Professional tips, tricks, and important points
When working with RAW, I use this early in my workflow and rarely, if ever, use overlays. Once I switch to the Photo persona, I assume I am never coming back to RAW. Whether you like it or not, I shoot RAW whenever I get the opportunity as there is so much more data to work with for a dynamic piece. Even your cell phone these days has a RAW capability.
Tone mapping is my secret to higher contrast extreme images – just make sure you merge down and then adjust the copied image. The preset will give you an idea of what is possible, but do not be afraid to try adjusting the blend mode, blend ranges, and opacities.
By combining your tone-mapped layers with masks to apply part of an image to focus areas, your viewer can have an entirely new experience with your piece and add visual interest.
