Any serious digital photographer (and even some analog ones) realizes that the in-camera capture isn’t the final step in creation of a photo; after capture there are post-processing decisions to be made about how to complete the image. Dodging and burning are two important processing techniques and Piet Van den Eynde’s new book Dodge & Burn: Leading the Eye with Lightroom and Photoshop explores this subject from a variety of angles.
There’s one big difference between Dodge & Burn and your typical Craft & Vision photography ebook: this one is offered in two packages. You can either buy the “Lite” option which contains the ebook along with a free “lite” version of EasyDodge, a custom Photoshop panel for easy dodging and burning. There’s also the “Full” package (which is what I reviewed) which contains the ebook and the full version of the Photoshop panel – we’ll get into the differences below.
Perhaps you’re wondering about the subject…
What is Dodging and Burning?
The author said it well:
If photography means painting with light, then dodging and burning is painting with light in post-production.
Don’t let the “post-production” there let you think this is something new… dodging and burning techniques were a staple of film photographers such as Ansel Adams. The book however focuses on the best ways to dodge and burn using Lightroom, Photoshop, and some plugins.
The Lightroom / ACR Scenarios
A tiered approach is taken to digital dodging and burning, looking at it first gobally across an image using Lightroom or Photoshop, then with local adjustments, and finally with plugins. After explaining the techniques in detail, the shortcut panel provided with the download is introduced.
For global adjustments, techniques are discussed for both Lightroom and Adobe Camera Raw (included with Photoshop). While global adjustments aren’t really dodging and burning (which by definition is selective) it’s important to look at global exposure and contrast adjustments with respect to how they’ll provide a base for local changes.
As the discussion moves onto local adjustments, Van den Eynde focuses on two important tools within Lightroom: the graduated filter and the adjustment brush. Explanations of the analog past lead to how-to information for these digital tools. Unlike many Lightroom overviews or introductions, these tools aren’t glossed over or left at a superficial level… rather the author dives into the various nuances of each, explaining what some of those obscure switches and sliders do… and why you should care.
The explanations of tools and configurations are great, but what really makes this section work is a detailed, 17-step fully explained walkthrough of the processing of an image from beginning to end. It’s great to see what steps the author takes (and in what order) and what settings are used to produce a given result.
After exploring local adjustments with Lightroom, some discussion covers a few different plugins from Nik Software. Viveza and Silver Efex Pro are noted for their ability to do selective dodging and burning, but mention is also made of how Color Efex Pro has a great neutral density filter that’s a bit more full-featured than the one in Lightroom.
And Yes, Photoshop
After working through the Lightroom and Adobe Camera Raw scenarios, attention is paid to Photoshop. I was pleased to see that the author isn’t a fan of Photoshop’s destructive dodge and burn tools, but rather uses an apporach involving layers and brushes which allows for finer control and the ability to make changes in a way that doesn’t destroy pixels.
At the conclusion of the Photoshop portion of the book, the shortcut panels are introduced. Regardless of whether you have the “Lite” or “Full” package, you’ll get some tools for making easier dodging and burning moves. Buy purchasing the Full package, you’ll get the contrast and clarity portions of the panel that really add some nice effects.
Conclusions
Dodging and burning aren’t necessarily sexy topics like off-camera flash or HDR, but they’re an important pair of tools for a photographer. I found the material in the book to be a good foundation for post-processing and making interesting images. Like other Craft & Vision ebooks, it’s priced quite affordably. I recommend adding it to your collection of photography education materials.
Buy the Full version of Dodge & Burn using this link or purchase the Lite version of Dodge & Burn with that link.
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which is a great bag. I’ve used it several times since the workshop and it holds a decent amount of gear in a shoulder walkaround bag.
Saturday morning we gathered at the studio again, this time in a classroom environment for a full day of learning. After a bit of instruction, we headed to a local park for an outdoor shoot with a model. It was a great learning experience for all as we explored options for using natural light, strobes, reflectors, and diffusers in order to produce a flattering image. We learned from Derrick but also learned from each other. After the photoshoot we came back to the studio, processed our best photos and then shared them with the group for peer review.
– a great-looking fixed-lens camera from Sony. Featuring a Carl Zeiss lens and 1080p video, this unit enters the high-end compact camera market for serious photographers. I was a bit surprised to find it at the top of the bestseller list, but it seems to be in high demand.
– the D5100 is a step above entry-level, but not quite up to what I’d consider “prosumer”. It does offer a nice feature set in a package that comes with a lens for just under $650. This camera is positioned in an interesting place as it has a few nicer features than the entry-level 3000-series cameras, but it’s definitely lacking in several areas (such as image quality and autofocus system) when compared with its big brother the 
.
– Canon’s popular T3 dropped off the bestseller list in June but I see it’s returned this month. It’s a hell of a deal on a great entry level camera. You’ll get decent still photos, 720p HD video, and have your foot in the door of Canon’s EOS system.
– This particular camera has been a repeat visitor to the bestseller list in the last few months. Canon’s ELPH series of cameras is known for providing a good set of features in a compact package designed for the mass market consumer audience. This model, around $200 as of the time of writing, is in the middle of rhat range, offering a good zoom range and 1080p video.
– this compact camera features a 20x optical zoom lens which allows for some great photos of objects that are far away. At a price near $250, this unit is aimed at the casual shooter who wants to make decent images without having to futz with a bunch of controls or options.
– This looks like a good little compact camera at quite an affordable price (around $150 at the time this article is written). Panasonic isn’t mentioned as often as Canon and Nikon, but they have some good compact cameras and this one is rated very well. I see that this one has dropped in price a bit since last month.
– The same camera unit as the GoPro mentioned above; this one comes with some different mounting options.
– the “superzoom” body style is popular and allows a manufacturer to put a big zoom lens into an affordable camera. This offering looks like a good one and it’s priced appropriately ($200).
Article updated 6/22/2012 – see below
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– as summer begins, folks start heading out in boats, hanging out on the beach, and playing in swimming pools and a compact waterproof camera is a great way to capture those memories and make some interesting images. The PowerShot D10 is waterpoof to 33 feet and provides some great features including face detection, all in a nice cute blue and silver package. Looks like a great deal at under $250.
– The superzoom form factor is a popular one. It’s not a DSLR, but it starts to approach the DSLR size factor. My wife once had a similar unit and it performed very well. The big advantage to this type of a camera is the extreme zoom capability of the lens. The SX40 has been on the bestseller list pretty consistently for several months – folks seem to like it.
– this is a low end compact camera (just over $100) but it can make some decent images under good lighting conditions. It’s not for the professional or serious hobbyist, but for a cheap camera it’s pretty good.
– the SX150 is quite affordable (about $150) but still offers a decent sized image with a 12x zoom.
