Photo Tip #95:
Post-Production Series #3: Cropping Tips
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Greetings Fellow Photographers!
Last time I gave you some tips about editing your photos. Today I am wrapping up my Post-Production Series with an email about cropping. Cropping is the removal of certain parts along the outside of your image or photo.
Why Crop Your Photos?
Cropping is an important part of the post-production process. There are two main reasons people crop photos: 1) to cut out unwanted parts of the original image, or 2) to change an image's size to order a certain size print. The first reason is completely up to you, but the second reason often confuses people, so let me explain it a little more. Most digital cameras take photos that do not fit the standard print sizes (4x6, 5x7, 8x10, etc.). I know it is hard to believe, but a standard digital photo does not fit onto a 4x6 print unless it is cropped! The original image needs to be cropped
– usually slightly – in order to fit on a standard print size. When you order
photos in your online account and your photo needs to be cropped to fit the
print you are ordering, you are prompted to crop the photo before you can
complete the order.
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Cropping Best Practices
Like other post-production editing actions, you should use cropping as a means to cut out what is unnecessary in the photo. Ask yourself, "What do I want this photo to say?" and get rid of any parts of the photo around the edges that are distracting to your overall message. Cropping can either disrupt or help your composition, but thanks to the digital era of photography, you can experiment with several cropped versions of the same photo before you find the perfect one. When cropping your photo, try to eliminate the clutter around the edges or other distracting elements. But, do not zoom in too much; the more you zoom in to a certain area of the original image, the more pixilated it can become. After all, a digital image is really just a series of dots the closer you zoom in, the more visible each individual dot becomes. When you can see individual dots in your image, that image has become pixilated and distorted.
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Rule of Thirds
I've mentioned the Rule of Thirds in other emails, but I will remind you what it is again here. The Rule of Thirds divides your photo into horizontal and vertical "thirds." Imagine two vertical lines and two horizontal lines that run symmetrically along your photo, creating nine equal sections, like a tic-tac-toe board. The Rule of Thirds tells you that in most cases, your subject should not fall into the middle square created by the horizontal and vertical lines. Instead, the subject should be placed on the right, left, top, bottom, or in a corner of the photo. This makes the photo more interesting and stands out more. If you took the photo and placed your subject directly in the middle, don’t worry. You can crop the photo to move the subject out of the middle. Of course, if you want to see your subject in the middle, than there is no need to crop the photo.
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How to Crop
Your online account allows you to crop your photo in two places. One is during the checkout process when you are ordering photos; you will be prompted to crop your photos if they do not fit the print size(s) you are ordering. You have three options for cropping during checkout: auto crop (the lab does it automatically for you), white space (white space is added around the edges of the print so the entire image fits onto the print), and manual crop (you manually crop the photo to control what is cut out and what is printed).
The other place to crop your photos in your account is found on the My Web Folders page. On that page, select a photo, click the "Edit" drop down menu, and choose "Edit Photo." Then, click the "Cropping" option and crop your photo to a specific size or a square. I recommend cropping the photo to every size you expect to order, and saving each version so you can easily order them in the future. Most of the free photo editing tools I listed in the first email of this series also allow you to crop your images. If you crop them in another editing tool, save them and upload them to your online account to order.
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Thanks for everyone that has shared their photos with me since the last email! Here are a few shots that stood out to me.
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 Great angle and excellent use of soft light!
– Digi
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 "I snapped this photo early one morning with natural light through a plain glass window. I wanted to capture the droplets of sweet liquid visible on this orchid. My brother in W.A. encouraged me to taste it for myself, and I am still here to tell the tale!"
– Zelda
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 "Thanks for your tips on editing software and how to use it. I started using Picasa 3. I raised the saturation a bit."
– Tom
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