At first glance, it may seem that we’re revisiting the same things we looked at way back when we explored the Quick Fix mode, but on second glance, we’re correcting the same problems only this time with way more accuracy, detail and control. Instead of the one-slider solutions offered in Quick Fix mode, we’ll look at more robust options such as the levels command to fix brightness, contrast and colour issues, as well as confining our changes to certain areas using masks, keeping our edits non-destructive with adjustment layers and adding saturation to make the colours of a photograph appear more vivid. This is where the real power of photo correction makes its long overdue debut.
#6 screens are not the same as what I have
Hi Matt,
Me again.....this lesson was the hardest, mostly because what you got on the screen wasn't the same as what I get. For instance the level layer completely blocks out the picture. Above the levels, I have so much space filled up with the effects icons...?(all those apples). And when I play around with the levels, I can't find anything to say OK to when I like it.
I know you can't answer everything individually, I'm just expressing my frustration with trying to figure this one out for the last 90 minutes.
cheers,
Renee
Levels
Hi Renee,
You can move the various panels around in Elements if that helps. Just hover over the panel edges and the cursor should change into a couple of small arrows. You should now be able to drag things around to make more space for yourself.
Regarding the apples, I made the videos a long time ago but can't remember any apples being involved?
Matt
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Matt
3photoshop.com
Hue and Sat Mask
I don't know if you minitor these comments, but I'm going to give it a try. Two problems
1. When I do the brush thing, I only see (on the image itself) a paint brush rather than a circle that shows where I'm masking.
2. I don't think it made any difference in the photo when I finished the mask. And now I am unable to click on the Hue/Sat layer to get a larger picture of what I tried to mask out.
I'm using Windows 7 and PSE8.
Any help is greatly appreciated. This is a tough program!
Kay
Brush Preferences
Hi Kay,
Welcome to the site!
If you're paintbrush exists in the shape of areal brush then check out the following tutorial - it may help.
http://www.3photoshop.com/content/photoshop-video-tutorial-preferences-d...
I'm not exactly sure by what you mean in the second question, probably my fault in reading it wrong. If you're saying that you have the mask active in the image window then try ALT clicking the thumbnail to switch back to the image preview.
I hope that's helpful
Matt
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Matt
3photoshop.com
Kay
Oh, thank you! Just the picture of the preferences panel helped me fix the brush.
Problem #2 - If I turn off the hue/sat adjustment layer (by clicking the eyeball), I can only see the effect of the saturation slider. I am unable to see that the mask has any effect on the dirt in the background of the lion. ALT clicking has no noticable effect either. Is the mask so negligible that my eye just can't see it, or is there another problem?
There seem to be several problems with PSE8 and Windows 7. I already dealt with the "triple cursor" problem which was solved by changing the size of the print in Windows. Not sure if these other problems came from that change or if something else is working here. The "triple cursor" fix was suggested from elementsvillage via scrappersworkshop.com. Elements Village then led me to your website. Your video tutorials have been VERY helpful. And the fact that you responded to my question is nearly miraculous! Thank you so much!
Kay
Mask not working?
Hi Kay,
Glad you got the brush issue sorted - I hate it when that happen!
Regarding the mask, once you've painted on it does it look the same as mine in the video? There's a couple of things you can do to ensure you're seeing what's actually happening, firstly, turn off the mask by SHIFT clicking it. Do you see any difference? Secondly, try double clicking the hue/saturation layer to open the controls, and then drastically change the brightness value to see if the mask is making a difference with such a prominent effect applied.
I'm glad you find my videos helpful, and I'm glad you were able to find my site. Both sites you mentioned are great resources themselves.
Regards
Matt
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Matt
3photoshop.com