Action for Shadow and Highlight Adjustments

[CaseyJ]

Hi Sheri (or anyone else who wants to help),

After looking at the results from your action I'd like to ask for
your help. I don't have PS so I can't use this wonderful action (I
do have PSP 8 but there's no luminosity selection in it as far as I
can tell so I can't even try to recreate in it your action's
workflow).

In PSP8 you can select the luminance and save it as an alpha channel.

Select background layer,

Click Layers > new mask layer > from image,

promote back ground layer to full layer > OK,

check "source luminance" in dialog window > OK

Click selection > from mask,

next click selection > load/save selection > save to alpha channel > save,

now delete mask layer and drag background out of the group to get rid of the group.
Now your have the luminance as a selection mask in an alpha channel.

to load highlights make sure background layer is active, selection > load/save selection > load from alpha channel > load.

then click Selection > promote selection to layer, and name the new layer highlights.
to load shadows repeat except in load selection dialog box check "invert image".

again make sure background layer is active and promote selection to layer and name it shadows.
Now you can change the blending modes and opacity.

You could easily make this a script in PSP8.
This should get you in the ballpark.
CaseyJ

 

[Itamar]

Casey - thanks a lot - now I have a lot to experiment with

Hi Sheri (or anyone else who wants to help),

After looking at the results from your action I'd like to ask for
your help. I don't have PS so I can't use this wonderful action (I
do have PSP 8 but there's no luminosity selection in it as far as I
can tell so I can't even try to recreate in it your action's
workflow).

In PSP8 you can select the luminance and save it as an alpha channel.

Select background layer,

Click Layers > new mask layer > from image,

promote back ground layer to full layer > OK,

check "source luminance" in dialog window > OK

Click selection > from mask,

next click selection > load/save selection > save to alpha channel

save,

now delete mask layer and drag background out of the group to get
rid of the group.
Now your have the luminance as a selection mask in an alpha channel.
to load highlights make sure background layer is active, selection

load/save selection > load from alpha channel > load.

then click Selection > promote selection to layer, and name the
new layer highlights.
to load shadows repeat except in load selection dialog box check
"invert image".
again make sure background layer is active and promote selection to
layer and name it shadows.
Now you can change the blending modes and opacity.

You could easily make this a script in PSP8.
This should get you in the ballpark.
CaseyJ

--
----
Itamar

 

[Sheri99]

This an 800x800 full size crop with medium jpg compression.

Here is a link to the uncropped version compressed at Photoshop level 10:

http://sherisg3.fotopic.net/photo.php?id=1593189

After making running the action twice and adding adjustments for high and low midtones as well, I found the image looked pretty noisy. So I also ran some modest noise reduction on it. This was a trade-off so a bit of noise remains. Its not as noticable in the uncropped version.

 

[Sheri99]

Here's the full size retouched version resized to 800x600 with medium jpg compression.

 

[Ingrid Suitor]

Not surprised at all I bet! lol Step 4 has me puzzled, I followed
the steps with no problem but am wondering what stamp it means??

Thanks,
Ingrid

Hi Ingrid,

Pressing th combination of keys Shift+Ctrl+Alt+E on an empty layer
causes all currently visible layers to get combined onto that
layer. But it leaves the building block layers in place. Adobe
calls this "stamping" the layer. I think I learned it from the help
file, but when I was making the action, I also noticed the action
step also calls it stamping.

So, it is Photoshop's term to refer to that process. I don't think
there's any other way of doing it besides pressing the key combo. I
believe Merge Visible deletes the source layers.

In the next version of the Shadows-Highlights action, there
probably won't be a stamp layer. I had thought one was needed for
the Brightness-Contrast Adjustment layer to have a combined source
to work on. But while that seems to be true for when you adjust
Brightness-Contrast directly, it appears to unnecessary when done
via an adjustment layer. I find that if you delete the merged
(stamp) layer. Tthe Brightness - Contrast adjustment layer still
works and Shadows and Highlights layers opacities are accessible as
well.

Sheri

Thanks Sheri, that makes some sense now! I just had never heard of stamping, was expecting something different to happen on that step.

Ingrid

 

[Itamar]

This is really amazing - thank you very much for all the efforts on my behalf. I'm going to print it right away....

I wonder if I could ask you to be a little more specific on how your action works so I can try the same in PSP. I've read your initial post but I'm still a little unclear regarding the grouping, doubling and contrast layer. If you'd do that, I promise not to bother you again (at least in regards to this issue).

Here's the full size retouched version resized to 800x600 with
medium jpg compression.

--
----
Itamar

 

[Sheri99]

This is really amazing - thank you very much for all the efforts on
my behalf. I'm going to print it right away....

I wonder if I could ask you to be a little more specific on how
your action works so I can try the same in PSP. I've read your
initial post but I'm still a little unclear regarding the grouping,
doubling and contrast layer. If you'd do that, I promise not to
bother you again (at least in regards to this issue).

Hi Itamar,

Here are the basic steps my action takes: Copies the luminosity of the background layer (feathered by 1 pixel) to a layer. Sets the blend mode to multiply. Duplicates that layer also blend mode multiply. Merges those two layers and calls it Highlights, blend mode multiply. Sets the starting Opacity to 50%. Selects the inverse luminosity of the background layer (feathered by 1 pixel), and copies it to a layer. Sets the blend mode to screen. Duplicates it, blend mode screen. Merges those two layers, into one with blend mode screen. Sets the opacity to 50% and names it Shadows. Creates a Brightness-Contrast adjustment layer, but leaves them unchanged. Actually it stops for opacity changes before do the Brightness/Contrast to allow for user changes to the opacities.

The stacking order is, from bottom to top: Background, Shadows, Highlights, Brightness-Contrast.

I have found that for some images, it helps to run the action more than once, but refrain from any contrast change until the end, and then make a conservative contrast boost. I try not to use the brightness adjustment at all.

As I said before, I did a little more for your image.

Hope it helps,
Sheri

 

[Louis Arredondo]

This an 800x800 full size crop with medium jpg compression.

Here is a link to the uncropped version compressed at Photoshop
level 10:

http://sherisg3.fotopic.net/photo.php?id=1593189

After making running the action twice and adding adjustments for
high and low midtones as well, I found the image looked pretty
noisy. So I also ran some modest noise reduction on it. This was a
trade-off so a bit of noise remains. Its not as noticable in the
uncropped version.

--I used the new PS CS Shadow/Highlight function, Neat Image, and curves.



Oly2100, B-300, C-210

 

[tko]

Here is the result from anothe shadow type action I found elsewhere on the web. What do you think? Not as agressive, but less noise - just another trade off.



done from an action obtainable from

http://www.erik-krause.de/contrast/index.htm

 

[Vera]

Here's the full size retouched version resized to 800x600 with
medium jpg compression.

http://images.fotopic.net/?id=1593512&outx=760&oq=0&noresize=1&nostamp=1

--
Vera

 

[Vera]

This an 800x800 full size crop with medium jpg compression.

Here is a link to the uncropped version compressed at Photoshop
level 10:

http://sherisg3.fotopic.net/photo.php?id=1593189

After making running the action twice and adding adjustments for
high and low midtones as well, I found the image looked pretty
noisy. So I also ran some modest noise reduction on it. This was a
trade-off so a bit of noise remains. Its not as noticable in the
uncropped version.

--I used the new PS CS Shadow/Highlight function, Neat Image, and
curves.



Oly2100, B-300, C-210

--
Vera

 

[Rob31183]

will it work on ver 6 ?

 

[Rob31183]

Can that action work on this picture on PS 6 ?

http://www.photoaccess.com/servlet/GetThumb ;jsessionid=DE13E10D412775342B241C5B1293B2B2?15274784,600x800,0,0&cb=PA&svr=web1.jpg

 

[Rob31183]

It comes to one area that says to adjust the opacity of the hightlights and shadow areas. I am not sure where this is or how to do it. Could you please help me?

Rob in Calif

 

[Mike Warren]

It comes to one area that says to adjust the opacity of the
hightlights and shadow areas. I am not sure where this is or how to
do it. Could you please help me?

Rob in Calif

Open your layers pallette before running the action.

The adjustments are made using the Opacity sliders in the layer named Highlights and the layer named Shadow, while viewing your image.

Mike
---
http://www.pbase.com/mikew714

 

[Lloyd Hager]

This is a very nice action. Thank you very much.

Here's an example of an image taken with my 10D this fall in Venice. I think the shadow detail is very nicely enhanced and the highlights remain pretty much the same. I certainly intend to keep this loaded at all times.

Thanks again Sherri



--
Lloyd W Hager
pbase supporter/CP995/CP4500/Canon10D

 

[Itamar]

Thanks to Sheri and Casey, here's my effort at porting Sheri's action to PSP 8.

http://www.ostability.com/dpr/PSP_Shadow_Highlight_Adjustment.zip

Itamar
---

Especially for PS 7 users. Tested on dull landscapes and backlit
people on the beach. No need for masking and so far results compare
favorably with the new CS feature.

http://home.comcast.net/~silvermoonwoman/psaction/shadow_highlight_adjustment.zip

Have learned alot from this group and hope this action will be
useful to some of you. I haven't done many actions (maybe I should
call it beta), but have recorded some fairly complex activity and
tried to make it both flexible and tailored to each given image.
You just have to adjust to taste the opacity of two layers (doubled
screen for the Shadows adjustment and doubled multiply for
adjusting Highlights), plus the contrast in an adjustment layer.

Technical detail, this action selects feathered luminosity and
feathered inverse luminosity as input to the blended layers.

Enjoy,
Sheri

 

[Svavar Kvaran]

I am new here at this forum but I downloaded fievels Gothic glow the other day And I like the feature where he start off copying everything to another picture in PSand then runs the atrions.

In that way it is easyer to evaluate the result

I miss this feature in your acion.

Just my 10 cents and congratulate on your first public action

--
Best regards
Svavar Kvaran
Pbase supporter
http://www.pbase.com/svavark

 

[Sheri99]

Thanks to Sheri and Casey, here's my effort at porting Sheri's
action to PSP 8.

http://www.ostability.com/dpr/PSP_Shadow_Highlight_Adjustment.zip

Itamar
---

That is very exciting Itamar! You should post a new thread for it, to grab the attention of other Paint Shop users.

In addition to PS7, I do have PSP8 and that's the first user-made script for it I've loaded. PSP8 used to crash frequently, but its much more stable since they came out with the 8.1 update.

The script seems to work very well! There is a link to Leave a Message on my Fotopic site if you would like to discuss it further in email.

http://sherisg3.fotopic.net

I'm having a lot of trouble with the Dpreview site lately

Regards,
Sheri

 

[Rob31183]

thanks, Now how do i clear the merged layer?