Struggle with shadow/highlight adjustment

On Tue, 20 Feb 2007 19:29:52 +0000 (UTC), Jan wrote:

I love the shadow/highlight adjustment in photoshop for images with too much contrast or when faces are too dark.

Somehow I never manage to get get the desired outcome with this tool. After using the shadow/highlight adjustment, the images have not enough contrast overall.

To compensate I use adjustment contrast (eg +7) / Lightness (eg -5). Can I set the shadow/highlight adjustment sliders to get a similar effect?
Jan

Must admit that I have a bit of a passion nowadays for that little tool….

However I find that I seem to get best results if I give a final polish afterwards using an ‘s’ shaped curve to feed in the contrast.

A polished effect is a good expression for it – makes metallic surfaces look like someone has just finished with the ‘Pledge’

K

www.unseenlondon.co.uk
www.blackpooltram.co.uk
www.amerseyferry.co.uk – updated 11/06

Jan wrote:

I love the shadow/highlight adjustment in photoshop for images with too much contrast or when faces are too dark.

Somehow I never manage to get get the desired outcome with this tool. After using the shadow/highlight adjustment, the images have not enough contrast overall.

To compensate I use adjustment contrast (eg +7) / Lightness (eg -5). Can I set the shadow/highlight adjustment sliders to get a similar effect?

First you say you love it, and then you say you never get the desired outcome. Are you a masochist? 😉

Anyway, if you click ‘Show more options’, you see a slider to increase the midtone contrast.

—
Johan W. Elzenga johan<<at>>johanfoto.nl Editor / Photographer http://www.johanfoto.com

"Jan" wrote in message

I love the shadow/highlight adjustment in photoshop for images with too much contrast or when faces are too dark.

Shadow/highlight is one of the great additions to Photoshop.

Somehow I never manage to get get the desired outcome with this tool. After using the shadow/highlight adjustment, the images have not enough contrast overall.

It’s easy to burn your candle at both ends, and trade the shadow and highlight detail for midtone contrast.

To compensate I use adjustment contrast (eg +7) / Lightness (eg -5). Can I set the shadow/highlight adjustment sliders to get a similar effect?

Dan Margulis, who IMHO writes the best books on color correction, uses the example of a picture of three cats, black, grey, and white. Adding contrast the the black and white cats (shadow and highlight) takes contrast away from the gray cat. This is a compromise that you need to work out for yourself. This is not an automated process because it depends on what you think is important in the image. Two possible choices are to back off a notch on adding punch to the shadow and highlights, or use curves to fine tune things after doing your S/H adjustment.

I’d also suggest that you convert the image to Lab mode, and experiment with how the S/H command operates in that color mode – you may be pleasantly surprised at how much better the original colors are preserved. Curves are also easier to use in Lab mode, for most images.

That should keep you busy for a while 🙂
—
Mike Russell
www.curvemeister.com/forum/

Thanks for all help, it’s appreciated.

Increasing the midtone contrast is not where I’m looking for.

For those interested (and willing to help), here is
a sample (warning : 800 KB, 4 images!) :
http://members.home.nl/jm.aarts/temp/temp.htm

The orignal is a typical holiday better (at least in africa..). It has too much contrast and the face of the woman in the center of the image is too dark.

Up to now this has been my method :
1: With the shadow/highlight tool, lighten the image so the face of the woman
in the center lightened.
2: Use the contrast/lightness to improve the overall contrast.

When using the midtone contrast of the shadow/highlight adjustment, the overall contrast is improved, but the face gets a bit too dark.

Using curves doesn’t work for me, I never seem to get the correct one…

May be I have to start looking in the Lab editing, like in the last suggestion.

Jan

Jan wrote:

Thanks for all help, it’s appreciated.

Increasing the midtone contrast is not where I’m looking for.
For those interested (and willing to help), here is
a sample (warning : 800 KB, 4 images!) :
http://members.home.nl/jm.aarts/temp/temp.htm

Does not exist.

The orignal is a typical holiday better (at least in africa..). It has too much contrast and the face of the woman in the center of the image is too dark.

Up to now this has been my method :
1: With the shadow/highlight tool, lighten the image so the face of the woman in the center lightened.

If you only want a part of the image to be lightened, use Shadow/ Highlight on a copy of the image in a new layer, and use a mask. TIP: Set the layer mode to ‘Luminosity’, so that Shadow/Highlight really only changes the brightness, not the colors. That is effectively the same as working in Lab mode in the L-channel only.

—
Johan W. Elzenga johan<<at>>johanfoto.nl Editor / Photographer http://www.johanfoto.com

(Johan W. Elzenga) wrote in
news:1htwjqc.mf74axx8d2y6N%:

Jan wrote:

Thanks for all help, it’s appreciated.

Increasing the midtone contrast is not where I’m looking for.
For those interested (and willing to help), here is
a sample (warning : 800 KB, 4 images!) :
http://members.home.nl/jm.aarts/temp/temp.htm

Does not exist.

The file was 0 bytes because the webspace was full.
I’ve uploaded it again.

Jan wrote:

(Johan W. Elzenga) wrote in
news:1htwjqc.mf74axx8d2y6N%:

Jan wrote:

Thanks for all help, it’s appreciated.

Increasing the midtone contrast is not where I’m looking for.
For those interested (and willing to help), here is
a sample (warning : 800 KB, 4 images!) :
http://members.home.nl/jm.aarts/temp/temp.htm

Does not exist.

The file was 0 bytes because the webspace was full.
I’ve uploaded it again.

Still does not exist.

—
Johan W. Elzenga johan<<at>>johanfoto.nl Editor / Photographer http://www.johanfoto.com

"Johan W. Elzenga" wrote in message

For those interested (and willing to help), here is
a sample (warning : 800 KB, 4 images!) :
http://members.home.nl/jm.aarts/temp/temp.htm

Jan – the big problem I see is not so much shadow versus highlight, but that all of your versions of the image have a blue-cyan cast, and the skin tones have cyan highlights. The blue cast becomes even more so in the last image, where even the skin tones are bluish.

Regarding contrast, you are succeeding in bringing out additional detail in the relatively bright background, but I wonder if this is a mistake, given the fact that the foreground figures are the main interest, and you need to sacrifice contrast there to gain it in the bright areas.

This would make a good curvemeister challenge image – if you’re interested, let me know either here or offline. I would like to add it to the curvemeister site, and we can see what people do with it in the next several days.
—
Mike Russell
www.curvemeister.com/forum/

Jan wrote:

Thanks for all help, it’s appreciated.

Increasing the midtone contrast is not where I’m looking for.
For those interested (and willing to help), here is
a sample (warning : 800 KB, 4 images!) :
http://members.home.nl/jm.aarts/temp/temp.htm

The orignal is a typical holiday better (at least in africa..). It has too much contrast and the face of the woman in the center of the image is too dark.

Up to now this has been my method :
1: With the shadow/highlight tool, lighten the image so the face of the woman
in the center lightened.
2: Use the contrast/lightness to improve the overall contrast.
When using the midtone contrast of the shadow/highlight adjustment, the overall contrast is improved, but the face gets a bit too dark.
Using curves doesn’t work for me, I never seem to get the correct one…
May be I have to start looking in the Lab editing, like in the last suggestion.

Jan

Try multiple layers & Quick Mask etc..

1. Make a dupe of the original

2. Using whatever tool to brighten up the darker area or darken up the overexpose

3. Then using Mask to blend them together. Of course you can use other method like HDR

"Joe" wrote in message
Jan wrote:

Thanks for all help, it’s appreciated.

Increasing the midtone contrast is not where I’m looking for.
For those interested (and willing to help), here is
a sample (warning : 800 KB, 4 images!) :
http://members.home.nl/jm.aarts/temp/temp.htm

The orignal is a typical holiday better (at least in africa..). It has too much contrast and the face of the woman in the center of the image is too dark.

Up to now this has been my method :
1: With the shadow/highlight tool, lighten the image so the face of the woman
in the center lightened.
2: Use the contrast/lightness to improve the overall contrast.
When using the midtone contrast of the shadow/highlight adjustment, the overall contrast is improved, but the face gets a bit too dark.
Using curves doesn’t work for me, I never seem to get the correct one…
May be I have to start looking in the Lab editing, like in the last suggestion.

Jan

Try multiple layers & Quick Mask etc..

1. Make a dupe of the original

2. Using whatever tool to brighten up the darker area or darken up the overexpose

3. Then using Mask to blend them together. Of course you can use other method like HDR

For the future:
Take the light reading on your subject!!! not the overall image or background
this is a case where a hand held or spot reading will give you a better original
if you don’t have a handheld meter
take your camera up close and measure the faces and clothes use the manual settings
the other day I mentioned not using AUTO all the time as some situations call for the person not the camera to say what in that image is the most important

shade light will always be bluish on the skintones, I did not notice it overall
this could be adjusted in white balance instead of using auto again need handheld meter to measure the temp or setting on camera

I know this is not always possible due to time or other conditions… on the fly shots etc
thank god for PS in those situations
would be a shame to lose such a nice shot
the methods mentioned should help a lot