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Get Out and Take Photos! – Photoshop Simple Image Pop

Creek Edited

Creek Original

I finally got out and took some photos this past weekend. I had been making the excuse that I didn’t have any material to take pictures of. I woke up that morning and told myself that I would take a picture of whatever I saw.

I stumbled on this view while driving. Keeping up with my Photoshop learning, I wanted to use it to make this photograph ‘pop’.

I didn’t focus so much on cropping and other adjustments, I simply attempted to make the edited version pop more than the original. Here is what I got!

Here are the steps that I followed. They were pretty easy, and I think with further practice, I should be able to do this one without following the guide.

1. Convert to the LAB color space
2. Curves
3. Steepen A and B channels symetrically by bringing in the endpoints of each curve toward the center equally. After this, the curve (line actually) will still cross the center horizontal center at the vertical center. Start out by experimenting with bringing in each end point between 10% and 20%.
4. Establish light and dark points by moving the endpoints of the L curve inwhard. Optionally, steepen the L curve through the areas where the detail is of most interest.
5. Activate only the L channel
6. USM, trying the values 200, 1.0, 10

Enjoy this photo? Leave a comment and I will shoot you the full version of it.

Get out there and take photos!