Fixing the Color in your pictures

I've noticed a lot of comments lately from other weavers who are frustrated with the way their computer changes the color of their weaving projects.  Did you know that there are ways to fix it? I am just using the Windows Live Photo Gallery that came with our computer, and it's far from a fancy program at all.  There are so many different free and cheap programs out there, all you need to do is open your photo in a program that allows you to mess with some of the contrast, hue, tint areas. 

Sometimes our camera's lens gets "tricked" if the lighting is just wrong, and it can completely change the shade of the picture or the picture could be too dark, etc.  Take this file photo from last week as an example:





This picture is not only too dark, but the goldeny yellow is not coming through too well. 









There are a lot of photo software programs out there that are simple and easy to use.  In mine, I just found the area to change the brightness, contrast, shadows, highlights, hue, tint, and saturation.  In these areas, you can bring back the true colors of your weaving.  Don't be afraid to try them out and make mistakes along the way.  You can always hit the undo button if you don't like what you've done!  I like to play with a 2nd copy of the picture, and never touch the original. 

So by playing around with some of these tools, I have made the picture more honestly reflect the original work of art.

I hope this simple tutorial helps give you the courage and confidence to try out your own pictures!  Have fun with it, explore and experiment away!  Don't be afraid to move those buttons in crazy and bizarre ways.  You may like it, and if not, you can always undo your changes!