Fixing photo’s with Adobe Photoshop Elements     Written by Design Team Member Sharon Jeffs 

I find it really frustrating when I get home from a daytrip only to discover that the photo’s I’d envisioned would be perfect are far from it.  Fortunately for me, I use a digital camera and therefore I usually take tons of images and am able to sift out the perfect ones.  However that’s not always possible, sometimes the images are one offs that can’t be re-captured at the time and this is when I have to rely on digital software to fix the errors. 

Obviously one of the quickest fixes is to crop the image, although this always isn’t enough.  There may be undesired shadows cast on the image or busy background to distract the eye, you may have ended up with an image that has those awful “devil red eyes” or the colour may just not be quite right!!  Fixing these problems is generally very easy in programs such as photoshop elements.

The basic auto fixes

To begin with, if we take a look at this image you’ll notice that Sarah’s face has been hidden in shadow and the colour seems really dull and lifeless.

To fix these errors I need to complete the following steps –

1.   Open the image in Photoshop elements and duplicate the background. This is so that any work you do on the photo doesn’t damage the original image.  To do this simply click on “Layer” at the top of the page then “Duplicate layer”.  If you have done this correctly you will have two image boxes in the layer panel on the bottom right of the screen.

2.  Begin fixing the photo by auto fixing the levels or the contrast.  This can be done by selecting “Enhance” then “auto levels” or “Enhance” then “auto contrast”. 

The Auto Levels command defines the lightest and darkest pixels in an image, and then redistributes pixel values, improving contrast in the photo BUT while it does remove colour casting it can also create one.  Auto contrast on the other hand alters the black and white pixels thereby altering the lighter/darker sections of the image.

For my image I chose to use both of these auto tools. The “auto levels” re-balanced the colour without creating a cast and enhanced Sarah’s skintone, while the “auto contrast” lightened the photo slightly.  The best way to find out if your photo will be enhanced without creating a colour cast is to have a go, if you get a cast, simply click on the back arrow icon or select “Edit” then “undo”.

Dodge/Burn Tool

As I said in the beginning, sometime you have area’s in your photo that need to be darkened or lightened without altering the rest of the photo.  The dodge (lighten)/burn (darken) tool is perfect for this.   

1.    To find the tool in the toolbox on the left of the page look for an icon that has the image of either a hand or what I like to think of as a lollipop!  This is the two tools in one.  To access the choice between the two simply right click on the icon.

2.    Next select the brush size most suitable for your needs.  In general you will need a smaller sized brush to lighten/darken small or intricate sections and a larger sized brush for the big sections.  I used a brush size 45 to lighten Sarah’s face.  To select/change your brush size look along the top toolbar for the word brush next to an image of a circle (Marked on the image below). Next to the box with the circle in it you will find an arrow.  When you click on this arrow you will be given a palette with a multitude of selections to choose from.  Simply select the one you prefer then click on it to select.

To use either the dodge or the burn tool, simply move the circle icon over the area you wish to change and either click the mouse to change the area within the circle or hold down the mouse button and pass your mouse over the area you wish to alter.  The changes will occur until you release the mouse button.  I love using this tool to lighten shadows on my subjects as well as darkening the background on busy photos to highlight my subject.

3.    To finish off, if you are happy with your final image then you will need to flatten the background layer you created in the beginning.  To do this select “Layer” from the top toolbar, then “flatten image”.  You will now be able to save your photo.

Red Eye Removal

Don’t you love it when you take that perfect shot only to discover you forgot to set the “red eye” setting on your camera?  I’m always doing it and when you have daughters with blue eyes it usually means red devil eyes!!  Fortunately fixing the problem is easy.

1.      On the left hand side tool palette locate and select the red eye tool    

2.      Next you may prefer to work on a larger scale so you can see the eye better.  To do this select the “Navigator” file on the top right of the screen (see image).  Depending on which direction you move the sliding scale that appears your image will either increase in size or decrease.  A handy hint for using the navigator, if you grab hold of the red box in the smaller image by holding down your mouse button you will be able to move it to where you want on the image.

3.      Now alter the brush size so that the brush is slightly smaller when placed over the red section.  To select/change your brush size look along the top toolbar for the word brush next to an image of a circle (See step two of Dodge/burn tool). Next to the box with the circle in it you will find an arrow.  When you click on this arrow you will be given a palette with a multitude of selections to choose from.  Simply select the one you prefer then click on it to select.

 4.      Next ensure that the colour being used is the best colour for your photo.  If you look along the toolbar where you found the brush palette you will notice two other boxes – one is marked “current” and the other marked “replacement”.  By double clicking on the coloured box marked “replacement” you will be able to bring up a colour palette.  This is a gradient box that is able to show all the colours in the spectrum.  The ideal colour to choose is black as the “red eye remover” will use this colour more accurately to alter the eye.

 5.      Finally sweep the brush over the red eye, the red eye will alter to tone similar to the iris, blending the eye colour for a more natural feel.

Grayscale

The final fix you can apply to photos is to change the image to black and white.  This is particularly useful if the photo is slightly blurry or the background is to bright and overpowering for the main focus of the image.

1.      To change an image, select “Image” then “Mode” and finally “Grayscale”.  You will be asked if you wish to discard colour information.  Select yes so long as you have made a back-up copy of the file or are 100% sure you don’t want a colour image as once saved the colour can not be returned.

I hope this has helped and can’t wait to see your new digitally corrected images in the gallery!