The adjustment brush and the graduated filter tool are wonderful additions to Lightroom 2 for making local changes. But there are often quicker ways to make local changes. I will talk about HSL in this post. In the image below I want to darken the sky. Yes, I can get the adjustment brush, set the exposure [...]
In the Lightroom Develop module, there are different ways to look at Before and After for changes that you have made. One of my favorites is to use the backslash key to toggle between Before and After. The default Before state is the first step in the History panel, usually your file import. So by default, [...]
If you have used the adjustment brush in Lightroom, you may have noticed that you have the ability to paint color on your image. After clicking on the adjustment brush to make it active, click on the color square next to the word Color to choose your color. Adjustment Brush Color Setting In this [...]
In my last post I showed you how to remove spots using the spot removal tool in Lightroom and Camera Raw. After I made the video, it occurred to me that I didn't show you my most horrifying example of dust on the camera sensor. I took this image in 2004 shortly after I got my [...]
9/2011: Here's an updated video tutorial on how to use the spot removal tool to retouch photos in Lightroom. I also show how to use it to reduce the appearance of circles under eyes. This is from my Lightroom 3 Fundamentals and Beyond video series, available as a download or DVD. (Update: My editing skills and audio [...]
Sometimes you want to make an adjustment to your image almost everywhere. You could use the adjustment brush and paint almost everywhere, but that could be slow. Instead, make the adjustment everywhere, with a global change in the Basic panel, and then use the adjustment brush to change back the area you didn't want to affect. [...]
When you are working on an image for print, or any application where it will be viewed full size, it is important that you zoom in to 100%, and inspect the entire image for issues that you can’t see when it is smaller. I was working on this image today and when I zoomed [...]
I showed you in my first clarity post how to use negative clarity in Lightroom or Camera Raw to soften skin. For a creative look, try heavy negative clarity on the whole image: […]
If you are using the adjustment brush to make local image enhancements, you can hover over the pin to see the mask that you have drawn, but it shows for just a moment. To keep it on as you brush, type the letter O, for Overlay. To turn the overlay off, type O again. If instead [...]
The clarity slider was introduced in Lightroom 1.1, and is also now in Camera Raw. A positive clarity value punches up an image, makes it look a little more three dimensional, by enhancing contrast along edges. The changes are concentrated in the midtones, and do little to highlights and shadows. Here is an example, a portion [...]
