Hi, everyone. First post, seeking help.

I shot this Nuttall's Woodpecker from my window the other day. The pic is worth framing, I think, except for one thing: the head is blurry because of a very OOF branch between the camera and the bird.

55553

My question: what can I do to sharpen and increase contrast in the head? (I think the beak is blurry from movement.)

I'm using Paint Shop Pro XI, but the functions are generally similar to CS3.

Here's a high quality, larger version: http://www.strappe.smugmug.com/gallery/4338426_iDMvR#254507564_YVmds-O-LB

I'll post a 100% crop of the head in next post.

Thanks for any advice!

-js

100% crop:

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EDIT: I'm about to leave for a 3-day weekend, so please don't be annoyed if I seem to be ignoring you. :-)

here is my try at removing the blur

steps
1)dulplicate the bird layer
2)lasso the bird
3)delete the background of the duplicate layer (so only bird remands)
4)deselect the background
5)go Hue/Saturation
3)change the "edit" to "yellow"
4)then turn down all three Hue, Saturation, and lightness to the following
hue = -180
saturation = -100
lightness = -100
(that will get rid of the yellow DOF branch)
5)then change the blending mode of the bird to "multiply"
6)then i did some cloning to get rid of the DOF branch on the tree

Possible quick fix

Thanks, guys. I'm about to head off with my bride (of 39 years) for a romantic weekend up the California coast.

I'll try these techniques when I get back...

-js

I used curves adjustments, couple layers of levels adjustment, couple high pass filter layers & some cloning only in the sky area.
Its not the fastest way, but it preserves a lot of details & gives a better colors control.

That borders on amazing Chillin. Very nice work.

i used the blue channel pasted on a new layer.. set to luminosity mode. used a brightness/contrast adjustment layer, a high pass filter to sharpen, adjusted colors in lab mode. probably should have lowered the saturation on the colors looks a little to saturated when saved for the web. look better when saved a full resolution.

Selective curves, selective sharpen, boost saturation, cropped, darkened edges with gradients.

That borders on amazing Chillin. Very nice work.

Thanks videosean, I really like the "curves" & masking in Photoshop.
It is worthwhile to master them.

Thanks, guys. I'm back in harness now after a great weekend on the coast. I'll get to work on the full size image and post the results...

-js

Just wanted to give this a try. Started with a layer set to 50% gray and then darkened or lightened as I felt necessary. Used the healing brush set to replace on the dark part of the tree trunk on the left hand side. On the right side above the bird I used the patch tool and then painted in some of the blue using a blank layer set to color. I am not a professional and just try stuff as I go along.

dc

Thanks for the guidance, guys. Most have taken one of two approaches: clone brush/healing brush touchups or selective masking and local contrast/color enhancement.

I decided to try the second approach. My steps:

crop
brighten overall
adjust white balance (on the white feathers at the neck)
select head (freehand with edge seeking, 10 pixel feathering)
adjust contrast with curves layer
select the center of head plus the eye
adjust contrast with curves again
select red feathers on head
increase red in selection
USM 0.5, 300, 0

Result:
55771

Full-size image here: http://strappe.smugmug.com/gallery/4338426_iDMvR#254507564

For the print I used USM at 2.0, 90, 5 instead. Looks good!

Thanks again!

-js

Chillin, wonderful result and a nice website, too

Thank you amica999 very much.

I used curves adjustments, couple layers of levels adjustment, couple high pass filter layers & some cloning only in the sky area.
Its not the fastest way, but it preserves a lot of details & gives a better colors control.

That's awesome!!

How did you do the high pass filter layers? (embarrassed to say it's a filter I know little about)

That's awesome!!

How did you do the high pass filter layers? (embarrassed to say it's a filter I know little about)

Thank you kona
You can find tutorial about high pass filter here, in a tutorial section (http://retouchpro.com/tutorials/?m=show&id=158)

Thank you kona
You can find tutorial about high pass filter here, in a tutorial section (http://retouchpro.com/tutorials/?m=show&id=158)

Very cool, thanks.

I use USM and smart sharpen allot in the portrait retouching I do for Senior Portraits, Families, Weddings this looks like another good technique for this. One of the things I love (and frustrates me) about Photoshop is the different ways and techniques you can use to enhance an image.