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Friday, July 30, 2010

Contrast Layers


Preparing the Document

In this page, we'll create the two contrast adjustment layers. One will be for the highlights of the image and the other for the shadows.

Step 1

Open a photo you would like to edit. Or, you may use the photo used in this tutorial (from iStockPhoto).

Image from iStockPhoto.com

Step 2

Duplicate the layer (Layer> Duplicate Layer or Ctrl+J) and add a layer mask to the new layer (Layer> Add Layer Mask> Reveal All).

Duplicated Layer with Layer Mask

Step 3

Make sure the layer mask is activated. The thumbnail of the layer mask in the layers window should have a white border around it. If it doesn't, click on the thumbnail to activate the layer mask.

Step 4

With the layer mask selected, open the Apply Image tool (Image> Apply Image). The default settings should be fine so you may simply click OK if the settings are default:

Layer: Merged

Channel: RGB

Invert: Unchecked

Blending: Multiply

Opacity: 100%

The Apply Image tool

Step 5

Duplicate the current layer (Layer> Duplicate Layer or Ctrl+J).

Duplicated Layer

Step 6

Activate the layer mask of the top layer. Make sure the layer mask is activated. The thumbnail of the layer mask in the layers window should have a white border around it. If it doesn't, click on the thumbnail to activate the layer mask.

Step 7

With the layer mask activated, Invert (Image> Adjustments> Invert or Ctrl+I).

Inverted Layer Mask


Adjusting the Contrast Layers

Now that we have the contrast layers created, the rest is very simple. Simply follow these steps to achieve your desired effect.

Step 8

Change the blending mode of the layers to the following:

  • For a high contrast effect:

    Top Layer: Screen

    Middle Layer: Multiply

  • For a low contrast effect:

    Top Layer: Multiply

    Middle Layer: Screen

    Low contrast blending modes applied.

Step 9

To reduce the strength of the effect, select the top two contrast layers and group the selected layers (Layer> Group or Ctrl+G). Then, select the new group and adjust the opacity.

Layers Grouped

Final Results

Contrast Layers (Low Contrast)

Contrast Layers (High Contrast)

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Half Sepia

Step 1

Open a photo you would like to edit. Or, you may use the photo used in this tutorial (from iStockPhoto).

Image from iStockPhoto.com

Step 2

Duplicate the layer (Layer> Duplicate Layer or Ctrl+J). The sepia tone will be applied to the new top layer.

Duplicated Layer

Creating the Sepia Tone

This page will teach you how to add a sepia tone. If you already know how to do this, simply activate the top layer and apply your desired sepia tone effect and skip to the next page. If you would like to learn how to create a basic sepia tone, continue below:

Step 3

With the top layer selected, use the Hue/Saturation tool to apply the following properties:
Colorize: Checked
Hue: 25
Saturation: 25
Lightness: 0

Ensure that the Colorize checkbox is checked before applying the rest of the settings.

Step 4

Use the Variations tool (Image> Adjustments> Variations) to customize the sepia tone. Simply click on the thumbnail of the image that's closest to the effect you would like until you've reached your desired sepia tone. If you make a mistake and want to start over, simply hold the Alt key and press the Reset button (The Cancel button should turn into the Reset button).

The Variations Tool


Filtering the Sepia Tone to the Highlights or Shadows

Filtering the sepia tone so that it's only visible in the highlights or shadows of the image is a very simple process using layer mask.

Step 5

Add a layer mask to the top layer (Layer> Add Layer Mask> Reveal All).

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Step 6

Make sure the layer mask is activated. The thumbnail of the layer mask in the layers window should have a white border around it. If it doesn't, click on the thumbnail to activate the layer mask.

Step 7

With the layer mask selected, open the Apply Image tool (Image> Apply Image) and apply these settings:
Layer: Merged
Channel: RGB
Blending: Multiply
Opacity: 100%

Don't press OK yet!

The Apply Image tool

Step 8

In the Apply Image window, make sure that the Preview checkbox is checked. Move the Apply Image window so that you're able to see the image/document. Check and uncheck the Invert checkbox to find the effect you like more. With the Invert checkbox checked, the sepia tone will be applied to the shadows/black areas of the image instead of the highlights/white areas.

Final Results

Before and After Half Sepia

Rollover the images below to see a before and after effect.

Half Sepia

Half Sepia (Invert)


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Digital Flash

Contrast Mask

The first step is to create a contrast mask. This is basically just a grayscale layer that'll define where the image needs dodging or burning.

Step 1

Open a photo you would like to edit. Or, you may use the photo used in this tutorial (from iStockPhoto).

from iStockPhoto

Step 2

Duplicate the layer (Layer> Duplicate Layer or Ctrl+J) and change the blending mode of the new layer to Soft Light.

Layer duplicated and blending mode changed to Soft Light

Step 3

With the top layer selected, Invert (Image> Adjustments> Invert or Ctrl+I). You should immediately notice the details revealed.

After Invert

Step 4

The color seems to have desaturated a little bit. To fix this, simply desaturate the top layer (Image> Adjustments> Desaturate or Shift+Ctrl+U).

Before and after desaturate


Layer Mask

We need to add a layer mask so that we can filter the effect so that it's only affecting the dark areas and not the bright areas of the image.

Step 5

Add a layer mask (Layer> Add Layer Mask> Reveal All).

Layer mask added

Step 6

Make sure the layer mask is activated. The thumbnail of the layer mask in the layers window should have a white border around it. If it doesn't, click on the thumbnail to activate the layer mask.

Step 7

With the layer mask selected, open the Apply Image tool (Image> Apply Image) and apply these settings:
Layer: Background
Channel: RGB
Invert: Checked
Blending: Normal
Opacity: 100%

The Apply Image Tool

Step 8

With the layer mask still selected, open the Levels tool (Image> Adjustments> Levels or Ctrl+L). In the Levels tool, drag the middle input slider towards the left to increase the effect or towards the right to reduce the effect.

The Levels Tool


Sharpening

This part is just an additional trick that'll help sharpen the image with this effect. This part is optional.

Step 9

Click on the thumbnail of the top layer to activate (not its layer mask). Use the Gassian Blur filter (Filter> Blur> Gaussian Blur) and apply a very small blur. Using a larger blur will sharpen the image more but halos may appear if you use a setting too large.

Before and after Gaussian Blur

Final Results

Rollover the image below to see the before and after effect

Digital Flash

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Edge Sharpening

Edge Sharpening Photoshop Tutorial

Step 1

Open a photo you would like to edit. Or, you may use the photo used in this tutorial (from iStockPhoto).

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Step 2

Duplicate the layer and apply your desired sharpening technique on the new layer. Some basic sharpening tools are available in the Filter> Sharpen> menu. For this tutorial, we will use the luminance sharpening technique which only sharpens the grayscale data and leaves the color data untouched. However, to do this, we’ll need to change the image mode to LAB color. Because changing the image mode too much will affect the image quality, in the next step, we’ll create a duplicate state to apply the luminance sharpening to.

Step 3

Create a duplicate of the image. In the History pallet (Window> History), click on the Duplicate State button (duplicate-state-button).

Duplicated Image

Step 4

With the new image file, apply your desired sharpening technique. I will be using the Smart Sharpen filter (Available on Photoshop CS2+ only) on the luminance channel. Go to Image> Mode> Lab Color to convert the image to Lab color. Then, press Ctrl+1 to select the luminance channel. The image should now appear grayscale. Go to Filter> Sharpen> Smart Sharpen and use the tool to sharpen the image. If the Smart Sharpen filter isn't available, use the Unsharp Mask filter (Filter> Sharpen> Unsharp Mask) instead.

Smart Sharpen

Step 5

Select Window> Tile Vertically or Tile Horizontally (either one is fine). The two documents should now be side by side. Activate the window with the sharpened image. Click on the Background layer in the layers pallet and drag the layer to the window with the original, unsharpened image.

Tiled Windows

Now you should have two layers; one with the sharpening applied and one without.

There should be two layers in the original document.


Edge Detection

Before we can filter where the sharpening is visible, we need to find the edges of the image.

Step 6

Zoom in to about 300% so that you're able to clearly see the fine pixel-sized details. Notice the grain on the skin caused by sharpening in the photo below.

Magnified photo of visible grain caused by sharpening

Step 7

To remove this, we'll need to create a layer mask with the edges. Activate the top layer and add a layer mask (Layer> Add Layer Mask> Reveal All).

Layer mask added

Step 8

Make sure the layer mask is activated. The thumbnail of the layer mask in the layers window should have a white border around it. If it doesn't, click on the thumbnail to activate the layer mask.

Step 9

Now we'll copy the photo into the layer mask. With the layer mask activated, open the Apply Image tool (Image> Apply Image) and apply these settings:
Layer: Background
Channel: RGB
Invert: Unchecked
Blending: Normal
Opacity: 100%

Apply Image Settings

Step 10

Add a Find Edges filter (Filter> Stylize> Find Edges) and Invert (Ctrl+I). The Find Edges filter detects the edges and we inverted the image so that the edges are opaque.

Find Edges filter applied to layer mask and inverted

Step 11

You'll immediately notice a difference when you invert the layer mask. The skin now appears to be smooth but we're going to do some further tweaking for better results.

Close up

Rollover the image above to see the before and after effect.


Layer Mask Tweak

Before we end this tutorial, we'll show you some methods to tweak and enhance the results of the edge sharpening.

Step 12

Hold the Alt key and click on the layer mask thumbnail located in the Layers pallet. The image should now look like an inverted black and white sketch. Notice the curly lines on the areas where the skin is. Those fine lines are telling us that those areas are being sharpened as well.

Layer Mask

Step 13

Removing those fine curly lines is simple with the Levels tool. Open the Levels tool (Image> Adjustments> Levels or Ctrl+L) and move the middle input slider towards the right until the thin lines disappear.

Levels Adjustment

Step 14

Hold the Alt key and click on the layer mask thumbnail again to view the final results.

Final Results

Before and After Edge Sharpening

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Keying Green Backdrops

Identify the Green Backdrop

Before we add layer mask, we need to identify the green areas and create an black and white layer to represent the transparency of the image.

Step 1

Open a photo you would like to edit. Or, you may use the photo used in this tutorial (from iStockPhoto). Make sure that the image is in RGB color mode. To switch to RGB color mode, click on RGB Color under the Image> Mode menu.

Image from iStockPhoto.com

Step 2

Add a Channel Mixer adjustment layer (Layer> New Adjustment Layer> Channel Mixer). In the Channel Mixer window, check the Monochrome checkbox and set the Red to 200% and the Green to -200%. Don't close the Channel Mixer window yet!

The Channel Mixer Tool

Step 3

Now drag the Constant slider towards the right until the object is a 100% white; not gray. Don't go overboard with the constant setting. If the constant is set too high, the images' edge detail will be loss.

Editing the Constant in the Channel Mixer

Step 4

You'll notice that after apply the Channel Mixer adjustment layer, the green areas are not completely black. If we leave this alone, the greens will only be 50% transparent instead of 100% transparent. To fix this, select the Background layer and open the Hue/Saturation tool (Image> Adjustments> Hue/Saturation or Ctrl+U). In the Hue/Saturation tool, select Green from the Edit drop down menu and increase the saturation until the green areas turn black.

Adjusting the Green Backdrop

Convert Layer to Mask

Step 5

Before we can add a layer mask to the Background layer, we need to unlock it. To do this, simply double-click on the layer and a New Layer window should appear. The default settings are fine. Click OK.

Converting a locked background layer into an unlocked layer.

Step 6

Add a layer mask to the layer we have just unlocked (Layer> Add Layer Mask> Reveal All).

Layer Mask Added

Step 7

Make sure the layer mask is activated. The thumbnail of the layer mask in the layers window should have a white border around it. If it doesn't, click on the thumbnail to activate the layer mask.

Step 8

With the layer mask activated, open the Apply Image tool (Image> Apply Image). We'll be using the default settings in the Apply Image tool so simply click OK unless the settings on your screen is different from the image below.

The Apply Image Tool

Step 9

Now that we're done converting the Channel Mixer layer into a layer mask, we can delete the Channel Mixer adjustment layer.

Layers Deleted

Remove Green Edge Artifacts

The image is masked, but most likely it will have green artifacts near the edges. Before we can call this project complete, we need to remove those artifacts.

Step 10

Create a new layer (Layer> New Layer or Shift+Ctrl+N). In the Layers pallet, move the layer to the bottom.

New Layer

Step 11

Fill the bottom layer with a 50% gray. To do this, press Shift+Backspace and the Fill tool should appear. Select 50% Gray from the Use drop down menu and click OK.

The Fill Tool

Step 12

With a 50% gray background, the green edges are clearly visible and the background will help us with the next step.

50% Gray Backdrop

Step 13

Select the top layer and open the Hue/Saturation tool (Image> Adjustments> Hue/Saturation or Ctrl+U). Select Green from the Edit drop down menu and set the saturation to -100. Immediately green edge should disappear.

Reducing Saturation in the Greens

Step 14

Now that we're done, paste the background you would like to use as the bottom layer.

Background added.

Final Results

Keying Green Backdrops Final Results
Rollover the image to see a before and after effect.

Keying Green Backdrops from Translucent Objects

Before we can end this tutorial, we need to learn a few advance tweaks that'll help whenever we encounter problems with other photos. Transparent and translucent objects require more precision than opaque objects. We have provided an image of a glass vase with some transparent areas, some translucent areas, and a backdrop that's not excatly pure green.

Step 1

Download the following image and open it inside Adobe Photoshop:
jpg glass 44.99 Kb (Right-mouse click> Save As)

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Step 2

Follow the technique you've just learnt in the previous pages with this tutorial. When you've adjusted the Channel Mixer adjustment layer, you'll notice that the background isn't black. This is because the backdrop that was photograph isn't close enough to a 100% green.

Channel Mixer Settings

Step 3

To fix this, select the layer with the photo and open the Hue/Saturation tool (Image> Adjustments> Hue/Saturation or Ctrl+U). Select Greens from the Edit drop down menu and adjust the hue until the background turns black. The hue you set should be around 60.

Hue/Saturation Settings

Step 4

Now that we have the green backdrop fixed, convert the channel mixer adjustment layer into a layer mask and add a 50% gray background. If you don't remember how to do this, refer back to the instructions on page 2.

Green tint on glass

Step 5

You'll notice that some parts of the glass are still green. To fix this, activate the layer with the photo and use the Hue/Saturation tool (Image> Adjustments> Hue/Saturation or Ctrl+U) and select Greens from the Edit drop down menu.

Further editing with the Hue/Saturation tool.

Step 6

Experiment with the sliders near between the two rainbow gradient bars. These sliders specify the color range that is being edited. The gray bar between the sliders indicate the the range and the outside two sliders specify faded range.Try to adjust these sliders so that the green disappears. You'll notice that if the color range gets expanded more into the yellow areas, the greens will disappear. I simply moved the 2nd slider towards the left to achieve this.
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