Do you need to post process?

I don’t know, call me old fashioned but I’m wondering. In the days of digital – do you need to post process? 

I suppose it’s no different than dodging and burning in the days of the darkroom, but it seems to me that Photoshop has become more important to some than the camera, and the shooting itself. Sure it’s nice to clean up a photo and tweak the curves, maybe a little unsharp mask to make it a better photo but shouldn’t you be taking better photographs in the first place? 

As an ‘electronic darkroom technician’ (at least that was the title I had) in the ’90′s I did my fair share of making silk purses from sows ears, but wouldn’t it be better to light/compose the photo in the camera first?  I’ve recently just come back to digital this summer after a few years off  with a new enthusiasm for photography like never before, but I just don’t get all this tweaking.  Maybe because I spend enough time in front of this computer already, the thought of ‘post processing’ all my pics is just sheer horror to me. I want to be out there making more photos, and making lots of mistakes along the way. Essentially, learning on how to shoot better today than yesterday. 

Or maybe, because I spent the good part of a decade fixing other people’s photos, the idea of farting around on the computer trying to ‘post process’ what really is a crummy photo doesn’t make a lot of sense to me. I’d rather be outside. Shooting 

The next great photo is just out the door. Not in your computer.