Why do people photoshop their pictures?

Great questions! I think that when you begin something like photography, you sometimes feel like you can only take the art so far. Photo shop is a great tool to extend the artistry of the photographer. If they arent skilled at Photoshop, the image is botched. But someone who has honed how to use it can get some remarkable results. Maybe yellows are muddy, the sky was grey, or the shutter clicked too soon and lost some shadowing. Photoshop allows us to fix those "imperfections." Ultimately, when someone takes a photograph, it's really for themselves. They see something the casual viewer missed.
When I first started taking pictures, it offended me when I saw PS'd images. I called it "cheating." I personally don't use PS, but I have learned to appreciate the mastery of others who do.
Peace!

thank you for the great comment!

This is a good question, but ten different pictures I might use photoshop to improve most likely would each require a different answer. Sometimes the lighting is wrong for which the picture might suffer, so if I want to save the picture, I might adjust the contrast, the brightness, the saturation, the hue, et cetera, or maybe even all of the above. Most often, though, I use it to take elements from various pictures to create something else entirely, such as with the "Gather Girls" fantasy pictures I have posted many of. If you aren't familiar with them, you can see what I mean. They are all on one or two of my pages in PhotoBucket:

http://s152.photobucket.com/albums/s198/gerundive/Gather%20Girls%20in%20Art%20by%20Other%20Folks/?start=all

or here:

http://s152.photobucket.com/albums/s198/gerundive/

The lighting is very important. When I look at a picture of, say a sunset and clouds... the reds don't come out as well as I can actually SEE them with my own eyes. Probably a fault of my camera or my inexperience.

I don't have Photoshop, but I have several other programs that do basically the same things, but just don't have as many features or capabilities as PS.

Most of my images are perfect the way they are. But sometimes cropping can take a beautiful scene and balance it to perfection, which you can't always do with just the camera.

Your concerns are worthwhile. I've thought a lot about the issue, also. But, I've found I love to "mess with" my pics to see what can be done with them.

Hi there. I am one of those people that prefer to get my photo exactly how I want to turn out... when I'm actually taking the photo. I don't like to edit photos in any way unless I'm adjusting the light a little bit or cropping it. BUT... I did buy Photoshop to give some photos some crazy effects, but I have yet to install it yet.

1. why do people do photo shop? In all honesty I can't answer this. I don't own or use photoshop.

2. What do you personnaly think of pictures that have been changed.. do you like it more or do you like the natural pictures! I think they are sometimes nice, but I always wonder what it looked like before the changes. I guess I just like the plain jane photos as they come out of the camera.

Almost all of my photos have zero editing done to them. I prefer to leave them as is. I do, however crop sometimes and resize to be able to upload here.

The photos I have edited are usually to compensate for poor lighting conditions but still a decent photo. I'm considering adding a 'disclaimer' of sorts to my photos saying none are edited.. since I know some must wonder what if anything people do with nicer shots - I know I wonder if they are natural or 'enhanced.'

If I had to pick, I'd usually choose the unaltered, original photo. But sometimes, when someone posts the original and the photoshopped version, I really like to compare them. Recently, someone posted some portraits that they'd done with various effects. The original was great, but the sepia toned one was absolutely breathtaking. It made you really look at the girls features, and notice how the shadows played such an important part in highlighting certain parts of her face. It was really interesting to compare the two pictures. I'd love to have time to take pictures, let alone photoshop. I just don't have the time in my day for a lot of things like that, so I just try to enjoy the variations that are posted.

I prefer all natural photos. I do like edging and framing on some images, but messing with the color ect i dont like. My flower groups does not allow photoshoped images because i like to see them as they are.

If you have not posted this to digital cameras and photography id like to have it there and i will feature it

Nice article

I really like unaltered photos too. I agree that I always wonder what it really looked like!

But on the other side, I do think it's nice to play with the lighting sometimes. I don't like when someones PS out imperfections in people, my daughter has stork bites and I won't want them to take that off, it's who she is. But sometimes a soft lighting is nice though.

It also depends on just how good your camera is too :).

I do like doing sepia and black and white-that's fun.

All that said, I'm horrible at PS and the like. I really have no clue how to do almost anything on them. That's why I don't have a picture on here yet, I can figure out how to resize it. AH, I'm helpless :P.

I love my Photoshop and other photo programs I have. Some of my photos are fine as taken. Some I like to experiment with and get artistic. Some do look better after a little tweeking. It just depends.

These are great questions!! I use to think that photographs shouldn't be tampered with, but I've been in the graphic arts for two years now and I love my photoshop. I've fixed so many photos for people. In the instance of it being a really old picture with water damage or a picture that was so tiny that you couldn't make it out. It is priceless to get those treasures back.....I think it is fun to play around in photoshop.

I've had people say "Can you take a few pounds off my picture" ...., or the teenager that has been shy to get around the camera, because of bad acne.... I think deserves to have a great picture. I don't know if anyone remembers Glamour Shots and they would blur the picture to make it look more glamourous, I always hated that.....but probably no different than photoshopping people. I've been experimenting a lot with photoshop, but I do post the actual picture first, then I show what I did to make it look different. I think its fun....It is another form of art, you have paint brushes and a lot of different colors. I know that I can't afford to buy all the paint sets and paper,(starving artist) so this gives me great joy to use photoshop and illustrator to create new images, but I always back up the original. I've gone to school for graphic arts so my view on this is different.
Just like a writer with spell check, I think photoshop has its place in the art world. I think there will always be great photographers that can and will take beautiful pictures, but I think there is enough room for photoshop also. If you haven't tried it, go to apple and get a free 30 day trial, then see if you feel the same way. It is a lot of fun!! So, I love natural shots and have great respect for them, but I also think that people that know how to operate photoshop and love to do it are great people too. Believe me when I say it takes a lot of hard work to master photoshop. It is a beast to learn, but very worth it.
Thanks for posting this question... I've said it before and I'll say it again...there are a lot of talented photographers in the gather....photoshop or not.

-photoshopping a photo can salvage an otherwise bad photo. Only failure
I ever had trying to fix up a bad photo (my Russian friend at a sidewalk cafe
in France) in that the noon day sun cast such a stark shadow from his nose
across his top lip. It looked like a Hitler moustache. I tried painting, masking,etc to no avail. Finally I just painted him a full moustache, a trim beard and topped it
off with the Fez looking cap that Russian Orthodox priests wear. Upon receiving
it, he and his mom thought it was hilarious. Photoshop works better than Rogaine
on shiny , bald heads!!;-))

thanks for the very informative answer Angels! I understand much more about it now!