Tutorial 2 • Paradise Found: Retouching Landscapes and Other Places

Overview

This lab will explore some of the tools and techniques we can use to make images of landscapes and buildings look better through retouching and colour correction.

Objectives

• To demonstrate how to effectively correct lens distortions
• To introduce the content-aware features of Photoshop
• To use the Vanishing Point Filter to work with perspective
• To demonstrate how to use channels as intricate masks
• To apply colour corrections for enhanced detail and appeal
• Using brushes to create details in a photo

Adjusting for Lens Distortion

One unfortunate reality of photography is that lenses on cameras can sometimes distort the images. Luckily Photoshop has some great tools to help us correct this. In this part of a tutorial we will fix some vertical distortion that was caused by the lens and the angle that the image was shot.

Let’s begin:

1. Open the tutorial file named GCM738_Tutorial_02_Cathedral.tif.
2. Save the Image as to the 03 Working Photoshop Files folder with the name GCM738_Tutorial_02_Cathedral_Intitials_v1.psd, where “initials” are your initials (e.g. GCM738_Tutorial_02_Cathedral_JL_v1.psd).
3. Double click on the Background Layer and rename it to Original Image.
4. Duplicate the Original Image Layer, and rename this layer to Lens Correction.
5. With the Lens Correction Layer selected, choose Filter Covert for Smart Filters.
6. Choose Filter Lens Correction. Choose the Custom Tab.
7. Under Transform, change the Vertical Perspective to -35 and the Angle 0.50. Click OK.
8. Toggle the Lens Correction Layer visibility off and on to see the change.
9. Save the file.

Photoshop’s Content Aware Features

This part of the tutorial will look at the Content Aware features in Photoshop, and explore ways they can be used to effectively retouch landscape photographs.

Content Aware Fill

1. Open the tutorial file named GCM738_Tutorial_02_Beach_01.tif.
2. Save the Image as a.psd file to the 03 Working Photoshop Files folder with the name GCM738_Tutorial_02_Beach_01_Intitials_v1.psd, where “initials are your initials (e.g. GCM738_Tutorial_02_Beach_01_JL_v1.psd).
3. Double click on the Background Layer and rename it to Original Image.
4. Duplicate the Original Image Layer, and rename this layer to Content Aware Fill.
5. Use the Lasso Tool to draw a rough outline around the man and the reflection of his legs in the water.
6. Choose Edit Fill, and change the Contents to Content-Aware. Make sure Color Adaptation is selected, Blending Mode is set to Normal, and Opacity is 100%. Preserve Transparency should not be checked. Click OK.
7. Repeat this process for the two children and the coloured floats in the water. Tip: You can use the Shift Key to select all the coloured floats at once.
8. If there is any clean-up to do, create a new layer, and call it Cloning. Use the Cloning tools taught in Tutorial 2 to fix up any rough spots, such as the two water spots in the sky and any “blips” caused by the Content Aware Fill.
9. Save the file.

Content Aware Scale and Move

1. Open the tutorial file named GCM738_Tutorial_02_Beach_02.tif.
2. Save the Image as a .psd file to the 03 Working Photoshop Files folder with the name GCM738_Tutorial_02_Beach_02_Intitials_v1.psd, where “initials are your initials (e.g. GCM738_Tutorial_02_Beach_02_JL_v1.psd).
3. The client wants this image to fill the whole canvas, without increasing the size of the lady sitting on the beach. How can we do this? An ordinary scale won’t work, so let’s try a Content-Aware scale.
4. Duplicate the Original Image Layer, and rename this layer to Content Aware Scale.
5. With the Content Aware Scale layer selected, choose Edit Content-Aware Scale.
6. Start by scaling the image vertically, then horizontally. Notice that Photoshop does a pretty good job, but unfortunately the lady is still being distorted.
7. We can solve this issue by “protecting” the lady. To do this, let’s use the lasso tool to draw a rough selection around the lady.
8. Choose Select Save Selection, and name the selection Lady. Deselect the selection by pressing Command D.
9. Choose Edit Content-Aware Scale again, but this time in the Options Bar, make sure Protect is set to Lady. Redo the Content-Aware Scale and notice how the lady’s shape is preserved.
10. Now the client wants the lady repositioned so that she is centered in the image. We can do this quite easily using the Content-Aware Move Tool.
11. Duplicate the Content Aware Scale layer and name it Content Aware Move.
12. Using the Content-Aware Move Tool, draw a selection fairly tight around the lady and her shadow, and then move her to the center of the image. Press enter. Tip: Playing around with the Structure and Color settings in the Options Bar will modify your results.
13. Save your file and close it.

Working with Perspective

Perspective can be a bit challenging when manipulating images in Photoshop. Sometimes getting things to follow perspective along a vanishing point can be tricky. One way to make working with perspective easier is to use Photoshop’s Vanishing Point Filter. This part of the tutorial introduces us to the Vanishing Point Filter and how to use it correctly.

Let’s begin:

1. Open the tutorial file named GCM738_Tutorial_02_Perspective.tif.
2. Save the Image as a .psd file to the 03 Working Photoshop Files folder with the name GCM738_Tutorial_02_Perspective_Intitials_v1.psd, where “initials are your initials (e.g. GCM738_Tutorial_02_Perspective_JL_v1.psd).
3. With the Type Tool, create the text “Perspective” using Helvetica Bold at a type size of 72 pts. For the colour of the type, click on the colour selector in the Options Bar, and use the Eye Dropper to select the off-white area of the sign.
4. Duplicate the type layer, and then rasterize this duplicated layer. We are doing this because the type will have to be rasterized to work with the Vanishing Point Filter. Rename this layer as Perspective Rasterized. Turn off the original Text Layer.
5. With the Perspective Rasterized Layer selected, choose Select All, and then Edit Cut.
6. Now choose Filter Vanishing Point.
7. Once in the Vanishing Point Filter, use the Create Plane Tool to identify the shape of the sign. Tip: If the outline goes red, the shape cannot fit nicely into a plane, so readjust until the outline is blue. Now choose Edit Paste.
8. Move the pasted text into the sign area. Notice how the perspective automatically conforms to the plane we created.
9. Choose Command T for freeform transform, and scale down the text slightly to better fit the sign area. Adjust the positioning of the text, and then click ok
10. Save your file and close it.

Using Channels as Intricate Masks

Masking can be another challenging aspect of retouching in Photoshop, especially when the area we are trying to mask has very fine, intricate areas. One trick we can use to get around this is to use a Photoshop Channel as a mask. This part of the tutorial will look at this.

Let’s begin:

1. Open the tutorial file named GCM738_Tutorial_02_Forest_01.tif.
2. Save the Image as a .psd file to the 03 Working Photoshop Files folder with the name GCM738_Tutorial_02_Forest_01_Intitials_v1.psd, where “initials are your initials (e.g. GCM738_Tutorial_02_Forest_01_JL_v1.psd).
3. The idea here is that we want to remove the existing sky, and replace it with the image of the Toronto Skyline named GCM738_Tutorial_02_Toronto.tif. The challenge is to quickly and effectively remove the sky without making the trees look unnatural.
4. Double click on the Background Layer, and rename it Original Image. Now duplicate the Original Image Layer and name this layer Sky Masked. Turn off the visibility of the Original Image Layer.
5. Now go to the Channels Palette. Toggle between the Red, Green, and Blue Channels. Notice how the Blue Channels has the most contrast difference between the sky and the trees. For this reason, we will work with the Blue Channel.
6. Duplicate the Blue Channel and name it Mask.
7. With the Mask Channel selected, choose Image Adjustments Levels.
8. Slide the left slider of the Input Levels to about the 150 mark. Slide the right slider to about the 160 mark.
9. Make sure your foreground colour is set to black and your background colour is set to white. Use the Paint Brush Tool to fill in black spots, and the eraser tool to clean up white areas.
10. When you are happy with your results, turn the Mask Channel into a Selection by clicking the Load Channel as Selection Icon on the Channel Palette.
11. Click on the RGB Channel to show all colours.
12. Go to your Layers Palette. With the Sky Masked Layer selected, choose Layer Layer Mask Hide Selection. The sky should now be masked.
13. Now we need to add the Toronto skyline to the image. Open the file GCM738_Tutorial_03_Toronto.tif, then select the whole image and copy/paste it into the GCM738_Tutorial_02_Forest_01_Intitials_v1.psd file. Name the new layer Toronto Skyline, and drag it below the Sky Masked Layer.
14. Scale the Toronto Skyline to fit the area.
15. Our image looks fake because the foreground is too light. We need to fix this. With the Sky Masked Layer selected, choose Layer Layer Style Colour Overlay. Make sure the Color is set to black, and set the Blend Mode to Darken. Set the opacity to 75%.
16. Now let’s do some final tweaks. Duplicate the Sky Masked Layer and name the new layer Trees Darkened. Disable the Layer Style on the Sky Masked Layer.
17. With the Trees Darkened Layer selected, lock the transparency on the layer.
18. Select the Brush Tool and change the Opacity to 40%. Hold down the Option Key and sample a dark green area of the trees. Now use the Brush Tool to paint over the lighter areas to make it look more natural.
19. Save your file and close it.

Colour Corrections for Enhanced Detail and Appeal

Often with landscape images, we want to make the colours look better than they were when originally shot. This happens quite often in travel brochures, for example. Let’s look at how we can do this.

Let’s begin:

1. Open the tutorial file named GCM738_Tutorial_02_Beach_03.psd.
2. Save the Image as a .psd file to the 03 Working Photoshop Files folder with the name GCM738_Tutorial_02_Beach_03_Intitials_v1.psd, where “initials are your initials (e.g. GCM738_Tutorial_02_Beach_03_JL_v1.psd).
3. Duplicate the Original Image Layer and name the new layer Colour Corrected.
4. With the Colour Corrected Layer selected, choose Select Color Range.
5. Make sure Select is set to Sampled Colors, Fuzziness is approximately 40, and selection Preview is set to Black Matte. Then, using the Eye Dropper select the blue areas. Tip: Hold down the Shift Key and keep selecting blue areas until everything is selected. Click OK. Do not deselect the selection area.
6. Now go to Layer New Adjustment Layer Brightness/Contrast. Name this Adjustment Layer Sky Contrast. Notice how our selection automatically converted .into a mask? This will make sure we change the colour of the sky without affecting the sand. Set the Brightness to -5 and the Contrast to 20.
7. Now go to Layer New Adjustment Layer Vibrance Name this Adjustment Layer Sky Vibrance. Set the Vibrance to 25 and the Saturation to 20. Notice that the sand also changed colour. We don’t want this, so we will copy the mask from the previous adjustment layer to this one by pressing the Option Key and dragging the mask to the Vibrance Adjustment Layer.
8. Select the two Adjustment Layers and make a new group called Colour Adjustments. Toggle the layer visibility off and on to see the changes.
9. Save your file and close it.

Using Brushes to Add Detail

Photoshop Brushes are powerful, yet they are often underutilized, especially when it comes to adding objects to images that are in the distance, and don’t have a lot of detail. This final part of the tutorial will look at how we can use a brush to add birds to an empty sky.

Let’s begin:

1. Open the tutorial file named GCM738_Tutorial_02_Flying_Birds.tif.
2. Save the Image as a .psd file to the 03 Working Photoshop Files folder with the name GCM738_Tutorial_02_Flying_Birds_Intitials_v1.psd, where “initials are your initials (e.g. GCM738_Tutorial_02_Flying_Birds_JL_v1.psd).
3. Double click on the Background Layer and name it Original Image.
4. Create a new layer and call it Birds.
5. Now open the file named GCM738_Tutorial_02_Bird_Outlines.tif.
6. Using the Rectangle Marquee Tool, draw a selection around the first bird. Choose Edit Define Brush Preset. Name this brush Bird 1. Do the same thing for the second bird, and name this brush Bird 2. Now return to the GCM738_Tutorial_02_Flying_Birds_Intitials_v1.psd file.
7. Make sure your Foreground Color is set to R 0 G 0 B 0, and your Background Color is set to R 110 G 110 B 110.
8. To make these birds look natural, we have to change some settings in the Brush Engine.
9. Select the Bird 1 Brush. Note that if you try to draw with it, it will just make a big streak. This is not what we want.
10. Open the Brush Engine. Make the spacing 500% and the Size 50px.
11. Check on Shape Dynamics. Make the Size Jitter 60%, the Minimum Diameter 10%, and the Angle Jitter 15%.
12. Check on Scattering. Make sure Both Axes is checked, and then change the scatter amount to 400%.
13. Check on Color Dynamics. Set Foreground/Background Jitter to 100%. Set both the Saturation Jitter and the Brightness jitter to 40%.
14. Save this as a new Brush Preset.
15. Repeat this process with the Bird 2 Brush, only vary the settings for each slightly.
16. Once both Presets are saved, use them to draw some birds.
17. Toggle the visibility of the Birds Layer off and on to see the changes.
18. Save your file and close it.

Conclusion

This lab tutorial demonstrated several key tools and techniques we can use to retouch landscapes and places. As with the last tutorial, it should be noted that there are many other things we can do, and this tutorial is by no means an exhaustive example of everything Photoshop can do in this regard. It is also worth mentioning that there are several different ways Photoshop can be used to achieve the same result. This tutorial only shows some of the many, diversified paths that we can take to achieve the same end.Try practicing this tutorial on your own, and see if you can complete it. Remember, do not hesitate to ask your instructor for guidance along the way!