Photoshop & Photography – Cropping/Masking/Retouching Help

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The difference between ‘cropping’ and ‘masking’

Cropping changes the frame of your image to a rectangular subsection and (usually) deletes anything outside that subsection. Masking is the process of outlining a portion of the image for manipulation, copying, etc., or for protecting that portion of the image from manipulation.

Cutting/pasting (for lack of a better term) from one image to another

Cutting, copying, and pasting from one image to another is accomplished by creating a selection within a layer (which could include the entire layer or a portion thereof), and then using the standard OS commands for copy (Ctrl+C) or cut(Ctrl+X), then move to the new image and use the standard OS command for paste (Ctrl+V). If you want to copy an entire layer from one image to another, just drag and drop.

Resizing the cropped (masked?) image for printing on 8×10 landscape

Once you have an image you want to print, you will want to (a) ensure it is in the proper aspect ratio for the output; and (b) make sure the resolution is appropriate for the medium.

Aspect ratio: if you are printing borderless 8x10s, you want the printed image to be cropped to a 4×5 (i.e., 8×10) aspect ratio, but bear in mind that most printers enlarge the image slightly beyond the paper edges when printing borderless, to account for possible paper misalignment. If you are printing with borders, take them into account. For example, if you are printing on 8×10 paper with 1/4" borders all sides (assuming your printer supports that; not all do), you would crop the photo to a 7.5×9.5 aspect ratio.

Resolution: Once you have cropped to the correct aspect ratio, you need to resize and, possibly, adjust the resolution. For most printers, an image resolution in the range of 150-360 pixels per inch (ppi) is fine. Using Image>Image Size, with Resample Image unchecked, set the output size (e.g., 8in x 10in or 7.5in x 9.5in); if the resolution is in this range (or higher), no further changes are needed. If the Resolution is too low, check Resample Image and increase the Resolution to 300, as a general matter. (When increasing the PPI of an image, you should generally use the Bicubic Sharper method.

The Crop Tool allows you to combine these steps.

Retouching the final image (rough edges, ruffled feathers, etc.)

Practice with the clone tool, the heal tool, the spot healing brush.

Colour correction (should I just use a gray card?)

A gray card would help enormously. If you photograph the gray card either with the pigeon or in the same location and lighting, then you can use Camera Raw, even with a JPEG image (RAW would be better) to correct the white balance in the picture with the gray card and then use the same correction in the other photo by synchronizing.

Whether I should work with JPEG or RAW image files given the above purpose

RAW would be preferable from any number of perspectives.

Wow… thank you Michael D. Sullivan for such a thorough and informative reply!

My only remaining question concerns the actual process of ‘masking’ the pigeon onto a separate layer. A friend of mine in graphic design is wedded to the ‘Pen Tool’ which, from my uninformed perspective, seems highly redundant and labour intensive (at least for my purposes). Is there a more efficient way to mask the subject without sacrificing quality?

When testing out my new lens, I snapped a really quick picture with very poor lighting and no tripod. As a result, the bird’s feathers blurred with the grayish background and I wasn’t able to effectively use the ‘Quick Selection Tool’. Under ordinary circumstances, I would be using a tripod along with adequate lighting and a white background. Given this, would you (anyone) recommend some type of automated masking tool? If so, would you also recommend that tool for masking the macro shot of the eye?

Thanks again

wrote in message

Wow… thank you Michael D. Sullivan for such a thorough and informative reply!

My only remaining question concerns the actual process of ‘masking’ the pigeon onto a separate layer. A friend of mine in graphic design is wedded to the ‘Pen Tool’ which, from my uninformed perspective, seems highly redundant and labour intensive (at least for my purposes). Is there a more efficient way to mask the subject without sacrificing quality?
When testing out my new lens, I snapped a really quick picture with very poor lighting and no tripod. As a result, the bird’s feathers blurred with the grayish background and I wasn’t able to effectively use the ‘Quick Selection Tool’. Under ordinary circumstances, I would be using a tripod along with adequate lighting and a white background. Given this, would you (anyone) recommend some type of automated masking tool? If so, would you also recommend that tool for masking the macro shot of the eye?
Thanks again

Try the extract tool, under filters. Image has to be 8 bit.

Its worth a shot.

Jason, you should also check out lynda. Pretty amazing, easy to follow tutorials.

And you can get a week free by visiting www.indesignsecrets.com. There’s a link on the site to click on.

Bob

Jason, one tool that you might find useful is the Extract tool, found under the Filters menu. Also, if you have CS3, Quick Selection Tool from the toolbox and the Refine Edges dialog can give you results that seem like magic.

Hey Guys,

Sorry for my tardy reply but things have been busy. Thanks for all the advice!

Concerning lynda.com, I’ve already seen part 1 (‘The Essentials’) of the One-on-One series with Deke McClelland. Although it was extremely helpful, it didn’t go into any detail with respect to masking, and I found that it really glossed over retouching images. I’m in the process of borrowing the other two parts of the series, so hopefully those are more in-depth (I expect they will be).

Speaking of tutorials, would any of you recommend that I buy a reference book? I was looking at Ben Willmore’s "Adobe Photoshop CS3 Studio Techniques" in the bookstore, and it seems easy to read/helpful. However, my friend in graphic design is adamant about avoiding reference books because of the free tutorials online. What’s your opinion?

Lastly, I’ve tried the ‘Quick Selection Tool’ before, but given the poor lighting, it didn’t work well. Hopefully that will change when I actually set things up properly. I guess only time will tell (with a little trial and error of course).

Thanks again for everyone’s advice – I’m really a fish out of water with stuff.

Jason

Check out books by Katrin Eismann on Amazon.

In particular Adobe Photoshop Restoration & Retouching and Photoshop Masking & Compositing.

Also check out the video tutorials (not just the ones for CS3; the earlier ones are still useful) on <http://www.russellbrown.com> — Russell Brown is Adobe’s "chief evangelist" and really makes things interesting and understandable.

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