DIY Photography

Your one stop shop for everything photo-video

Search

Submit A Story

Chris Parker

Free Lightroom alternative: Moving your images from Darktable to GIMP

by Add Comment

This is the final part of a five-part series on the free and open-source Lightroom alternative, Darktable by photographer Chris Parker. Chris didn’t write a post to accompany the fifth video in the series, but we didn’t want to leave the series of posts unfinished, so here we are.

If you missed them, check out parts 1-4, covering Getting started with Darktable, Importing your images into Darktable, Processing your RAW files in Darktable, and Exporting images from Darktable for editing in another application. Another application like GIMP (which is also free and open-source). And that’s what this final video is about.

[Read More…]

Free Lightroom alternative: Exporting images in Darktable

by Add Comment

This is part four of five in a series. Check out Part 1, Part 2 and Part 3. Now that you’ve completed your editing, you’re ready to share it with the world. But how? Well, the answer lies within this tutorial.

It should be noted that edits to your image are not saved directly to the image file. Instead, the editing data is recorded in darktable’s database and an XMP file if the preference default settings are left unchanged. To share your images, you’ll need to “export” them, and the edits you applied will be included.

If you’re ready to learn how to export your images with darktable… let’s do it!

[Read More…]

Free Lightroom alternative: Processing and editing images in Darktable

by 3 Comments

Feeling a little overwhelmed with editing in Darktable? After using Lightroom exclusively for 13 years, I too found myself scratching my head when I first fired up darkroom. A lot of the editing tools are similar to Lightroom. Although, those tools have more built-in features vs. Lightroom. Plus, there’s a bunch of new tools that not even Lightroom has!

This is part three of five in a series. Check out Part 1 and Part 2. In today’s tutorial, I’d like to share some basic edits to help you get started with editing in Darktable. If you’re ready… let’s do it! Oh, and here is the before and after image that I’ll be demonstrating for you…

[Read More…]

Free Lightroom alternative: Importing images into Darktable (quick start guide)

by 1 Comment

This is part two of five in a series. You can see Part 1 here. Before you can start editing your images with Darktable, you must first import them! There’s a couple of things we should get out of the way first. One, Darktable does not create a catalog like Lightroom! Two, your image files are not being imported.

So, what you see is a preview of your original file. Therefore, do NOT use Darktable as a way to back up your files… since that’s not what it was designed for. Okay, now that we have that out of the way, let’s explore two different options for importing your images; via your hard drive or your camera.

[Read More…]

Free Lightroom alternative: Getting started with Darktable part 1

by 4 Comments

Darktable is a fantastic alternative to Lightroom. It has more tools, and those tools have more advanced features to help you achieve your creative vision.

Today I want to show you how to get started with Darktable. This is part one of five in this series. At the bottom of this tutorial, you’ll find a link to the next article for getting started with Darktable.

Ready to cut the Adobe cord?  Awesome!  Let’s get started…

[Read More…]

How to remove anything from your photos using GIMP

by 3 Comments

Removing anything in GIMP is easy when you know the steps… and practice! When planning this GIMP tutorial, I had a choice; simple or complex. Simple tutorials abound all over the internet on how to remove objects of all kinds. I thought to myself, where’s the fun in that! So, I decided to create a more challenging type of GIMP edit where you’ll learn how to remove someone from a complex background!

The video tutorial above takes about 15 minutes to complete. However, the actual edit of removing the subject can be done in 5 minutes or less. You’ll need to first learn the steps, the tools required to achieve this edit, and again, practice! Step-by-step instructions are located below for those that prefer to read. If you’re ready to learn the tools required to remove anything in GIMP, let’s do it!

[Read More…]

27 essential wedding photography tips all wedding photographers should know

by 2 Comments

You’re about to get at least two pro tips not found anywhere else online. Nobody is talking about these, and it’s essential to know these tips now vs. after your first wedding. I can’t wait to share these tips with you because they’re going to blow your mind!

Hello, my name is Chris Parker, and I spent fifteen years shooting over 500 weddings. Today I want to share with you 27 essential wedding photography tips all wedding photographers should know.

I wish I knew these pro wedding photography tips when I started my wedding photography business. If I did, I would have been able to grow my business faster. Oh, and I would have been able to create better images… that would have led to more bookings.

If you’re ready to learn these essential 27 wedding photography tips, let’s get started. Oh, and I should note that there are actually more than 27 tips… there’s an additional 8 pro tips (within the basic tips) and a bonus tip that you shouldn’t skip!

[Read More…]

Free Resources

Advanced lighting book

Recent Posts