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My Photoshop CC Tips & Tricks WIth Layers Part 1
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Apr 6, 2021 20:33:32   #
Jim-Pops Loc: Granbury, Texas
 
This will be a 2 or 3 part tutorial. Part 2 will be tomorrow.
First set of pictures will show before and after. I'm showing you how i make subtle moves in precise areas.
May purest want to keep their sky but enhance it. This is the way I do just that and have had a lot of success although this one is not as strong as other I've worked on.
Several months ago Photoshop introduced their version of Sky Replacement. It is a fast easy tool to use to select your sky.
In this example I opened my picture that I took this morning. It was very overcast and looked like rain.
1) Went to Edit>Sky Replacement and hit OK. ( Don't worry about What picture is showing up you'r not going to use it)
2) Now you see a file titled Sky Replacement Group. Click on the eyeball šŸ‘ to turn it off.
3) Highlight your first layer. Make a copy of it. Command + J (You can make this new layer a smart layer. This will let you make future changes non destructive for additional changes you might see fit to make) Making a Smart layer is by right clicking on the gray bar scrolling down and clicking Convert to Smart Object.
4) Now highlight the Sky layer's mask, Hold the Alt/Option key and drag the mask down to your second layer, ( copy layer you just made previously) using your mouse.
5) Now what I do is open this layer in Camera Raw Filter. ( Filter>Camera Raw Filter) now make changes but only pay attention to the sky forget the rest of the picture you mask will be hiding that part. You can play with all the sliders you feel necessary, highlights, exposure, whites, contrast, etc.

This next section I will go over will require additional software or your ability to make a gradient map using the sky colors. I found this software while doing my multi image composites. It tones and blends all my images making them look like they all had the same hues.
OK so the software is called "NBP ColourmapX"
I saw that as I increased the blue sky the water could now use some blue and maybe the whole picture.
I used my Lasso tool and drew it around the major portion of the sky. Opened NBP ColourmapX and asked it to analyze. It automatically made a gradient map using the blues and whited in the sky. I didn't want to add this to my corrected sky area so I highlighted my sky mask again and dragged it over the CMX white box. It needed to be reversed showing the gradient map only over the foreground. This now added a blue color cast over the water and the rest of the picture. This sayer is set to Multiply and 41% Opacity.

Next I added a Brightness/Contrast layer for minor overall tweaking.

I find this sky replacement technique (Mask that it creates) works well around the trees and foliage without creating color fringing or darkening edges.

Tomorrow I will show more edits to Highlights and Shadows using Select>Color Range>Highlights or Shadows


(Download)


(Download)

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Apr 6, 2021 21:16:34   #
IDguy Loc: Idaho
 
Perhaps you uploaded the before twice? I donā€™t see a difference.

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Apr 6, 2021 21:22:29   #
Rongnongno Loc: FL
 
There is a difference in the water bottom left and the sky is bluer but unchanged.

I do not know which is the original...

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Apr 6, 2021 21:47:32   #
Jim-Pops Loc: Granbury, Texas
 
Rongnongno wrote:
There is a difference in the water bottom left and the sky is bluer but unchanged.

I do not know which is the original...


The top one is the original.
Bottom is the bluer sky. Same sky but bluer.
Also on the bottom one you will see bluer water.

These are subtle moves. Trying to enhance a picture not change it.
Might show better if you download the download version into your program. On my computer if I download someones download iso photoshop I see it much better.

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Apr 7, 2021 06:46:24   #
Heather Iles Loc: UK, Somerset
 
There are more details in the ripples of the water in the amended version.

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Apr 7, 2021 08:14:37   #
NJFrank Loc: New Jersey
 
Even with my old eyes I can see a difference. It is very subtle. I will have to check out the NBP Colourmax.

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Apr 7, 2021 08:55:36   #
Cwilson341 Loc: Central Florida
 
When downloaded (even on my iPad) the difference is subtle but significant. For landscapes, this is the sort of adjustment that makes things more real. I donā€™t use Adobe but I am going to study your series. Iā€™m sure similar adjustment apply to other software as well.

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Apr 7, 2021 09:24:45   #
Jim-Pops Loc: Granbury, Texas
 
So far I've only mentioned and described how I adjusted the Sky and hue of the water. Outher adjustments you are seeing will be in be talked about in part 2

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Apr 7, 2021 09:52:52   #
BigDaddy Loc: Pittsburgh, PA
 
IDguy wrote:
Perhaps you uploaded the before twice? I donā€™t see a difference.

Jims work definitely shows subtle changes in both sky and water. Not in your face but subtle.

One of the problems I have in editing is making subtle changes. Your eyes tend to see what they expect to see and that can play havoc with your edits. Additionally, I tend to go overboard rather than making subtle changes.

I always have to fight myself when doing this stuff and I, whomever that is, like to go nutz, replacing sky, colors anything and everything. Even when going for subtle changes, I always way overdo them, then back off a little, reducing the opacity of my adjustments until they look "best". Sometimes I don't back off and the next day wonder what I was thinking yesterday. Other times I back off to where I think a change looks best and then clicking the change on and off I see no real change was made. I then delete the adjustment layer thinking there goes 20 minutes of life I'll never get back.

Jim managed to contain hisself here to just subtle changes, but they are pretty clear on my monitor. More often people see things I or my monitor can't see, but not this time...

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Apr 7, 2021 10:26:19   #
SoHillGuy Loc: Washington
 
Appears that the highlights are blown in the conversion.

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Apr 7, 2021 12:15:19   #
BigDaddy Loc: Pittsburgh, PA
 
SoHillGuy wrote:
Appears that the highlights are blown in the conversion.

Not seeing this at all, not before or after?

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Apr 7, 2021 13:15:21   #
Jim-Pops Loc: Granbury, Texas
 
BigDaddy wrote:
Not seeing this at all, not before or after?


Are you looking at the Download Page. If you don't still see the changes download the image to your computer as a file and open in your photography program and see if it will show up better there.
Jim

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Apr 8, 2021 08:35:35   #
BigDaddy Loc: Pittsburgh, PA
 
Jim-Pops wrote:
Are you looking at the Download Page. If you don't still see the changes download the image to your computer as a file and open in your photography program and see if it will show up better there.
Jim

I see the changes clearly. You must have replied to the wrong post? It was IdGuy that didn't see the changes. What I don't see are the blown highlights SoHillGuy appears to see. There are no blown highlights showing up on my monitor and the subtle changes in the blue sky and water also are clearly visiable here.
SoHillGuy wrote:
Appears that the highlights are blown in the conversion.

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Apr 8, 2021 08:43:28   #
Jim-Pops Loc: Granbury, Texas
 
Thanks Big Daddy.
Sorry for the mix up.

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Apr 11, 2021 17:24:41   #
via the lens Loc: Northern California, near Yosemite NP
 
I see the subtle change, mostly a brighter sky with a slightly different tone, and I also see the small blown highlight area in the sky in both images: I don't think the change made any real difference in the overall look of the image so I cannot comprehend why someone would make this type of change. I do, however, get the concept of making slight changes to improve an image overall. Might be better to use an image where the slight change does make an improvement in the image, not just a difference in the image.

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