Graphics Programs Reference
In-Depth Information
Such areas are referred to as specular highlights. By leaving these areas without any value, the rest of the
image looks balanced and the shine pops out of the image. Good examples of objects that could contain
specular highlights are jewelry, candlelight, or metal.
This image has specular highlights, which should be left with a value of zero.
Locating the white and black point
Before you get started, you will change a simple preference to make it easier for you to interpret the
Curves Adjustment panel. In this part of the lesson, you will take advantage of the Threshold feature to
easily find the lightest and darkest parts in the image. Threshold allows you to reduce a multi-tonal image
into just two values: white and black.
1
Choose Image > Adjustment > Threshold; the Threshold dialog box appears.
2
Click and drag the Threshold slider to the right and notice that in the preview, the lightest colors in the
image remain white, while the darker parts of the image change to a solid black. Continue dragging
the slider over to the right until you barely see any white; this is the lightest part of your image. Do
not click OK; leave the Threshold dialog box open while you take the next steps.
3
Press and hold the Shift key and click in the light area of your image. By Shift+clicking, you have cre-
ated a color sample at the location in which you clicked. This step does not change the image, but
leaves a marker that you can refer to later.
Drag the slider in the Threshold panel to the right.
Shift+click the lightest part of the image.
4
Now drag the Threshold slider to the left. Notice that the darkest parts of the image remain black while
the light parts preview as white. Do not drag the entire way to the left, since you will then only be left
with the dark woods. Your goal is to find the darkest area in this image that is in the main focal point
of the image: the garden.
5
Shift+click the darkest section of this image to create a second color sample.
