Wake up images with another Elements trick !

JF
Posted By
Jodi_Frye
Aug 14, 2004
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549
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31
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Closed
So, if this has already been written down somewhere before….excuse my ignorance ! I was playing with some images this afternoon and found a really neat ‘simple’ way to liven up some images that were taken during clouded later skies( they were kind of dull );

~ duplicate image, set duplicate image layer to ‘overlay’ ~’invert’ duplicate image and set invert layer to ‘overlay’ ~ Merge down invert layer to duplicate layer….voila !

How to Master Sharpening in Photoshop

Give your photos a professional finish with sharpening in Photoshop. Learn to enhance details, create contrast, and prepare your images for print, web, and social media.

BB
brent_bertram
Aug 14, 2004
I’m looking for a cloudy day image as you speak ! <G>
CS
Chuck_Snyder
Aug 14, 2004
Jodi, what you did is a portion of what’s done when you do ‘contrast masking’. If you had removed the color from the inverted layer and applied a gaussian blur of about 4 to that layer, you’d have the method I use very often. But I’m going to try your technique to see what it does!
JJ
JoAn_J_Yost
Aug 14, 2004
I have a number of ocean photos taken on a *grey day* and I am going to try this.
JC
Jane Carter
Aug 15, 2004
Hi Jodi, I also have many gray day photos, but am having trouble following the instructions. I duplicate the original, but only have the one layer, and overlay is grayed out. But I then inverted the duplicate, but I am confused. I must have missed part?
Maybe if I try it again tomorrow, I will do better.
Jane
JF
Jodi_Frye
Aug 15, 2004
Chuck, yes I’m sure there are many variations to this…alot more ‘in depth’ and probably with better results. It was sort of a quickie "cool" when i did it on a handful of dull pics. Perhaps a few more adjustments would make it better….no doubt many here could find a few good tid bits to ad to it.

Jane, I started with the background layer then double clicked it to make it an editable layer. Then I duplicated the layer so I now have two of the same image. The top duplicated image is set to ‘overlay’ mode…then apply the ‘invert’ adjustment layer to the duplicated ‘overlay’ layer. Set the invert layer to ‘overlay’ mode….then merge the invert layer down with the duplicated overlay layer. Basically it just seems to add more luminance to what is already there. Using a levels or brightness layer ads a lot as well. Anyways, nothing spectacular…just seemed to help out a few ‘dull’ images I had.
RF
Robert_F_Carruth
Aug 15, 2004
Jodi,

Thanks for the tip. I tried it on some of those overcast day pics that I posted about a while back. Worked great! One more for my collection from the forum.

Bob
JC
Jane Carter
Aug 15, 2004
Hi Jodi, Thank you!! This is a great tutorial, and here is my first try, <http://www.pbase.com/image/32584716>
<http://www.pbase.com/image/32584717>
it is a bit overdone, but I will practise with this a lot, as I sure have some washed out pictures. Jane
CS
Chuck_Snyder
Aug 15, 2004
Jodi, I’m still a little puzzled by your steps. First, why do you convert the background layer to an editable one? The duplicate layer will be editable regardless of whether the layer being duplicated is background or normal. Second, are there only two layers involved or is there a third one, i.e., do you duplicate the inverted second layer or not? Third, what does the merge down accomplish? Sorry to be so dense…

🙂

Chuck
CS
Chuck_Snyder
Aug 15, 2004
Jodi, I got it now. You said invert adjustment layer and I was just inverting the layer itself. Still haven’t figured out the merge down, but taking it step by step. Thanks.

Chuck
CS
Chuck_Snyder
Aug 15, 2004
…..and now I see that the merge down actually has a significant effect, although I can’t figure out why! Good process, Jodi!
CS
Chuck_Snyder
Aug 15, 2004
And one more comment: I think you get the same effect if you take the Invert Adjustment Layer and group with previous layer vs. merging. That allows you to adjust the opacity of the invert adjustment layer to taste!

I love blending modes – just wish I could understand them…

🙂
BB
brent_bertram
Aug 15, 2004
I feel the same way about women, Chuck !

🙂
JF
Jodi_Frye
Aug 15, 2004
Chuck, yes, ‘the group with previous ‘ is the same effect than merging however the option is not available if you use the shortcup option at the bottom of the layers palette. There may be an advantage to using the gwp but i haven’t looked into it yet. As I said last night…it was a ‘quickie’ find and i felt like sharin’ 😉

If we could ad to this to make it even better….let’s do it !
CS
Chuck_Snyder
Aug 15, 2004
Jodi, you can do the group with previous when you first add the invert adjustment layer – just check the box. That’s how I stumbled onto it, actually…

Good stuff!

Brent: I’m not gonna touch that one…. 🙂
JF
Jodi_Frye
Aug 15, 2004
Chuck, yes, in the toolbar under layer>adjustemt layer>invert..the option is there to ‘gwp’ however using the shortcut at the bottom of layers palette does not give you the option…of course you can still go into edit and do a ‘gwp’ or do a ctrl + G….anyways, all the same…if I have time today I will look into getting this better. I do have a handful of images i took a few weeks ago that are dull cause of poor lighting conditions outdoors. Grant tells me he hates sun and only shoots late day with clouds ( I mean, he ‘prefers’ to )…so i tried it one day and did not like it at all. Puke dull color ! But of course Grant knows alot more about photography and settings than I do so obviously I was doing something wrong. I refuse to to blame it on my ‘lovin’ digital 🙂
CS
Chuck_Snyder
Aug 15, 2004
Jodi, you’re right; I’ve never used the buttons at the bottom of the layers palette and didn’t realize they wouldn’t take you to the beginning of the add adjustment layer dialog like you get using the toolbar route. Yes, I agree that cloudy days are lousy, especially for skies. Your technique definitely peps them up, much like a curves adjustment layer. Best light IMHO is early morning or late afternoon.

Chuck
CS
Chuck_Snyder
Aug 15, 2004
Jane, re your dog on the beach pic before and after: I like the effect you get from a simple levels adjustment layer with the sliders moved to the edges of the peak of the histogram. Great colors, appealing composition!

Chuck
JC
Jane Carter
Aug 15, 2004
I have got to experiment more with this, I do think that I can improve lots of the old photos. I love these tutorials that you all put up, and love to learn from them. Sometimes I get a bit confused until I learn how to do things correctly, sometimes it can really be hit or miss!
Jane
JC
Jane Carter
Aug 15, 2004
Tried another,
<http://www.pbase.com/image/32588564>
and I didnt do very well with it.
I will have to try more,
Thanks,
Jane
JF
Jodi_Frye
Aug 15, 2004
Jane, looks good to me. Altho I do have to work on this some more as it tends to brighten but also darken the dark areas…got to find a happy comfort level……which is probably ‘levels’ or ‘curves’ 😉

Back to the drawing board.
J
jhjl1
Aug 15, 2004
I wasn’t going to say anything but now that you brought it up I’ll chime in. I tried it on several photos and found that I lost all detail in the dark areas of the photos. Maybe applying this technique selectively instead of globally would be the answer.


Have A Nice Day, 🙂
James Hutchinson
http://www.pbase.com/myeyesview
http://www.myeyesviewstudio.com/
wrote in message
Altho I do have to work on this some more as it tends to brighten but also darken the dark areas…got to find a happy comfort level……which is probably ‘levels’ or ‘curves’ 😉
Back to the drawing board.
EW
Ed_Wurster
Aug 15, 2004
jhjl1 wrote:
I wasn’t going to say anything but now that you brought it up I’ll chime in. I tried it on several photos and found that I lost all detail in the dark areas of the photos. Maybe applying this technique selectively instead of globally would be the answer.

Try a contrast mask layer first? Maybe use the contrast mask as a mask for this technique?

BTW, what are the steps for the original technique? I lost my way in the thread.

Ed
PA
Patti Anderson
Aug 15, 2004
If you hold down the Alt (Option) key as you click icon to add an adjustment layer (on the Layers Palette), you will get the dialogue box with the option to "Group with previous." You can also pre-select the blending mode. Saves several steps if you are working with Gradient Maps and such.

Patti
JF
Jodi_Frye
Aug 15, 2004
Patti, ya, i forgot all about that Alt key trick ! I do remember Photoshop Bert Monroe once saying " If all else fails hold down the Alt key "…it was his Photoshop humor of course altho it tends to be right.

James, After fiddling with it some more I’m finding out that it really does depend on the image. Some i chose did not lose detail in the darker areas where some did. So, for me it will just be one of those ‘try and test’ tips. Ya know, i really don’t do much with pictures at all in Photoshop…I use it mostly for art graphics so I don’t know too much about fixing pics since i rarely have to 😉 lol
Na, I only print the pics i really like and they tend to be the ones that I don’t have to touch…except for maybe crop a little. I’m really happy with what my underdog Fuji captures.
R
RobertHJones
Aug 15, 2004
Ed (and James, see below),

what are the steps for the original technique?

Duplicate the image layer and set the blending mode to overlay. Add an Invert adjustment layer and either set it’s blending mode to overlay or group it with the underlying layer.

James (and Ed),

I lost all detail in the dark areas of the photos.

Maybe use the contrast mask as a mask for this technique?

What’s happening here is that Overlay blending mode acts as a combination of Multiply and Screen blending modes depending on the base color. Darker tones are multiplied while lighter ones are screened. When using the same image for both layers, you drastically increase the contrast but as you’ve observed you can lose detail in the darkest areas (and wash out the lighter ones as well). The effect of the Invert adjustment layer is indeed to create a contrast reducing mask but only for the layer immediately below it thus reducing the effect of the overlay and thereby lessening the amount of contrast.

Bob
KL
Kenneth_Liffmann
Aug 15, 2004
With pictures I have used the following on occasion:
1. Duplicate background layer
2. Set this layer to screen
3. Adjust opacity.
Ken
BG
Byron Gale
Aug 16, 2004
Bob,

Thanks for explaining the way the layers and modes interact!!

Byron
JF
Jodi_Frye
Aug 16, 2004
I find this method works best on images that basically do not have alot of contrast to begin with. Images that tend to have an overall equal tone.
DS
Dick_Smith
Aug 18, 2004
Jodi,

Finally found a minute to give it a try. The results are at the url: http://tinyurl.com/38nbv

The Before should come up first, then click on "7" or the ">>" to see the after.

Dick
JF
Jodi_Frye
Aug 18, 2004
Dick, looks really nice ! I’ve also noticed that lowering the opacity of the 2 merged layers works well also…depending on the image.
JC
Jane Carter
Aug 19, 2004
Hi Dick, I am late home, spent morning helping my husband repair house plumbing then canoeing the rest of the day, but I am awake and alive enough to look at your pictures!
You have some wonderful pix!
Take your clouds and make screensavers out of them, I have done this and its fun. See you all tomorrow,
Jane

How to Master Sharpening in Photoshop

Give your photos a professional finish with sharpening in Photoshop. Learn to enhance details, create contrast, and prepare your images for print, web, and social media.

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