PhotoShop 101 help
- This topic has 16 replies, 11 voices, and was last updated Mar 6, 2009 at 2:12 pm by
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Well I’ve finally found time to step up to Adobe CS2 yea I know I need 4 but can’t afford it right now. I know how to do some basic stuff that I’ve used it for in the past mostly artistic stuff or cloning but learning how to use it to enhance photos has been pretty overwhelming to be honest.
My question to the board is this. What is your plan of attack when editing an image? Let’s say you have an image that looks pretty good but you want to make it all it can be. I’d like to learn the work flow that some of you all use so maybe I can avoid learning something I may not need right away. I realize there is a world of info out there in books and I’m pursuing it. However, I think a real high level explanation of the most frequently used features to doctor up already decent photos would help me a lot.
Mike –
Photoshop offers a whole lot of ways to skin a cat.
My standard workflow for color-correcting an image is as follows:
(1) Open in Photoshop RAW or Camera RAW (I can’t tell a difference between these two functions). Simply use File/Open and locate the JPG or RAW file you want to edit (doesn’t matter what type, but be sure Photoshop is updated for the newest RAW files for your camera), and then open it up. This will give you a set of RAW sliders.
(2) Generally digital cameras favor a grayscale that I don’t like. Thus, I usually up the exposure slightly while also increasing the blacks a little bit. If I get areas that are blowing out, use the Recovery slider to get them back.
(3) Once you like the image, open it into the main workspace. Chances are it won’t look quite the same (I have no idea why). At this point, I get the computer’s opinion with Auto Contrast/Auto Color/Auto Levels. Usually I then undo the changes and tweak those sliders myself, but it is nice to know what the computer would do with it.
(4) Once I have color-corrected, usually using the Levels tools, I will sometimes go into the Selective Color menu and tweak a color or two. The best results here usually come just from picking the color you want to edit and sliding the blackness slider. Darker coloration tends to pop more.
(5) Finally, having made all color corrections, I will apply a little bit of sharpening using Unsharp Mask. Generally I leave it on one pixel and slide either 100% or 75% depending on the amount of foliage (the more complex the image, the less sharpening it can take without looking funky). Most digital images can benefit from a little bit of sharpening.
If at any point you go too far down one road, you can always use the History function to go back to the original image as imported (i.e. post-Camera Raw). I rarely use the Saturation Sliders, the Brightness/Contrast Sliders, or any automatic color filter.
EDIT*looks like Zach and I were writing at the same time, so this may be a little redundant*
Mike,
Many folks here are way more experienced than me, but maybe what I have learned (through their’s and other’s help) will be helpful to you.
I have learned pretty quickly to try to get things as *right* as possible in camera. Post work quickly becomes a drag… Still, I want the control of post processing. I think if I had the most current photoshop version, things would be a heck of a lot easier and faster, but I can’t afford that. So I make up for that with time and labor.
I am using Canon DPP (RAW converter) and Adobe Elements 2.0, so I am sure you have much more, or easier capabilities than I do, with your CS2. With that said, I start in DPP and try to do as much as possible there (in RAW).
First, I apply a basic recipe that I have saved which adjusts the sharpening, ups the contrast 1, and ups the saturation a little…I apply this as a basic first pass adjustment by copy and pasting.
Next, I adjust the WB as needed using the Kelvin slider. I look at each photo and do this individualy. (If you had shot everything in a controlled studio where the lighting never changed, you could batch edit this step I believe) Occasionaly, I will work with the curves at this point if there are a few images I really want to do a little extra on and the previous adjustments have not given me the look I want.
Unfortunately, pics with water often need to be rotated a little to get the water perfectly level, and then re cropped. DPP doesn’t have a custom rotate feature, so at this point I have to convert to TIFF files and open them in Elements 2.0, and do my rotating/leveling there.
Then I go back to DPP to do my final crops (because it is easier/faster there).
Next, I will do any cloning that needs to be done (small touchups, stuck pixels, etc in elements 2.0 (I don’t like the way the clone feature works in DPP)
Finaly, I will batch convert the files into high quality JPEGs for my final files (keeping the Raw and TIFF files as backup and to work from in the future if need be).
From here, I can easily go back in DPP and batch convert the TIFF files to make B&W or sepia files, etc.
Honestly, I haven’t learned to work in layers at this point. That is the next step. I think the above is all you need on 95% of your images, at least it is for me for where I am currently.
Hope this helps.
If you hace CS2.
Open your image in ACR.
1) WB..Do you want to massage it a bit? Worthwhile using the eyedropper to click on something close to nuetral grey. 90% of the time I reset to “as shot”.2) Refer to your histogram, you can play with exposure, blacks, recovery and fill light. Ideally you don’t want any clipped shadows, or blown highlights.
3) Saturation etc? Have fairly low presets ( I think 5 to 7). I rarely touch this beyond the preset
4) Use the heal tool to clean dust spots to the RAW file
5) Straighten? if needed I do it here
Convert your raw to tiff/jpeg…whichever.
This opens the file in PS.
Here I’ll sometimes apply filter effects, selective adjustments, colour adjustments ( i do this to the jpeg/tiff as opposed to the raw, wanting the raw to remain true to the original) then finally curves and high pass sharpening ( corrects softening caused by AA filters)Done.
Copy, resize for web or print, or other. Another light does of sharpening for output
Done
Thanks for the tips everyone. I can’t wait to sit down and try this out myself. I’ll put up my first attempt for critique…
Hi Mike, I can’t add much to what the guys have posted above.
I use CS3 now and edit with Bridge.
The first thing I do is a savage edit – anything where the composition is not great or the expression not great is binned.
The next step is to check sharpness on the edit – a shot has to be very interesting before I’ll not bin it for being even a bit soft.
Next is exposure and proper levels are set frame by frame by eye and later when converting from raws they may get another small tweak.
Exposure is always subjective and the camera only does an average.Color is last and most of the time my shots don’t need much adjustment because I shoot manual white balance and change the setting a lot trough the day (when fishing) or set it only once when in the studio.
Most color adjustments are to get nice skin-tones in people stuff.
I almost never sharpen anything.
My advice, as ever, is to get stuff as right as you can when shooting and spend less time on the computer if you can..
www.dsaphoto.com
A picture is thousand words that takes less than a second while a thousand words is a picture that takes a month.
Not sure if anyone said this, but once you have finished any corrections in the Raw Converter and have it opened in the main program, use Adjustment Layers for curve/contrast/etc.!
These are non destructive on the image and can be turned on and off. For me, a lot of experimenting goes into making a final image and having the ability to go back and make adjustments or turn off adjustments is a (image) life saver. I often use multiple adjustment layers of the same type (with different settings) to effect different parts of the image using masks. Sometimes I change the blending mode on the adjustment layers for different effects.
Another tip is to do your Dodging and Burning on a separate layer. Instead of using the dodge and burn tool, I create a new blank layer. Set the blending mode to soft light. Then use the brush tool and paint with white to dodge and black to burn the image. My brush opacity is set to 10% most of the time. That way I can make small adjustments and make sure I do not over dodge or burn an area.
I try to be as non destructive as possible on my images. Using this work flow has enabled me to have more and more control over the image with the ability to make corrections if needed at a later time.http://society6.com/grainfarmer Fly Fishing and Landscape open edition Photography prints.
http://grainfarmer.vsco.co/ iPhone photos
http://instagram.com/chad_simcox InstagramI’ll keep mine simple: I highly recommend Scott Kelbys book “CS2 for Digital Photographers”. This will give you a very solid foundation and that is one of the most important tools that you will need. There are many different ways to skin this critter but if you have the foundation, the other methods make more sense.
Chad brings up one of the most important tools and safe harbors that PS offers, use the layers and masking layers. The book will teach you how to use all of these things and is VERY easy to follow and learn. Scott is also the president of the “National Association of Photoshop Professionals” with members in over 60 countries, he knows his PS stuff :).
Mike, You’re getting good thoughts here and a systematic approach to your process will insure success.
First, let me pick a couple of nits; Zach is correct that the white balances in major manufacturer’s cameras have “biases”. I use Nikon, and think their bias is toward the warm side. Zach also uses “Unsharp Mask” later for sharpening. Here’s two differences – 1) success (just like the days of film) begins at capture – take a unique white balance from a grey card (I use a little folding one and carry it all the time) for your particular scene – if at all possible. 2) We left unsharp mask behind when Smart Sharpen came along. (Is that in earlier versions?) It is less destructive and uses better interpolation.Updating software, and different softwares for processing RAW means you get respective manufacturer’s ideas on what they think RAW should look like – translation; if you opened a new RAW with CS4 or 9 they will look different, and if you open the same RAW with Aperture and CS3
The problem (depending on the camera you use) is that CS2 (ACR3.0) will not support RAW files from newer cameras. For example, I have a Canon 5D Mk2 and CS4. I had to upgrade from CS3 to CS4 (ACR4 to ACR5) in order to process the files.
Well I decided to take what was recommended and play around a little but in the end I think a step by step is going to be the way I have to learn it. I’ve been working on a tutorial in my real world Dig Photog book for a few days now and everyday I spend a few hours dribbling over black and white text while pointing and typing on the keyboard. Not the best way to spend a few hours but so far it isn’t too bad.
Right now I’m into Layers. Wow, layers are a very nice way to work in an image. Love how you can turn the layer on and off and tweak it as much as and as many times as you want or just get rid of it..
I’m not ready for any before and after images yet but maybe in a week or two. If I don’t sit down and take my time learning this it’ll be gone by morning…Thanks again for the help! I’ve even had a few PM’s thanking me for starting the topic. Great
The problem (depending on the camera you use) is that CS2 (ACR3.0) will not support RAW files from newer cameras. For example, I have a Canon 5D Mk2 and CS4. I had to upgrade from CS3 to CS4 (ACR4 to ACR5) in order to process the files.
Bit of a rip-off isn’t it..
I’m at the point where my computers go into meltdown when they see me coming with a stack of memory cards and I should update them, but the thought of having to make everything work again with new system softwear makes my head spin.
www.dsaphoto.com
A picture is thousand words that takes less than a second while a thousand words is a picture that takes a month.
Is this just a full fledged version Photoshop issue? If I upgrade cameras to a new camera (40D,50D, 5D MK1, or 5D Mk2) will my current software not be compatible? Currently I am using Canon DPP and Elements 2.0.
I think you need CS4 for the 5DmkII, but the others are fine in Cs3 – I would recommend the full versions over light..
www.dsaphoto.com
A picture is thousand words that takes less than a second while a thousand words is a picture that takes a month.
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