Through the woods in the autumn on the Veluwe (NL)
Disclaimer: This product was provided to me for free to write this review about, yet my opinions about the product are my own and I have tried my best to provide an honest review.
Most photographers spend their more time editing photos instead of actually creating photos, unless you maybe don’t actually do your own post processing. One of the ways to shorten your time spent in post processing is using presets in your photo editing workflow. In the past I was working with Apple Aperture, yet as Apple decided to drop the product I since then use Adobe Lightroom CC.
Searching for presets on the internet results in an abundance of available presets and bundles, both premium (paid) and free. Before I was contacted by Jane of Sleeklens I didn’t know about the availability of their offerings (which includes a professional photo retouching service), yet I have found that the “Through the woods” landscape photography presets they offer are quite good. Alright, I’m getting ahead of myself…
With the landscape photography presets and brushes you do get an awful lot of options; from all in one presets, to just some polishing and correction presets. My first impression was that some of the all in one presets are somewhat over the top for my particular taste in post processing, see example below. Yet others inspire me to try out new styles, and try out black and white photography more.
The “All-in-one: Calm sunset” preset, somewhat over the top IMHO.
The presets and brushes that I have been using in the past weeks are based on polishing up an image, giving the image a certain tone that my camera didn’t catch, and some exposure corrections. Based on these presets I have discovered more clearly the effects of clarity on an image and the cumbersome work of correcting the exposure, contrast and the overall tone are now made easier with these presets.
Sure, I tweak every single image after applying a preset, yet the basis for the image is there, which for me is a gain in time. It saves me time to dive into Photoshop to work extensively on my photos, although Photoshop isn’t banished from my workflow completely. Sometimes I still like to work on images with the Nik Collection, although some of these effects can be achieved with the “Through the woods” bundle.
Used the “Base: Cinematic” preset as a start for this photo. I do like the increased pop in the colours, especially the tree.
Is the “Through the woods” bundle worth the $39 dollars that it currently costs? Yes, I think so. Is it the magic bullet to make your photographs better? Nope, but it can give your photographs a nice finish before you publish them. And they’re a lot better than the Instagram filters!
For more information, and other bundles, have a look at Sleeklens’ offerings here, or their Youtube channel. Their blog is also a good source for some photography and editing tips.
P.S. If you’ve enjoyed this article or found it helpful, please share it, or check out my other articles. I’m on Instagram and Twitter too if you’d like to follow along on my adventures and other writings, or comment on the article.
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