<p>this is confusing me - im trying to figure out whether colleges want portfolios in slides or digital format. each one says either/or is fine. I asked whether the majority of students send in slides/digital. seems like digital is the preferred way. so im thinking of sending everything in digital, but that is frustrating, because since it is a digital file, i know i can photoshop enhance the whole portfolio.</p>
<p>is this allowed? do other students do this? i cant think of any immediate way admissions could figure out that the drawings were enhanced (i was thinking of just increasing contrast in each one). one of the people i talked to said to just put a note that i photoshopped the pieces. if i did put such a note, would my portfolio be frowned upon by admissions? </p>
<p>because of this, i just want to do everything in slide format, so i dont have to worry about this. but then if i do that, ill worry that i didnt send in the <em>preferred</em> format of portfolio, and thus get docked off points. so ill do digital after all...</p>
<p>anyways, im confused, and if theres anyone here who has already gone through the whole portfolio building process, i was wondering if you guys could describe how you did it. thanks in advance</p>
<p>they will absolutely be able to tell if you photoshop your work.</p>
<p>Think about it, they look at tons of portfolio's each day. They are used to what drawings/paintings look like unphotoshopped. One that has been altered is going to jump off the pages.</p>
<p>If you need to photoshop your work to get contrast, then you are not doing it correctly. </p>
<p>However, if you need to photoshop your work because your camera/scanner does not pick up all of your shading, and you only adjust levels/contrast so that it looks like it does in real life, then that is perfectly acceptable and you won't have to put a note in your portfolio.</p>
<p>A little photoshop is fine. I made subtle tonal and sharpening adjustments to all the pictures in my portfolio and have yet to be reprimanded. It’s a fact that when you take pictures of your work, the colour and contrast of the photo may not accurately reflect the original work but it’s also true that no amount of sharpening, curves or colour balancing can make your images look any better than the original. The best you can do is take a flattering photo. Even the most inexperienced image editors will recognize an attempt to make work look better than it actually is.</p>
<p>If you digitize your work, you should Photoshop the digital image to reproduce the original as closely as possible. This would include sharpening plus tonal and color adjustments as necessary…also cropping and straightening the image as needed.</p>
<p>i just did this haha so i know how you feel ok so i sent a digital portfolio and well art is art there is no right or wrong way to do it photoshop requires a lot of art skill as well it is your art and you must stand by it. yes you can photoshop it unless the portflo guide lines specify that you can’t. i photoshoped by art mostly things like croping and enhancing the colors, i think it is fine and hey i got it to an art school so haha it doesn’t matter now. hope this helps :)</p>
<p>and for all the ppl who are acting like it is cheating can i just say photoshop requires alot of artistic ability to do it correctly, its art not an essay. you do what you have to in order to make it a peice you can be happy with</p>
ok so i sent a digital portfolio and well art is art there is no right or wrong way to do it photoshop requires a lot of art skill as well it is your art and you must stand by it. yes you can photoshop it unless the portflo guide lines specify that you can’t. i photoshoped by art mostly things like croping and enhancing the colors, i think it is fine and hey i got it to an art school so haha it doesn’t matter now. hope this helps :)</p>