Whether you edit photos in Photoshop, Lightroom, or another image-editing program, it’s almost impossible to avoid making mistakes on occasion, and this holds true for both amateurs and pros. Robust editing software can be quite complicated, and no one is perfect. Right?

The tutorial below, brought to you by Adorama TV, discusses five very common processing mistakes and explains a quick fix for each. While intended for beginners, these tips may also prove helpful for more advanced users—especially those who need a quick refresher.

This seven-minute lesson is another episode of the Mastering Your Craft Series by SLR Lounge—an instructional site led by founder and educator Pye Jirsa who regularly shares real-word advice designed to help you improve your shooting and editing skills.

Whether your mistakes are due to inexperience, or because you get too ambitious with your edits, what you’ll learn below should solve many problems. Jirsa is using Lightroom Classic for this demonstration, but his suggestions work fine with whatever software you have.

Jirsa introduces mistake number one with this blunt warning: “Stop overcooking your Raw edits.” Here he reinforces a notion we mention from time to time ourselves; namely, a heavy-handed approach can be worse than no editing at all. So please, be subtle with your adjustments, because you can always added a little extra spice later if necessary.

Mistake number two involves “fixing that dust” whether you’re printing for an album or just posting to social media. As Jirsa says, “nothing ruins a beautiful image like leaving sensor dust marks on the photograph.

You’ll have to watch the video to see the other three careless mistakes, and learn Jirsa’s simple methods for fixing each error. Trust us: you’ll be very glad you did.

There’s much more to see on the AdoramaTV YouTube channel, so be sure to check there often. We also strongly suggest you become familiar with the SLR Lounge website, if you haven’t done so already.

Unless you’re shooting in black and white, the effective use of color can make or break a photo. And that typically means striking a balance between tones that are vibrant and realistic.

The helpful Lightroom color guide below is for those times when editing is required. Sometimes that’s because your image doesn’t look like it did through the viewfinder. In other cases, maybe you did capture a faithful rendition of what you saw, but colors are muted because of flat, dull light.

Regardless of the cause, in just 13 minutes you’ll learn how to use a variety of Lightroom tools for achieving images with beautiful color. What’s great about this tutorial from the Photo Fitness Academy is that it’s simple enough for novices to understand, but still reveals techniques appropriate for more advanced shooters.

Long-time pro David Buck says this important episode reveals “the editing tools I use every day for an unbelievable workflow.” His goal is to provide everything you need to understand about editing all the colors in your photos—and he does a very commendable job.

You’ll want to take a few notes and save them for future reference because Buck quickly covers a lot of ground. He discusses just about every essential topic, including white balance, hue, vibrance, and saturation, while demonstrating the most appropriate tools for making the related adjustments.

You’ll also learn about color grading, camera calibration, color channels, camera profiles, and the powerful Tone Curve tool. Bottom line: If you considered yourself an image-processing beginner before watching this video, you’ll feel far more experienced by the time you’re done.

The best way to take advantage of what you learn in this lesson is to make copies of a few old images and practice Buck’s tips. Then the next time you come home with new images, you’ll know exactly what to do.

There’s much more to learn on the Photo Fitness Academy YouTube channel. So pay a visit and subscribe.

We think you’ll also want to watch a related tutorial from another editing expert, explaining three powerful Lightroom tools you shouldn’t ignore.

You don’t have to be an experienced landscape photographer to appreciate the magic of sunset and sunrise. In fact, these spectacular scenes are among the most commonly photographed by anyone with a camera.

Capturing the beauty of what you see through the viewfinder is quite another matter. That’s because atypical lighting and colors at the beginning and end of the day pose several challenges.

In the beginners guide below from the popular Photo Genius YouTube channel you’ll learn everything necessary for capturing breathtaking images when the sun moves above or below the horizon. Spectacular photos will quickly follow when you use this straightforward advice.

Australian pro Paul Farris has been teaching basic shooting techniques for over a decade, and in this episode demonstrates how to get the job done in barely 15 minutes. He covers everything from gear and camera settings, to composition and other important topics.

Farris says, “I’ve been getting up at the ridiculous hour of 4am this week to capture the ultimate sunrise photo,” so take a look at his images and see what you think. More important are the tips he provides, so you can make some photo magic too. As you’ll see, nature often fails to cooperate, hence the need to return to a favorite morning and evening location until conditions are right.

The tutorial begins with a discussion of what makes a great location for these types of photos and Farris says it’s important to pick a scene with an uncluttered view of the sky. He also provides composition tips on including other objects in the frame “so you’re not just photographing a beautiful sky.”

In terms of gear, Farris explains why you’ll achieve optimum results by shooting with a camera that features Manual mode, and he reveals his preferring exposure settings once you switch the mode dial off Auto. A sturdy tripod is essential, and an ultra-wide lens usually provides the most compelling perspective.

Farris also discusses his go-to accessories, which include a graduated ND filter to help balance highlights and shadows. There’s much more to learn, so pay close attention, get out there early, in plenty of time to set up your gear and capture some spectacular sunrises and sunsets.

After watching this video head over to Farris’ instructional YouTube channel for more easy tips and tricks. And on a related note, be sure to check out the tutorial we posted from another pro, explaining the easiest way to use ND filters with long exposures.