Editing is the final, but still important, step to finishing off your photos.  Editing your images can really take them to the next level, making them look professional and polished.

There are certain things you must know before editing your photos.  You must first find out what type of file you are shooting. There are two different types of photos you can take, a JPEG and RAW.  A JPEG will already have brighter colors, straight from the camera, while raw will have more muted, less saturated colors.  This is because the JPEG files are compressed and processed.  RAW photos also have a bigger file size than JPEG, meaning you can take more JPEG pictures on your SD card than RAW ones.  Although shooting JPEG sounds like a better option, it is much harder to edit than a RAW file, since a RAW file is uncompressed. The easiest way to understand why is to think of it like a grilled cheese sandwich. The JPEG file is the cooked version, while the RAW image is the uncooked bread and cheese.  If you want to go in and add a tomato slice, it is easier to do that to the uncooked sandwich than the cooked one. The same goes for editing. It is much easier to add and saturate a RAW image than a JPEG, making it the ideal file for editing. 

As for software, I like to use Lightroom or Photoshop from the Adobe Suite. If you do not have the Adobe Suite, there are a multitude of other free apps that can be used as long as you understand the basics of editing.

Editing a photo is very individual to each photo.  First, draw your attention to the errors that occurred when photographing.  Is the exposure too low? Is the exposure too high? Is there enough contrast?  Saturation? Once you identify the areas you would like to change you can fix them.  Almost everything can be changed in editing, except focus. As long as your picture is in focus, you can fix anything.

This is an example of the before and after with the power of editing.  The first image is raw, straight from the camera image. The second is the edited version.  In this edited version, the contrast is slightly increased, shadows and blacks are darkened, the temperature is slightly blue, and most importantly the saturation and vibrancy have been drastically increased.  I have also altered and increased select colors. 

These three images show no editing, slight editing, and drastic editing.  In the slightly edited photo, the contrast is only mildly increased and highlights decreased.  Also, shadows, whites, and blacks are a bit darkened. Additionally, a light brushstroke was added over the eye to lighten the color.  The photo clarity was also slightly increased, along with sharpening and noise reduction.  

In this last image there is extreme sharpening, and color selective saturation, increasing reds, and decreasing oranges and yellows.  There are also additional brush strokes added to the eye and highlights on the lips. Lastly, there are linear gradients added in the top right and bottom left corners.

As you can see, there are many different ways to edit a photo that can provide different moods and feelings.  Once you understand how to edit, your photos can become even more powerful. 

 Sources:

https://helpx.adobe.com/lightroom-classic/how-to/basic-photography-editing-techniques.html

7 Editing Tips to Improve Your Travel Photographs

https://www.rei.com/learn/expert-advice/photo-editing-basics.html