Spice up boring colours?

Andski wrote:

Hi, I have a nice picture – but the colours themselfs are just plain "dull" is there a way to spice up the photo and bring more life into it? (Its a display image with white background)

Thanks!

Sounds like you need more saturation.

Image -> Adjust -> Hue/Saturation

—
Aaron

"Mankind are greater gainers by suffering each other to live as seems good to themselves, than by compelling each to live as seems good to the rest." — John Stuart Mill

Sounds like you need more saturation.

Image -> Adjust -> Hue/Saturation

Thanks – Already been around those variables – how excatly is it used/ how does it work?

"Andski" <sp

Not having seen the image, I would suggest this: convert to Lab, and make the a and b channels steeper by moving the end points and keeping the center point in the same place. While you’re at it, make the Lightness curve a little steeper in the middle or at one or both of the ends if you have important shadow and/or highlight detail.

Thanks to the both of you! – just needs a little playing and then I think get where I want to be.

"Andski" <sp

One of my favorite ways to jazz up colors is to use Lab mode. Convert your image to Lab (this is lossless btw) and then go in to curves. Change the grid in the curves histogram to 10’s, you do that by Alt clicking in the grid box.

Load my curves setting file, which you can download from http://www.sonic.net/keesha/lab_color.acv

You can then see what it does. It really makes the colors pop and it does so in a way that is very hard if not impossible to duplicate outside of Lab mode. After you apply it you can use the Edit > Fade command (must be done right after using Curves) and fade it back if it is too much. Then covert your image back to RGB.

I got this technique out of the Lab Color Space book from PeachPit Press. I didn’t much like the book in question, but I did get some useful tricks out of it at least. Myself I created an action that does the coversion to lab, apply the curves with the file above, fades (brings up the fade dialog box so you can set it the way you want) and then coverts back to RGB, so it is basically a simple process.

This works best on organic items like rocks, trees, wood, things like that. It tends to bring out some really nice subtitle color variances.

R

Thanks Hebee Jeebes, I loaded your curves file and tried it on a few photos just now (using fade command with it) and it works great. I am learning advanced tips and tricks of Photoshop and look around in photoshop google groups for new techniques.

– Fotodewan
photos.raniasplace.com

Hebee Jeebes wrote:

One of my favorite ways to jazz up colors is to use Lab mode. Convert your image to Lab (this is lossless btw) and then go in to curves. Change the grid in the curves histogram to 10’s, you do that by Alt clicking in the grid box.

Load my curves setting file, which you can download from http://www.sonic.net/keesha/lab_color.acv

You can then see what it does. It really makes the colors pop and it does so in a way that is very hard if not impossible to duplicate outside of Lab mode. After you apply it you can use the Edit > Fade command (must be done right after using Curves) and fade it back if it is too much. Then covert your image back to RGB.

I got this technique out of the Lab Color Space book from PeachPit Press. I didn’t much like the book in question, but I did get some useful tricks out of it at least. Myself I created an action that does the coversion to lab, apply the curves with the file above, fades (brings up the fade dialog box so you can set it the way you want) and then coverts back to RGB, so it is basically a simple process.

This works best on organic items like rocks, trees, wood, things like that. It tends to bring out some really nice subtitle color variances.
R

Glad it helped. At 100 percent it can be a bit too much, but the fade command tames it nicely. The only photos I have seen that can handle the 100% amount is photos of rocks, canyons, and things that don’t have a lot of other things in them like people, plants, etc. Then at 100% it works quite well. Everything else I usually have to dial it back to 25 or 50%.

R

"fotodewan" wrote in message

Thanks Hebee Jeebes, I loaded your curves file and tried it on a few photos just now (using fade command with it) and it works great. I am learning advanced tips and tricks of Photoshop and look around in photoshop google groups for new techniques.

– Fotodewan
photos.raniasplace.com

Hebee Jeebes wrote:

One of my favorite ways to jazz up colors is to use Lab mode. Convert your
image to Lab (this is lossless btw) and then go in to curves. Change the grid in the curves histogram to 10’s, you do that by Alt clicking in the grid box.

Load my curves setting file, which you can download from http://www.sonic.net/keesha/lab_color.acv

You can then see what it does. It really makes the colors pop and it does so
in a way that is very hard if not impossible to duplicate outside of Lab mode. After you apply it you can use the Edit > Fade command (must be done
right after using Curves) and fade it back if it is too much. Then covert your image back to RGB.

I got this technique out of the Lab Color Space book from PeachPit Press. I
didn’t much like the book in question, but I did get some useful tricks out
of it at least. Myself I created an action that does the coversion to lab,
apply the curves with the file above, fades (brings up the fade dialog box
so you can set it the way you want) and then coverts back to RGB, so it is
basically a simple process.

This works best on organic items like rocks, trees, wood, things like that.
It tends to bring out some really nice subtitle color variances.
R

"Hebee Jeebes" wrote in message

Glad it helped. At 100 percent it can be a bit too much, but the fade command tames it nicely. The only photos I have seen that can handle the 100% amount is photos of rocks, canyons, and things that don’t have a lot of other things in them like people, plants, etc. Then at 100% it works quite well. Everything else I usually have to dial it back to 25 or 50%.

Hi Heebee

I use a Lab curves system almost identical to yours except I have an action which creates a duplicate layer to which the adjustment is made, I then fade the opacity of the layer until it looks right! and if it does I then flatten and sharpen.
Never tried using the fade command! are there advantages to doing it that way?
With the duplicate layer, you always have your original intact if things go wrong.

One of my favorite ways to jazz up colors is to use Lab mode.

I do not seem to have "Lab mode" where do you activate this feature? (using Jasc paintshop pro 8)

Andski wrote:

One of my favorite ways to jazz up colors is to use Lab mode.

I do not seem to have "Lab mode" where do you activate this feature? (using Jasc paintshop pro 8)

It is a Photoshop feature (I don’t know if paintshop pro 8 has it or not)

In Photoshop you can find it in:
Images >> Mode >> and choose Lab Color

– Fotodewan
http://photos.ranisplace.com

Ok got photoshop started – complete newbi in this program (CS2).

One of my favorite ways to jazz up colors is to use Lab mode. Convert your image to Lab (this is lossless btw) and then go in to curves.

You mean clicking "pen-tool"?

Change the grid in the curves histogram to 10’s, you do that by Alt clicking in the grid box.

Where excatly do you see this?

Andski wrote:

Ok got photoshop started – complete newbi in this program (CS2).

One of my favorite ways to jazz up colors is to use Lab mode.

Convert your

image to Lab (this is lossless btw) and then go in to curves.

You mean clicking "pen-tool"?

Change the grid in the curves histogram to 10’s, you do that by Alt clicking in the grid box.

Where excatly do you see this?

Lab mode is a color space. Convert your image by clicking the Image menu, then Mode, and then LAB Color.

"Curves" is an editing tool, choose Image, then Adjust, and then Curves.

—
Aaron

"Mankind are greater gainers by suffering each other to live as seems good to themselves, than by compelling each to live as seems good to the rest." — John Stuart Mill

Lab mode is a color space. Convert your image by clicking the Image menu, then Mode, and then LAB Color.

"Curves" is an editing tool, choose Image, then Adjust, and then Curves.

Thanks – did not find it even after accessing help, using 15 mins reading – amazing 🙂

"Andski" <sp

Andski

This is a group for users of Adobe Photoshop primarily! have you tried a paintshop newsgroup?

Did not see the photoshop ground – but no problem we have photoshop as well and the tips worked nicely.

No, you have the same options with fade as with a duplicate layer, namely opacity and blending mode. Though I suppose if you had a real problem spot you could use layer masks or the eraser to take out areas you didn’t want. So, I guess a second layer would be a bit more flexible.

Either way I guess.

R

"Harry Limey" wrote in message

"Hebee Jeebes" wrote in message

Glad it helped. At 100 percent it can be a bit too much, but the fade command tames it nicely. The only photos I have seen that can handle the 100% amount is photos of rocks, canyons, and things that don’t have a lot of other things in them like people, plants, etc. Then at 100% it works quite well. Everything else I usually have to dial it back to 25 or 50%.

Hi Heebee

I use a Lab curves system almost identical to yours except I have an action which creates a duplicate layer to which the adjustment is made, I then fade the opacity of the layer until it looks right! and if it does I then flatten and sharpen.
Never tried using the fade command! are there advantages to doing it that way?
With the duplicate layer, you always have your original intact if things go wrong.

It was mentioned in the Lab mode book. I have not seen it documented any place. But, it does work.

R

"Andski" <sp