When it comes to photo manipulation, stock photos are one of the most important pieces of the puzzle. Stock photography is basically the raw materials that cook up your work as a photomanipulator. Knowing how to select the perfect stocks and resources for your work is one of the most important skills you need to know. You will come up with a much better work when the stocks you use are of higher quality. There are several things you need to consider when selecting the stocks.
1. Resolution
The most important detail you have to watch is the resolution of the stock images. Resolution aka DPI (Dots Per Inch) is the amount, or number of pixels that an image contains, therefore determining the depth and quality of the image. The higher the resolution of the image, the better. It would make your life a lot easier. As to how high you need to go depends totally on the size of your photo manipulation. Don't stress if it is larger than the document. You can always size it down. Sizing up is where you face the problem. If you select an image that is too small for the photo manip you are getting ready for, you are going to have to stretch it out and that will deteriorate its quality.
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| Now this is a good example of a high res image. I can definitely work with this ! |
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| This is what happens with low res images. Can you see yourself working with this? |
You may have gotten the image of the perfect resolution, but still it could not be good enough. Another important factor is the lighting and exposure. The image might be too bright, or overexposed. Or else it might be the complete opposite. It might be too dark or underexposed. So, you will have to assess these two factors before you use the stock.
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| This is a very well lit image, and the exposure is just right. |
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| See that? The model is very beautiful, but it is too overexposed. |
3- Getting Your Sources Right
Some people have a tendency to pick up images from searches on google and other places here and there. Well, I am here to say, DON'T DO IT ! Those images will ruin you. They are formatted for web, not high res manipulations. You can never get a good quality image like that. So, stop googling your stocks and start searching in the right places. Here are some websites that will help you.
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