5 Common Mistakes to Avoid When Editing Website Photos

Now, more than ever, businesses and individuals are counting on their websites to woo consumers, gain followers and build a solid relationship with them.

While there are many faux pas to avoid, the cardinal sin when it comes to web design is badly edited photographs. In fact, research shows that most visitors will evaluate whether your site is credible or not based on visual cues like design and imagery alone.

Keep reading for the 5 common mistakes people make when editing their website photos. 

1. Choosing Bad Photos, to Begin With 

Photo editing tools have evolved to the point where we can work wonders. Seriously, there's rarely a problem that can't be fixed with the click and drag of a mouse. 

However, no amount of editing can turn a bad photograph into a good one. If you're sourcing stock imagery, this shouldn't be a problem as these photos are provided by professionals. However, if you're taking your own pictures, you're going to want to put a lot of effort into getting the shot right before you take it. 

Do some research on good composition, lighting, and technique. The more time you spend setting up for a shot, the less time you'll have to spend editing it. 

Read More: Webagentur

2. Airbrushing to the Max

As much as we wish it could be otherwise, no human being has perfectly flawless skin. It's most likely that photos of skin will show pores, blemishes, wrinkles, and discoloration. In fact, it's only natural. 

Most editing software will give you the option of smoothing skin, to minimize the appearance of these "flaws". While a bit of tweaking won't do you any harm, overusing this tool can make your photo look unnatural and leave your subject looking like a robot. When it comes to the skin smoothing tool, less is more. 

3. The Bad Crop

Cropping a photo can be a disaster or a saving grace. It just depends on the crop. It's good to experiment with your image by cropping out certain elements to draw the focus to others.

But always be extra cautious with the crop. It's good to follow the rule of thirds when it comes to fiddling with your photo's composition. This rule is easy on the viewer's eye and helps to avoid any jarring crops like missing limbs or halved faces. 

4. Avoid Extremes 

While it might be tempting to up the contrast and change the temperature of your photograph to give it a certain look, be extra careful when editing photo colors. 

When editing your photos, never adjust your color properties (things like hue, tint, tone, saturation, and brightness) to their extremes. Dragging those arrows too far in either direction will result in photos looking unnatural, cartoonish, and downright ridiculous. 

5. Bad Background Removal

Aah, the dreaded deep-etch. Removing the background from a photo might seem like a simple task. But do it wrong and it looks like a badly-cut preschool college project. 

If you want to remove the background from your photograph it's always best to leave it to the pros. There are a variety of online platforms that remove background from image free! You could try and painstakingly trace the image yourself, or rely on tools that do a great job in a fraction of the time. 

Photo Editing 101: Keep it Simple 

Good photos are essential when it comes to making your website look polished and professional. If in doubt, editing website photos should be left to the professionals, or kept as simple as possible. If it looks unnatural and nothing like its original form, you should probably rethink your edits. 

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