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Rob Barron · 09-05-2008, 15:36

I love the composition here, it all flows (forgive the pun!) very nicely

I have made an adjustment to show you what can be done without touching any of the lighting or saturation but merely using the layers and blending modes. Just so you know how I got to this result, I'll detail the steps I used here:

1. Copied the layer twice (Ctrl+J x2)
2. Select top layer and change blending mode to Color Dodge. The result will look too strong!
3. Reduce the opacity of the top layer: I used 40% here.
4. Combine the top two layers: select top layer and press Ctrl+E.

You will now have punchier colours but it will be less sharp. Don't just reach for the USM though...

5. Copy top layer again (Ctrl+J). Apply High Pass filter (I am assuming Elements has this, it is in most versions of PS). Move the slider all way to left and then move it the right just enough to start seeing detail.
6. Change blending mode on top layer to 'Soft Light'. Again, you will want to reduce the opacity to stop it being over sharp. I again used 40%.

Combine the top two layers again (Ctrl+E). If you want to see the differnece, just switch off the top layer and the original picture will still be there as the bottom layer. You can switch it on and off to get a good comparison. If you think it is still a touch dark, just push it up GENTLY with the Curves tool or the mid-point adjuster in the Levels tool.

I hope you find that understandable and helpful.

Cheers,
Rob

09-05-2008, 15:36	#9 (permalink)
Rob Barron Loves the place Join Date: Sep 2006 Location: Poole, Dorset Posts: 5,386	Re: Trying out Elements and RAW I love the composition here, it all flows (forgive the pun!) very nicely I have made an adjustment to show you what can be done without touching any of the lighting or saturation but merely using the layers and blending modes. Just so you know how I got to this result, I'll detail the steps I used here: 1. Copied the layer twice (Ctrl+J x2) 2. Select top layer and change blending mode to Color Dodge. The result will look too strong! 3. Reduce the opacity of the top layer: I used 40% here. 4. Combine the top two layers: select top layer and press Ctrl+E. You will now have punchier colours but it will be less sharp. Don't just reach for the USM though... 5. Copy top layer again (Ctrl+J). Apply High Pass filter (I am assuming Elements has this, it is in most versions of PS). Move the slider all way to left and then move it the right just enough to start seeing detail. 6. Change blending mode on top layer to 'Soft Light'. Again, you will want to reduce the opacity to stop it being over sharp. I again used 40%. Combine the top two layers again (Ctrl+E). If you want to see the differnece, just switch off the top layer and the original picture will still be there as the bottom layer. You can switch it on and off to get a good comparison. If you think it is still a touch dark, just push it up GENTLY with the Curves tool or the mid-point adjuster in the Levels tool. I hope you find that understandable and helpful. Cheers, Rob __________________ Rob Barron robbarron@aol.com If you look down on other people, don't expect them to look up to you!