One thing you can't live without

[M V]

What's one thing that you like to do on all renderings to increase realism/quality, that you can't live without? Example - adding chromatic aberration in post.

[Scott Schroeder]

 

But in all seriousness, I have a set of action scripts I did that set up all of my base adjustments so I can focus less on fiddling with my global curves and focus more on details.

[heni30]

I do mostly airport retail so I always have someone going into the store to spend tons of money.

The little guy is a favorite with my candy store client.

[Casey Hawley]

Personally, I don't attribute chromatic aberration to realism because it is the result of physical limitations within a camera lens and my eyes are not camera lenses. Adding this type of effect in post is almost always overdone, making the image less realistic.

 

Every scene is different. Not every scene needs glare/bloom, chromatic aberration, etc. If you're adding an effect to every render because "realism", you're only actually doing it because "habit".