Should Photoshop use levels or curves for beginners - I?

You learn many Photoshop users who know layer dialog box and then never progress to learn how to use the curves. In this article of Photoshop I give several reasons why you learn, use the curves you will make more an expert with Adobe Photoshop.

What is the difference between levels and curves?

Edit in digital photography, used both the levels and curves of the single most important editing tasks: image-sound control. If you have a photo with less than perfect contrast, i.e., the contrast is either too low or vice versa to high must use some form of sound control. The black and white endpoints which change the tonal range of the image, you can both the levels and curves. You can customize the endpoints the global or a total contrast to change a photo; the method and affect is which of the two commands you want to use the same, depending.

Both commands, you can modify the appearance of intermediate or gray, sounds in between the black and white endpoints. The main difference between the two commands, however, is that a levels adjustment changes proportionally all the sounds in the tonal range; during the curves, you can select which part of the tone scale that you want to customize. A linear adjustment is the levels but the curves are a geometric adjustment (in fact, this difference in the field of the name is and linear curves and geometric). This is a massive difference and with curves rather than levels editing will increase ability on a professional level.

Is the big question, which you should use?

This is quite straightforward if you take into account the following points.

Use levels, if:

Only the endpoints you want to black or white, to global contrast, you lighten or darken want to adjust the entire tonal range. This is normal exposure adjust errors. To you the visual relationship of the values for the nuances to maintain.

Use curves, if:

You want to subtly adjust the visual relationship of sound values. For example facilitate you the lights and you to dark shadow from. This requires usually one ' s ' shaped curve adjustment. Want to customize only the bright tones or only the dark shades. You want the notes in only a small part of which adjust the entire tonal range. You want full control of your tonal editing.

Although a little more practice levels learn the curves is to use, and the fact that everything, from a distance looks like mathematics and geometry half to death shocked many people, you are not really hard to master. If you play with the curves dialog for 10-15 minutes you feel much more comfortable with the process. And don't forget that if you use the curves layer as an adjustment to modify always the impact without damaging your original photography.

Now you can learn all the skills, edit for your photo to Zone2Tone and get a free professional-quality video tutorial needs.

Copyright (c) Les Meehan 2010.

I have written seven Photoshop books and teachers were qualified workshops run for over 20 years. I can be contacted under Les Meehan