Graphics Programs Reference
In-Depth Information
TIP
If you're dealing with raw files, you can fix red eye right in the Raw Converter (
Rotating,
Straightening, and Cropping
)
, although the Raw Converter's tool doesn't have a Pet Eye
setting.
POWER USERS' CLINIC: ANOTHER RED-EYE FIX
The Red Eye Removal tool does a great job most of the time, but it doesn't always work, espe-
cially on animals' eyes. Expert mode gives you a couple of other ways to fix red eye (and pet eye)
that work in almost any situation. Here's one:
1.
Zoom way, way in on the problem eye
. You want to be able to see the individual pixels.
2.
Use the Eyedropper tool (
The Color Picker/Eyedropper Tool
) to sample the color
from a good area of the eye, or from another photo
. Check the Tools panel's fore-
ground color square (
Choosing Colors
) to make sure you've got the color you want.
3.
Activate the Pencil tool (
The Pencil Tool
)
and set its size to 1 pixel
.
4.
Click the bad or empty pixels of the eye to replace their color with the shade you
sampled in step 2
. Remember to leave a couple of white pixels for a catch light (the pu-
pil's glinting highlight).
This process works even if the eye is
blown out
(that is, all white with no color info left).
If you're a layers fan, you can also fix red eye by selecting the bad area, creating a Hue/Saturation
Adjustment layer (
Adjustment Layers
), and then desaturating the red area. However, this method
doesn't work too well if the eye is blown out.
Smart Fix
The Quick Fix window's secret weapon is the Smart Fix command, which automatically ad-
justs a picture's lighting, color, and contrast, all with one click. You don't have to figure any-
thing out—Elements does it all for you. This command generally works better on photos that
are underexposed (too dark) than overexposed (too bright), but it doesn't hurt to give it a try
even on overexposed shots.
