For this week’s challenge, Keara from Now I know what Life is All About is judging. I decided to use the mouse over effect (described HERE), to show my first step between her original and my Adobe Camera Raw (ACR) adjustment (mouse-over to see ACR).

From that point, I quickly went into clean processing mode starting by straightening then horizon. Then…you’ve heard it before and I’ll say it again…I heart Perfect Portrait 3 by The Coffeeshop Blog! And after today’s Shoot and Edit tutorial…I knew exactly what to do with the Dodge/Burn layer (I already knew, just encouraging you to try it out).

Here’s where it gets tricky…the past two weeks, I’ve done some pretty extreme things with my creative editing. I almost went that route but I wasn’t feeling it. Instead, I thought I’d share two edits using two of my favorite actions. The first (below) uses a couple of actions in the Summer Days collection by Pure Photoshop Actions. I’ve just started using these in the past week and LOVE THEM! Unfortunately, it was a Facebook freebie…and it seems to have expired. However, a new action set called Just a Pinch has just been released. If you move quickly, it’s being offered at 40% off (discount will appear once it’s been added to your cart).  I’m pretty excited about it.

My final edit uses another of my favorite actions called Desolate (part of the Resolution collection) by My Four Hens. Again, I can’t seem to find the link to this freebie action I got some time ago (I know, I know – I’m such a tease). However, M4H is currently offering an action called Sun and Sand as a freebie if you “like” them on Facebook: click HERE. Anyways, this one might be my favorite…I love the tones.

Which one do you like? For more beautiful edits, be sure to check out Branson’s blog. Also, don’t miss out on this week’s giveaway sponsored by Katie Lloyd Photography!