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Tonal Mapping And Faux HDR Effects In Photoshop Elements 9 - Tutorial
Tonal Mapping And Faux HDR Effects In Photoshop Elements 9 - Tutorial

Tonal Mapping And Faux HDR Effects In Photoshop Elements 9 - Tutorial
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Tonal Mapping And Faux HDR Effects In Photoshop Elements 9 - Tutorial
Adapted from "Adobe Photoshop Elements 9.0 Maximum Performance" by Mark Galer and Dr. Abhijit Chattaraj.

In this tutorial Mark Galer demonstrates how to give your photographs a ‘tonal mapping’ or ‘Faux HDR’ treatment to create a signature style. Mark Galer shows you how to boost detail by pushing some adjustments in Photoshop Elements 9 to the max.

High Dynamic Range - HDR - In Photoshop Elements 8 TutoriaTonal Mapping And Faux HDR Effects In Photoshop Elements 9 - Tutorialal

High Dynamic Range - HDR - In Photoshop Elements 8 TutoriaTonal Mapping And Faux HDR Effects In Photoshop Elements 9 - Tutorialal

The final effect is one where the image seems to be part photograph/part illustration. This treatment is also available as an automated Photoshop action that can be downloaded from www.markgaler.com.

High Dynamic Range - HDR - In Photoshop Elements 8 TutoriaTonal Mapping And Faux HDR Effects In Photoshop Elements 9 - Tutorialal

Step 1
This technique works best if the very bright areas of the photograph are darkened using and adjustment. Select the Magic Wand tool from the Tools panel. Use the default Tolerance of 32 and remove the check from the Contiguous box in the Options bar. Click on the sky to select it and if there is a portion of the sky that remains unselected, hold down the Shift key and click again to add this area to the selection.

Note > The Magic Wand is superior to the Quick Selection tool in this instance, as it will select all of the tiny islands of sky in the balcony of the palace.

High Dynamic Range - HDR - In Photoshop Elements 8 TutoriaTonal Mapping And Faux HDR Effects In Photoshop Elements 9 - Tutorialal

Step 2
Select the Selection Brush tool in the Tools panel and choose the Mask option in the Options bar. Set the Hardness and Overlay settings to 100% and then paint over any of the areas that do not want to be made darker in the next step.

High Dynamic Range - HDR - In Photoshop Elements 8 TutoriaTonal Mapping And Faux HDR Effects In Photoshop Elements 9 - Tutorialal

Step 3
Click on the Create new fill or adjustment layer icon at the base of the Layers panel and choose Levels. Drag the Black Input slider underneath the histogram to the start of the histogram and move the central Gamma slider to the right to darken the sky significantly.

High Dynamic Range - HDR - In Photoshop Elements 8 TutoriaTonal Mapping And Faux HDR Effects In Photoshop Elements 9 - Tutorialal

Step 4
The edge of the mask will need some work. Go to Select > Refine Edge and choose the blue Standard viewing icon. Use the keyboard shortcut (Ctrl + H (PC) or Command + H (Mac) to hide the selection edges. Soften the edge by raising the Feather slider to 2.0 pixels and raise the Contract/Expand slider to +10 to hide any halo that may be visible along the edge. Select OK.

High Dynamic Range - HDR - In Photoshop Elements 8 TutoriaTonal Mapping And Faux HDR Effects In Photoshop Elements 9 - Tutorialal

Step 5
Stamp the visible elements to a new layer using the keyboard shortcut Ctrl + Alt + Shift + E (PC) or Command + Option + Shift + E (Mac) and set the mode of this layer to Soft Light. Go to Enhance > Adjust Lighting > Shadows/Highlights and raise all three sliders to +100 and then select OK.

High Dynamic Range - HDR - In Photoshop Elements 8 TutoriaTonal Mapping And Faux HDR Effects In Photoshop Elements 9 - Tutorialal

Step 6
Double-click on the Merge Visible layer and rename it ‘Shadows/Highlights’. Create another Merge Visible layer and again set the mode to Soft Light. Go to Filter > Other > High Pass and raise the Radius slider high until the apparent depth of the image increases (around 60 pixels for this project image).

High Dynamic Range - HDR - In Photoshop Elements 8 TutoriaTonal Mapping And Faux HDR Effects In Photoshop Elements 9 - Tutorialal

Step 7
Next we will create a vignette to darken the outer edges of the image to increase the drama further. Select the Rectangular Marquee tool from the Tools panel. Enter a 200 pixel Feather in the Options bar and then drag from the upper left hand corner of the image to the lower right-hand corner. From the Select menu choose Inverse so that the outer edges of the image are selected.

High Dynamic Range - HDR - In Photoshop Elements 8 TutoriaTonal Mapping And Faux HDR Effects In Photoshop Elements 9 - Tutorialal

Step 8
From the Edit menu choose Copy Merged (we are copying what we can see rather than what is on the active layer) and then from the Edit menu again choose Paste. Set the mode of this new layer to Multiply and adjust the Opacity of the layer if required. Double-click on the name of this new layer and call it ‘Vignette’.

High Dynamic Range - HDR - In Photoshop Elements 8 TutoriaTonal Mapping And Faux HDR Effects In Photoshop Elements 9 - Tutorialal

Step 9
If you like your treatment crunchy rather than smooth, switch off the visibility of this background copy layer and select the Vignette layer to make this the active layer. Create a Merge Visible layer (see step 6) and then go to Filter > Sharpen > Adjust Sharpness. Raise the Amount slider to 200 and reduce the Radius slider to 0.5 and then select OK.

High Dynamic Range - HDR - In Photoshop Elements 8 TutoriaTonal Mapping And Faux HDR Effects In Photoshop Elements 9 - Tutorialal

Step 10
This whole process is available as a Maximum Performance action that can be download from www.markgaler.com. The action has to be placed in the Actions folder and then it can be accessed from the Action Player in the Guided Edit section of the Edit workspace. A one-click solution for people in a hurry!

This is an Extract from Adobe Photoshop Elements 9.0 Maximum Performance. Learn more tips and tricks from Photoshop expert Mark Galer.

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Topaz Adjust 4 Photoshop Plugin — Creative Exposure, Detail Enhancement, And Color Control Create Stunning HDR EffectsTopaz Labs has announced a major upgrade of the Topaz Adjust Photoshop plug-in, which features new presets, a completely redesigned user interface, and upgraded image processing algorithms. With these improvements, Adjust 4 offers a new way for photographers to improve their photos quickly. Topaz Adjust 4 is a free upgrade for existing customers and retails for $49.99. It is compatible with Windows and Intel-based Macs.

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Topaz Adjust 4 uses unique technology that automatically adapts to different image conditions like light, detail, and color," said Albert Yang, president of Topaz Labs and original designer of Topaz Adjust. “This has important implications. Other tools make the same standard adjustments to every single photo they're applied to. In contrast, Topaz Adjust 4 tailors the adjustments specifically to the photo in question. This gives it the flexibility to ditch the cookie cutter enhancements and create some truly fantastic and unique photo effects.”

Topaz Adjust HDR Plugin

Digital photographers regularly spend hours post-processing their photos to get the perfect look. Topaz Adjust 4 makes this process easy by merging this extraordinary adaptive technology with many presets and an intuitive workflow. It’s an invaluable tool for photographers who demand quality photo effects, fast. In addition to the effects that Topaz Adjust is already known for — like pseudo-HDR, detail enhancement, and creative exposure — Topaz Adjust 4 includes a wide variety of new customizable presets that range from mild to extreme. This gives photographers a new flexibility to quickly choose and fine-tune the exact look that they are going for in any given photo.

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newly released Adobe Photoshop Elements 10Adobe Photoshop Elements 10 for Windows and Mac is available now at www.adobe.com. Photoshop Elements 10 Windows and Mac is available for a suggested retail price of US$99.99. New upgrade pricing allows past Photoshop Elements users of any version to purchase Photoshop Elements 10 for US$79.99.

Powered by the same engine as Adobe Photoshop, the industry standard for digital imaging, Photoshop Elements 10 utilizes intelligent technology that makes it easy to give everyday photos a boost. Photoshop technology is brought to life through easy to follow steps for achieving stunning photo effects in an approachable way with new Guided Edits, which are very popular and successful.

These include innovations such as creating a shallow depth of field or designing a fun layout of snapshots with Picture Stack, or even adding a dream-like diffused glow with the Orton effect.

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Visit our Photoshop Elements 10 Resource Center. You can also signup to download a free 30-day trial of Elements 10. Also see our Photoshop Elements 10 Tutorials page, featuring a special Tilt Shift Tutorial from Photoshop expert Mark Galer.

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Adobe Photoshop Elements 8.0 Maximum PerformanceUsing a unique combination of step by step projects, movie tutorials and sample images, Adobe Photoshop Elements 8.0 Maximum Performance guides the reader through the most powerful photo editing tools that Elements has to offer. Discussing and demonstrating the skills and know-how to create professional-quality results with this budget-priced software. Whether optimizing photographs for printing, enhancing images for maximum impact, or creating impressive, seamless montages, Adobe Photoshop Elements 8.0 Maximum Performance will enable any aspiring digital professional to get the maximum performance from the credit crunch approved software.

The package is complted with an astonishingly comprehensive DVD packed with over 7 hours of movie tutorials, 100+ sample images, a stock photo gallery as well as automated actions to get even more out of the software.

Mark Galer is a Senior Lecturer in photography at the Royal Melbourne Institute of Technology, Australia. He has written numerous top-selling books, including Elements 8.0 Maximum Performance, and is an Official Adobe Ambassador for Photoshop and Photoshop Elements.

Adobe Releases Photoshop Elements 8 for Windows and Mac

Photoshop Elements 8 software available for Windows and MacAdobe Systems today announced Adobe Photoshop Elements 8 software available for Windows and Mac, providing automated and intelligent photo-editing technology across both platforms. With the newest version of the No. 1 selling consumer photo-editing software, Adobe continues to make cutting-edge innovation accessible to users who want powerful yet easy-to-use tools to tell compelling stories with their photos.

Adobe Photoshop Elements 8 for Windows
With the enhanced Organizer, Windows users of Adobe Photoshop Elements 8 can easily manage media and find photo and video clips even faster than before. The new Auto-Analyzer automatically analyzes and tags media so users can quickly find the most interesting and highest quality content and People Recognition identifies people in photos, becoming more intelligent over time, as it learns to associate names and faces. Also, consumers can now automatically synch all their media across multiple computers. Find out more about Photoshop Elements 8 & Premiere Elements 8 at the Adobe site.

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Media Lab Release SiteGrinder Basic and SiteGrinder ProThere often seems to be a strict division of labor within the world of web design and development. Creative professionals tend to stick to the Photoshop domain, while those well-versed in scripting are left to the task of implementing their work. Indeed, the two realms are quite different from each other, to which any of us even vaguely familiar with either can easily attest.

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By generating web pages directly from Photoshop, you'll be able to spend much more time on the creative end of the spectrum, since you'll know right off the bat how well particular designs will translate to the web. No more going back to the Photoshop drawing board after getting a phone call from your development team, telling you that what you had envisioned doesn't have a chance of being displayed on the web. You can immediately visually and interactively test your designs, which permits you to then make changes to either esthetics or functions while it's still relatively early on in the design process.

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Mac OS X and Windows versions of the SiteGrinder unlockable demo are available now via download. SiteGrinder can be ordered from Media Lab's online store.

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