A

• Airbrushing

  Definition : Airbrushing refers to digitally smoothing skin, fabric, or surfaces to remove blemishes, wrinkles, or imperfections while maintaining a natural and realistic texture.

• Aspect Ratio

  Definition : Aspect ratio defines the proportional relationship between an image’s width and height, affecting composition and how photos display across different devices or print formats.

B

• Batch Editing

  Definition : Batch editing allows simultaneous adjustments to multiple photos, streamlining color correction, exposure, or resizing in software like Lightroom or Capture One.

• Blending Modes

  Definition : Blending modes control how image layers interact by combining pixels based on luminosity, color, or contrast, often used for exposure blending and creative effects.

• Brightness Adjustment

  Definition : Brightness adjustment increases or decreases overall light levels in an image, improving visibility and tonal balance without altering color saturation.

C

• Clarity

  Definition : Clarity enhances midtone contrast to improve texture and depth, commonly used in Lightroom for sharper, more defined details in portraits and landscapes.

• Clipping Path

  Definition : Clipping path is a Photoshop technique using the Pen Tool to isolate a subject from its background, ideal for product, fashion, or ecommerce images.

• Color Correction

  Definition : Color correction adjusts hues, white balance, and tones to achieve accurate color representation, ensuring images appear natural and consistent across lighting conditions.

• Composition

  Definition : Composition refers to the visual arrangement of subjects, shapes, and lines in an image, guiding viewer focus and enhancing storytelling.

• Cropping

  Definition : Cropping removes unwanted edges or refines framing, helping emphasize the subject and improve image balance or aspect ratio for publishing needs.

D

• Dodge and Burn

  Definition : Dodge and burn techniques selectively lighten or darken image areas to emphasize highlights, recover details, and add dimensionality in portrait and fashion retouching.

E

• Exposure Blending

  Definition : Exposure blending merges multiple photos with different exposure levels to create a balanced image, often used in real estate and landscape photography.

F

• Frequency Separation

  Definition : Frequency separation divides texture and color into layers for precise skin retouching, allowing editors to smooth tones without losing natural detail.

• Focus Stacking

  Definition : Focus stacking combines several shots with varying focus points to create one image with extended depth of field, ideal for product and real estate photos.

G

• Gradient Mask

  Definition : Gradient mask applies gradual transparency between image areas, useful for blending skies, backgrounds, or exposure transitions smoothly in Photoshop or Lightroom.

H

• HDR (High Dynamic Range)

  Definition : HDR combines multiple exposures into one image, enhancing highlights and shadows for balanced brightness and detail, widely used in real estate photography.

• Healing Brush

  Definition : Healing brush in Photoshop removes imperfections by sampling nearby pixels, producing seamless texture blending for portraits or product retouching.

• Histogram

  Definition : Histogram displays the tonal range of an image, showing distribution of shadows, midtones, and highlights to guide exposure and contrast adjustments.

• Hue

  Definition : Hue represents the color attribute or shade of light within an image, adjusted for creative color grading or accurate reproduction.

K

• Keyframes

  Definition : Keyframes mark changes in motion or effects over time in video editing, essential for animating transitions or exposure effects in hybrid photo-video workflows.

L

• Lightroom Presets

  Definition : Lightroom presets save adjustment settings that apply consistent color grading, tone, and style across multiple images quickly and efficiently.

• Local Adjustments

  Definition : Local adjustments apply edits selectively to specific image areas, enabling targeted control over exposure, sharpness, or saturation.

• Look-Up Table (LUT)

  Definition : LUTs are color mapping files that transform an image’s tones and hues for cinematic or consistent brand color grading.

M

• Masking

  Definition : Masking hides or reveals parts of an image layer, allowing precise edits like selective color, exposure, or sharpening without altering the base pixels.

N

• Noise Reduction

  Definition : Noise reduction minimizes grain or digital artifacts in low-light images, maintaining detail and clarity for high-quality professional output.

O

• Overlay

  Definition : Overlay refers to a visual element or texture applied atop an image layer to enhance lighting, mood, or stylistic aesthetics.

P

• Panorama Stitching

  Definition : Panorama stitching merges multiple overlapping images into one wide-angle composition, commonly used in real estate and landscape photography.

• Perspective Correction

  Definition : Perspective correction adjusts vertical and horizontal distortions, particularly in architectural or real estate images, to produce straight, natural-looking lines.

• Post-Processing

  Definition : Post-processing includes all editing steps applied after image capture, from color correction and retouching to compositing and output optimization.

R

• RAW File

  Definition : RAW file stores uncompressed image data captured by a camera sensor, offering maximum flexibility for exposure and color adjustments during editing.

• Reflection Removal

  Definition : Reflection removal eliminates unwanted glare or mirror-like effects from surfaces, ensuring clear visibility of objects in product or real estate photos.

• Retouching

  Definition : Retouching refines an image by correcting blemishes, color issues, or distractions, improving the overall appearance while preserving realism.

S

• Saturation

  Definition : Saturation controls the intensity of colors within an image, enhancing or muting tones to achieve the desired visual impact.

• Sharpening

  Definition : Sharpening increases edge contrast to improve perceived image detail and clarity, often applied selectively to avoid noise amplification.

• Sky Replacement

  Definition : Sky replacement swaps dull or overexposed skies with vibrant alternatives, enhancing mood and visual appeal in real estate and wedding images.

T

• Tone Mapping

  Definition : Tone mapping converts high dynamic range data into viewable images, balancing contrast and detail for realistic lighting presentation.

U

• Unsharp Mask

  Definition : Unsharp mask is a sharpening filter that enhances edge contrast, making details appear crisper without significantly increasing image noise.

V

• Vector Mask

  Definition : Vector masks use paths or shapes to define editable, scalable transparent areas, ideal for precise subject isolation in fashion and ecommerce editing.

• Vignetting

  Definition : Vignetting darkens image corners to draw viewer focus toward the center, often used stylistically in wedding and portrait photography.

W

• Watermarking

  Definition : Watermarking adds a logo or text overlay to protect image ownership and prevent unauthorized use online.

• White Balance

  Definition : White balance adjusts image color temperature to ensure whites appear neutral, correcting color casts from varying lighting conditions.

• Workflow Automation

  Definition : Workflow automation streamlines repetitive editing tasks using actions, presets, or AI tools to improve efficiency for photographers managing large volumes.

Z

• Zoom Blur

  Definition : Zoom blur creates motion radiating from the image center, adding a sense of speed or artistic focus to a subject.