Editing struggles!! Help!
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Hi everyone! I have had an etsy shop for awhile, and one thing that has been an issue over and over is trying to create good quality prints of my work. I typically use colored pencil, watercolor, and ink. My scans looking super washed out, so recently I got a nice camera and have been trying to take nice high res photos (I guess). No matter what I do, no matter how direct or indirect the sunlight, there is ALWAYS like, a gray area in the photo, especially if it's a white background. I have a number of pieces that are hand lettered quotes on a white background and this is a constant problem. I've been struggling with this for years and no one seems to be able to give me a clear answer. I am paying close attention to the angle at which I take the photos, making sure no shadow of my hand/camera/whatever is in the way. I've tried multiple angles too and it doesn't seem to matter. I have very little knowledge of Photoshop and have never created artwork digitally, but I know how to adjust brightness and contrast and levels of those things. But even when it looks good on my computer, I print it out and the background isn't white, and the print looks dull. What am I doing wrong??? Really really hoping someone can tell me.
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I've wondered about this too. I hope someone has advice on how to do this.
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I always have that issue whenever I scan my images into Photoshop. Even with high-end scanners, I'm guessing there's still a bit of tweaking in Photoshop that will be needed to better match your original piece. With my pieces, I usually make minor adjustments in Curves, Color Balance, Saturation, and Brightness and Contrast until the resulting scanned image matches my original. Curves allows me to get my whites very white. I also take that opportunity to clean up any errant dust (or cat fur:) that might have ended up in the scan. Not sure if this info is helpful. If you have any questions about my response, feel free to let me know.
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This old thread has two really good links with tips. I haven't tried the first, but I have the second and it is amazing! (Look for it in one of the last comments.) I hope that helps!
http://forum.svslearn.com/topic/4012/a-tip-for-scanning-watercolor -
That is so helpful, Johanna and Julie! I really really appreciate it!! I've been able to use what you said to edit a couple of pieces that have given me trouble, and I think I may actually be on the road to improving them finally.
Yay!!! Thank you for taking the time to explain it to a Photoshop newbie.
