I did the color correction on this one but wondering if the whites are too bright. They all seem to be in the 230's
but it still seems a little over the top. What do you guys think?
Thanks,
Mary
(https://i.postimg.cc/5YxxvSGx/For-forum-whites.jpg) (https://postimg.cc/5YxxvSGx)
(https://i.postimg.cc/Ny8s5zdJ/For-forum-whites-Orig-Tho.jpg) (https://postimg.cc/Ny8s5zdJ)
Hi Mary, these wedding pics are tricky to me. They can seem like a whole lot of white. I tried Eismann's trick of selecting everything but the bright damage and ran a Curve layer. See how it looks on your screen.
(https://i.postimg.cc/pm7Pj1Dc/2019-02-19-Too-white.jpg) (https://postimg.cc/pm7Pj1Dc)
I think it's a little to bright in the highlights and overall a little yellow still. This is one that seems to have two different color temperatures going on (even ignoring the damage) - the flash on the people and the room light on the background. I did two different color layers (Curves Adjustment Layers) one masking out the people.
See what you think:
(https://i.postimg.cc/jwv18Yd7/Christmas-Wreath-wedding-edited.jpg) (https://postimg.cc/jwv18Yd7)
This explains the different layers (it's all very rough but you get the idea
(https://i.postimg.cc/bdBCdTGp/Christmas-Wreath-wedding-explain.jpg) (https://postimg.cc/bdBCdTGp)
Thanks Jo Ann and Shadow. I think I can move forward now.
Jo Ann, this may be a dumb question but how did you determine what areas to multiply and screen?
Not a dumb question, but the answer may sound dumb :)
By looking at the image - both at 200% and zoomed out to see the whole thing - as I adjusted the overall brightness. When making the image overall look good - colors clear instead of gray-ish - if the whites blow out, then I go to the multiply layer and leave the Contrast layer alone.
Similarly, when the image seemed bright but needed a little contrast in a lot of areas, I pulled down the center of the curve just a little in the Contrast layer and then used a dark gray on the Screen layer to lighten areas that became a little muddy.
It's a bit like tasting food as you cook. When you know what the end result should look like, you "taste" after each change. When the woman in red's flowers had no detail, a little Multiply layer on them. Same for the groom's shirt.
A lot of this is stuff you could do equally well with many other approaches. This works for me, largely because it lets me adjust lots of different things independently of one another (each thing having an adjustment layer of some sort and a mask and/or opacity to control it. I find it's better to make another layer if you want to try out something different/additional so you don't have to backtrack.
Does that help?
I think so. I'm thinking it takes practice and a really good eye (like yours).
Thanks for getting back so quickly.
Mary
Quote from: Marydh on February 19, 2019, 06:38:38 PM
... I'm thinking it takes practice and a really good eye (like yours).
The eye comes with the practice :) Sounds like a flip answer, but it's one of those things where at first you just can't see it - and the numbers can really help then (looking at color samplers and their readings). After a while, almost without realizing what's happened, you'll just be able to see what's wrong and how to tweak it.
Snow pictures are good practice for wedding pictures - at least those where everyone's in white and you can't blow the highlights or leave everyone looking like something went wrong in the wash :)
Thanks Jo Ann.
The easiest way to check for blown whites and plugged blacks is to use a Threshold Adjustment layer. If the whites and blacks extend to the left and right side of the histogram, they need to be adjusted. That's how I find might lightest and darkest points for color correction.
Hi Bambi,
Yeah I did the threshold thingy and the whites were in the 230's. That's why I didn't know what to do because I thought they were still too white.
Mary
Well, I think I'm close to the finish line. What do you all think?
Skin color, streamers, blurring, anything.
Thanks,
Mary
(https://i.postimg.cc/7bYc53nc/for-forum-1-Tho.jpg) (https://postimg.cc/7bYc53nc)
(https://i.postimg.cc/PN37YC6q/For-forum-whites-Orig-Tho.jpg) (https://postimg.cc/PN37YC6q)
Looking very nice Mary. Like how you kept the detail on the white tablecloths. Seeing a bit of a color cast on her dress and to a lesser extent on the groom. Just to be quick I did a Hue/Sat and reduced the red and magenta. You could add a layer and paint, or use any number of ways to get rid of it. Beautiful work. :up:
(https://i.postimg.cc/HJZf00SG/2019-03-01-Too-white.jpg) (https://postimg.cc/HJZf00SG)
Thanks Shadow. Will do.