Photoshop Actions – Love Them or Hate Them
Love them or hate them, there’s no denying their value.
Photographers are often split down the middle with Photoshop, but use it well and it can be a fantastic tool. I use a number of actions that really add to the images I take.
Over the past few years, I’ve built a large collection of actions, but find I only use a few.
Here are some recommendations:
Nicole Van. It has some great actions, my favorite being the ‘color pop’ which works well in both natural and studio lighting. Gives a royal touch to the image, ideal for that modern high-key look.
Child David. He has a beautiful collection of sepia stocks and amazing color punch action.
Martha actions. Its ‘eyes like marbles’ action is a must for all portrait images. Use it subtly and you can transform the eyes into an image. It also has great black and white actions.
It can also be an excellent time saver when processing a large batch. Imagine processing over 300 wedding images and applying a custom finish to each one. It can be time consuming and as a result make your photography less profitable.
You don’t even have to use prepackaged stocks that other photography has released and sold, like the ones detailed above. Use Photoshop actions to record your own macros, you may have found a beautiful effect and what to apply it again.
Photoshop can be easily abused, use it correctly and it will add a lot to your work. It can also save you time and make your business more profitable.
