Saturday Special 9/19 Playing with Curves and Hue/Saturation
Saturday, September 19th, 2009
Hi All! MickeyB here to bring you the next Saturday Special! Now I am no expert on curves or photo enhancing, but I can tell you that a little tweeking of your photos can go a long way to making your pictures and layouts really sparkle! So for this Saturday Special we are going to play a little with some adjustment options. I use CS3, so my instructions go along with that program, but I am sure most programs should give you the options too. You will need to use some adjustments in your layout and show your before and after shots so we can all see the improvements!
Below is a before and after example of the photo I am going to use as an example. As you can see, some subtle changes can really improve the look of your photo.
Here is what I did:
First open your photo in PS. Go to Image-adjustments-curves. In the example below you will see the box for adjusting your curves. You will use the + (your cursor) to move the line you see in the box. Make sure to have the preview option checked so you can see what changes you are making!
I tend to slide my line up on the right side a bit to do some lightening and then I slide the line down a tad on the left to darken (you will see that the entire photo doesn’t darken, just certain parts of it).
If you slide too much you might get an odd look to your photo or if you want a real fairytale feel you can sometimes achieve that look by over adjusting the curves some. In the example below you can see that the photo just doesn’t look as nice as the example above.
Now, after you are happy with your curves adjustment, you can either stop there or adjust your Hue/Saturation some. In my example, I have adjusted the Saturation level a little to get some red out. You will go to Image-Adjustments-Hue/Saturation. On the top of the box you can access a drop down menu and pick what color channel you would like to change. You can adjust the hue/saturation of all colors or pick a color. For my example I chose red since I wanted to tone down a little redness I saw in my son’s face. Move the slider a little until you like the results and your done!
Here is my layout using my adjusted photo!
Credits to AnnaBV Designs kit Good Night Moon and Jeni Hopewell’s MickeyB’s Font
Here are some more examples for you from the ScrapMatters CT!
By Kimbytx using Caribbean Wedding by MickeyB Designs
By Jendavey using Galactic Alliance by Brittish Designs
Before pics:
After:
And from Loribear using Pressed Petals kit Falling for Autumn and Jeni’s Hopewell’s MickeyB’s Font
You have till the end of September to finish this challenge. Make sure you post your layout in the 9/19 Saturday Special forum thread with your link and to the Saturday Special Gallery for credit. You will receive and extra point for using any NEW ScrapMatters designs so make sure to also mention that when posting! I will pick a winner at the end of the month! Have fun!
