gottlipe

Hi Folks,
I just recently returned from Mx and had an opportunity to visit an indigenous community where all the buildings were covered with colorful murals. And then it got foggy and misty: mountain air.
I tried to fix this by reducing the compensation by 1 step. Wasn't great.
Not shooting in RAW, only jpeg.

I know there must be a way to do this. Suggestions would be welcome.

Thanks,
Paul

maxlieberman Loc: 19027

Not much you can do. Sometimes a polarizer will cut the reflections from the water droplets, but you might also try the dehaze function in Photoshop.

Linda From Maine Loc: Yakima, Washington

If by "compensation," you mean exposure compensation, that just makes the image darker (or lighter when you go to +). Sounds like you wanted more color saturation and contrast. Those can be changed in your camera settings (I think in "style," but I can't recall for sure if that's the name). Check your user manual.

But there may be edits that can be done after the fact, also. Post one or two of your favorites, full size, and click "store original" prior to clicking the attach button. You can add them to this thread by clicking any reply button (not the quick reply that's at bottom of screen).

I'm sure there will be many folks willing to attempt a few tweaks. Let's see what you got!

Selene03

As others have said, try dehaze in Lightroom or Adobe Camera Raw if you shot the photos in raw. It can help though by how much depends on a lot of things.

gottlipe

Thanks Max. I should have thought about a polarizer.
P.

gottlipe

Thanks Linda.

gottlipe

Thanks much.

mborn Loc: Massachusetts

I agree withDehaze

mizzee Loc: Boston,Ma

the dehaze tool in Lightroom and Photoshop is one of my go-to tools. They’ll probably be your best bet.

bpulv Loc: Buena Park, CA

A polarizer in fog or haze will only act like an ND filter. I shoot in fog whenever I can. In fact, some of my best photographs are fog pictures. The issue is proper light and contrast. Early morning just after daybreak is always good. There are three rules that will help. First, always shoot fog pictures in raw because you will need to do manipulation in post production that a compressed format like jpg will limit. Second, use an exposure that will yield a balanced histogram. Finally, use a combination of the presence adjustments (clarity, dehaze, vibrance and saturation) in Lightroom along with the other basic adjustments to build the contrast. I have also found the split toning adjustments to be of help in adjusting the mood of some fog photographs. If you want a black and white rendition, adjust your photo for the best possible color rendition first and then make the black and white conversion.

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1DProphet

Luminosity Masking is what you are looking for, a bit advanced, however it allows extraction of details, contrast, color, and dynamic range, that can be amazing, while allowing you to maintain the natural color grading of your exposure, JPG will limit your results, yours is one of many instances where RAW format would have saved the day!

E.L.. Shapiro Loc: Ottawa, Ontario Canada

From what I have experienced, I find that the Dehaze tool will increase the contrast in a scene where the contrast has been affected by the presence of mist, haze, so some impurity in the air. It does not necessarily cut through or eliminate haze such as when using infrared film with the appropriate filters. It will not eliminate haze or fog that has been caused by the illumination of moisture, fog or particles in the air.

Think of it this way- the fog lights on your car are at at such an angle of incidence that the will not bounce back and completely obscure your vision. That's why putting on your high beams does not improve your visibility in foggy atmospheres. If the light is striking the particles, smoke or fog a a certain angle of incidence, where it will bounce back toward the lens, it will obscure the clarity even more. The first thing press photographers learn about shooting a smokey fire scene at night is never to use on-camera flash. Backlighting works best with flames, and water stream from fire apparatus.

With mist and fog SOMETIMES a polarizing filter might help if the issue is caused by reflection. Agan it depends on the angle of incidence and the position of the sun.

So...various post processing actions, including your dehaze slider may restore some details or improve lost contrast but it is not gonna magically eliminate the haze all the time.

Sometimes mist enhances the mood of a landscape or a city scape. Problem is, if you have only a few hours or minutes, as a tourist, to photograph the Empire State Building, The Statue of Liberty, The Golden Gate Bridge or the Eiffel Tower and the entire structure is completely obscured by fog or smog- that's a bummer.