Adding Digital Sunshine to Your Photos
by Uwe Steinmueller, Juergen Gulbins
The Digital Photography Workflow Handbook
- The Digital Photography Workflow Handbook: From Import to Output
- Foreword
- 1. Introducing the Digital Photo Workflow
- 2. The Basic Workflow
- The Five Phases of the Workflow
- Phase 1: Shooting
- Phase 2: Image Transfer and Management
- Phase 3: Image File Conversion and Optimization
- Phase 4: Output
- Phase 5: Digital Asset Management
- The Influence of Individual Tools on the Workflow
- Increasing Efficiency
- Develop Your Own Approach to the Workflow
- 3. Color Management Know-How
- Understanding Different Color Models
- Understanding Color Management
- Mapping Color Spaces
- Creating Device Profiles
- Profiling Your Monitor
- Photoshop Color Management Settings
- Printer Profiles
- Installing and Uninstalling Profiles
- Soft-Proofing and Gamut Warning
- Color Temperature and Hue
- Complementary Colors
- Working Spaces II
- 4. Image Processing Basics
- Don’t be Afraid of Photoshop
- 8-bit or 16-bit Color Depth?
- Image Size and Resolution
- Choosing a File Format
- File Information and Logs
- Image Alignment
- Simple Corrections
- The Art of Sharpening
- Color Corrections
- Selection Tools
- Retouching and Repairing Images
- Speed Up Your Workflow with Photoshop Actions
- Photoshop’s History Panel
- Additional Information and Overviews
- 5. RAW Editing and Conversion
- Some Initial Thoughts
- Important Aspects of RAW Processing
- Non-destructive Editing
- Which Processing Steps are Performed Where?
- What to Look for When Choosing a RAW Converter
- Other Features of RAW Converters
- Graphical User Interface (GUI)
- Color Management
- RAW Browser
- Preview Image Size
- Saving and Applying Image Settings
- Selective Image Corrections
- Batch Processing
- Printing from a RAW Converter
- Integration in the Workflow
- Image Browser Integration
- Multi-Core Processing
- Arguments For and Against Auto Correction
- Other Useful Features
- Adobe Camera Raw (ACR)
- ACR Preferences
- Workflow Options
- Sample of a Real World ACR Adjustments Workflow
- Synchronizing Image Adjustments
- Optimizing Dynamic Range
- Image Optimization Using Tone Curves
- Selective Tonal Corrections
- Saving and Discarding Changes
- An Overview of the ACR Interface
- ACR Image Adjustments Panel
- Effects Tab
- ACR Presets
- Batch Conversion
- Other RAW Converters
- Even More RAW Converters
- 6. All-in-One Workflow Tools
- 7. Photoshop Layers
- Layers Panel
- Your First Layer
- Using Adjustment Layers
- Making Selective Adjustments Using Layer Masks
- Flattening and Merging Layers
- Smart Cropping
- Removing Moiré Effects
- Auto Color Correction for Better Contrast
- Blending Layers Using Layer Styles
- Dodge and Burn Using Layers
- Loading Image Files into a Stack and Aligning Layers
- Smart Objects and Smart Filters
- Organizing Layers
- Other Aspects of Working with Layers
- Getting a “Layer Feeling” without Using Layers
- Selective Adjustment Using U Point Control Points
- More Tips for Working with Layers
- 8. Advanced Photoshop Techniques
- Correcting Saturation Selectively
- Some Tricks for Improving Saturation and Contrast
- Correcting Perspective Distortion
- Correcting Lens Errors
- Correcting Color Casts in Shadows
- Using Masks to Increase Luminance
- Correcting Images Using Brush Techniques
- Advanced Sharpening Using Photoshop Layers
- Adding Digital Sunshine to Your Photos
- Brush Off Noise
- Enhancing Midtone Contrast
- Enhancing Local Contrast
- Content-Aware Fill
- Fine-Tuning After Upsizing or Downsizing Images
- 9. Multishot Techniques
- Common Steps in a Multishot Workflow
- Increase Your Angle of View Using Stitching Techniques
- Maximizing Depth of Field Using Focus Stacking
- Increasing Dynamic Range Using HDRI Techniques
- 10. Turning Color into Black-and-White
- From Color to Black-and-White
- Black-and-White Conversion Using the Channel Mixer
- Enhanced Black-and-White Conversion
- Black-and-White à la Russell Brown
- Black-and-White Conversion Using the Black & White Command
- Black-and-White Conversion Using Photoshop Plug-ins
- Black-and-White Conversion Using a RAW Editor
- Colorizing Images
- 11. Printing and Image Presentation
- Publishing Images and Image Data
- Printing Images on Paper
- Printing on Photo Paper
- Printing Using Inkjet Printers
- The Print Workflow
- Printing Your Image
- Specialty Printing Software and RIPs
- Creating Contact Sheets
- Printed Frames
- Publishing Images on the Web
- Creating Digital Slideshows
- Other Ways to Present Your Images
- 12. Useful Photoshop Plug-ins
- 13. Data Management and Backup
- Managing Your Image Library
- Data Security
- A. Resources
- Index
- About the Authors
The quality of the ambient light plays a significant role in the success of a photograph. Too much sunshine can produce harsh contrast and strong shadows. Cloudy skies produce more balanced light but also lifeless-looking shadows and colder tones – problems that cannot always be circumvented by adjusting white balance settings.
The image in Figure 8-102 would benefit from a little additional contrast and warmer colors. The following steps describe how we add a little “digital sunshine” to our image.
We create a Photo Filter adjustment layer to warm up the colors (Figure 8-103). Here, we check the Preserve Luminosity option.
Now we add a Curves adjustment layer to the top of our stack that we then use to brighten the image (Figure 8-104).
We then use an additional Curves layer to enhance midtone contrast using a classic S-curve (Figure 8-105).
You can see the results in Figure 8-106. However, the image still lacks punch, so we use another of Katrin Eismann’s tricks to pep it up a little:
We create yet another Curves adjustment layer, this time set to Overlay blend mode. Figure 8-107 shows that applying this layer alone overdoes the effect we are looking for.
Reducing layer opacity to about 30% gives us the result you can see in Figure 8-109.
This use of multiple adjustment layers allows us to refine and readjust our corrections at any time. Double-clicking the effect icon in a panel entry automatically opens that layer’s settings dialog.
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