Making Digital Photography Easier and More Fun

Digital photography makes it so easy to take and share photos that we lose sight of ways to make it even easier, exciting and more fun - by using photo editing software to:

Organize Photos: Retrieval later is easier if you place photos in folders or albums sorted by category (Christmas 2008, California trip) and tag each photo as to image (Sis, trolley car).

Remove Red Eye: Some programs remove it one-click easy; others require manual intervention.

Crop Photos: Zero in on important parts (child’s face, a couple) or crop out unwanted backgrounds. Some programs even allow a circular or oval crop.

Change Brightness or Contrast: Changing brightness and/or contrast of a picture can make a dull or dark scene “pop,” brighten dark faces and more. Do it automatically or manually in photo editors and preview to see the changes before accepting them.

Improve Sharpness and Color Balance: Sharpen fuzzy pictures; change color balance, to “warm” or “cool” the overall look; increase or decrease color intensity.

Easier viewing for emailed photos: Optimize size and resolution manually or automatically so photos upload and download faster and are easier to view in emails.

These are a few of the many features you’ll find in photo editing programs such as Kodak EasyShare v8.2 (www.kodak.com, free), Adobe Photoshop Elements 9 (www.adobe.com, $80), or Serif PhotoPlus X4 (www.serif.com, $90). The latter two provide more precise control but require more practice, patience and time on your part. But they all can help improve photos.