Dodge and burn with curve layers

[Lithodia]

Hi,
Okay I've been told of a better way to use the dodge and burn with curves...usually i would use the dodge tool on midtones at 1% and switch back and forth, but I was shown this new way and I want to master it. Only problem is when i got home i couldnt figure out how to get the layer mask on the different curve layers black...(I guess its inverted to use the brush tool) If anyone out there knows what I'm talking about can you please give me a step by step way to set it up...actually the short cut keys would be better ( i work on mac)

Thanks
Alexis

[Syd]

Check out this tutorial.

Dodge and burn with curve layers

[Swampy]

When you create the Curves Adjustment Layer a "Reveal All" (white) mask is added. Just click on the mask and invert it (COMMAND+I) making it black ("Hide All" mask). paint with a white brush to reveal the curve correction. To keep track, be sure to name your layers to something suitable....

[Lithodia]

thanks swampy!

[KR1156]

I remember heyrad shared that curves method with us....too bad no credit was given to him in the tutorial.

[enigmaphotos]

Amy Dresser uses this technique

I've written a tutorial here.

this is one of just 5 methods used for enhancing/hiding highlights and shadows.

[darkenedangel]

Hi Im wondering if someone could help me with this technique.

I have set everything up ok with the layers and everything works with the dodge and burn layers. But when it comes to painting with the white on low flow/ opacity I cant seem to make it look good and wondered if i have my brush set up wrong.

I know its important to practise but I have been trying and trying and what happens is I go to make a dark spot lighter and whilst the dark spot starts to get lighter, the surrounding area (which is lighter then the spot) also gets lighter and it looks funny.

Is it that you have to zoom in 100 percent and paint each pixel, because even this doesn't work for me as even on full zoom you can paint individual pixels and the surrounding ones keep getting affected.

I appreciate if someone could help me figure out how to paint on the dark and light areas without affecting the pixels around the ones I am trying to lighten and darken.

Many Thanks

[Godmother]

Originally Posted by darkenedangel

Is it that you have to zoom in 100 percent
I appreciate if someone could help me figure out how to paint on the dark and light areas without affecting the pixels around the ones I am trying to lighten and darken.

Many Thanks

100% Might not be enough depending on your file size. If the file is small 100% is not nearly enough.

Zoom in closer, use lower opacity.

Practice to infinity.

x

[BagLady]

darkenedangel,

It's hard to tell what the problem is without seeing a sample of your work, but I would suggest trying one or more of the following:

1. Make sure that you're using a SOFT round brush (which has feathered edges).

2. Use a smaller brush (something a bit smaller than the area that needs work).

3. Try using a lower brush opacity to lighten/darken spots gradually.

Or try the following method....

I find that some images work much better with a softlight 50% gray filled layer (which is another d&b method). Here's how it's done:

Make a new layer above your image
From the "Mode" pop-up menu choose "soft light"
Check the box "fill with overlay neutral color (50% gray)"

This single gray layer is where your d&b will be done and no mask is used.
Use a SOFT round white brush to lighten and a SOFT round black brush to darken.
Set brush opacity to about 3%

For overly saturated areas, you may want to change brush colors... For example:

To lighten red spots, I use an extremely pale green color instead of white (to cancel the pinkish color).
The same idea may be applied to the black brush. If it's looking too red, use an extremely dark green color instead of black...and so on and so forth.

I hope this helps :-)

Ciao!

[Boneappetit]

Originally Posted by Lithodia

Hi,
Okay I've been told of a better way to use the dodge and burn with curves...usually i would use the dodge tool on midtones at 1% and switch back and forth, but I was shown this new way and I want to master it. Only problem is when i got home i couldnt figure out how to get the layer mask on the different curve layers black...(I guess its inverted to use the brush tool) If anyone out there knows what I'm talking about can you please give me a step by step way to set it up...actually the short cut keys would be better ( i work on mac)

Thanks
Alexis

Hi, I just started to use the dodge and burn technique about a month ago and here is a little help of what i've found. The target is to even out the dark and clear parts. Deal with the healing tool, and liquify filter before starting the D&B work, and you can also create a copy of the original photo and move it up as first layer, "turn it on-off" to compare your progress while you work. Leave the S contrast curve mask white, this one will help you compare how things are going and you can even use it on the final retouch, lowering the opacity. When you create the curve for each mask it comes out white so you have to change it to black in both cases, the white curve and the dark curve, because you are going to use a white foreground color to paint over both masks, dodge and burn. A soft brush from 1-7 is almost always used, with the opacity 10-12 and a 20% flow with a hardness of 0 to 50% depending on the photo. You are not going to see results right away because it takes from 5 to 10 hours sometimes more to do a complete job, even more if you don't have a tablet, like in my case. Much harder to do it with a mouse, because you need to work with every pore of the skin individually at least most of the time. This technique is the most time consuming one, but also the best on retouching photos. When you are done with the DB work, then you need to deal with the colors, curves etc. Adjustment layers. Hope this can be of help. Have fun.

[Boneappetit]

Originally Posted by BagLady

darkenedangel,



Or try the following method....

I find that some images work much better with a softlight 50% gray filled layer (which is another d&b method). Here's how it's done:

Make a new layer above your image
From the "Mode" pop-up menu choose "soft light"
Check the box "fill with overlay neutral color (50% gray)"

This single gray layer is where your d&b will be done and no mask is used.
Use a SOFT round white brush to lighten and a SOFT round black brush to darken.
Set brush opacity to about 3%

For overly saturated areas, you may want to change brush colors... For example:

To lighten red spots, I use an extremely pale green color instead of white (to cancel the pinkish color).
The same idea may be applied to the black brush. If it's looking too red, use an extremely dark green color instead of black...and so on and so forth.

I hope this helps :-)

Ciao!

Wow, when I saw this I thought, this is too simple I don't think it'll work, but hey, I tried it and it really works, and in my case at least, it works faster, I mean the brush over the 50 % fill layer works quicker than using a curve. The use of different colors for D and B it's also a great innovation. I guess I'll be using this method from now on. Thanx for posting this here.

With Photoshop, one always has plenty of room to learn.

[chillin]

if you are using CS4 try the configurator panel here.

[darkenedangel]

Thank you everyone for your amazing result I am going to give some of it a try and will come back with my end result. Just one thing before I disappear for hours and hours.. Is it impossible to do this technique on pure black and pure white areas?

[toxic_snake]

I think that this is the best d&b method I used, it seems to be the most effective and least destructive:

1- Add a soft light layer and select to be be filled 50% gray.
2- Reset your brush colors to black and white.
3- Choose the brush capacity to be around 15%, with 50% hardness.

Now you can sue the brush to retouch imperfections on the skin such as black or white pores, use the black color to darken the light areas, and the white color to lighten the dark areas.

I think this is what Chris uses.

[BagLady]

Originally Posted by darkenedangel

Thank you everyone for your amazing result I am going to give some of it a try and will come back with my end result. Just one thing before I disappear for hours and hours.. Is it impossible to do this technique on pure black and pure white areas?

It works with 100% black, but not 100% white.... In any case, a curve doesn't work with 100% white either (no pixels).... To "color" the white areas, you would have to create pixels by cloning or painting.

[BagLady]

Originally Posted by Boneappetit

Wow, when I saw this I thought, this is too simple I don't think it'll work, but hey, I tried it and it really works, and in my case at least, it works faster, I mean the brush over the 50 % fill layer works quicker than using a curve. The use of different colors for D and B it's also a great innovation. I guess I'll be using this method from now on. Thanx for posting this here.

With Photoshop, one always has plenty of room to learn.

I'm happy to hear that you found this useful! I prefer this method but sometimes get better results from curves... It depends on the image. Sometimes I use both!

[Boneappetit]

Thanx for your quick response. I guess you are right, It depends on the image indeed. I just found another way on doing the dodge and burn masks. No need to create the curves. Just change the dodge adjustment layer to screen and the burn layer to multiply, and you are good to go. I believe it does the same as using the fill layer.

[BagLady]

Boneappetit,

Hummm... not quite the same thing, yet another method. Keep experimenting! Your enthusiasm and curiosity are very positive! In any case, there is no one solution... All images are different, therefore require a slightly different approach.

[mistermonday]

Boneappetit, a screen curve is similar but not the same as a curve people often create for dodging. The same is true for multiply and burning. I have attached a sample of what a Screen blend mode curve looks like and a typical dodge curve. There are some images where you may need to dodge some pretty dark pores and you need to pull the brightness ceiling up to have the range you need and be able to work quickly. There are also times when you might use an unusually shaped curved depending on the image.
However, for images where the luminosity difference is not very large, a sceen curve should suffice.
Regards, Murray

[Boneappetit]

Hi Murray: First, i want to thank you for this, it is great info. on my learning of this technique. It clears up some questions I had. I'm a newbie using this techq. and I want to get a good level at it. As I said before, there is always plenty of room to learn about using PS. Thanx a lot...