Burn & Dodge - What settings do you use ? [Archive]

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DJW

13-11-2005, 10:21

Bachs

13-11-2005, 10:25

Just reading an article from this months Digital Photo Mag on the above, where they advised the following :-

- Start with Burn Tool with exposure at 2-4% for Shadows
- Use a large soft Brush
- Next use the Dodge Tool with exposure 3-6% for Highlights
- Look to see if you need to burn or dodge the midtiones with exposure 3-5%

Suddenly realised default values for exposure are 50% !!! .

Followed the advice & must admit although it takes longer , the results are a lot more proffesional.

What settings & order do others follow ?

Exactly as above. I didn't even realise there were seperate settings for shadows midtones and highlights until recently.

Here is a shot I took this week (another one of Drum Castle) on which I used d&b extensively.
You would have to see the RAW to appreciate what a difference it made.
It can make your images look a little overprocessed though if your'e not very careful...

http://www.bachs.shutterschool.net/gallery/albums/userpics/10001/IMG_8368bw.jpg

DJW

13-11-2005, 11:08

Good manipulation there Bachs.

Must admit I usually play with Levels, Shadows & Highlights, Curves etc before moving to selective dodge & burn.....as required for all mentioned.

Bachs

13-11-2005, 11:13

Thanks DJW

I use the channel mixer first, using the rule: 'Red likes Blue, Blue likes all, Green doesn't like very much at all'

I also use Image>Adjustments>'Selective Colour' using the black and the white 'Colours'.

I use D&B as a last resort for the finer details and often create a selection around the area I'm D&B'ing to protect the surrounding detail.

I use the techniques above on my B&W conversions but D&B has its uses on colour shots too.

My advice would be...save it for the fine details.

Boon

17-12-2005, 14:21

hi guys
wow, great shot there bachs, looks almost surreal. Would you recommend that i find out more about the channel mixer, and does it work for colour as well as mono?
cheers
stevannie

Bachs

17-12-2005, 18:30

stevannie...
The channel mixer is generally regarded as the best way to do your initial conversion to bw.

I actually made an error in my recent post, it should have read:
'Red likes blue, green likes all, blue doesnt like very much at all'

The green channel contains the least noise and yes Dodge & Burn works equally well on colour images.

As mentioned I do the dodge and burn at the last stage and sometimes hhave to retweak the levels when I'm done.

A good alternative to d&b if you aren't zooming right in on fine detail is to creat a new blank layer above your image layer and fill it with 50% grey (neutral)

paint with white to lighten, paint with black to darken...it's an incredible technique for bringing out hidden detail in the shadows.
Use a low opacity brush and paint with 50% grey to undo.

I also use 'Selective Colour' set to black or white to boost or cut the overall blacks and whites.

DJW

17-12-2005, 19:15

In addition to above re burn/dodge, from recent tutorials I have seen on latest "Digital Photo" Mag CD, the use of selective masked "levels" adjustment. Advantages of this are no loss in detail if used sensibly.

Boon

17-12-2005, 20:52

hi
never used the channel mixer at all, but have a mag cd with some instructions on, i have written down this information, as i hope to put it to the test shortly. Many thanks for the information, and keep the photos comming.
@DJW
been through your gallery too, great pictures there, and are doing a tutorial on the girl on the bed.
stevannie(steve)

EDIT:
as an aside, i have just tried using this method, i am not quite sure if anything is actually happening, if it is, its very slow, i bumped up the percentage, and seems to work better, slow though if you have lots of deep shadow.

DJW

18-12-2005, 10:56

EDIT:
as an aside, i have just tried using this method, i am not quite sure if anything is actually happening, if it is, its very slow, i bumped up the percentage, and seems to work better, slow though if you have lots of deep shadow.

For the Hi Key stuff you can use higher %'s for burning / dodging to start with, but then drop down % for round eyes, lips etc. For normal processing of shots you stick to lower % for greater control......yes it will take longer, but ultimately look better.

Note for larger changes on shots there are curves, shadows & highlights to play with before dropping to selective dodge & burn.

All down to the original shot really & what effect you are trying to achieve. Look forward to seeing your results :)

Boon

18-12-2005, 22:06

Bachs, is there any chance of seeing the original picture before you fiddled with it, that way i could get some idea of what i should be doing, and what can be done.
stevannie

Bachs

18-12-2005, 22:50

Bachs, is there any chance of seeing the original picture before you fiddled with it, that way i could get some idea of what i should be doing, and what can be done.
stevannie

I'm afraid the RAW file is buried away in my DVD archives but here is the colour version. (http://www.bachs.shutterschool.net/gallery/displayimage.php?pid=510&fullsize=1)

Problem is, this was extensively 'fiddled with'

DJW

19-12-2005, 10:21

Bachs, is there any chance of seeing the original picture before you fiddled with it, that way i could get some idea of what i should be doing, and what can be done.
stevannie

When the CD library starts up, lookout for Digital Photo Dec 05, which has following B&W tutorials :-

- Convert from COlour to Mono
- Convert from RAW to B&W the right way
- Simple toning with Colorise
- Advanced toning methods with Duotones
- Create B&W IR style effects
- Create digital sabattier effect
- Add a diffusion effect
- Ass a film grain effect
- Creat classic vignette
- Learn to use the dodge & Burn tools the correct way
- Create a lith print effect