Practical Photoshop June 2021

Practical Photoshop is the world’s premier Photoshop magazine, a monthly guide to the best Photoshop techniques, tips and tricks. Inside each issue you’ll find an array of inspirational tutorials and accompanying video lessons that will help you master Adobe’s collection of industry standard photo-editing software. What’s more, there’s a selection of amazing images from the world’s best Photoshop creatives, free downloadable content, and a beginner’s guide to the basics. If you love photography and you want to learn more about digital imaging, then Practical Photoshop will help you to unleash your creative potential.

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in this issue

IN THIS ISSUE

BLACK-AND-WHITE BASICS

WATCH THE VIDEO https://bit.ly/3uXWEAS 1 B&W PROFILES You’ll find a range of handy black-and-white Profiles in Camera Raw or Lightroom. These give your image different monochrome looks. Simply open the Profile Browser in the Basic Panel and scroll down to the B&W set, then hover over various Profiles to see how they affect your photo. Use the Amount slider to control the intensity of the Profile. 2 B&W MIXER The sliders in the B&W Mixer Panel within Camera Raw or Lightroom let us control the brightness of color ranges in the image. Here it lets us lift the reds and oranges in the skin tones for a fresher portrait look. You can either drag the sliders, or – for more nuanced control – toggle on the target icon and drag over parts of the image…

1 min

IN THIS ISSUE

MAKE A RIPPED PORTRAIT EFFECT

WATCH THE VIDEO https://bit.ly/3eYZDn2 One of the great things about black-and-white imagery is how well it goes with portraiture. Stripping out color lets us simplify portraits so that expression and posing come to the fore. As it’s such a good simplifier, it opens the door to unusual composites like this, which might look overly busy in color. Here’s how to craft your own moody ripped portraits… 01 CONVERT TO MONO In Bridge, highlight the portraits, then right-click them and select Open In Camera Raw. Click the B&W button (or choose a suitable B&W Profile), then use the tools in the B&W Mixer Panel to fine-tune the tones. Highlight all the portraits, right-click and choose Sync, then open them in Photoshop. 02 SELECT THE PAPER Open the ripped paper image supplied (or take a few seconds to…

2 min

IN THIS ISSUE

CLASSIC FILM EFFECTS

When we convert an image to black and white, we are essentially recalling an earlier time when black-and-white film was the only option, rather than an aesthetic choice. So why not try recreating the look of old black-and-white film stocks? There are several plugins for Lightroom and Photoshop that can do this for you, including the excellent DxO FilmPack. Simply install the plugin (there’s a free 30-day trial), then right-click your image in Lightroom to launch the plugin and choose from an array of classic film treatments, each of which replicates the contrast, tonality and grain of the film.…

1 min

IN THIS ISSUE

ADD GRIT TO YOUR BLACK-AND-WHITE PHOTOS

If you’d rather not pay out for a plugin (see the previous page), you can add grain yourself to give your photos the look of old-school black-and-white film. In the days before digital, these film stocks could be pushed to increase the ISO, which not only made the film faster but also resulted in more grain and added contrast. We can achieve the look of a pushed mono film stock with Camera Raw or Lightroom. Begin by choosing a B&W Profile (or one of the built-in monochrome Presets), then go to the Effects Panel and increase the Grain Amount, Size and Roughness settings until you’re happy. Try adding a dark, heavy vignette with the Post-Crop Vignette sliders, then go to the Basic Panel and increase Contrast to finish the look.…

1 min

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AUTOMATIC HAZE

WATCH THE VIDEO https://bit.ly/3yhmxh4 One of the issues we sometimes face when we convert an image to monochrome is that objects can blend into one another without the color information in the image. Here, for example, the muted yellow and blue feathers in this heron blend in with the similar tones in the background buildings. This is why, if you’re shooting for black-and-white photos, it’s helpful to seek out contrast between the subject and its surroundings. However, if this isn’t possible then we can manufacture the contrast afterwards. Photoshop’s new Depth Blur Neural Filter offers an easy way to achieve this. Go to Filter > Neural Filters. Check Depth Blur (currently a Beta filter) then increase Haze. Once that’s done, convert the photo to black and white to finish it.…

1 min

IN THIS ISSUE

RETRO COLOR TINTS WITH GRADIENT MAPS

The Gradient Map Adjustment Layer can let you add tinting effects that mimic the look of old analog processes, like the rich blue of a cyanotype or the warmth of selenium. These effects used to be available as Presets within the Gradient Map settings, but it seems they’ve been left out of the latest versions of Photoshop. We’ve supplied the set amongst the project files. Simply add a Gradient Map Adjustment Layer, then click the preview of the gradient, click the cog icon and choose Import, then navigate to the photographic toning set supplied. Choose from the wonderful array of toning presets like Blue-Selenium and Cobalt-Iron.…

1 min