How long to retouch a photo

The time required to edit a photo varies based on the genre of photography and requests of the client. To maintain a sustainable workflow, it generally takes around 10 minutes to edit a street, landscape or product shot, around 20 minutes for a basic portrait, 1.

For a batch of 10 photos, it can take from 2 hours up to 10 hours to do the absolute minimum. The photographer might take longer to make fine adjustments after the basic look has been achieved. The editing timeframe is based on the typical editing workflow in Adobe softwares, most commonly Lightroom and Photoshop. Check out the various offerings on the official Adobe page to learn more about the specific capabilities of each of these softwares.

Also, do share it with people who might be interested. Unless otherwise specified, these categories of photos will be edited using Adobe Lightroom. This includes removing chromatic aberration, correcting lens distortion, cropping, transformation etc.

For a well positioned shot, this should take around minutes in total. This includes setting the white and black points in the photo, adjusting global contrast, fine-tuning local shadows and highlights, and checking the histogram. In this step, the focus is to get the photo properly exposed. The exposure will affect how colours appear, and changing the distribution of the brightness levels can go as far as affecting the white balance. Therefore, my usual practice is to get brightness issues out of the way early on in my editing.

For a reasonably well exposed shot, this should take around minutes in total. I believe in the power of following a colour scheme and the importance of having these colours work together cohesively. Therefore, I use these tools to accentuate wanted, existing colours, tone down unwanted colours, and even create some colours that would enhance the colour scheme.

This is done on both the global and local levels. This may not always be an essential step depending on what is in the photo. It consists of applying graduated filters and brushes to draw more attention to the subject in the photo. Usually, if there is one subject that is supposed to be the focus of the shot, these tools will come in handy. In this stage, the local fixes can take another 5 minutes. So factoring in the variances, each photo would take around minutes.

For a batch of 10 photos, that would take about Sometimes, because of the difference in the colours in the photos, I might pull all the edits together and display them alongside each other as a group.

Unless otherwise specified, portraits will also be edited using Adobe Lightroom. In portraits, theses adjustments are especially important because there is a larger room to alter the composition in editing. There are usually a few possible crops for the same raw file. This stage requires a bit more thinking for portraits, and therefore takes around minutes in total.

It is of utmost importance that the exposure is made for the subject. I make sure that the subject spans the entire or most of the dynamic range, by setting the hair, eyebrows or dark shadows in the clothes as black.

While there might not always be absolute whites on the subject, I make sure the cheeks are adequately highlighted.

I then take care of the surroundings after exposing for the subject, such as bringing down distracting background lights, or raising up more detail buried in the background. For portraits, the skin is better if softer. One added factor here that requires extra care is the skin tone.

For example, shooting neon lights might create unflattering red colour on subjects face; shooting during sunset might create a yellowish glow. During the colour manipulation period, the face must be adjusted to obtain a relatively neutral colour, which makes the portrait look natural and usable. And then the background colours will be manipulated after the skin tone is set. This step becomes essential in terms of portraits because unless the photos were shot under perfect conditions, there will be some sort of distractions in the photo.

Usually I brighten the subject up a final touch, and probably apply more blur to the surroundings. If the model has great skin, it might take 10 minutes tops. On the other hand, if there are blemishes, scars or other imperfections, then it's going to take longer. Also, it depends quite a bit on the location and setting.

I've spent significant time editing out leaves, trash, etc. Of course, it's best when I can remove them before the shot, but sometimes that just not possible. Mark Some primes, some zooms, some L s, some bodies and they all play nice together.

Forty years of shooting and still learning. Average of 45 minutes for me Like mark said, it depends. Still trying. Approve the Cookies This website uses cookies to improve your user experience. By using this site, you agree to our use of cookies and our Privacy Policy. Register to forums Log in. POLL: "How long do you take to retouch a photo?

Davidoff Davidoff Senior Member. Jun 11, 1. LIKES 0. Jun 11, 2. Jun 11, 3. Jun 11, 4. Jun 11, 5. Jun 11, 6. Between 2. The bottom line? It takes practice and experience to accurately estimate how long it will take to edit product photos.

For Costa, the goal is to average 30 minutes per edit. There are tons of ways to make the editing process go faster — or you can outsource the whole thing and only spend time uploading and downloading the shots. Get back to the work you love to do. Outsource your next batch of edits. In her past agency life, Alex has led digital marketing initiatives for Fortune companies.

Use these tips to figure out what makes the most sense for you and your clients. Your team of talented pro designers, editing every image by hand, every time. Want to hear more about our journey to path? Learn more. Tags: Commercial photography , Image editing , Product photography.

Alexandra Sheehan In her past agency life, Alex has led digital marketing initiatives for Fortune companies. You Might Also Like. Real-world product photography pricing examples. Read More. Add dimension and personality to your images with blocks, boxes, cubes, and other photography props. Find the time to fall in love with your work again Get Started.