advanced retouching

essential skills

• Create a monochrome or black and white image from an RGB master.
• Manipulate tonality and split-tone an image.
• Enhance detail and depth to create a dramatic effect.
• Create an image with reduced depth of field.
• Create a ‘Faux’ style by manipulating focus and color.
• Use professional techniques to enhance the facial features of a portrait image.
• Create smooth tone and exaggerate midtone contrast to create a signature style.
• Merge bracketed exposures to create high dynamic range images.
• Create a time lapse video using an image sequence.

 

Black and white – Project1

When color film arrived over half a century ago the pundits who presumed that black and white film would die a quick death were surprisingly mistaken. Color is all very nice but sometimes the rich tonal qualities that we can see in the work of the photographic artists are something certainly to be savored. Can you imagine an Ansel Adams masterpiece in color? If you can – read no further.

Creating fabulous black and white photographs from your color images is a little more complicated than hitting the ‘Convert to Grayscale mode’ or ‘Desaturate’ buttons in your image-editing software (or worse still, your camera). Ask any professional photographer who has been raised on the film medium and you will discover that crafting tonally rich images requires both a carefully chosen color filter during the capture stage and some dodging and burning in the darkroom. Color filters for black and white? Now there is an interesting concept! Well as strange as it may seem, screwing on a color filter for capturing images on black and white film has traditionally been an essential ingredient in the recipe for success. The most popular color filter in the black and white photographer’s kit-bag, that is used for the most dramatic effect, is the ‘red filter’. The effect of the red filter is to lighten all things that are red and darken all things that are not red in the original scene. The result is a print with considerable tonal differences compared to an image shot without a filter. Is this a big deal? Well yes it is – blue skies are darkened and skin blemishes are lightened. That’s a winning combination for most landscape and portrait photographers wanting to create black and white masterpieces.

Note > The more conservative photographers of old (those not big on drama) would typically invest in a yellow or orange filter rather than the ‘full-on’ effects that the red filter offers.

The Black & White adjustment offers a quick and controlled method for controlling tonality – just click in the main image window and drag left or right to darken or lighten the tonal value of this color range.

 

Traditional black and white

Now just before you run out to purchase your red filter and ‘Grayscale image sensor’ you should be reminded that neither is required by the digital photographer with access to Photoshop. Shooting digitally in RGB (red, green, blue) means that you have already shot the same image using the three different filters. If you were to selectively favor the goodies in the red channel, above those to be found in the green or blue channels, you would, in effect, be creating a Grayscale image that would appear as if it had been shot using the red filter from the ‘good old days’. You can see the different tonal information by using the ‘Channels panel’ to view the individual channels (turn off the visibility of all but one channel). Then you can selectively control the information using the Black & White adjustment layer feature.

 

Black & White adjustment in Photoshop

The Black & White adjustment feature is now the easiest and most versatile way to convert images to black and white. No more juggling sliders in Channel Mixer to prevent clipping. The adjustment feature is a breeze to use and very versatile. You can use the color sliders if you like or simply click on a color within the image window and drag to the right to make the color lighter, or to the left to make it darker. How easy is that! In fact, this technique is so easy to use it hardly warrants a project to master the technique. The adjustment feature does, however, have its limitations. Dragging the sliders to their extreme values in the Black & White adjustment feature can introduce image artifacts and haloes around adjusted colors and the image adjustment feature has no contrast adjustment within the dialog box. Total control over tonality still requires some additional and essential skills using the information from the individual channels in conjunction with the contrast blend modes such as Overlay and Soft Light. The skill of controlled black and white conversions is a foundation for most of the color toning projects that follow.

1. Optimize the project file in Adobe Camera Raw making sure that there is no clipping in either the shadows or highlights. Hold down the Alt/OPtion key as you drag the Blacks and Exposure sliders to set the Black and White points in the image. The Recovery slider has been raised to allow the Exposure slider to be raised to +1.20. The project image also has to be straightened using the Straighten Tool before it is opened in the main editing space.

Note > It is possible to render the image as a Grayscale image in the Hsl/Grayscale tab of the ACR dialog box. It is also possible, using the Grayscale Mix sliders, to brighten the rocks by raising the Yellows slider and darken the sky by lowering the Blues slider. You may notice, however, that such an aggressive adjustment introduces both noise and haloes. The haloes around the edges of the rocks (the transition between the darkened blues and lightened yellows) are most noticeable when viewed at 100%. This is where a manual conversion to Grayscale in the main editing space can provide the user with superior results.

2. Open the project file into Adobe Camera Raw and set the Workflow Options to 16 Bits/ Channel and check the Open in Photoshop as Smart Objects preference. Select OK and click on the Open Object button (formerly the Open Image button). This will ensure we embed the Raw file into the project file and allow us to make large changes in tonality and reduce the risk of introducing image artifacts and banding into the edited image.

3. Open the Channels panel and click on the Blue channel thumbnail (not the visibility icon). Note how this channel offers the best contrast between the sky and the rocks (blue sky will be lighter in the Blue channel and opposite colors, such as the yellow rocks, will be darker in the Blue channel). We can use this channel to create a quick and effective mask for this project. This mask will allow us to work on the sky and the foreground separately to achieve optimum tonality and contrast in both areas. This technique is called channel masking and is a commonly used advanced technique for professional retouchers to save time. Drag the Blue channel to the New Channel icon to copy it. From the Image > Adjustments submenu choose ‘Levels’. Drag the shadow slider in the Levels dialog box to the right until the dark rocks are mostly black. Drag the highlight slider to the left until the sky is mostly white (you should be left with a few gray clouds). Click OK to apply the adjustment. Although not perfect, this mask can be optimized in the next step.

4. Painting in Photoshop is not an easy skill to acquire. There is, however, a clever brush technique when masking that makes it a far less painful procedure. Switch the blend mode of the Brush Tool to ‘Overlay’ in the Options bar and set the foreground color to white. When you paint over the clouds with a white brush in Overlay mode all the gray tones are progressively rendered lighter. The magic of the Overlay mode lies in the fact that white has little or no effect on the darkest tones and black has little or no effect on the lightest tones. Switching the foreground color to black and painting over the dark gray tones on the rocks will help to expand the contrast of the Alpha channel.

Switch the mode of the brush back to Normal for final clean-up work in the sky (away from the edges of the rocks). There is no need to work on the water or beach at this stage. Zoom in to 100% (Actual Pixels) and check the mask for any holes in the rocks that need painting with black.

5. Go to the Channels panel and click on the Red channel thumbnail (not the visibility icon). This channel offers the best contrast in the sky. To copy the Red copy channel to the clipboard, choose All from the Select menu (Ctrl/Command + A) and then Copy from the Edit menu (Ctrl/Command + C). Click on the RGB channel and then go to the Layers panel and create a new layer by choosing Paste from the Edit menu (Ctrl/Command + V).

6. From the Image > Adjustments menu choose Levels. Hold down the ALT/OPTION key as you drag the black slider to the right. Stop moving the slider only when you see the darker areas of the sky clipping. Move the slider back a little until no clipping is visible in the sky. Drag the central gamma slider underneath the histogram to the left to brighten the sky. You have now expanded the contrast of the sky to the maximum possible before clipping occurs. The tonality of the beach and rocks will be used from the underlying Smart Object and will not be damaged by this step.

7. Drag the Blue copy channel to the ‘Load channel as selection’ icon at the base of the Channels panel to load the channel as a selection. The keyboard shortcut to load a channel as a selection is to hold down the Command key on a Mac or the Ctrl key on a PC and click on the channel thumbnail. Click on Layer 1 (the information from your Red channel) to make sure it is the active layer. Click on the ‘Add layer mask’ icon at the base of the Layers panel. The mask will require further work to ensure the modified sky is seamless and the immediate foreground (waves and sand) does not appear a little strange.

8. Click on the ‘Create a new layer’ icon to create a new empty layer. From the Edit menu choose Fill and then select 50% Gray from the contents menu of the Fill dialog box before selecting OK. Drag the gray layer beneath the Smart Object. Change the blend mode of the smart object (the AR1-BW layer) to Luminosity. This blend mode will allow only the Luminance values to be visible and is a non-destructive way of removing the color from view.

9. Click on the layer mask thumbnail on Layer 2 to make it active and then go to Filter > Blur > Gaussian Blur and apply a 1-pixel blur to soften the edge of the mask a little. Select OK and then zoom in and take a close look around the edges of the rocks. If you notice a halo around any section select that portion using the Lasso Tool. Go to Image > Adjustments > Levels. Drag the central gamma slider underneath the histogram to the left or right to reduce the width of the halo.

10. Haloes around edges can be removed or substantially reduced using the technique in the previous step. Sometimes, however, an additional step may be required to remove the halo completely. Create an empty new layer by clicking on the ‘Create a new layer’ icon. Set the mode of the layer to Darken and select the Clone Stamp Tool in the Tools panel. Make sure All Layers is selected in the Options bar, hold down the ALT/OPTION key and click to select a clone source point just next to the lighter edge. Click and drag the Clone Stamp Tool over the light edge to replace these pixels with the darker pixels from the source point. This will continue to work only if the source point is selecting darker pixels as you paint. Next, so that you can keep track of what each layer is doing, double-click on the layer names you have created to rename the layers, e. g. Layer 1 can be renamed ‘Sky’, Layer 2 can be renamed Gray and layer 3 can be renamed ‘Darken edge’.

11. As we only require the tonality of the sky on this layer we will need to mask the water and beach using the Gradient Tool from the Tools panel. Choose the Black, White gradient and the Linear options and set the Opacity to 100% in the Options bar. Set the mode to Multiply to add information rather than replace information in the layer mask. Make sure the sky layer mask is selected then drag a short gradient, while holding the Shift key down, from just below the horizon line to just above the horizon line to mask the foreground.

Note > An alternative to the Black, White gradient in Multiply mode is to set the Foreground color to Black and then use the Foreground to Transparent gradient in Normal mode.

12. This step will add contrast to the waves and beach to match the expanded contrast in the sky. We can do this in one of two ways. The first way is to double-click the Smart Object thumbnail and increase the Contrast and Clarity in the Adobe Camera Raw dialog box. Click Done in ACR to close the dialog box and update the Smart Object.

Alternatively we can choose Select > All, then Edit > Copy Merged and then Edit > Paste. These three commands can be combined into a single command which is commonly referred to as Stamp Visible by professional retouchers. This command has an unlisted shortcut which is to hit the letter E while holding down the Ctrl + Alt + Shift keys (PC) or Command + Option + Shift keys (Mac). This will create a copy of what you see on the screen and paste it as a new layer. Switch the blend mode of this layer to Overlay (a contrast blend mode) and then add a layer mask. Add a short Black to White gradient to this mask from just above the horizon line to just below the horizon line.

Note > Toggle the layer visibility on and off to see the actual effect this has on the image.

13. This step will darken the sky on the right side of the image. Click on the New Layer icon at the base of the Layers panel and set the mode to Overlay. Choose Black as the Foreground color and select a Foreground to Transparent gradient. Drag a gradient (while holding the Shift key down) from the right side of the image to a position just short of the larger dominant rock in the sea. Hold down the ALT/OPTION key and drag a copy of the layer mask on the Sky layer to the Gradient layer. Lower the opacity of the Gradient layer to reduce the effect and create a balance of sky tones within the image.

14. This step will create a subtle vignette that is designed to darken the corners without darkening the brighter highlights of the image. Add another new layer and set the mode to Overlay. Select the Elliptical Marquee Tool from the Tools panel (behind the Rectangular Marquee Tool). Drag a selection from the top-left corner to the bottom-right corner of the image. Choose Inverse from the Select menu. Press the Q key to turn this selection into a ‘Quick Mask’. Go to Filter > Blur > Gaussian Blur and apply a 200-pixel blur to this mask. Press Q on the keyboard to return to the selection. Be sure the foreground color is set to black and fill the selection with black using the keyboard shortcut Alt + Backspace (PC) or Option + Delete (Mac). Lower the opacity of the layer to around 35%. Finally, don’t forget to choose Select > Deselect before going on to the next step.

15. Create a ‘Dodge & Burn’ layer (create a new layer and fill with 50% gray and then set the mode to Overlay). Select the Brush Tool from the Tools panel and then choose a soft-edged brush, Opacity 10% and Normal mode from the Options bar. Set the foreground color to white to dodge or black to burn, then paint over the rock on the right to darken and increase its localized contrast. Paint several times until you are happy with the effect. It does not matter if the brushwork spills into the background sky, because we will apply a layer mask to hide any spill. Hold down the Alt/Option key and drag the layer mask from the Gradient layer to the Dodge & Burn layer. Holding down the Alt/Option key will copy the mask. Invert this mask using the Invert shortcut Ctrl + I (PC) or Command + I (Mac).

 

Reintroducing color and sharpening

The original color can be reintroduced in a way that preserves the tonal values we have just created. Copy the Apostles layer by holding down the Alt/Option key and dragging it to the top of the Layers stack. Right-click on the layer and choose Rasterize if you need to reduce the overall files size and then change the mode of this copy layer to Color. Adjust the opacity until an appropriate balance between tonality and color is achieved. This Color layer does not affect the underlying luminance values that we have created in the previous steps.

Note > The ability to modify color and tonality separately and then reunite them later in the editing process can be a powerful technique for creating information-rich images where luminance values have the priority over color values.

All of the detail in this project is on the first Smart Object above the gray layer. To sharpen this project for printing apply the Unsharp Mask filter. Raising the Threshold slider in the Unsharp Mask dialog box to 3 or 4 will prevent image artifacts from being sharpened. The sky and gradients will not be sharpened using this procedure. As the layer is a Smart Object the filter will automatically be applied as a Smart Filter allowing subsequent adjustments to the sharpening settings.

 

Manipulating tone and color – Project 2

This is an exercise in injecting the drama that photographers witness, but cameras often fail to capture. Ansel Adams was the master of previsualization (the ability to see his final image in his mind’s eye when he was looking at the scene in front of his camera lens). When I stood in front of this grand vista in Monument Valley, Arizona I previsualized a scene of full of drama. When I saw the Raw image in ACR I realized the camera had interpreted a completely different outcome to the one that I had imagined – was the camera really looking at the same scene as me?

Monument Valley at dawn from Artist’s Point, Arizona, USA.

Ansel Adams said that if the negative was his music score then work in the darkroom was his performance. I knew that this was going to take one hell of a performance if the outcome was going to match my expectations for this image. So starts this monumental project. The vertical format seems too long and the distance between the foreground drama and the background rock formations seems too great. Compressing the information without distorting the subject matter, I feel, would help the composition. I also want to bring out the drama from the directional lighting (if I was only interested in the color I wouldn’t have bothered getting up before dawn). And that sky is contributing nothing – yes it’s blue but it is also disappointingly empty. We need something to mirror the drama of the desert in the foreground. So let the show begin.

 

Stage 1

1. Open the Project file into Adobe Camera Raw (ACR). The aim here is raise the contrast but retain shadow detail. Raise the Contrast slider to +70, the Fill Light Slider to +20 and the Clarity slider to +25. The color temperature has been lowered slightly from the ‘As Shot’ setting. Use the Targeted Adjustment Tool to both increase the saturation and decrease the luminance of the blue sky (select Saturation from the Targeted Adjustment Tool menu drag up to raise the saturation and then select Luminance and drag down to darken the sky).

2. Select the Graduated Filter (press the G key) and set the Exposure to –1.00. Raise the Contrast to +30 and then drag a gradient from just above the central rock formation to the lower half of the image. This will balance the exposure and contrast within the image. From the Workflow options set the Bit Depth to 16 BITS/CHANNEL. Then click on the Open Image button (this project does not require that you open the image as a Smart Object as all of the remaining tonal and color adjustments will be made in the main editing space of Photoshop.

 

Content-Aware Scale meets its match

It is possible to use the Content-Aware Scale feature, that was first introduced with Photoshop CS4, to change the shape of the image from the long 2:3 aspect ratio to the squarer 4:5 aspect ratio, without losing any of the foreground detail. This would be a simple case of first duplicating the background layer and then making a rectangular selection of the top of the image and then, while holding down the Shift key, make an additional selection of the bottom of the image. In the Channels panel the user would then click the Save selection as channel icon to create an Alpha channel that can be used to protect the detail in these areas. From the Edit menu the user would then choose Content-Aware Scale and in the Options bar select the Alpha 1 channel from the Protect menu. The Image can then be scaled while protecting both the top and bottom of the image. The problem with this technique in this particular image is that if you were to zoom in to 100% (Actual Pixels) you would see the fault lines or ‘stress fractures’ where Photoshop has been sacrificing detail. The detail in this area of the image cannot be compressed without sacrificing quality when using this feature. This is a task where the Auto-Blend Layers feature comes into its own to create a seamless compression.

3. Select the Rectangular Marquee Tool from the Tools panel and set the Feather to 0 px. Make a selection of the top of the image that just includes the two tiny white houses. Copy the pixels (Ctrl + C for a PC or Command + C for a Mac) and then Paste the pixels to a new layer (Ctrl + V for a PC or Command + V for a Mac). Select the Background layer and copy and paste the bottom of the image so that you now have three layers. Switch off the visibility of the Background layer. Select the Move Tool from the Tools panel (press the V key) and then, while holding the Shift key down, move Layer 1 and Layer 2 closer so that they overlap. Drop the Opacity of the two layers in the Layers panel to see the extent of the overlap. Move Layer 2 to the top of the layers stack and add a layer mask to Layer 2 by clicking the Add layer mask icon at the base of the Layers panel. Select the Brush Tool from the Tools panel and paint with black at 100% Opacity in the region of the two tiny white houses in the zone of the overlap. This action will force Photoshop to retain the houses in the composite view. Return Layer 1 and Layer 2 to 100% opacity, select both layers (Shift + Click) and then go to Edit > Auto-Blend Layers. Select the Panorama and Seamless Tones and Colors option and then select OK.

4. Zoom in to make sure Photoshop has done a seamless job of blending these two layers together. Save the project file as a ‘stage 1’ file and then from the Layers fly-out menu choose Flatten Image. We have no further use for the individual layers in this project.

5. Select the Crop Tool from the Tools panel and then in the Options bar enter in the new 4:5 aspect ratio. If you don’t know the size of the image you require for your output device just leave the Resolution field in the Options bar blank to ensure Photoshop does not interpolate the image. If you are not sure of the composition at this stage, i.e. you are not sure whether you want to crop away the top or bottom of the image, just drag the lock icon on the background layer to the trash can in the Layers panel and select the Hide rather than the Delete option in the Options bar.

6. In this step we will create an alpha channel that can be used as a mask for the sky later in this project. Go to the Channels panel and click on each channel in turn. You will notice that the blue channel has the best contrast between the sky and the land. This is confirmed by reviewing the Blue channel in the Histogram panel. Duplicate the Blue channel by dragging it to the Create new channel icon at the base of the Channels panel.

7. Use the keyboard shortcut Ctrl + L (PC) or Command + L (Mac) to open the Levels dialog. Drag the Black and White Input Levels sliders towards the histogram to render the sky almost white and the foreground almost black. Be careful not to drag the White input Levels slider too far as you may clip some of the foreground tones to white. We can increase the contrast of this alpha channel in the next step.

8. Select the Brush Tool from the Tools panel and set the mode of the Brush Tool to Overlay in the Options bar. Choose a large soft-edged brush and make sure that white is the foreground color in the Tools panel. Paint over any gray areas that you can see in the sky to render them white. Painting in Overlay mode will protect any tones that are already black in the image. Switch the foreground and background colors so that black is now the foreground color. Paint over any areas near the horizon line that are not absolutely black (the white sky will be protected by the blend mode). If any areas are slow to render black switch the blend mode to Normal, reduce the size of the brush, zoom in and carefully paint these black (the two white houses in the middle-distance will require this last treatment).

9. Select the Red Channel in the Channels panel as this has the best contrast for the desert landscape. From the Select menu choose Select All (Ctrl or Command + A) and then from the Edit menu choose Copy (Ctrl or Command + C). Click on the master RGB composite view and then return to the Layer panels. Choose Paste from the Edit menu (Ctrl or Command + V) to paste the information from the Red channel into a new layer.

10. Set the mode of this new layer to Multiply. This will darken the shadows in the composite view. We will next create softer shadows by blurring them slightly using the Gaussian Blur filter. If carefully controlled this will increase the apparent depth of the image but retain the all-important detail within the image.

Note > I would love to be able to say that I pioneered the technique that follows but it actually emulates a classic Black & White darkroom technique that utilizes a silk-stocking placed over the enlarger lens (applied to the high contrast stage of a split-grade printing technique made famous by Max Ferguson).

11. Go to Filter > Blur > Gaussian Blur. Zoom in to the image to take a close look at the shadows as we try to find the most appropriate Radius value for the image we are working on (it varies from image to image). The idea is to blur the shadows so that the tone extends or ‘bleeds’ into the midtone regions of the image. If the shadows extend too far they will muddy the all-important highlights. In this project I have decided to use a Radius of around 15 pixels. Select OK to apply the blur.

12. To prevent the blur bleeding into the smooth tone of the sky we will add a mask to this layer. Go to the Channels panel and while holding down the Ctrl key (PC) or Command key (Mac) click on the Blue Channel copy thumbnail to load it as a selection. Return to the Layers panel and click on the Add layer mask icon at the base of the panel to add a mask to Layer 1. Go to Filter > Blur > Gaussian Blur and add a 2.0 pixel blur to this layer mask to soften the hard edge.

13. This step will seek to increase the effect of the shadows while keeping the highlights free from the effect. Go to the Adjustments panel and choose a Levels adjustment. Clip the Levels layer to the blur layer using the icon at the base of the Adjustments panel. Move the Black Outputs Levels slider so that it reads 50 in the Output Levels field to ensure the shadows do not become too dark (a result of the Multiply mode of the layer below). Now increase the intensity of the bleed by moving the central gamma slider (directly underneath the histogram) to the right (a value of 0.6 gamma). Move the White Input Levels slider to the left (a value of around 200) so that the highlights remain clean. Hold down the ALT/OPTION key as you move this slider so you can see which highlight tones are being clipped on the blur layer below thereby allowing the highlight detail from the background layer to be the sole contributor to the final outcome.

Note > Do not confuse the Blacks Input Levels slider for the Blacks Output levels slider in this step otherwise you may render the shadows too dark to print with detail. Do not move the Black Outputs levels slider too far otherwise the effect will be removed.

14. Any shadows that may be too dark to print with detail (take a look at the Histogram panel to see if tones are bunching up against the left hand wall of the histogram) can be lightened in this step. Merge the visible elements of this project to a single new layer by holding down the modifier keys Ctrl + Alt + Shift (PC) or Command + Option + Shift (Mac) and then pressing the E key. Go to Image > Adjustments > Shadows/Highlights. Check the Show More Options box and then raise the Amount and Tonal Width sliders to 30 in the Shadows section (the Radius slider has been left at 60 px). Select OK to apply this adjustment. Hold down the Shift key and select all layers except the background layer and then use the keyboard shortcut Ctrl + G (PC) or Command + G (Mac) to place these layers into a group. Double-click on the group name to rename the group ‘Blur Shadows’.

 

Stage 2

15. Go to File > Place and then browse to the desert sky image. Select Place to open this image in Adobe Camera Raw. Increase the contrast of this image. Set the Exposure slider to +1.75 and lower the Brightness slider to –28. Raise both the Contrast and Clarity sliders to +100. Raise the Temperature slider to 5900 and lower the Tint slider to –8. As this contrast adjustment will raise the apparent noise within the image go to the Detail Tab and raise the Noise Reduction slider slightly. Select OK to place the file.

16. The large cross you see on the file is inviting you to scale the image. Move the lower central anchor point on the bounding box upwards to compress the information. Right-click in the bounding box and select Flip Horizontal. Hit the Commit icon in the Options bar or press the Return/Enter key to commit the scaling operation. You will notice a small icon on the thumbnail of this layer indicating that this is a Smart Object.

17. Hold down the Alt/Option key and drag the layer mask from the Gaussian Blur layer to copy the layer mask to the Smart Object layer (the new sky). Invert the mask (Ctrl or Command + I) so that the sky is masked behind the rocks on the horizon line. If the sky needs moving or scaling a second time click on the link icon between the layer thumbnail and the layer mask so that the sky layer can be moved independently of the mask. Check that the image and not the layer mask is the active component of the layer and then use the Free Transform command to re-scale the image (Ctrl or Command + T).

18. If you zoom in and take a look at the horizon line you will notice a small white halo. This can be eliminated by going to Select > Refine Mask. Raise the Contrast and Shift Edge sliders to the right until the thin white line disappears.

19. For the sky to look at home it needs to be lighter where it meets the horizon line. To make these changes go to the Adjustments panel and choose a Curves adjustment. Raise the curve so that the highlights are much brighter. Then select the Gradient Tool from the Tools panel and select the Black, White option in the Options bar. Set the Opacity to 100% and drag a gradient from a position just higher than the top of the central rock to a position just above the horizon line in order to restore the tonality to the top portion of the sky.

20. The sky can be made warmer by either double-clicking the Smart Object thumbnail and adjusting the Temperature in ACR or by simply adding a Warming Filter by going to the Adjustments panel and choosing the Warming Filter from the Photo Filter adjustment options. If you elect to add the Photo Filter then ensure that you clip this adjustment to the clipping group below by clicking the clipping icon at the base of the Adjustments panel.

21. To darken and add contrast to the sky, at the top of the image, add a new layer by clicking the Create new layer icon at the base of the Layers panel. Set the mode of this new layer to Overlay and clip this layer to the clipping group below (from the Layer menu choose Create Clipping Mask). Select the Gradient Tool and choose the new Neutral Density preset from the Gradient Presets. Drag a gradient from the top of the image towards the horizon line. This step completes the second stage of the editing procedure so it would be considered good housekeeping if you save your work in progress. You can then proceed to hold down the Shift key and click the Neutral Density gradient layer and the Smart Object containing the sky and then using the keyboard shortcut, Ctrl or Command + G, place these layers into a group and rename the group ‘Sky’.

 

Stage 3

22. Although we have certainly lifted the drama in the first two stages of this project, converting the image to Black and White will give us additional opportunities to really increase localized contrast. Go to the Adjustments panel and choose a Black & White adjustment. Move the Reds and Yellows to the right and the Blues to the left to increase the contrast slightly. Use the Targeted Adjustment Tool to make fast work of this step.

23. In this step we will increase localized contrast by painting tonal adjustments. This is called dodging (making tones lighter) and burning (making tones darker). As the tones are distributed over many different layers we will dodge and burn on a new layer that is set to a contrast blend mode. Select the Blur Shadows group and then click on the Create new layer icon at the base of the Layers panel and set the mode of this new layer to Overlay. Placing the Dodge & Burn layer beneath the Sky group will ensure we don’t darken or lighten the sky. Overlay is a good blend mode for dodging and burning Black and White images (better contrast) but Soft Light is usually superior when dodging and burning color images (better saturation control). Choose the Brush Tool from the Tools panel and set the Opacity to 10% and set the Brush Hardness to 0. Paint with Black as the foreground color to darken selected areas of the image and paint with white to lighten selected areas of the image. There is no right or wrong about where you paint. I have decided to lighten the right side of the central rock formation and darken the left side. I have also decided to darken the area of land between the foreground and background. Use the Eraser Tool if you want to remove any of your handiwork.

24. To introduce color into this image you can either lower the opacity of the Black and White adjustment layer (you may need to switch the blend mode of the Dodge & Burn layer to Soft Light if you do this) or you can create a new Curves adjustment layer to tone this image with colors of your own choosing. With this latter option select the top layer in the Layers panel and then go to the Adjustments panel and select a Curves adjustment. Go to the Blue channel and create an inverse ‘S’ curve, i.e. pulling the curve down in the highlights and up in the shadows. I have anchored the curve in the center so that midtones stay neutral. In the Red channel make a shallow ‘S’ curve so that the highlights appear warm and the shadows cool. A slight tweak to the highlights in the RGB composite view completes the toning procedure. If the saturation of the colors appears too high then lower the opacity of this Curves adjustment layer. Select the Black and White and Curves adjustment layers and place these in a new group called Toning.

25. Some images that are captured in relatively flat light can benefit enormously from a High Pass layer that can be used to increase localized contrast and create more depth in the image. This project does not require too much extra depth but the sky and immediate foreground can stand a little extra. Merge the visible elements to a new layer (Ctrl + Alt + Shift + E for PC users and Command + Option + Shift + E for Mac users) set the mode to Soft Light and then go to Filter > Other > High Pass. Raise the Radius slider until you achieve maximum depth (around 80 pixels for this image). Hold down the Alt/Option key and click the Add layer mask icon in the Layers panel to add a layer mask filled with black. Paint with white to apply the High Pass adjustment where required.

26. To sharpen this image for your intended output device you need to open the Blur Shadows group and select the Merge Visible layer. This is the layer that you created after blurring the shadows so that you could apply the Shadows/Highlights adjustment feature. Go to Filter > Convert for Smart Filters and then go to Filter > Sharpen > Smart Sharpen. Use a high Amount setting and low Radius setting to achieve some crisp detail in the rock formations and desert detail.

27. After reviewing the file more fine-tuning can occur. This is where good housekeeping of naming layers and layer groups becomes very useful. I have returned to the Curves layer that is clipped to the Sky and lowered the white point so that the bright clouds are not the brightest highlights in the overall image.

28. To complete the project a vignette is added to darken the edges. Select the top layer in the Layers panel, the rectangular Marquee Tool from the Tools panel and set a feather Radius of 250 pixels in the Options bar. Click and drag from near the top left-hand side of the image to the lower right-hand side of the image to select the central portion of the image and then go to Select > Inverse so that only the edges of the image are selected. From the Edit menu choose Copy Merged and then from the Edit menu again, choose Paste.

29. Set the mode of the new layer to Multiply to darken the edges and use the keyboard shortcut Ctrl + Shift + U (PC) or Command + Shift + U (Mac) to desaturate the layer (this prevents a rise in saturation at the edges of the image). Click on the Add layer mask icon at the base of the Layers panel and then select the Gradient Tool from the Tools panel. Choose the Neutral Density gradient preset and drag from the lower edge to a position just above where the dark foreground shadows end. This will help protect these dark edges from further darkening. The project is complete but the flexibility of the workflow will allow you to modify and fine-tune any aspect of the visual outcome.

 

Enhancing detail and depth – Project 3

Images captured in flat light can sometimes lack detail, depth and drama. It is possible, however, to unleash the hidden potential of an image using post-production techniques. The secret to success lies in the contrast blend modes together with filters and adjustment features that can detect and enhance edge contrast. This depth charge technique is designed to inject the drama that the start image lacks.

Piergiorgio Brusegan (Venetian artist) – Mark Galer

The technique that follows uses a Gaussian Blur ‘smooth tone technique’ to smooth the broader areas of tone while the fine detail will be preserved and sharpened. The application of a blur filter in a project where the fine detail is preserved may, at first, sound strange, but if it is applied in conjunction with a blend mode the sharp detail within the subject can be made to interact with the smoother surface tones. The steps that follow enhance the localized contrast and fine detail and the balance between the resulting smooth contours and the sharp detail creates the drama that is required. The luminance or brightness values are optimized independently of the color values in this tutorial and the color is reunited with the image in the last step as an optional alternative.

1. Open the project image in Adobe Camera Raw (ACR) and select the Crop Tool. Crop the image to increase the impact of the image and remove any distracting detail from the edges of the image. Move the mouse cursor to a position just outside one of the corner handles of the crop marquee and rotate the marquee counter-clockwise slightly to straighten the image.

2. Only minor adjustments are required to optimize this file in the default settings of the Basic panel. Drag the Fill Light slider to +30 so that we are not clipping any of the shadow tones.

3. Our eyes are normally drawn to the brightest tones in the image (currently the white silk scarf the artist is wearing). Select the Adjustment Brush and slide the exposure setting to –1.00 stop. Adjust the size of the brush and then paint over this scarf so that the beard becomes the dominant highlight. The overlay color in the illustration above shows where I have painted this adjustment. The overlay color or mask is highlighted when you click on the Show Mask checkbox or move your mouse cursor over the pin as is the case in the illustration above. If you need to remove any of the adjustment hold down the Alt/Option key and paint again to erase.

4. We can remove the dandruff on the artist’s shoulder using the Spot Removal Tool. Set the Radius to 4 and click on each spot you can see on the shoulder. Zoom in if you need to take a closer look. You can click and move the source point (green circle) if necessary. Click on either the Hand Tool or the Zoom Tool to exit the Spot Removal Tool panel.

5. We can draw the viewer’s eye into this image by darkening the background slightly. Only limited Lens Vignetting can be applied to this image because the edges of each side of the image have been cropped away, but we will take whatever we can get in the ACR space. Go to the Lens Corrections tab and take the Amount slider in the Lens Vignetting section down to –80.

 

Post Crop Vignetting

In Photoshop CS5 (ACR 6) we have new and improved Post Crop vignetting. We can now darken down highlights much more effectively than we could in Photoshop CS4 (ACR 6) now that we have a Highlight Priority option. The Post Crop Vignette has been moved to the new Effects tab. Although the Highlight Priority option is much friendlier to highlights than when using Post Crop Vignetting in CS4, it is not possible to achieve a vignette that does not clip the dark tones of the artist’s jacket and infringe on the artist’s beard (there is still no option to offset the vignette). When working in the main editing space of Photoshop, there is a risk of banding or stepping the tones when a vignette is applied to a background with a flat even tone or color (as in this image). Working in ACR is much more forgiving, the next few steps attempts to resolve this problem by creating an offset vignette using smart objects. Set the amount back to zero if you have experimented with the Post Crop Vignetting.

6. Open the image as a Smart Object by holding down the Shift key so that you can access the Open Object button (holding down the Shift key will not be necessary if you have already checked the ‘Open in Photoshop as Smart Objects’ option in the Workflow Options dialog). We will copy this layer and use it to darken the background. Right click the Smart Object layer in the Layers panel and choose New Smart Object via Copy (you will not get this option of you right-click on the thumbnail instead of the layer itself). Double click on the Smart Object copy thumbnail to open the image in Adobe Camera Raw.

7. When the Raw file opens in ACR lower the exposure slider to –1.50 and then click the OK button to change the Raw settings of this new smart object layer.

8. To restrict the darkening to the edges of the file, choose the Rectangular Marquee Tool from the Tools panel, enter 250 px in the Feather field in the Options bar. Click and drag to make a selection of the central portion of the image. Invert the selection so that the edges are selected by going to Select > Inverse. Click on the Add Layer mask at the base of the Layers panel and then press the D key to select the default values for the Foreground and Background. Lower the opacity of this smart object copy layer to fine-tune the process.

9. Select the Brush Tool in the Tools panel and set the brush hardness to zero and the Opacity to 100%. Press the x key to make Black the foreground color and then paint over the artist’s shoulders and beard to ensure the darkening does not effect these parts of the image. If a halo appears over the shoulders switch the foreground and background colors and paint with white to remove the halo.

10. To convert to black and white choose a Black & White adjustment layer from the Adjustments panel. Moving the Reds and Yellows sliders to the left slightly will increase localized contrast in the artist’s skin. We could have converted to Black & White in Adobe Camera Raw (Convert to Grayscale) but this would not allow us to feed the color back into the image later in the project.

11. To create the smoother tones in the areas of low contrast, we need to merge the visible pixels to a new layer. Hold down the modifier keys Ctrl + Alt + Shift (PC) or Command + Option + Shift (Mac) and then press the E key. Set the mode of this ‘merge visible’ layer to Multiply. The image will appear darker (courtesy of the blend mode) until we complete the next three steps. The luminance values will be rectified using two adjustment layers.

Note > You may find it useful to rename the layers as we go in this project so that we can quickly recognize and return to layers later to modify them to optimize the visual appearance of the end-result.

12. To create the softer smooth tones go to Filter > Blur > Gaussian Blur. Choose a Radius value that gives the image smoother tones but also retains depth. A value around 26 pixels suits the project image. Select OK to apply the blur to this layer.

13. From the Adjustments panel choose a Levels adjustment. Clip the adjustment layer to the MERGE-VISIBLE layer using the clipping icon at the base of the Adjustments panel. Move the black ‘Output Levels’ slider to a value of 90 to lighten the darkest tones in the image.

14. Click on the Return to adjustment list icon in the Adjustments panel and then select another Levels adjustment layer. Set the mode of this layer to Screen and then move the white Output Levels slider to 190 to protect the brightest tones from becoming too light.

15. To increase the apparent depth in this image we will accentuate the light and shade using a Dodge & Burn layer. Hold down ALT/OPTION key and click on the Create a new layer icon in the Layers panel. Name the layer ‘Dodge & Burn’. Select Overlay as the mode and check the ‘Fill with overlay-neutral color (50% gray) checkbox. Select OK to create the layer.

16. Select the Brush Tool in the Tools panel and set the foreground color to black. Choose a soft-edged brush and lower the opacity to between 10 and 20%. Paint around the edges of the cheeks (over the shaded areas). Paint multiple times, if required, to build up the shadows, which will in turn, increase the apparent depth and volume of the face. Zoom in and work with a smaller brush on the lower eyelids in a similar fashion as you did with the cheeks. The same can be achieved by painting over the shaded portions of the artist’s hat.

17. Switch the foreground color to white and paint over the highlight areas within the image. Do not paint over the beard as this is already light enough and requires no further modelling.

18. The High Pass filter we use in this step will continue the process of increasing localized contrast. Merge the visible pixels to a new layer. Hold down the modifier keys Ctrl + Alt + Shift (PC) or Command + Option + Shift (Mac) and then press the E key. Set the mode of this ‘merge visible’ layer to Soft Light. Go to Filter > Other > High Pass and then adjust the Radius to a high setting that gives maximum apparent depth to the image. Rename the layer High Pass.

19. If the depth added to this image is too much then simply lower the opacity of the High Pass layer to achieve the desired outcome. In this tutorial I have lowered the opacity to 50%.

20. This step will increase apparent detail in the image. Merge the Visible elements once again and set the mode of this new layer to Soft Light (as we did in the previous step). Name this layer Shadows-Highlights and then go to Image > Adjustments > Shadows/Highlights. Click on the Show More Options checkbox. Raise the Amount slider in the Shadows and Highlights sections to 100%. Set the Tonal Width in the Shadows and Highlights sections to 50%. Now raise the Midtone Contrast slider in the Adjustments section to raise localized contrast. The effect is likely to be too heavy when applied globally to the whole image but this can be corrected in the next step.

21. If the effect of the Shadows/Highlights adjustment is too strong, lower the opacity of the layer. Use a layer mask to restrict the effect to localized areas of the image. Hold down the Alt/Option key as you click on the ‘Add layer mask’ icon in the Layers panel to create a black layer mask. Select the Brush Tool and set white as the Foreground color. Paint with a soft-edged brush with the opacity set to around 50% to paint in the adjustment gradually. In this tutorial project the adjustment is restricted to just the face.

22. Even though we have been using the Merge Visible command in this project we are still able to optimize layers at the base of the layers stack if required, and have these changes affect the visual outcome. This is due to the blend modes and layer masks we have been using throughout the project. To darken, and add texture to the vignette, double-click on the Smart Object copy (Character Portrait copy). When the file opens in ACR, go to the Effects tab and increase the Grain amount to 50, the Size to 30 and the Roughness to 50.

23. In the Basic panel lower the Exposure to –2.00 stops and the Brightness to –50. Select OK in the bottom right-hand corner of the ACR dialog to update the changes to the Smart Object in the multi-layered project file. This in turn will darken the vignette.

24. In this step we will apply the final sharpening to the image. Select the top layer in the Layers panel and then Merge the visible pixels to a new layer. Hold down the modifier keys Ctrl + Alt + Shift (PC) or Command + Option + Shift (Mac) and then press the E key. Set the mode of this ‘merge visible’ layer to Luminosity. Normally we don’t need to set a sharpening layer to Luminosity when working with black and white images but in this instance the Luminosity mode will allow us to restore color to the image in the step that follows. In the Unsharp Mask dialog the Amount slider has been raised to 150, the Radius slider reduced to 0.5 and the Threshold slider raised to 5.

25. Select the Black and White adjustment layer in the Layers panel and lower the opacity to restore some color to the image. If you lower the opacity of the Black & White adjustment layer too much, the color may look excessive when combined with the increased contrast and detail. A balance can be achieved where the color and tone sit comfortably together.

26. It is often very easy to get carried away and inject too much drama with this workflow (I have used multiple techniques to increase depth and detail where only one or two may be required on images that you are working on), so if your image is looking like it has had one too many pokes with the ugly stick try the following. Select the top Sharpen layer and then holding down the Shift key select the Smart Object copy layer. Use the keyboard shortcut Ctrl + G (PC) or Command + G (Mac to group the layers into a layer set. Set the opacity of this layer set to between 50 and 60%. Also try turning off the visibility of the Black and White layer inside the layer set to feed more of the original color back into the file now that the contrast has been lowered.

 

Lens blur – Project 4

Most digital cameras achieve greater depth of field (more in focus) at the same aperture when compared to their 35 mm film cousins due to their comparatively small sensor size. Greater depth of field is great in some instances but introduces unwelcome detail and distractions when the attention needs to be firmly fixed on the subject.

Photography by Dorothy Connop

Sometimes when capturing a decisive moment with a camera the most appropriate aperture or shutter speed for the best visual outcome often gets overlooked. Photoshop can, however, come to the rescue and drop a distracting background into smooth out-of-focus colors. A careful selection to isolate the subject from the background and the application of a blur filter usually does the trick. Problems with this technique arise when the resulting image, all too often, looks manipulated rather than realistic. The Gaussian Blur filter will usually require some additional work if the post-production technique is not to become too obvious. A more realistic shallow depth of field effect, however, is created by using the ‘Lens Blur filter’.

 

Lens Blur or Gaussian Blur?

The Gaussian Blur filter has a tendency to ‘bleed’ strong tonal differences and saturated colors from around your subject into the background fog, making the background in the image look more like a watercolor painting rather than a photographic image. The Lens Blur filter (when used with a mask) introduces none of the bleed that is associated with the Gaussian Blur technique. The filter is extremely sophisticated, allowing you to choose different styles of aperture and control the specular highlights to create a more realistic camera effect.

1. The first step in the process is to isolate the subjects that you would like to keep in sharp focus. The people in this project file cannot be selected quickly using any of the selection tools or by using the channel masking techniques. The Pen Tool was used to create paths around each of the children and the two parents holding hands. The three paths have been retained in the project file to fast-track the process of adjusting the focus. Hold down the Command key (Mac) or the Ctrl key (PC) and click on the Parents path in the Paths panel to load it as a selection.

2. In this step we will clear the background of some distracting elements before we move on to adjusting the focus. Go to the Layers panel and click on the ‘Create a new layer’ icon to create an empty new layer. Double-click on the layer name and name the layer ‘Clone’. From the Select menu choose Inverse so that the background is selected instead of the people. Go to Select > Modify > Feather and choose 1 pixel. From the Tools panel choose the Clone Stamp Tool and in the Options bar choose a soft-edged brush and select the All Layers option. Hold down the Option/Alt key and set the clone source point in the sea to the left of the woman’s legs. Proceed to clone out the legs of the child playing in front of the mother.

3. With the Clone Stamp Tool still selected proceed to clone out the man in the ocean just above the father’s shoulder and boy on the body board just above the breaking wave on the right side of the image. The preview inside the clone stamp cursor allows you to line up the waves and the soft edge of the brush makes the cloning seamless.

4. When you have finished cleaning up the background go to the Channels panel and click on the ‘Save selection as channel’ icon at the base of the panel. Go to Select > Deselect and you will now have an Alpha 1 channel which will act as a saved selection and allow us to create a depth map that can be used by the Lens Blur filter.

5. The mask will require further work to create an area of sharp focus in the background for positioning or anchoring the subject realistically in its environment. The subject will need to be planted firmly on an area of ground that is not blurred to prevent the subject from floating above the background. A simple gradient will allow us to anchor the subject and allow the background to fade gradually from focus to out-of-focus. Set the Foreground Color to black and then select the Gradient Tool from the Tools panel. Choose the ‘Foreground to Transparent’, ‘Reflected Gradient’ and ‘Opacity: 100%’ options in the Options bar. Drag the Gradient Tool (while holding down the Shift key to constrain the gradient vertically) from the base of the feet to the bottom of the shorts. The darker areas of this Alpha channel will help retain the focus in this part of the image.

6. We will now add the children to this depth map but as they are a little further away from the camera they will not be as sharp as the parents. Go to the Paths panel and Command or Ctrl + click the Younger Child path to load it as a selection. Go to Select > Modify > Feather and choose a 1-pixel feather.

7. Sample the tone next to the child’s feet using the Eyedropper Tool. This tone will become the Foreground color in the Tools panel. Go to Edit > Fill. In the Use menu in the Contents section of the Fill dialog box choose Foreground Color and select OK. The child should be slightly lighter than the parents and match the tone of the gradient at the feet. Go to Select > Deselect to clear the selection.

8. Repeat Steps 6 and 7 using the path of the older child. When filled with the Foreground Color the older child will be a slightly lighter gray than the younger child. The depth map is now complete and the channel is renamed DOF-Map (by double-clicking on the name) so that it can be easily identified later. This depth map simulates the depth of field that would have been created if the image had been captured using an extremely wide aperture. Using a longer initial gradient would give you a greater depth of field in the final result. The plane of focus is falling away from the camera towards the horizon. A subject that stands vertically from this horizontal plane of focus must adopt the focus at that point in the gradient for the depth of field to appear realistic.

9. In the Layers panel stamp the visible elements from the two layers into a new layer. Hold down the Command, Option and Shift keys on a Mac or Ctrl, Alt and Shift keys on a PC and type the letter E. Rename the layer ‘Stamp Visible’. Go to Filter > Blur > Lens Blur to open the Lens Blur dialog box.

10. From the ‘Depth Map’ section of this dialog box choose the DOF-MAP. Choose the depth of field required by moving the Radius slider. The Blade Curvature, Rotation, Brightness and Threshold sliders fine-tune the effect. Zoom in to 100% before applying a small amount of noise (1 or 2% Gaussian Monochromatic is usually sufficient) to replicate the noise of the rest of the image. Select OK to apply the Lens Blur and return to the main workspace.

11. If part of the background along the edge of the subject is sharp when it should be blurred then this can be corrected using the Clone Stamp Tool. Create a new layer and name it Repair Edges. Load an appropriate path as a selection. From the Select menu choose Inverse and feather the selection by 1 pixel (Select > Modify > Feather). Expand the selection by 1 pixel also (Select > Modify > Expand). Select the Clone Stamp Tool from the Tools panel and choose the All Layers option from the Sample menu. Hide the selection edges by going to the View > Extras. Hold down the ALT/OPTION key and take a source point for the Clone Stamp Tool just next to the area to be corrected. Cloning away sharp pixels with blurred pixels will correct any minor errors that may exist. Remember to go to Select > Deselect to remove the hidden active selection before proceeding.

Note > Zoom in to 100% (Actual Pixels) and navigate around the edges. If part of the image that should have been sharp has accidentally been blurred (due to an inaccuracy with the original depth map) then add a layer mask to the Stamp Visible layer and paint with black to reveal the sharp image below.

12. To complete this project we need to correct one minor flaw and add some finishing touches. There is a small amount of pin-cushion distortion in the image that needs correcting. Stamp the Visible layers to another new layer (see Step 9) and name it ‘Stamp Visible-Warp’. Go to View > Rulers (Command or Ctrl + R). Drag a guide from the rule onto the horizon line. You will notice the horizon line curls up at each side of the image.

13. Make sure the Stamp Visible-Warp layer is selected. Go to Edit > Transform > Warp. Move your mouse cursor onto one end of the horizon line in the image window and click and drag down slowly until the horizon aligns with the guide. Move your mouse cursor to the other end of the horizon line and repeat the process until the horizon line is straight. Hit the Enter key when you are done to commit the changes.

14. To breathe a little more life into that washed out sky we can add a simple gradient. Click on the ‘Create a new layer’ icon in the Layers panel to add a new layer named ‘Gradient-Sky’. Set the mode to Multiply. Select the Gradient Tool from the Tools panel. Hold down the Alt/ Option key and sample some of the dark blue water just below the horizon line. Select the Foreground to Transparent gradient, set to Linear gradient and drag a gradient from the top of the image down the horizon line (hold down the Shift key to constrain the line to a vertical).

15. Hold down the Alt/Option key again and this time sample a color from the sand. Using a Reflected gradient drag a short gradient from a position just below the feet to the edge of the water. Drag a second gradient in the same position if the sand needs darkening further.

16. All that remains to finish the project is to sharpen the image. Click on the top Stamp Visible-Warp layer in the Layers panel (the one that was warped straight). Go to Filter > Convert for Smart Filters. Next go to Filter > Sharpen > Unsharp Mask. Sharpen the image using a generous amount (180 or more) and a small radius setting (between 0.5 and 1.0 pixel). There is no need to sharpen the gradients as there is no detail in this layer that requires sharpening.

17. If the edges around the subject appear too sharp, select the Smart Filters mask thumbnail in the Layers panel, go to the Channels panel and Command or Ctrl + click on your depth map to load it as a selection. Fill the selection with Black (Edit > Fill > Black) and then go to Filter > Other > Minimum and choose a Radius of 3 or 4 pixels to expand the mask and protect the edge from the sharpening filter.

 

Faux Styles – Project 5

Getting tired of pin-sharp, noise-free, character-free images from your 24 Megapixel Pro DSLR? Try this grunge effect to give your images the toy camera aesthetic – think WEIRD – think GRUNGE, think ART!

Brooklyn Bridge, New York – before and after.

The Holga is a cheap (US $30) plastic medium format film camera mass-produced in China. Originally manufactured in the early 80s for the home consumption, it has now gained cult status amongst bohemian western photographers who are drawn to the grunge ‘art’ aesthetic. The camera represents the antithesis of everything that the modern digital camera manufacturers are striving to achieve. If you are looking for edge-to-edge sharpness and color-fidelity then give the Holga a very wide berth. If, however you are looking to create images that are full of ‘character’, but without the hassle of going back to film, then you may like to look into the wonderful, and weird, world of Holga-style imagery and give this Photoshop workflow a spin (no Holga required).

To see images captured with a real Holga take a look at this Flickr gallery: http://www.flickr.com/photos/microabi

1. Open the JPEG project image from the supporting DVD, or process your own 8 Bits/ Channel starting image from the Raw image supplied. Images produced by the Holga camera are square so grab the Crop Tool from the Tools panel, hold down the Shift key to constrain the crop marquee to a perfect square and drag over the central portion of the start image. Hit the Commit icon or Return/Enter key to get rid of the unwanted pixels.

2. Duplicate the background layer using the keyboard shortcut CTRL + J (PC) or Command + J (Mac). The background layer will serve as a resource to tone down the final effect in localized areas (if required). The next few steps will start to degrade the sharpness of your image (the Holga camera has a single simple lens element). With Layer 1 selected in the Layers panel go to Filter > Blur > Radial Blur.

3. In the Radial Blur dialog box set the Amount to 3 and then select the Zoom and Best options. Click where you would like to preserve maximum sharpness in the Blur Center control box (to the right of the Zoom and Best options). There is an element of guesswork in this step but sharpness can be restored later in the process. I have selected the region in the lower center (where I estimate the pedestrians to be crossing the bridge in the actual image). Select OK to apply the blur to Layer 1.

4. Go to Filter > Blur > Gaussian Blur. Select a Radius of 1.0 pixel and then select OK to apply the blur to Layer 1. Set the Foreground and Background Colors to their Default setting (either click on the small Black and White box icon in the Tools panel or press the D key on the keyboard). Setting the Foreground and Background colors to their default settings will ensure the next blur filter will have a diffuse glow that is white and not any other color.

5. Go to Filter > Distort > Diffuse Glow. Try setting the Graininess and Glow Amounts to 4 and the Clear Amount to 17 as a starting point. You can increase the Graininess to simulate a high ISO film. Alternatively the grain can be set low in this dialog as we will have more control over how the grain looks if we apply it to a separate layer. Select OK to apply the Diffuse Glow to Layer 1.

6. To create a Grain layer, hold down the Alt key (PC) or Option key (Mac) and click on the Create a new layer icon at the base of the Layers panel. Holding down the ALT/OPTION key while clicking on the icon will open the New Layer dialog. Name the layer ‘Grain’, set the mode to Overlay and check the Fill with overlay-neutral color (50% gray) checkbox. Select OK to create the Layer. The effects of the layer will be invisible at this point in time (courtesy of the blend mode) until the grain is added in the next step.

7. Go to Filter > Noise > Add Noise. In the Add Noise dialog set the Amount to 7% for a 12-Megapixel image (adjust it higher or lower if you are using a higher- or lower-resolution image). Choose the Gaussian option and select the Monochromatic checkbox before selecting OK to apply the Noise to the Grain layer. Adjust the opacity of the layer if the noise is too prominent.

8. We will now replicate the dark vignette that is a characteristic of Holga images. Select the Rectangular Marquee Tool and set the Feather to 150-pixels (adjust this higher or lower if you are using a higher- or lower-resolution image). Drag a selection so that the central portion of the image is selected (this will leave a border around the edge of the image that is not selected. Hold down the spacebar as you are making the selection if you need to reposition the selection. From the Select menu choose Inverse and from the Edit menu choose Copy Merged to copy the edge pixels to the clipboard. From the Edit menu choose Paste.

9. The pixels will be pasted to a new layer (Layer 2). At the moment they are identical to the pixels on Layer 1 but when we select the Multiply mode from the Layers panel they can be used to darken down the edges of the image.

10. Another characteristic of the Holga image is the surreal color-palette that is present in many (but not all) Holga images. This is a result of either poor processing or cross processing of the film (cross processing intentionally uses the wrong chemicals for the film stock used). We can replicate this look with just a few Adjustment layers. From the Adjustments panel choose a Levels adjustment layer.

11. Clip the shadow and highlight tones by setting the Black input slider to 30 and the White input slider to 225 (these sliders are located directly underneath the histogram). Select the Blue Channel from the drop-down menu in the Levels dialog and then drag the Output Levels sliders to 64 and 190. The Output Levels sliders are located directly underneath the Input sliders. This action will weaken the blacks, render the whites slightly dull and introduce a color cast in both. Select the Green Channel and set the Output sliders to 40 and 230 to increase this effect. Finally, select the Red channel and drag the central gamma slider (directly underneath the histogram) to the left so that it reads 1.10. Select OK to apply these Levels adjustments. Click on the return to adjustments button.

12. We can alter the color and tone using a Levels adjustment but we will need to use a Hue/ Saturation adjustment layer to alter global saturation levels and target specific colors for further attention. Start by raising the Saturation level to +24 in the Master channel. In the red channel Adjust the hue to –10 and raise the saturation to +20. In the Cyan and Blue channels raise the Saturation to +10 for both.

Note > Use these target values as a starting point only. When applying this technique to your own images you may like to try experimenting by raising the saturation levels of key colors within a specific image.

13. To increase the overall contrast you can add another Levels adjustment layer and set the Mode to Overlay. There is no need to make any changes to the levels themselves as the change of blend mode alone will increase the contrast. If the colors become too ‘intense’ (increased saturation is a by-product of increasing the contrast), either lower the opacity of the Hue/ Saturation layer below or change the mode of this second Levels adjustment layer to Soft Light. If this contrast adjustment layer compromises shadow detail, raise the Levels Output slider to a value of approximately +25.

14. Many aspects of the final result can be fine-tuned by going back to the individual layers and adjusting either the settings or the opacity. Paint with black as the foreground color into any of the adjustment layer masks to reduce the effects in a localized region of the image. Add a layer mask to Layer 1 and paint with black to restore small amounts of detail for important parts of the subject matter.

15. Some Holga images ‘suffer’ (or are ‘blessed with’ – depending how you look at it) from serious edge clipping and/or light leaks. The corner clipping can be unevenly distributed and more severe than your typical vignette. The corner clipping can be replicated by first making another edge selection using the Rectangular Marquee Tool with a 150-pixel feather as we did in Step 8. Choose Inverse from the Select menu.

16. Go to Select > Transform Selection. Zoom out so that you can see the corner handles of the Transform bounding box. Hold down the Ctrl key (PC) or Command key (Mac) and drag two of the four corner handles out in a diagonal direction. Commit the transformation by hitting the Return/Enter key.

17. Click on the Create a new layer icon in the Layers panel and then go to Edit > Fill and choose Black as the contents before selecting OK. Lower the opacity of the layer depending on how severe or subtle you want the effect to appear.

18. Light leaks in Holga camera’s appear as light orange patches on some frames (some Holga camera owners use black tape around the film loading area of the camera in an attempt to minimize this problem. These light leaks (if required) can be simulated by adding a new empty layer and setting the mode to Screen. Go to Select > Deselect. Click on the Foreground color swatch in the Tools panel to open the Color Picker. Select an orange color (around Hue 35°) and lower opacity to between 65 and 70%. Select OK and then select the Gradient Tool in the Tools panel. Choose the Foreground to Transparent gradient and the Linear Gradient options in the options bar and then drag a diagonal gradient across one of the corners of the image. Lower the opacity of the layer if you need more subtlety – although to be honest, subtlety is not the name of the game here.

 

Surface Blur – Project 6

The craft of professional skin retouching is the ability to render perfect skin without giving your model the appearance of a plastic-fantastic shop window mannequin. A 12-megapixel DSLR with a professional grade lens at point blank range is a very cruel combination for showing every minor imperfection in the skin’s surface.

Image by Shane Monopoli of Exclusive Photography

The technique in this tutorial can be used at full throttle to render the skin suitable for use in a skin care advertisement, or toned down a little to return the skin to something approaching normal (rather than how the camera lens captured it).

Ozgurdonmaz (www.iStockphoto.com – image number 4875147)

 

Adjustments in Adobe Camera Raw

Many of the basic image adjustments carried out in the main editing space can now be performed much faster in Adobe Camera Raw (ACR). In Adobe Camera Raw 5 we now have the option to use a ‘Negative Clarity’ adjustment. This is useful to soften and suppress detail and texture. In the example above the Clarity slider has been dropped to –50 to illustrate how the adjustment can be used to reduce the excessive detail in the model’s skin. Negative Clarity can also be painted with the Adjustment Brush to avoid haloes around high-contrast edges.

Angelika Stern (www.iStockphoto.com – image number 4244581)

Aldra (www.iStockphoto.com – image number 919547)

The Adjustment Brush can be accessed from the Tools bar and can be programmed to apply multiple adjustments at the same time, e. g. it can lighten the whites of the eyes and the teeth at the same time as lowering the saturation so that eyes look clean and bright (rather than dark and bloodshot) and teeth look white rather than yellow. The Adjustment Brush can also be used to quickly add depth and detail to eyelashes and eyebrows by using a positive clarity together with some sharpening. The adjustments that follow in this project are best carried out in the main editing space.

1. Open the SURFACE-BLUR Raw file and create a tighter crop for this image. Select either the Hand Tool or the Zoom Tool to apply this crop. Select the White Balance Tool and click on the neutral background tone to remove the color cast present in this image.

2. Create a slightly warmer skin tone for this image by raising the Temperature to 4500 and lowering the Tint to –8. Optimize the color and tonality of this image by raising the Fill Light slider to +10 and the Brightness slider to +60. Lower the Vibrance slider to –10 to keep the saturation levels in check.

3. Select the Graduated Filter option and set the Exposure setting to +0.60. Drag a gradient upward from the base of the image to just above the chin to balance the exposure and lighten the skin tones in this area. Select the Hand Tool or the Zoom Tool to return to the Basic tab.

4. Lower the Exposure slider to –0.25 to remove any highlight clipping that resulted from the Gradient Filter. Open the image into the main editing space as a Smart Object (set this option in the Workflows Panel or hold down the Shift key to access the Open Object button).

5. Start the process of smoothing the skin by going to Filter > Blur > Surface Blur. This filter, unlike the Gaussian Blur filter, has a ‘Threshold’ slider that, if used correctly, will leave edges crisp and sharp while blurring the surfaces inside the edges. This will ensure there are no nasty haloes around the edges of your subject as a result of the blurring process.

6. It is important to get the balance right between the Radius and the Threshold slider settings for each and every image (there is no one ‘perfect recipe’ that suits every image). To get a feel for what these two sliders do, set them both to a value between 20 and 25. Now move the Radius slider lower until you detect the surface tone becoming ‘mottled’ or ‘blotchy’ and then move it higher again until the surface appears very smooth. Finding the minimum radius that renders the surface smooth is your goal here. I have used a Radius of 40 with this project image.

7. Now drag the Threshold slider higher until you see haloes appear around the edges of your subject. Back the slider off to a point where all, or most, of the haloes disappear. If you continue to move the slider lower, after the haloes have disappeared, you will start to reintroduce the finer detail that was removed by the Radius slider. A Threshold setting of 70 has been used with this project image. Try to make the surface of the brow as smooth as possible at this stage as we will reintroduce the texture of the skin in a later step.

8. Select OK to apply the Surface Blur filter. Select the Smart Filters layer mask in the Layers panel. Use the keyboard shortcut Alt + Backspace (PC) or Option + Delete (Mac) to fill the layer mask with black to conceal the surface blur. Select white as the foreground color in the Tools panel (press the x key) and then choose a soft-edged brush. Set the brush opacity to 50-80% in the Options bar. Make sure the layer mask is selected and then paint to reveal the blur in the areas of the skin only. Paint a second time to reveal additional softening where needed. Switch the foreground to Black and reduce the size of the brush to restore any detail that may have been affected by the Surface Blur, e. g. the eyebrows.

Note > It is possible to reduce the effect of this smart filter (if you think the surface blur is excessive) by double-clicking on the Smart Filter blending Options icon and reducing the Opacity in the Blending Options dialog.

9. In this step we will eliminate minor imperfections in the skin that the Surface Blur filter could not smooth over. Go to Select > All and then Edit > Copy Merged and then Edit Paste to merge the visible pixels to a new layer. Go to Filter > Noise > Dust & Scratches and set the Threshold slider to 0. Raise the Radius slider just enough to remove the imperfections from the nose (between 5 and 10 pixels). Don’t worry about the lack of texture at this point in time as we will be adjusting the Threshold slider in the next step.

10. Raise the Threshold slider to reintroduce surface texture but stop just short of the point where the larger skin imperfections start to reappear. Select OK to apply the filter. Then hold down the ALT/OPTION key and click on the ‘Add layer mask’ icon at the base of the Layers panel to conceal the effects of this layer.

Note > Do not attempt to remove large skin imperfections with the Dust & Scratches filter. These are best removed using the Healing Brush Tool later.

11. Select the Brush Tool and white as the foreground color in the Tools panel and set the Opacity to 70% in the Options bar. Zoom in to 200%, be sure the layer mask is selected and paint to remove any imperfections from the nose and around the eyes. Hold down the Spacebar and click and drag to move the image in the image window so that you can navigate around the surface of the skin to look for additional imperfections. Paint multiple times if required. The skin should now be rendered smooth but with realistic surface texture and free from all minor imperfections. Rename the layer ‘Dust & Scratches’ by double-clicking on the name of the layer.

12. To remove larger imperfections click on the Create a new layer icon in the Layers panel. Select the Healing Brush Tool from the Tools panel (behind the Spot Healing Brush) and select All Layers from the Sample menu in the Options bar. Hold down the ALT/OPTION key and click the mouse button to select an area of good skin texture close to the imperfection you wish to remove. Adjust the size of the brush so that it is just bigger than the skin imperfection, move your mouse cursor over the defect and then click once again to heal the area. Rename the layer ‘Heal’ by double-clicking on the name of the layer. Renaming all the layers as we go will help us quickly identify what each is contributing to the overall effect.

Note > If you work close to an area that is very different in tone or color you will need to make the brush harder so that the heal area does not get contaminated with the adjacent color or tone. If the heal area continues to become contaminated try making a selection that excludes the nearby color or tone and try again or use the Lighten and Darken painting techniques that follow.

13. New for Photoshop CS5 is the Content-Aware option for the Spot Healing Brush. This feature may prove useful for removing long wrinkles. There is no need to select a source point when using the Spot Healing Brush as this is done automatically as you paint. An alternative to painting freehand is to click once at the start of the wrinkle, then hold down the shift key and click again at the end of the wrinkle. Photoshop will draw a heal stroke between the two points.

Note > These healing actions will remove blemishes and wrinkles completely. To restore some reality to the face (a face without any wrinkles looks unnatural) it is recommended that you lower the opacity of this Heal layer slightly.

14. Click on the Create a new layer icon and set the mode to Darken. Select the Eyedropper Tool and set the Sample Size to 5 by 5 average and select All Layers from the Sample menu in the Options bar. Click your mouse button over an area of skin that is representative of the skin color that is neither in the shaded nor in the highlight areas of the face to take a sample.

Note > Once these Eyedropper settings have been established you can take different color samples when working with the Brush Tool without having to select the Eyedropper Tool first.

15. This step is useful to reduce excessive shine (skin with excessive amounts of shine will appear oily). Select the Brush Tool in the Tools panel and set the opacity to 20% in the Options bar. Set the brush Hardness to zero so that we will not see the edges of the brush strokes as we paint. Limit the painting to one or two strokes in the same region only, otherwise the skin will appear as if it has been airbrushed and we will lose the skin texture.

Note > The darken blend mode will protect dark areas such as the hair, eyebrows and eyelashes from the painting action as these areas will be darker than the paint color you are working with. You will, however have to be careful when working close to areas such as the whites of the eyes that are lighter than the paint color.

16. Create another empty layer and this time set the mode to Lighten. This time we will lighten areas that are too dark. Hold down the ALT/OPTION key and click an area of skin that is adjacent to a dark crease or wrinkle under the eye. Then paint one or two strokes underneath each eye to lighten these areas. The bridge of the nose can also be straightened in this fashion by reducing the impact of the darker shadow that invades the central highlight. Take a sample of the highlight (Option/Alt + Click) above this shadow and then paint one or two strokes as before. Other areas that can be worked on are the shadows underneath the lower lip.

17. The line of the lower lip is not even towards the center. To correct this make a selection just to the right hand side of this area. Use the Lasso Tool with 5 pixels entered in the Feather field in the Options bar. Select Copy Merged from the Edit menu to float this selection and then choose Paste from the Edit menu to paste this selection to a new layer and name it Lip Patch. Use the Keyboard shortcut Ctrl + T (PC) or Command + T (Mac) to move and transform this selection. Click inside the Free Transform bounding box and drag the pixels to the left. Move your cursor to a position just outside one of the corner handles of the Free Transform bounding box so that you can rotate and align the pixels. Use the arrow keys on the keyboard to nudge the patch into position. Select the Return/Enter key to apply the transformation. Add a layer mask and paint with black if some of the peripheral colors of the patch do not match. Once this adjustment is complete hold down the Shift key and select the Heal layer in the layers panel so that the Heal, Darken, Lighten and Lip Patch layers are all selected. Use the keyboard shortcut Ctrl + G (PC) or Command + G (Mac) to group these layers together (good housekeeping for projects where lots of layers are used). Rename this group of layers ‘Paint & Patch’.

18. In this step we will brighten the whites of the eyes. Select a Curves adjustment layer from the Adjustments panel and select the targeted adjustment tool icon in the upper left-hand corner of the Curves dialog box (the one that looks like a scrubby slider icon). Click once on the black eyelashes and a second time on the iris of the eye to set adjustment points. These adjustment points will anchor these tones when we adjust the whites of the eye. Move your mouse cursor over the white of the eye and click and drag upwards (do not let go of the mouse button as you drag) to raise the brightness of the whites of the eye. Set the blending mode of the adjustment layer to Luminosity to remove the shift in color saturation that this curve has created.

19. In the Masks panel select the Invert option to fill the layer mask with black. Make sure you still have white as the foreground color and select the Brush Tool in the Tools panel. Set the Opacity to 50% in the Options bar and then paint over the eye to lighten the white of the eye. If you accidentally brush over the eyelashes or eyeliner you will probably not see any change to these darker tones as the darker tones have been locked down by the initial adjustment points you entered into the Curves dialog.

Note > Zoom out to review if the eyes are now too bright (a common mistake) and drop opacity of the Curves adjustment layer if required.

20. In this step we will reduce any redness in the eyes. Select a Hue/Saturation adjustment from the Adjustments panel. Lower the saturation to –100 and then invert the layer mask as we did in the last step. Zoom in and paint carefully in the whites of the eyes with a hard-edged brush so that you do not accidentally paint over the iris or eyelids of each eye. If any blood vessels are still obvious in each eye you can return to the ‘Lighten’ layer (in the Paint and Scratch Group) to lighten these further (sample a bright white next to the blood vessel and paint with the Brush Tool set to a low opacity). Rename this adjustment layer ‘Desaturate Whites’.

21.In this step we can increase the vibrancy of the iris in each eye and also the lips. Select a Vibrance adjustment layer from the Adjustments panel and then set the Vibrance to +100 and invert the mask as before. Paint over each eye and the lips with a soft-edged brush set at 50% opacity. Paint multiple times to increase the effect if required.

22.Skin can be rendered a little warmer by adding a Warming Filter from the Adjustments panel. Lower the density slider to 10–15%. This will, however, impact on the neutral gray background as the effects of this adjustment, and the white balance correction we did in Adobe Camera Raw, are global adjustments. We could invert the mask and paint with white over the skin to make this a localized adjustment, but to render the background truly neutral we will have to desaturate these tones.

23.Create a Hue/Saturation adjustment layer. Use the targeted adjustment tool and thenclick and drag left on the background to desaturate the target color only. Invert the mask and then paint the background area with a large soft-edged brush set to 100% opacity to render the background completely neutral. Select all of the adjustment layers in the layers panel and then use the keyboard shortcut Ctrl + G (PC) or Command + G (Mac) to place them all in a group. Rename this group ‘Adjustments’.

24. With the project nearly complete you may need to review the file and make subtleadjustments where required, e.g. adjusting opacity of individual layers or layer groups etc. In thisproject we have used quite a heavy Radius in the Surface Blur filter to render the forehead contoursmooth. This can give the forehead an unnatural airbrushed appearance. We can add texture to this area of the image with a texture layer that simulates skin. Hold down the Alt/Option key and click on the Create a new layer icon in 3the Layers panel. Name the layer ‘Add texture’ set the mode to Overlay and select the Fill with Overlay-neutral color (50% gray) option. Select OK to create the layer. The layer will not, of course, have any texture until we add it.

25. Start by going to Filter > Noise > Add Noise. For this file we will choose 20 as the Amount and then select the ‘Uniform’ and ‘Monochromatic’ options. The Amount will vary from file to file, depending on resolution and the coarseness of the skin texture you require. After applying the Noise to the layer go to Filter > Blur > Gaussian Blur and select a radius of 2 pixels. Go to Filter > Stylize > Emboss and set the height to 3 pixels and the Amount to 100%.

Note > You can create a pattern of this texture to fast-track this step in the future. Switchthe blend mode of the layer back to Normal and then go to Edit > Define Pattern. You will then be able to fill these gray layers with this texture quickly in the future.

26. Hold down the Alt/Option key and click the Add layer mask option in the Layers panel toadd a black layer mask to this layer. Select the Brush Tool and with a large soft-edge brush set to 50% opacity paint into the layer mask to reveal texture in areas of the skin that appear too smooth. If you overdo the texture just lower the opacity of the layer slightly until you strike an effective balance.

27. To finish the project we need to Sharpen the image for the intended output device. Theproblem with sharpening the base layer (the Surface-Blur smart object) is that the layer mask that accompanies the smart filter has already been optimized for the Surface Blur we applied in the early stages of this project. We will need to obtain a clean layer mask that is dedicated to the Sharpen filter if we want to sharpen the eyes only. This can be achieved by going to Layer > Smart Objects > Convert to Smart Object. This may sound a little strange as the layer is already a Smart Object but this action will place the original smart object inside another smart object and give us the option to apply a new smart filter with a new layer mask.

28. Go to Filter > Sharpen > Smart Sharpen and apply sharpening to make the eyes appear crisp. Select OK to apply the sharpening. Select the Layer mask on the smart filter layer andthen invert the mask (Amount 180 and Radius 0.5). Use the keyboard shortcut Ctrl + I (PC) or Command + I (Mac) or hit the Invert button in the Masks panel. Paint with a soft-edged brush to reveal sharpness in the eyes.

29. In some instances you may want to apply additional Gaussian softening to the Surface Blur techniques, in order to achieve a romantic or dreamy mood. This Gaussian blur will, unlike theSurface Blur filter, bleed tones beyond the edges of the subject matter. To try this, load the ‘Blur-STT’ action from the supporting DVD (double-click the action to load it). Before playing the action, merge the visible pixels to a new layer by holding down the modifier keys Ctrl + Alt + Shift (PC) or Command + Option + Shift (Mac) and then press the E key. Place all of the layers that are created using this action in a group and lower the opacity of the group to see how this technique can interact with the Surface Blur technique used in this project.

Before and after – Skin should still hold surface texture when examined closely.

Photograph by Jennifer Stephens

 

Pixel surgery

The Liquify filter can reshape facial features, if this does not present an ethical dilemma for the retoucher or model. The various tools in the Liquify filter dialog box can be used to modify the shape or size of the sitter’s features. The Pucker Tool and Bloat Tool can be used to contract or expand various features, e.g. grow eyes or lips and shrink noses. Perhaps the most useful of the Liquify tools, however, is the Shift Pixels Tool. This tool can be used to move pixels to the left when stroking down and to the right when stroking up. This tool is ideal for trimming off unsightly fat or reshaping features. In the illustration the brush pressure is dropped to 25%. The side of the face and the top of the lips have been frozen using the Freeze Mask Tool so that the side of the face and lips are not moved along with the nose. If things start to get ugly just remember the keyboard shortcut Ctrl/Command + Z (undo)!

Note > It is important to exercise great restraint when using the Liquify filter, as the face can quickly become a cartoon caricature of itself when taken too far. The filter also softens detail that becomes obvious when overdone.

 

Motion Blur and Radial Blur (spin)

We have looked at Gaussian Blur, Surface Blur and Motion Blur in the preceding projects. The Motion Blur and Radial Blur filters help to extend the creative possibilities. The Motion Blur rather than the Radial Blur filter dominates the effect in the image above. The Radial Blur filter is, however, used to spin the wheels. When the wheels appear as an ellipse the following technique must be used to ensure a quality result.

To get the best result from the Radial Blur filter we must present the wheel on the same plane to the one in which the filter works, i.e. front on. Make a selection with the Circular Marquee Tool using a small amount of feather. Copy the wheel and paste it into a new layer. Use the Free Transform command and drag the side handle of the bounding box until the wheel appears as a circle instead of an ellipse. From the Blur group of Filters choose the Radial Blur filter. When you have applied the filter choose the Transform command again and return the wheel to its original elliptical shape. You can then leave this as a separate layer or merge down.

Smooth tone and tonalmapping–Project7

In commercial photography the post-production treatment is discussed early in the pitch to the agency or client. One of the cutting-edge treatments in commercial photography, that is all the rage at the moment, is where maximum detail and surface texture are expanded along with midtone contrast. The final effect is one where the image seems to be part photograph/part illustration. Take a look at http://www.davehillphoto.com to get an idea of how this treatment is being applied by one popular photographer in the USA. This treatment can now be created in Photoshop CS5 using an adjustment feature (go to Image > Adjustments > HDR Toning) or by adjustment features that have been around for a while.

Autumn in Bright, Victoria. Mark Galer

The treatment works best when there is directional light falling across the subject. Use either low directional sunlight or introduce photographic lights to create the optimal effect. In this project we will take a brief look at the HDR Toning adjustment that is new to CS5 and then combine two other techniques in order to create this signature style. The first technique is designed to smooth the overall tones of the image while the second exaggerates midtone contrast and creates greater depth within the finished image. The project culminates with localized saturation control, a vignette and sharpening to create a look that is part photographic and part illustration.

 

Tonal Mapping using Shadows/Highlights

1. Open the dng project image and protect the highlight tones in Adobe Camera Raw. TheRaw file on the DVD has had the exposure of the brightest highlights lowered using both the Adjustments Brush and the Recovery slider (see Raw Processing) and the Brightness slider has been raised to increase the luminance of the midtone values.

2. In the next three steps we will create some smooth tones before we expand the midtone contrast and surface texture. Start by duplicating the background layer by dragging it to the ‘Create a new layer’ icon in the Layers panel. Set the mode to Multiply. Next, go to Filter > Blur > Gaussian Blur. Use a Radius of around 15 pixels for high resolution images (10 megapixels and over).

3. From the Adjustments panel choose a Levels adjustment and click on the ‘clip to layer’ icon at the base of the Adjustments panel. Raise the Output slider to a value of around 90 Levels to protect the shadows from becoming too dark.

4. Return to the Adjustments list and create a second Levels adjustment and name the layer ‘screen’. Do NOT clip this to the previous Levels adjustment as we need to lighten all tones (not just the ones on the background copy layer). Set the layer mode to Screen and drag the highlight slider to the left to a value of around 165 to protect the brightest highlights in the image.

Note > The first adjustment layer is designed to preserve the shadow detail and the second adjustment layer (the one set to Screen mode) controls the highlight brightness. Experiment with adjusting these sliders to achieve the correct balance using different images.

5.Rename the first Levels adjustment layer ‘Restore Shadows’ and the second adjustment layer ‘Screen’. Hold down the Ctrl, Alt and Shift keys on a PC or Command, Option and Shift keys on a Mac and press the letter E to stamp the visible layers to a new layer (name the layer Stamp Visible). Set the layer mode to Soft Light and then desaturate the color from the layer using the keyboard shortcut (Command + Shift + U on a Mac or Ctrl + Shift + U on a PC).

6.With the desaturated layer selected, go to Image > Adjustments > Shadows/Highlights and click on the Show More Options checkbox to expand the dialog box. Set the Amount for the Shadows, Highlights and Midtone Contrast to +100. Set the Tonal Width for the Shadows and the Highlights to +50 and then select OK to apply the changes.

7. In this step we will selectively target just a few colors to remain fully saturated while the others can be subdued. From the Adjustments panel select a Hue/Saturation adjustment. Lower the overall saturation to – and then click on the targeted adjustment tool and click on the balloon and drag to the right to increase the saturation of the Reds to around +70. The targeted adjustment tool will automatically target the reds when you click on the balloon.

8.You may need to check that you still have a good spread of tones before signing off on the project. In the illustration above I have painted with black into the layer mask of the Screen layer to ensure those very bright highlights are not clipped to white. Finally the base layer is converted for Smart Filters and an Unsharp Mask is applied using the approximate settings of 180 for the Amount, 0.5 for the Radius and 3 for the Threshold.

 

High Dynamic Range(HDR)–Project8

Contrary to popular opinion – what you see is not what you always get. You may be able to see the detail in those dark shadows and bright highlights when the sun is shining – but can your CCD or CMOS sensor? Contrast in a scene is often a photographer’s worst enemy. Contrast is a sneak thief that steals away the detail in the highlights or shadows (sometimes both). A wedding photographer will deal with the problem by using fill flash to lower the subject contrast; commercial photographers diffuse their own light source or use additional fill lighting and check for missing detail using the ‘Histogram’.

St Peter bridge over the Adige River, Verona. Italy. Mark Galer

Landscape photographers, however, have drawn the short straw when it comes to solving the contrast problem. For the landscape photographer there is no ‘quick fix’. A reflector that can fill the shadows of the Grand Canyon has yet to be made and diffusing the sun’s light is only going to happen if the clouds are prepared to play ball.

Note > The dynamic range of camera sensors and film cannot compete with the dynamic range of human vision so high contrast has always been a problem for photographers. When the Subject Brightness Range (SBR) exceeds the Dynamic Range (DR) of the sensor, the excessive contrast can result in a loss of detail in the highlights and/or shadows. HDR photography uses techniques to resolve this problem and/or enhance detail throughout the contrast range of the image.

Ansel Adams (the famous landscape photographer) developed ‘The Zone System’ to deal with the high-contrast vistas he encountered in California. By careful exposure and processing he found he could extend the film’s ability to record high-contrast landscapes and create a black and white print with full detail. Unlike film, however, the latitude of a digital imaging sensor (its ability to record a subject brightness range) is fixed. In this respect the sensor is a straitjacket for our aims to create tonally rich images when the sun is shining – or is it? Here is a postproduction ‘tone system’ that will enrich you and your images.

Note > To exploit the full dynamic range that your image sensor is capable of, it is recommended that you capture in Raw mode. JPEG processing in-camera may clip the shadow and highlight detail (see Adobe Camera Raw).

If we can’t fit all the goodies in one exposure, then we’ll just have to take two or more. The idea is to montage, or merge, the best of both worlds (the light and dark side of the camera’s not quite all seeing eye). To make the post-production easier we need to take a little care in the pre-production. We need to ‘bracket’ five exposures. Capture an image using the meterindicated exposure (MIE) from the camera and then take two shots underexposing by first one stop, then two stops and repeat the process overexposing by one stop and then two stops from the MIE. Two stops either side of the meter-indicated exposure should cover most high-contrast situations. Using a tripod helps the process but is not essential.

Note > If you intend to use the new ‘Automate > Merge to HDR Pro’ (High Dynamic Range) feature Adobe recommends that you use the shutter speed rather than the aperture to bracket the exposures. This will ensure the depth of field is consistent between the exposures.

Bracketing exposures

If you use a tripod (you do not want to trust to Auto Aligning the images) you have the option of setting your camera to ‘auto bracket exposure mode’. This means that you don’t have to touch the camera between exposures, thereby ensuring the exposures can be exactly aligned with the minimum of fuss. Use a cable release or the camera’s timer to allow any camera vibration to settle. The only other movement to be aware of is something beyond your control. If there is a gale blowing (or even a moderate gust) you are not going to get the leaves on the trees to align perfectly in post-production. This also goes for fast-moving clouds and anything else that is likely to be zooming around in the fraction of a second between the first and second exposures. There is now a Remove Ghosts option in the new Merge to HDR Pro feature that may work in some instances to reduce or eliminate ghosts from moving people or objects.

1. Open the five Raw project files in Adobe Camera Raw (ACR) by holding down the Shift key as you select the range of images. The first image was captured using the Meter Indicated Exposure user the Aperture Priority exposure mode. A further four exposures were captured during the bracketing burst. The images for this project were all captured hand-held. The aim of opening these files in ACR is so that we can optimize the images prior to merging them.

2. Zoom in to 200% and use the Hand Tool to locate the bell tower in the preview window. No Auto lens correction was available for the lens used to capture the project images at the time of writing this book (a Nikon 24mm f/2.8 lens) so the chromatic aberration may have to be fixed manaully. Go to the Lens Corrections tab and in the Chromatic Aberration section, in the Manual tab in ACR 6.1 and later, move the Fix Red/Cyan Fringe and Fix Blue/Yellow Fringe sliders to the left to reduce the chromatic aberration. Holding down the Alt/Option key as you move each of the sliders will switch the preview to show you only those colors that each slider can fix (for those users who may have trouble recognizing Blue from Cyan). Selecting the All Edges option from the Defringe drop-down menu may also help to clean up the edges of this file.

3. Select the Spot Removal Tool, raise the Radius slider to 5 and click on a couple ofblemishes that appear in the sky to the left of the bell tower. Click on the Hand Tool to exit the Spot Removal panel.

4. Click the Select All button in the top left-hand corner of the ACR dialog and then click the Synchronize button. In the Synchronize dialog choose Lens Corrections from the drop-down Synchronize menu and then check the Spot Removal checkbox before selecting OK. Click the Done button in the bottom right-hand corner of the ACR dialog to commit these settings to the Raw files and close the ACR dialog.

5. Go to File > Automate > Merge to HDR Pro. From the dialog that opens click the Browse button and locate the same five files that you just finished optimizing in ACR. Make sure the Attempt to Automatically Align Source Images is checked and then select OK to start the HDR processing. The process may take some time, so be prepared to wait a while.

6. The five files will appear in the Merge to HDR Pro dialog along with a large preview of the merged version. This preview will appear a little flat until we optimize the settings using the sliders and the tone curve to the right of the image preview. Increase the brightness by moving the Gamma slider to the left. To increase the contrast of the file we need to click on the Curve tab in the bottom right-hand corner of the dialog. To protect the highlights from the contrast adjustment click two points on the straight diagonal line towards the top right-hand corner of the curve. Increase the steepness of the curve through the shadow section of the histogram and flatten the curve off as it approaches the midtones. Check the Remove Ghosts option so that the ghosts are removed from the canoeists on the river (click on a different thumbnail if you need Photoshop to select alternate detail). Set the Mode to 16 Bit and raise the Radius slider to 180 pixels and the Strength slider to 0.80 in the Edge Glow section. This action will add depth to the file. Increase the vibrance of the colors using the slider in the Color tab. It is recommended to save all of these settings as a Preset before selecting OK. This will ensure that you can return to these settings at a later date and fine-tune the process a second time if required. The Preset used in this project is available from the supporting DVD in the ESP_Presets folder.

7.This step will darken the sky to balance the overall exposure. Click the Create a new layer icon at the base of the Layers panel and set the mode to Soft Light. Select the Gradient Tool from the Tools panel and choose the Neutral Density gradient from the Gradient Presets. Select the Linear Gradient option and set the Opacity to 100%. Drag a gradient from the top of the image to a position just below the setting sun in order to darken the sky. Hold down the Shift key as you drag to constrain the gradient to a perfect vertical.

8. This step will increase midtone contrast while protecting the darkest shadows and brightest highlights. From the Adjustment panel choose a Levels adjustment and set the mode to SoftLight (one of the contrast blend modes). Drag the black Output Levels slider to a value of 80and the white Output Levels slider to a value of 200.

9. To increase shadow detail we can use the Shadows/Highlights adjustment feature as a smart filter. Merge the visible elements of this project to a new layer. Hold down the modifier keys Ctrl + Alt + Shift (PC) or Command + Option + Shift (Mac) and then press the E key. From the Filter menu choose Convert for Smart Filters and then go to Image > Adjustments > Shadows/Highlights. Check the Show More Options checkbox and then set the amount to 50% and the Tonal Width to 25% in the Shadows section of the dialog. Select OK to apply this adjustment. As this will be applied as a smart filter we have the option to return to the Shadows/Highlights adjustment dialog at any time to optimize the settings.

10. Go to the Adjustments panel and choose a Brightness/Contrast adjustment layer in orderto complete the tonal adjustments. Raise the Brightness slider to +40 and the Contrast slider to +10. Select the Merge Visible layer that you converted to a Smart Object and apply sharpening to this layer to complete the project.

 

HDR–problems and solutions

There is additional HDR software that has been popular in recent times such as Photomatix Pro and EnfuseGUI. EnfuseGUI uses the Enfuse technology developed by sourceforge.net that produces very realistic results with good localized contrast. The downside to EnfuseGUI is that it does not have an auto align option. The Photomatix pro has an Alignment option and an Attempt to Reduce ghosting artefacts option but these are generally not as effective as the Remove Ghosting feature in Adobe’s Merge to HDR Pro.

In some Images where the movement is coming towards the camera, even Photoshop may not be able to remove ghosting completely (there is no single image in the bracket set where the contours of the moving shape or object are separated from the other images). In the illustration above we can see how, with or without the Remove Ghosting option selected, the outcome is less than perfect. In this project we will look how we can use the Auto-Align feature in Photoshop to align bracketed images (shot hand-held), merge the exposures using EnfuseGUI and then fix the ghosting and minor exposure errors in Photoshop using the Auto-Blend Layers option.

Note > EnfuseGUI is available for Windows and Mac operating systems and is available for a donation (the website suggests a $10 donation or any amount you like!).

Photomatix Pro is a standalone application that also has a tonal mapping component. It can create natural looking images or you can set the ‘Smoothing’ low to enhance/exaggerate detail and localized contrast. This graphic ‘illustrative’ look has become very popular as a stylized treatment and can be replicated in Photoshop’s Merge to HDR Pro by raising the Detail slider.

Note > If you look in the Loupe view in the top right-hand corner of the illustration above you will notice edge artefacts that appear due to misalignment of the source images (even though the auto align option in Photomatix Pro was checked) and the tonal mapping that has been carried out.

A ‘Faux HDR’ look (where exaggerated tonal mapping is applied to single exposure) can be created by going to Image > Adjustments > HDR Toning. The look can also be created in Adobe Camera Raw be raising the Fill Light, Recovery, Contrast and Clarity sliders very aggressively. This look can also be created in the main editing space of Photoshop using the Shadows/Highlights adjustment feature (see the previous project).

For enthusiasts of HDR imaging EnfuseGUI is an excellent alternative to Photoshop for merging bracketed images. The Enfuse technology from sourceforge.net is also available in a Mac only GUI called Bracketeer that does have an alignment option (although very slow). Unfortunately the cost-effective EnfuseGUI software has no alignment option and cannot process Raw files. These shortcomings are, however, easily overcome.

1. Although this project uses EnfuseGUI to merge the exposures the processing starts in Photoshop. Process and export the bracketed Raw files from Adobe Camera Raw as 16 Bit TIFF files (see Raw Processing). The images can then be aligned in Photoshop by going to File > Scripts > Load Files into Stack. Check the Attempt to Automatically Align Source Images and then select OK in the Load Layers dialog.

2. Crop the multi-layered file that opens in Photoshop so that there is no transparency at the edges. The file will contain all of the bracketed images that have now been aligned. Go to File > Scripts > Export Layers as Files. Select the destination using the Browse button and TIFF as the File Type and then hit the Run button.

3. The nice thing about Enfuse technology is that it gets it nearly right just about every time without adjusting any sliders or tone curves. Localized contrast is very good and alignment is not an issue if Photoshop has handled this part of the process first. The three files exported from Photoshop have been dragged over the EnfuseGUI window to load them and then the ‘Enfuse It!’ button has been clicked.

4. If you check the histogram after Merge to HDR Pro or EnfuseGUI has ‘done-its-stuff’ you may notice that minor clipping of highlights may have occurred. Although this not ideal for a process which is designed to maximize tonality, the error can be fixed quite easily using the following technique.

5. In this case scenario, the brightest highlight tones have become blown out or ‘clipped’. If we drag the background layer thumbnail from the Layers panel in the underexposed file (from the bracketed images) into the enfused version we can use the highlights from this file to restore detail in the background layer.

6. If you have used Merge to HDR Pro you will first need to select both layers and run the Auto-Align Layers feature from the Edit menu. If you have used EnfuseGUI the layers will already be aligned. Double-click the top layer to open the Layer Style dialog. In the Blend If section drag the black slider under the bottom left-hand side of the Underlying Layer ramp to a position where the readout is 200. This will effectively render all levels darker than Level 200 on this layer transparent. Hold down the Alt key (PC) or Command key (Mac) and separate the two sides of the black triangle and drag the right hand side to a position of level 245. This will ensure that the transparency on this layer fades in gradually between level 200 and 245.

This will resolve the issue of the blown out highlights, but not the problem of the mismatched detail due to the subject movement in the image. Even the Remove Ghosting option in Merge to HDR Pro cannot resolve the problem in this image (the example above was merged using EnfuseGUI). Choose Flatten Image from the Layers menu.

7. Open the image that is closest in exposure to the mismatched detail (in this case it is the overexposed image). Select the Rectangular Marquee Tool from the Tools panel and set a Feather value of 0 in the Options bar. Make a selection around the area where ghosting occurs. It is important to make a selection that is generous enough so that the selection edge is set back from the mismatched detail. From the Edit menu choose Copy. We will use these copied pixels to patch the enfused image with detail that has no ghosting.

8. Go to the enfused image and choose Paste from the Edit menu. Set the mode to Difference in the Layers panel and using the Move Tool from the Tools panel move this layer into alignment with the detail on the background layer. Once this has been achieved set the mode of the layer back to Normal.

Note > If you have used Merge to HDR Pro to align and merge the exposures you will once again have to use the Auto-Align Layers option to create alignment between these two layers.

9. Hold down the Ctrl key (PC) or Command key (Mac) and click the layer thumbnail to load the pixels on this layer as a selection. Switch off the visibility of this layer. Before we blend this patch with the background layer we must delete the pixels on the background layer.

10. We need to create an overlap between the patch on the top layer and the pixels we delete on the background layer. This will create a smooth transition when the patch is blended with the underlying layer. In order to create this overlap we must contract the selection. Go to Select > Modify > Contract and enter in a value of 60 pixels. Select OK to apply this adjustment to the selection.

11. Select the background layer in the Layers panel so that it is the active layer. Drag the lock on the background layer to the trash can in the Layers panel to covert the background layer into a regular layer. Hit the delete key to delete the selected pixels on this layer.

12. Switch on the visibility of the top layer and then hold down the Shift key and click on the top layer in the Layers panel so that both layers are now selected. Go to Edit > Auto-Blend Layers and in the Auto-Blend Layers dialog select the Panorama radio button and the Seamless Tones and Colors checkbox and then select OK.

13. Choose Flatten Image from the Layers menu or merge the visible elements into a new layer by holding down the modifier keys Ctrl + Alt + Shift (PC) or Command + Option + Shift keys (Mac) and then press the E key.

As you can see from the merged version (now complete with highlight detail and no ghosting) the EnfuseGUI software offers another alternative to Merge to HDR Pro. There are pros and cons to both workflows but each workflow offers slightly different management of localized contrast, color and tonality.

 

Time Lapse Photography – Project 9

All compact digital cameras and the latest Digital SLR cameras offer movie capture (some are even capable of 1080p HD movie capture). It is, however, possible to create High Definition Time-Lapse movies using any camera by capturing still images over an extended period of timeand then playing them back over a short period of time.

Since the arrival of Photoshop CS3 Extended we have had the capability of opening, editing and exporting movie files. We are also able to create a movie from a sequence of still images (called an Image Sequence). For a stills photographer the advantage of creating a movie using Photoshop (rather than Adobe Premiere) is that they can work with all of their familiar adjustment layers and filters they know and love, in order to create some spectacular results at the highest video quality possible.

 

Tips for capturing the still images

To ensure that the highest quality still images have been captured follow these guidelines:

• Use the same white balance for all images, i.e. Auto White balance is not recommended.
• Use a custom white-balance in camera or sync the white balance in Adobe Camera Raw.
• Use ‘Auto Exposure’ mode for images that are captured over an extended period of time, e.g. where the level of ambient light changes significantly. Use a ‘Manual Exposure’ setting for a short duration time-lapse movie where the level of lighting is consistent.
• Mount the camera on a sturdy tripod and ensure the tripod is protected from excessive vibration and wind
• Use a remote shutter release or look for an Interval Timer Shooting mode in your camera’s menu. This interval option may also be available when you have tethered the camera to your computer via a USB cable and you are using tethered capture software (this software is sometimes shipped with the camera or available as a separate purchase).
• Consider using manual focus in situations where the subject matter may move in and out of view.
• Remember not to use the portrait/vertical format!

Note > You can create time-lapse movies from JPEG images but my recommendation is to capture images in the Raw file format whenever possible for increased control over the dynamic range, tone and color.

Note > Due to the limitations of storage capacity on the supporting DVD only the first five files are supplied in the Raw format. All files required to complete the time lapse movie are, however, available as processed JPEGs on the supporting DVD.

1. To optimize the Raw images select them all in Bridge or go to File > Open in Photoshop. Select the folder on your hard drive where the images have been stored, select the first image in the folder and then use the keyboard shortcut Ctrl + A (PC) or Command + A (Mac) to select all images in this folder. Then select OK to open all of the Raw files into Adobe Camera Raw (ACR).

Important > Do not attempt to open hundreds of high-resolution JPEG images into Photoshop at the same time if you are using the Raw file format. See Step 10 for instructions on how to use JPEG images to create a time-lapse image sequence.

2. Click and hold on the Crop Tool to reveal the crop menu and then select Custom. From the Crop pull-down menu in the Custom Crop dialog choose pixels. Enter in a value of 1920 by 1080 (1080p HD TV size) or 1280 by 720 for standard HD proportions (720p). Then crop your image.

3. Create a custom white balance setting for the first image (if you did not already do so in camera). Photographers choosing to shoot in the JPEG format must select a custom white balance in camera, i.e. not auto white balance. In this project you can click on the gray car that is passing through the intersection in the first image file.

4. Adjust the global tonality and color in the ‘Basic’ tab. In this image the Recovery and Fill Light sliders have been raised to 25 to restore detail in this sunlit street scene. The Blacks slider has been lowered to +2 and the ‘Vibrance’ slider has been raised to +30.

5. Target and optimize colors in the first image of the sequence. If you are using ACR 5.2 or later you will be able to use the Targeted Adjustment Tool. In this image I have selected the Hue option and then clicked and dragged on the yellow tones (the building in the center of the image) to make them slightly less orange. I have then selected the Saturation option and again clicked and dragged on the yellow tones to make them slightly more saturated. I have then selected the Luminance option and dragged left to lower the luminance (brightness) of the yellow tones within this image.

6. Click on the Workflow Options at the base of the ACR dialog and set the depth to 8 Bits/Channel. You also have the option in the latest versions of ACR to sharpen images for screen or print as part of the Workflow Options.

7. Click on the ‘Select All’ button in the top right-hand corner of the ACR dialog. Choose ‘Everything’ from the Synchronize menu and select ‘OK’ to apply the changes to the rest of the images.

 

Removing Frames from an image Sequence

If there are any frames you wish to remove from the final movie it is easier to remove them in ACR now rather than later. Hold down the Ctrl key (PC) or Command key (Mac) and click on any frames you wish to exclude (there are a couple of frames where pedestrians have walked in front of the camera). Click on the Trash icon in the Tools bar or hit the Delete or Backspace key.

8. Click on the ‘Save’ button. In the Save Options dialog select a location and folder you want to save your processed images to. Rename the files so that the file numbering is sequential (no gaps due to files removed from the original sequence in ACR) otherwise you will see black flashes in the final video. Choose either the TIFF or JPEG format. If using JPEG use a High or Maximum quality setting.

9. In Photoshop select Open from the File menu. Browse to the folder you just saved the images to (the processed images from ACR). Select the first file in the folder and then select the Image Sequence option in the Open dialog.

Important > Do not select all the images in the folder – just the first. If you were using the JPEG file format in your camera this is where the process of movie making would begin.

10. Before the image sequence opens you will be asked to nominate a frame rate for the project. Choosing a frame rate slower than 30 frames per second (fps) will slow down the final movie when it plays back. For this project I have selected 10 fps. The image sequence is contained in a single ‘movie’ layer and the motion can be started and stopped using the controls in the Animation panel (select Motion in the Application bar or go to Window > Animation).

Note > Playback in Photoshop will usually be very slow.

11. Convert the layer into a Smart Object (Filter > Convert for Smart Filters). Now the movie can be optimized, enhanced or manipulated just as if it were a regular Smart Object in Photoshop (with a few exceptions). If you want to apply lens correction to the movie use the Transform controls rather than the ‘Lens Correction’ filter. I have used the keyboard shortcut Command + T (Mac) or Ctrl + T (PC) and then holding down the Command/Ctrl key move the anchor points to correct the converging verticals.

12. Now that the layer is a Smart Object you can also apply filters as Smart Filters to edit the look and feel of your time lapse video. These adjustments get applied to each and every frame in the sequence. Here I have applied a 10 pixel Gaussian Blur filter and set the Blending Options to Soft Light (double-click the Blending Options icon on the smart filter in the Layers panel).

13. The Shadows/Highlights adjustment can also be applied as if it were a filter (go to Image > Adjustments > Shadows/Highlights). In this example the shadows have been rendered lighter to deal with the high-contrast lighting, and the effect of the soft light blend mode, in this sequence of images.

14. Adjustment layers can be added above the image layer. In this example a Black & White adjustment layer in Luminosity mode has been added and the luminosity of the blue sky lowered. Although it is not essential I have used the Luminance preset available from the Essential Skills DVD to ensure the luminance values of all the colors in the image are accurately preserved when the Luminosity mode is applied to the adjustment layer.

15. As we are working with a timeline it is possible to create a transition from one effect to another. In this project a black and white version of the image will transition to color. Add a second Black & White adjustment layer, but this time do not use the Luminosity mode. Use the adjustment panel to render the tones of the building lighter and the blue sky darker.

16. Make sure the Current Time is set to zero (click on the ‘selects first frame’ icon in the bottom left-hand corner of the animation panel if necessary). Expand the Black & White timeline control and click on the little alarm clock (Time-Vary stop watch) in the opacity control. This adds a ‘keyframe’ (small yellow diamond icon) on the timeline at the start of the sequence.

17. Double-click on the current time (top left of panel) or Current Time Indicator on the Time Ruler to advance to a new position in the sequence. Click between the arrows to add another keyframe at this location. Adjust the opacity of the Black & White adjustment layer to 0% in the Layers panel to restore the color to the image.

Note > The color will fade in gradually between the first and second keyframe.

18. At this time in the project it is worth saving the multi-layered Photoshop file to a project folder that contains the folder of TIFF or JPEG files used for the Image sequence and also any sound file that you maybe adding to this project. This will ensure that the Photoshop file will always be able to locate the ‘footage’ and the sound files that have been used to build the movie.

Note > The master still images and any sound file used in this project are only linked to the Photoshop file and not embedded.

19. Add sound to the movie by going to File > Open (Mac) or File > Open As (PC). Browse to your audio file (copy your audio file to your project folder if you intend to continue this project on another computer). Choose ‘All Documents’ in the Enable menu when working on a Mac. Select the Audio file and then choose ‘QuickTime Movie’ in the Format menu. Then click on the Open button.

Note >Photoshop converts Audio Files to the QuickTime format before they can be used. Make sure you have the current version of QuickTime installed in your computer.

20. You may have to navigate the Missing Profile warning (just select ‘OK’) before the file will open in Photoshop, i.e. ignore the warning as you can’t color-manage sound.

21. The Audio file will open as an empty layer with a movie icon. Drag the thumbnail of this layer from the Layers panel into your project image to add audio to your image sequence.

22. You may find it useful to rename the layer as ‘Audio’ to help you remember what this empty layer adds to the project.

Note > The Audio will only play if you click on the Audio icon in the Animation panel.

 

Removing frames in Photoshop rather than ACR

For speed of editing it is advisable to remove frames before an Image Sequence is opened in the main editing space of Photoshop (remember to renumber the files if you have done this). It is possible, however, to remove frames from a movie or Image Sequence at this stage of the editing. First add keyframes either side of the frames you want to remove.

Select Layer 1 in the Animation panel. Move the current time to the first keyframe and then from the Animation fly-out menu choose ‘Split Layer’. Select the Layer 1 copy that was created when you split the original layer. Move the current time to the second keyframe (click on the forward arrow, next to the stop-watch, to quickly advance the current time to the next keyframe), and then from the Animation fly-out menu choose ‘Trim Layer Start to Current Time’.

Click on the back arrow next to the stop-watch to return to the first keyframe and then from the Animation fly-out menu choose ‘Move Layer In Point to Current Time’. Move the time-line to the end of the Layer 1 copy and then from the fly-out menu choose Trim Document Duration to Work Area.

Note > You may remember that I said in Step 8 that it was faster to delete problem frames in ACR.

23. To make a movie from your project file go to File > Export > Render Video).

Note > Save the master project file as a Photoshop or PSD file to your project folder that contains the images folder and sound file).

24. In the render Video dialog check the size is 1920 × 1080 (the Document Size or HDTV options will ensure the movie is the correct size. Click on the Settings button to open the Movie Settings dialog. Click on the Settings button in the Movie Settings dialog to access the ‘compression settings’ (no changes are made in the Movie Settings dialog). Select the H.264 Compression Type setting for a high quality movie that can be compressed to a comparatively small size. Select ‘High’ or ‘Maximum’ in the Compressor section of the dialog if quality is paramount above size. Click OK in the Compression Settings and Movie Settings dialog andthen click on Render.

 

Connecting missing footage

Photoshop does not embed the still images or sound file in the layers (the component images needed to render a video are still residing in their respective folders). If you open the Photoshop file on another computer you may get warning dialogs when opening it if you did not use a master project folder for all your files. If this is the case you will be invited to ‘reconnect’ the missing footage.

In this project we converted the Image Sequence layer into a Smart Object (Convert for Smart Filters). The warning about missing footage will only occur if you were to double-click the Smart Object to view the Image Sequence layer. Note in the example above how the file is remembering the original location of the Image Sequence folder (a project folder was not created so the file is looking for a location that cannot be found on the new computer).

Go to Layer > Video Layer > Replace Footage. Select the first image in the Image Sequence folder and select OK to fix the problem.