Graphics Programs Reference
In-Depth Information
Step Two:
If you're choosing Shadows/Highlights,
you probably have a problem in the
shadow areas, which is why, by default,
it's set to open up (lighten) the shadow
areas in your photo by 35%. However,
in this case, our subject is so buried in
the shadows that we'll have to open the
shadows quite a bit. The problem with
opening the shadows 50% or higher is
your photos tend to look kinda “weird
and milky” (as you can see here, where
I've increased it to 70%, and now he
almost looks like he has a sunburn).
Step Three:
To get around that, tur n on the Show
More Options checkbox at the bottom
of the dialog. This brings up an expanded
version of the dialog (as shown here). The
key to fixing this “weird and milky” look is
to drag the Radius slider over to the right
until it smooths out the effect and looks
normal (here, I dragged it over to 143 pix-
els because that's where it looked most
natural to me, but it really just depends
on the photo. I would say that most of
the time I set the Radius to around 125 to
175). By the way, the Radius amount deter-
mines how many pixels each adjustment
affects, so to affect a wider range of pix-
els, you'd increase the amount, which is
what we did here.
TIP: Save a New Default
If you come up with some settings you
like, click the Save As Defaults button in
the bottom-left corner of the dialog, and
now it will open with your settings.
(Continued)
