How to brighten dark object in a portrait using Photoshop

Before

After

  1. With the portrait open, duplicate the image.

2. Lighten Shadow: Open Shadow/Highlights by going to Images>Adjustments.

3. Adjust Shadows, for example increase Amount to 30%, Tone 50%, Radius 30%, and perhaps color to 20%. Note: Highlights doesn’t make many difference. You can click Preview to compare before and after.

4. Use Curve to adjusting tones to brighten, darken, add contrast and shift colors by going to Layer>New Adjustment Layer.

5. Move the curve top to bright the object.

6. Press Ctrl+I to inverse and the Curves 1 switches from white to black.

7. Use Brush with White color sleeted to brush the object.

8. Double click on Curves 1 to open Layer Style.

9. in Underlying Layer, adjust shadow curse to the right. You can hold Alt key and move half curse. That will make contract on the object. Click Preview to compare.

10. Open Hue/Saturation by going to Layer>New Adjustment Layer.

11. Adjust Saturation to color the skin, say +10.

12. Add more skin color by go to Layer>New Adjustment>Selective Color.

13. Make sure the Color is Red, adjust Cyan (+10 in our example), Megeta (+20), Yellow (-15), and Black (-10).

Please view the step by step video:

Editing landscape sliders and order in Lightroom

  • After importing an image, click on Develop.

Step 1: Crop and straight the image in Basic.

Open Crop Overlay (R)

You can use Auto Straighten or adjust Angle manually. Also you can resize.

Step 2: Spot Removal (Q) in Basic – Open Spot Removal tool to remove
dust spots.

Step 3: White Balance in the Basic.

You may have 3 options: As Shot, Auto, Custom.


  • As Shot

Use Shot pen points to the white area.

This is the result.

  • Auto –
  • Click Auto.
  • Custom – adjust Temp and Tint.

Step 4: Tone

Use Auto first. If you don’t like it, adjust tone yourself. If the image tone looks good to me, I just hold Alt key and double click Whites and Blacks to adjust whites and blacks.

Step 5: Presence.

Normally, I will adjust Texture, Clarity and Dehaze right now. Left Vibrance and Saturation for later.

Step 6: Tone Curve – you have 4 options: Highlights, Lights, Darks and Shadows. You can also try Point Curve.

Step 7: HSL/Color – in or example, I would like to make sky more blue and leave more orange.

Step 8: Split Toning – in our example I would add more orange and red color in Highlights/Blacks for sunrise.

Step 9: Details – Here we can adjust Sharping and Noise Reduction.

Step 10: Final adjustment – in our example, use Adjustment Brush (K) tool to highlight tree and give more yellow color.

Now, back to Basic and adjust Vibrance and Saturation.

Press Y to compare before and after.

Please view the step by step video:

Troubleshooting DJI Mavic Air Calibrate Compass problem

Situation: The first try Mavic Air gets Compass error. Move aircraft or calibrate compass.

When trying to calibrate compass, it is always failed on step 2.

We have tried different places. But that doesn’t fix the problem. Sometimes, turn of the power and turn on again, it fixes the problem.

We have tries to reset it to factory. We also make sure it has the latest firmware.

Select an object using Blend If in Photoshop

Difficult selections like trees can be selected by using Blending If. Here is how..

  1. Double click on the image in Layer panel to open Blending Mode. If that doesn’t work, make sure it is no locked.

2. Since the background is blue sky, we select Blue in Blwnd if

3. Since we have only one layer, move the curse in this Layer from right to left until we see the transparent.

4. You can also adjust it by hold Alt key and move the half right curse.

5. Click OK to complete the selection.

6. You can move another image into the original image to see the result. In our example we change the Blending mode to Overlay.

Please view the step by step video:

Use Reduce Noise and Surface Blur to reduce Noise in Photoshop

  1. With the image open, make duplication by right click the Background Layer.

2. Go to Filter>Noise>Reduce Noise.

3. Increase Strength and Reduce Color Noise, decrease Preserve Details and Sharpen Details. Click Preview to compare.

4. Duplicate the Layer and go to Filter>Blur>Surface Blur.

5. Adjust Radius and Threshold.

6. Compare each layer to view the difference.

Please review step by step video.

Create sunset background using Match Color and Gradient Tool

  1. Open all images. Duplicate the Layer by right click on it.

2. Match the color by going to Image>Adjustment>Match Color. Select the source and adjust Fade, Luminance, Color Intensity.

3. Move the sunset image into original image.

4. Add a Vector Mask.

5. Select Gradient Tool and gradient sunset color from bottom to top. You may try more than once.

6. Result.

Please review the step by step 5 minute video:

Use the latest version of WeChat on your mobile and make sure that you have updated your mobile operating system to open this page.

Situation: When running video on PC Wechat, you may receive this message: Use the latest version of WeChat on your mobile and make sure that you have updated your mobile operating system to open this page.

Troubleshooting: If you download and install WeChat from Microsoft Store, you may see this message. You need to download and install WeChat from www.wechat.com.