Robert Herb Photography Blog

  The Underwater Edit Clinic #9 Natural coral texture and soft sunrays: an underwater edit that preserves detail without pushing it too far. You bring out more detail in the coral. Its edges look sharper, and the texture becomes easier to see. At first glance, the photograph seems better: the coral appears more defined, and the added detail draws your attention.   Then you step back and take in the whole image. The coral feels harsh, the water looks busier, and the sunlight has lost some of its gentle glow. The details may be clearer, but they now compete with the softer qualities that helped make the scene feel natural and balanced.   What happened? You made the detail more noticeable, but that did not necessarily make the photograph more effective. Stronger edges and more visible texture can add definition, yet they can also make an image feel less harmonious when they draw too much attention from the subject, water, or light. Start with what the photograph needs The st...

The final edit reveals the pipes and nearby wreck structure while preserving the darkness that gives the scene depth and atmosphere. One of the easiest mistakes to make when editing a wreck photograph is assuming that every dark area needs to be brightened.   You can see detail in the shadows in Lightroom, and you know that information is there. So it’s natural to want to bring it out.   But should you?   That’s the real question in this week's Underwater Edit Clinic.   I shot this photograph inside a wreck. The pipes in the foreground are the main subject, while openings in the wreck reveal blue water beyond. Much of the surrounding structure naturally falls into darkness.   At first glance, the RAW photo might look underexposed. But that doesn’t necessarily mean the whole image needs to be brighter. The better diagnostic question is: Is the photograph underexposed, or is the darkness an important part of the photograph? That distinction changes the edit comple...

The Underwater Edit Clinic #7: When the Background Competes with the Subject Sometimes, the subject isn’t the problem.  That’s where underwater photographers can get themselves into trouble.   You look at the photograph and feel the subject isn't standing out enough, so you brighten it, add contrast, increase texture, boost the color, or make another adjustment.  But before you do, ask yourself: what if the subject was already working?   In this photograph, the turtle is clearly the main subject.  The exposure is working, the color looks believable, and the diver in the background adds context and helps tell the story.  There’s no need to push the turtle further.   The problem is elsewhere: a bright, colorful section of reef on the right side of the frame competes with the turtle for attention.  That changes the diagnosis, and the edit.   When the subject is already working, resist the urge to keep enhancing it. Instead, look for the parts of...

The overall edit was already working. The remaining decision was whether the entire photograph needed more adjustment or whether the seahorse alone needed stronger local emphasis. Real photographs. Real problems. Better decisions. Sometimes the hardest part of an underwater edit is recognizing that most of the photograph is already working. That is where this seahorse image became interesting. After I set the crop and worked through White Balance, Exposure, Presence, and Color, the photograph looked much better. But something was still missing. The seahorse did not command enough attention. At that point, the temptation is to keep pushing the entire photograph. Add more Contrast. Increase Texture or Clarity. Add more Saturation. Make everything a little stronger. But that would solve the wrong problem. The photograph did not need more impact everywhere. It needed more attention in the right place. Start by asking what is already working This is an important editing habit. ...