- Fixed Image
- example45.jpg (16.68 KiB) Viewed 5532 times
To see this at work (Additive Light), create a new image (480 x 480 pixels) and filled it black. Next create a new layer above that; now create a red circle in it. Now create another new layer, create a blue circle in it. Next create the last layer needed and create a green circle in it. Now change the blending mode of all 3 of the layers with circles to Screen, and move each of them so that they overlap each other, just like in example 3.0 and if you did everything right you should get a white area in the center of it just like that example shows.
So now take the red circle layer and change opacity to 60%, you now have created a light blue tint to your white area. Or just change the blue circle layer opacity to 60%, and now have created a light-yellow tint to your white area. If you change all 3 layers opacity to 60% you would get a dull gray white light. Therefore, it is important that all 3 color channels be set to 100% of their perspective volume of colors, to create a pure white light source.
The purpose of this next lesson is to show you how you can use different blending modes and the original image colors to correct the white balance of an image in the RGB mode. This time we are not going to use levels nor Hue/Saturation/Lightness as options for this lesson.
Open example 4.0 image
Faded Colored Scanned Image
(1st step - equalizing RGB Channels so pure black & white can be reached)
Next go to > Layers > Duplicate
Change the blending mode to Color (Legacy) – Opacity set to 50%
Now you should see a gray scale colored image with a slight gray cast to it.
Next go to > Layers Merge > Merge Down
(2nd step - Removing the slight gray cast.)
Now > Layers > Duplicate
Change blending mode to Overlay
(3rd step – Create a brightness Control layer)
Next go to > Layer > Duplicate
Change the blending mode to Dodge with the opacity set to 21% this setting can vary from image to image
(4th Step – Create a contrast Control layer)
Now > Layers > Duplicate
Change the blending mode to Soft Light with the opacity set to 100%
This is the same as using the two-adjustment layer (levels and Hue/Saturation/Lightness)
Looking at the layer palette, image 5.0, you should see it restored , just like using levels.
- Layer palette of image fixed
The Eye Dropper Tool
Is Your Best Friend: Lesson 3
Working with a color cast:
So, by now you should have a better understanding how the additive color light source works, and how each color channel values treat that light; the red, green, and blue. In the computer world we have values that ranging from 0 to 255 instead of percentages. Therefore, if each primary color has a value of 0%, no colored light source, meaning; it has 0 red in it, or 0 green in it or 0 blue, you would end up with black, there’s no light source. So, this means that white light is made of the 3 primary colors (RGB) with a set value of 255 per channel. As shown in example 3.0 to produce the white light in the middle by using these 3 primary colors.
Option: 1
A good way to determent values of a color cast is to use the eye dropper tool; a simple tool but very powerful at that, it can collect the 3-color light values of any spot on an open image. By using the Dropper Tool, you can get the information you need see and why it is not as white as you would like….
R:255, G:255, B:255, O:255 = 100% White
So now, if your image has a color cast for whatever reason(s), old image, poor scanning setting, a camera setting, or just faded. You can correct this in a few different ways in Paint Shop Pro; one method would be to see what the value of the 3 colors (RGB) channels are and how they relate to the other two-color channels. This way you can see what’s lacking in your image to make it possible to fix the problem. In simple terms, which color channel(s) need to be adjusted and how.
Therefore, let’s say you took a sample reading of an area where the color cast is showing in your image, a place that should appear to be white or very close of being white, and by doing so, this is what your sample area revealed with the Dropper Tool….
R:58, G:13, B:10
With this sample reading, in order to correct the color cast from your image, you would subtract each color value from 255 to find the color value that is needed to correct the overall white balance by correcting each of the RGB channels of light.
(Red Channel) 255 - 58 = 197
(Green Channel) 255 – 13 = 242
(Blue Channel) 255 – 10 = 245
To correct the color cast, you would create a new layer above your image and set the blending mode to Color (Legacy) with the opacity set at 50%, and fill it with that color….
R:197, G:242, B:245 = The opposite color of the Color Cast
And then merge it down
Note if your Color (Legacy) layer is not set at 50% to restore the overall white balance, then you have not found the correct color values for each color channel, and must try again.
Option: 2 – Using example 5.2
In this lesson where’re going to do the same thing as in option 1, but in a different way. This time there is no math calculations needed to find the right color (the opposite one) to use to equal each channel.
- Example
The first thing you need to do is duplicate the image; next apply the Negative Image filter to reverse all colors. Next using the dropper tool, select an area from the top layer, an area that should be white on background layer if fix properly (the selected color should not be solid black). Next make this layer invisible in the layer palette, next you want to create a new layer above that layer with the blending mode set to Color (Legacy) with the opacity set to 50%. Now fill this layer with the color you selected with the Dropper Tool
As I noted before, if your adjustment for the top layer is not set to 50%, you have not correctly reset the white balance, and you are slightly off target. This doesn’t mean you can’t fix the white balance with it. It’s just giving you clues about the sample color you selected doesn’t make all 3-color channel equal in your image. In my example I used here, I selected my color sample under the kitty nose and to the right, where the arrow is pointing in example 5.3, not behind the kitty ear where it is washed out.
