George the Explorer: Top tips and tricks for editing black and white photos

As part of our Lightroom Coffee Break series, we’ve joined forces with some of the hottest photographers and Instagrammers across travel, landscape, wildlife and lifestyle to bring you quick hacks for editing your photos in Lightroom in 60 seconds or less.

For anyone interested in taking a walk on the wild side, we kick off our series with award-winning wildlife photographer ‘George the Explorer,’ whose stunning shots have been featured in titles including the Guardian, Lonely Planet and National Geographic as well as a whole host of tourism boards across the globe.

We quizzed George on just what it takes to capture the world’s wildlife professionally and his top tips and tricks for editing his images…

Adobe: You’re a wildlife and landscape photographer, tell us a little bit about what you do and how you got started?

George: I’m lucky enough to travel the world capturing amazing wildlife for various tourism boards, publications, and travel-related brands.

A: Have you always been a photographer?

G: As a hobbyist, yes. In terms of my actual ‘job’, no! In a former life I worked in advertising – at an agency called Ogilvy & Mather – working on lots of big brands. My role was a ‘Creative Strategist’, which essentially meant conjuring up ideas and stories for large-scale campaigns. It’s that second part – the storytelling – which gripped me. I’ve now taken that skill and mashed it up with my photography skills to create stories around issues that matter!

A: Tell us about some of the craziest shoots you’ve done

G: Well, with most wildlife shoots there’s always an element of insane! You need to immerse yourself in the animal’s environment and, however clichéd this sounds, ‘become one’ with it. Last year, I lived in the forest for three days with brown bears and more recently, I camped out in Tanzania to photograph a female cheetah with two cubs. Patience is a real virtue in these situations, especially when you’re contending with all manner of insects and reptiles!

A: Your wildlife imagery has been featured all over the world in titles including The Guardian, Lonely Planet and National Geographic – do you have a favourite shot?

G: There’s one that stands out: “A Magical Shower”. I’d envisioned this shot for months but the chances of success were so slim. I needed very heavy rain, distant bright skies, an open landscape and then of course, a cheetah. Somehow – and I still have no idea how – it all came together. The cheetah jogged straight past me and I thought it was all over: the eye contact was crucial. Then, suddenly, she stopped and looked right at me for all of five seconds. Yes, five seconds! Nearly 72 hours and that was my window. Thankfully, I got the image.

G: The images are always the vehicle around which I can craft a tale. The old saying that “a picture says a 1000 words” couldn’t ring truer; if it’s inviting enough, people then want to know more. Where possible, I try to showcase issues that aren’t that well known by the greater public. It was the same in my old advertising life — exciting content creates consumers. What I do now is no different, only that the images create advocates and activists.

A: What’s next for you, have you got any exciting projects coming up?

G: This June I’ll be in Iceland photographing arctic foxes, followed by big cats in Zambia, then all manner of bears in Canada and for autumn, I’m not sure. As a rule, I try not to plan _too _far ahead. It’s important to stay relevant and in context, so I follow news agendas to tap into trending topics. I think this gives my work an extra edge and a boost in terms of exposure.

A: How do you edit your images after you’ve shot them?

G: My editing style could be summed up in one word: subtle. If it’s a colour image, I’ll play with the white balance, tone curve, contrast and then finally, sharpening. This is an attempt to recreate the scene as I saw it. For black and white images, I’ll repeat the same but experiment with clarity to add that extra depth.

A: Do you have any favourite features in Lightroom?

G: The pure ease of reducing noise always amazes me. Oftentimes conditions require high ISOs and it’s so reassuring to know that Lightroom has my back. On the field, this allows me to push the boundaries in-camera, with the reassurance that images won’t be jeopardised as a result.

Watch George as he explains how to edit black and white photos in Lightroom in just 60 seconds:

A massive thank you to George for sharing his knowledge with us. You can find out more about George and his projects on his website_. You can also check him out on Instagram, Facebook and _Twitter.