(2) You post-processing tastes have changed, evolved, and/or matured.

(3) There are features now in Lightroom and Photoshop that you use daily that simply hadn’t been invented yet.

(4) Your photography tastes have changed, evolved, and/or matured, too.

When you open a folder of those older images, you’ll almost undoubtedly see opportunity. A 2nd chance to re-edit those photos (find the originals, and literally start over from scratch on the post work) and bring new life to them.

I spent some time doing this recently and I rediscovered and reprocessed some older images that were eyesores when I first looked at them, but after reprocessing them with my “new eyes” — and new techniques (more subtle than what I used to do), I’ve fallen in love with them again.

Give this a quick try — seeing your old shots with new eyes and new possibilities. You might uncover some real gems. :)

Worldwide Photo Walk Update: 
Right now we have 679 Photo Walks in cities around the world already scheduled for the official date, Saturday, October 6th, 2018. and thousands of folks already signed up. To find a photo walk near you, click right here. 

What if there isn’t a walk in your city?
Maybe you should volunteer to lead one. Here’s where you do that. 

Have a great Monday, everybody. It’s a new week. A clean slate. Lots of awesome possibilities ahead. :)

Best,

-Scott

Total
1
Shares
9 comments
  1. Hi Scott,

    Spot on!! I’ve been doing this the past year … and like you said, things have change a lot!! I’ve learned more techniques from you and Kelbyone that have really changed my post processing and image making! Also, I just had a cataract removed, and now I have to go through them again! :-) What a difference that made with regard to clarity, sharpening and saturation … wow! However, I enjoy looking back and see how much I have evolved.

    Great post and thanks for all you do!

    Dennis

  2. Maybe in 2019 you’ll get the two lamp posts straight and the top of the building horizontal? ;~)

    Sorry, Scott, I just had to ping you on this. You’re so good at everything that those two issues just stood out to me even though I 100% agree with the substance of your post. Indeed, it’s the reason why I go to Photoshop World and subscribe to KelbyOne: learning makes you better over time. Always.

  3. Hi Scott…I’m curious what you didn’t like about your 2012 image above…it looks pretty damned good to this amateur’s eyes! It’s clearly more HDR than the recent version. Was that the main difference?

Leave a Reply
Previous Post

Five Portrait/Fashion Photographers You Should Be Following on Instagram

Next Post

Guest Blog: Circus Clown, Photoshop Guru, and Regular Guy Kirk Marsh