how to get a vintage look {for photos}

January 21, 2009

Do you like it? You could probably guess that I did not just take this photo yesterday. I took it of the Purple Cone flowers in our herb garden last summer. Isn’t the little bumble bee so cute?

For the image above, I used both Adobe Photoshop and Lightroom. Both are great photo-editing programs that I enjoy working in.

Would you like to see the SOOC (straight-out-of-camera) shot?

There you have it — the SOOC! I took this with our Nikon D60 camera and the Nikkor 18-55mm lens (which I fondly call “the fifty-five“).

I really like the way this shot turned out, especially the fresh colors in the background and the soft detail of the petals. But I still played with it.

Below are the things that I did to give the above image a vintage-ness. Since I’m not showing you the step-by-step, I call this the . . .

.

“SORTA-TUTORIAL” on
photo vintage-ness
just one of the many ways you can give your photos a vintage appearance

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First, editing in Lightroom!

• Warmth — warmed up the temperature and tint, which gives the photo a glowingly reddish-yellow cozy look.

• Tone — enhanced the exposure and black content, which gives the contrast a nicely adjustable boost.

• Presence — added high clarity, extra vibrance, and removed some of the saturation (coloring).

• Vignetting — darkened the corners and edges to bring more attention to the center of the image.

After the Lightroom editing, this is what the photo looked like:

It turned out very pink with the other colors washed out and plenty of added contrast.
(The above Lightroom settings will probably not work well on every photo.)

Time for Photoshop!

• Background — a scan of a fallen out page of an old G. A. Henty book, edited for a bit more of a framed look.

• Text — in the font “Overdressed” is the word inspired (with several added effects for lovely visibility).

• Cracked Texture — a scan of the cover of an old cooking school lesson book, blended as an overlay.

And that’s how I made the finished product!

I hope you enjoyed the “sorta-tutorial”!

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P.S. I also used the cracked cover and page of the old books in the Declaring His Righteousness art print, which is available in the shop!


Categories: Inspirations | Photography | Portfolio | Vintage



  1. 20 Responses to “how to get a vintage look {for photos}”

  2. Deb on Jan 21, 2009 said:

    Oh, fun. Only I don’t think I’d have the patience to do all that! It’s good to see someone pursuing her passion.


  3. Julia on Jan 21, 2009 said:

    Hi Emily Rose!

    I’ve just returned from Michigan back to my computer…(yay!) and got your lovely comment.

    That’s so wonderful that you will also be at the Crossroads conference AND the Father/Daughter retreat! It’s funny… I’ve met several people on the blogworld that will be at the retreat and some that will be at the conference, and I’ve been thinking of making myself a big colorful badge that says “I’m Julia from Julia’s Journal” :) That way everyone will recognize me. :D Of course that could be embarrassing if someone hasn’t seen my blog…(haha) anyway…

    I am so looking forward to meeting you and Breezy! We should arrange some kind of meeting spot, like “meet me at the front of the conference room on the left side” or something! :)

    I’m so glad Kate sent me the address for Breezy’s blog so I could ‘meet’ your sister and you! I had a delightful time seeing Kate again. :)

    I have to go for now…
    Blessings!
    Miss Julia


  4. Alana Jo on Jan 21, 2009 said:

    Im not too fond of lightroom, but Ive yet to fully try to learn to use it, either. You, However, did a great job with it.

    I use photoshop most often.


  5. Ellen on Jan 21, 2009 said:

    This is neat. We actually have Photoshop on another computer – I’ve haven’t taken the time to use it (or figure out how). Good inspiration. Thanks.


  6. Laura on Jan 21, 2009 said:

    Oh neat!!! You get cooler by the post! Know that?


  7. Treasure Hunter on Jan 21, 2009 said:

    I absolutely LOVE the vintage look! I can see doing that to my kids pictures….Thanks!


  8. e.l.berge on Jan 21, 2009 said:

    Very nice. I like the idea of using an old page for the background. Thanks for the tip!


  9. Hannah on Jan 22, 2009 said:

    Wow, that is awesome! My mom and I had to laugh, because last summer I took a lot of purple cone flowers and bumblebee pictures too!!
    I love how you used the old books, very cool!
    I think I might look into Lightroom….

    4Him,
    ~Hannah


  10. Janna on Jan 22, 2009 said:

    Awesome! You’re inspiring me to take my image editing on to the next level. :)


  11. onedaymore on Jan 22, 2009 said:

    wow that looks really pretty!
    I just saw your hats! They are so darling! I can’t wait to haunt the thrift and antique markets in the states!

    onedaymore


  12. Rachel on Jan 22, 2009 said:

    Wow! That is so genius to use a page from a book for the background! Brilliant! Your picture is just lovely!

    Blessings!
    Rachel


  13. Miss Eyebright on Jan 22, 2009 said:

    That is so neat! That is the kind of thing that I do sometimes, only with Photoshop Elements.

    Those are gorgeous flowers, even without the special effects.

    Have a very bright, very cheerful day!
    Miss Eyebright


  14. Miss Eyebright on Jan 22, 2009 said:

    Hi, it’s me again!

    I was just wondering about posting a picture every day of the year, what is it called, Project 365? Have you been finding it hard to do so far? Also, how would one do it while on vacation, just post ahead, or catch up when one came home?

    I am excited about using my new camera, and think that doing that would be a fun challenge, and I could get to know my camera better, but I wanted to know a little more first.

    Thank you!
    Have a very bright, very cheerful day!
    Miss Eyebright


  15. Jessica Courter on Jan 24, 2009 said:

    Hello Emily! The finished product is perfectly lovely. Thanks so much for sharing!
    Cheers!
    Jessica


  16. lilyhaven on Jan 27, 2009 said:

    I love that photo! You did such a fantastic job editing it. It has such emotion and depth. You’ve inspired me to try some photo editing myself. Thank you! :)

    Shannon


  17. crystal on Feb 2, 2009 said:

    Hi! I love your photos! I am currently lens shopping and wanted to know what kind of lens you use? I know you probably also do a lot of post processing – which I am learning to appreciate. But I like to take the best pics I can SOOC.

    You have a beautiful blog.

    Best,
    Crystal


  18. Bree on Apr 23, 2009 said:

    Hello,
    What kind of Photoshop do you have? Please write back, thanks!


  19. Tiffany on Jul 27, 2009 said:

    I have PSE but haven’t ever used Lightroom – can I get the same coloring effects in PSE or is Lightroom a better product?


  20. Lea on Oct 29, 2009 said:

    I also want to learn to do photoshop and use adobe for editing pictures. You did a good job and I admire you for that.


  21. Yani on Feb 17, 2010 said:

    I wish I could have time so I could learn to photoshop. It’s been one of my dreams.




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