Photoshop Tutorials | Watts Digital Imaging Blog - Part 4

Color Management 101, Part 1: Monitor Profiles in Photoshop

Posted on June 24, 2008November 28, 2022 by John Watts

08/01/22 – This subject has been updated in a new post – WITH VIDEO: https://blog.main.wattsdigital.com/color-management-101-for-photographers/ By request, I am going to do a series of three posts over the next several days that should get you on the road to proper Color Management, allowing you to print with a great degree of consistency and repeatability, whether it is on your home inkjet printer or through a custom print lab. It allows you to print what you see on your monitor with a large degree of accuracy. The old adage, “WYSIWYG” (What You See Is What You Get) readily applies

The First Book Review for my Photoshop E-book…

Posted on June 9, 2008June 9, 2008 by John Watts

Here’s a link to the first Book Review for my Photoshop E-Book, “Photofinishing with Photoshop” – – enjoy! Click Here for the Book Review… By the way, be sure to support the fine folks at Apogee – – Click here or on their logo above to visit their site. Cheers, John 🙂

Judging Photo Contests can be interesting…

Posted on June 3, 2008September 1, 2021 by John Watts

Updated 09/01/21, and still relevant today … 06/03/2008 – A few weeks ago, I was again privileged to be a Judge at the San Diego County Fair Exhibition of Photography, always one of my favorite contests to judge (and one of the largest!). It is always lots of fun, and I get to spend time with other pros in the industry whom I haven’t seen all year. This year I judged in 2 categories: Nature (Plants) and Underwater Photography. My fellow judges in that category were two individuals; one that I’ve known for over 25 years,

The Photoshop E-Book is Available for Download…

Posted on May 29, 2008March 10, 2022 by John Watts

03/10/22 – This post has been updated: https://wattsdigital.com/photoshop-book-e-book My Photoshop E-Book, “Photofinishing with Photoshop”, is now available for purchase and immediate download. It is reasonably priced at $30. Click Here to Purchase and Download the E-Book… Have you ever wanted to learn how to make stunning photographic prints at your home or office? Have you tried, but not been happy with the results? Then this unique E-Book is for you. This is not just another Photoshop E-Book: It is unique because I focus on what makes a good color print, and I will show you how to

Working with Palettes in Photoshop

Posted on May 3, 2008January 16, 2024 by John Watts

07/01/21 – although this info is generally still accurate, this post has been further updated in a new post, WITH VIDEO: https://blog.main.wattsdigital.com/photoshop-cs6cc-setting-up-your-workspace-with-panels-with-video/ _________ Hello to all….What are Palettes? Think of Palettes as miniature workspaces, each accomplishing a different function. There are almost two dozen different palettes available to you. If you are new to Photoshop, then I would suggest, in the spirit of K.I.S.S. (Keep It Super Simple), that you start with just seven, and add those you deem necessary as you gain more experience. Below is a representation of the palettes I would suggest that

The Power of Adjustment Layers in Photoshop, Part II

Posted on April 29, 2008April 2, 2020 by John Watts

04/02/20 Updated here: https://blog.main.wattsdigital.com/?p=2283 ___________________ Here is a continuation of Part I concerning Adjustment Layers in Photoshop – – If you did not read the first post, I’d encourage you to do so. Two Ways to Create a New Layer: You can create a new Adjustment Layer by clicking on the “Create a New Adjustment Layer” button. An Adjustment Layer comes “pre–loaded” with a tool or function, as well as a Layer Mask (see this post and this post for more on Layer Masks). You will create your new layers with this button most of the

The Power of Adjustment Layers in Photoshop, Part I

Posted on April 27, 2008October 13, 2022 by John Watts

03/30/20 – this post has been updated: https://blog.main.wattsdigital.com/?p=2283 ________________________ Adjustment Layers are one of the more powerful features of Photoshop. The purpose of Adjustment Layers is to allow you to make adjustments to your image, both globally and locally, in a non-destructive manner. By the way, I define “destructive” as causing pixelization and posterization to your digital image, resulting in bad prints. Think of Adjustment Layers as “clear plastic overlays” over your original image, with each layer giving you the ability to control a particular aspect of your final image, such as contrast, color correction, and so on. In addition

How to Improve your Images by Cropping in Photoshop

Posted on April 11, 2008December 23, 2021 by John Watts

10/01/21 – This post has been updated: https://blog.main.wattsdigital.com/?p=3561 So you’ve been out taking pictures and you’ve captured the killer image: Your exposure is spot-on, your lighting is right, but it’s missing something. How can you easily focus more on the main subject of your shot and eliminate unwanted objects? The answer is to experiment with cropping. In Photoshop, cropping is accomplished with the Crop Tool. You can find it in the Toolbox. In the Options Bar, you can select your desired width, height, and DPI. To start, put your mouse cursor in the upper left portion of

Clipping and Gamut Warnings in Photoshop and RAW

Posted on April 4, 2008October 31, 2023 by John Watts

12/01/22 – although this post is generally still accurate, it’s been further updated in a new post: https://blog.main.wattsdigital.com/photoshop-cc-soft-proofing-plus-rgb-color-spaces/ • Further info on RAW files can be found in these 2 posts: https://blog.main.wattsdigital.com/the-philosophy-of-raw/ https://blog.main.wattsdigital.com/video-camera-raw-12-3-radical-changes-to-the-user-interface/ ___________ 04/04/2008 – Here’s a great question from one of my clients, Adam Orr: John, I have worked with the CS3 Raw Converter, but couldn’t find a way to run the Color Gamut Warning until finishing with the Raw Converter and opening in Photoshop. Am I missing something? When I click on a Raw file, the converter opens and allows me to use all of the

A Better Way to Sharpen in Photoshop – Part I

Posted on March 17, 2008August 23, 2022 by John Watts

October 29, 2019 – Updated – although the info is still accurate, it’s been further updated here: https://blog.main.wattsdigital.com/a-better-way-to-sharpen-in-photoshop-2/ _____________ Having challenges getting your image sharpened properly in Photoshop? Try using this technique rather than the generic Sharpening tools, which are not as effective and prone to over-sharpening. In my opinion, Over-sharpening is one of the two most abused tools in Photoshop (see this post). Give yourself an edge and try this method – it is much harder to accidentally over-sharpen your image. This is a non-destructive technique. Without getting into total “techno-geek propeller-head” mode, it sharpens just

Photoshop Layer Masks – Thinking “Inside” the (Layer Mask Thumbnail) Box – Part II

Posted on March 11, 2008April 2, 2020 by John Watts

04/02/20 Updated here: https://blog.main.wattsdigital.com/?p=2283 _________________ In the last post, I talked about the purpose of a layer mask: To hide or reveal portions of a layer. If you did not read the last post, I would strongly urge you to do so, and to study the accompanying image. Now I’ll talk about how to create and use a layer mask. So, where do you find or how do you create layer masks? Three places: When you create an adjustment layer, Photoshop automatically adds a “Layer Mask Thumbnail” to your layer (the white box on the right). For a new layer

Photoshop Layer Masks – Thinking “Inside” the (Layer Mask Thumbnail) Box – Part I

Posted on March 6, 2008April 2, 2020 by John Watts

04/02/20 Updated here: https://blog.main.wattsdigital.com/?p=2283 ___________________________ One of the beauties of Photoshop is the ability to make changes locally, not just globally. There are two main techniques to “localize” your changes – one is to make a “selection” using tools such as the Magic Wand or Lasso tools, then creating an adjustment layer to make your changes to that selection. The other technique, and one that can be far quicker, is by using Layer Masks. The purpose of of a Layer Mask is to hide or reveal portions of a layer. It can be used instead of or

Photoshop Speed Keys: Instant Gratification

Posted on February 23, 2008December 14, 2021 by John Watts

12/15/21 – This post has been updated, click here: https://blog.main.wattsdigital.com/not-a-fan-of-photoshop-speed-keys-here-are-the-10-essential-ones/ _____________ We live in an “Instant Gratification” world – Some things that we get instantly are good, and some are bad. Here’s my contribution to the “good” instant gratification – – My favorite Photoshop Speed Keys. Once you start using speed keys, you may never use menus again for a particular function. I have gotten in the habit of keeping my left hand hovering over the keyboard, ready to use the speed keys at a moment’s notice. By the way, if you use a function

Judging your Color in Photoshop and Digital Printing

Posted on February 20, 2008September 9, 2021 by John Watts

Updated 09/09/21, and still relevant today … _______________ “The color in my print doesn’t look right … ” How many of us have heard this from other photographers, or have said this about our own prints? Let’s go over some basic of Color – then you can color correct with more confidence and accuracy! So what is Color? The dictionary defines it as the quality of an object or substance with respect to light reflected by the object, usually determined visually by measurement of hue, saturation, and brightness of the reflected light. Three

Straighten the Horizon in your Digital Images using Photoshop CC

Posted on February 6, 2008November 16, 2022 by John Watts

Updated 08/25/21 • More on cropping your image here – WTH VIDEO: https://blog.main.wattsdigital.com/how-to-crop-your-image-in-photoshop-cc/ Is the horizon in your digital image not straight? If not, it can be very distracting. Here’s an easy way to straighten it in Photoshop: 1) Activate the Crop Tool & press the “Straighten” icon in the Options Bar. Clear the “Width, Height, & Resolution” values. 2) While holding down your left mouse button, draw a line along the horizon (or vertical) in your image. 3) When you let up off your mouse button, your image is straightened and cropped so that

How To Put A Watermark on your Image with Photoshop…

Posted on February 1, 2008September 11, 2009 by John Watts

By request, here’s a great way to protect your images – “Watermark” them in Photoshop! Anytime you send out a file or small print of your images to a potential client for review or post your images on the web, you are at risk of someone stealing your images. By putting a simple watermark on your images in Photoshop, you can help reduce this possibility. Here are the steps (I am assuming a basic familiarity with Photoshop): 1) In Photoshop, create a new file. Go to the “File” menu ? “New…”. I’d suggest a Width of 10”, a height of

Printer and Monitor don’t match? Try this …

Posted on January 17, 2008May 30, 2022 by John Watts

05/01/22 – This post has been updated: https://blog.main.wattsdigital.com/color-management-101-for-photographers/ _____________ One of my clients had a question that brought up a common scenario – – Your prints are lighter/darker/ warmer/cooler (pick one) than your monitor. Although one of the services I offer is the creation of custom printer profiles (ALWAYS better than “canned” profiles, and essential for critical work), perhaps the only thing that needs to be done is to properly calibrate and profile your monitor with a colorimeter such as the Gretag-Macbeth Eye-One Display 2 (my favorite)… Here’s an email from Peter Nagainis (www.panartphoto) in San

Photoshop: “Miracle Cure” – or just a Tool?

Posted on March 29, 2007August 30, 2021 by John Watts

Updated 08/30/21, & still relevant today! 03/29/07: “PHOTOSHOP” – the image conjures up in most people’s minds (including some who should know better) a “miracle cure” for all things photographic – just watch an episode of CSI on TV – they can take a postage stamp corner of crappy little cell phone camera output taken 100 yards away, and read the label on the perp’s clothes!! PULEEEEEEEZ! Give me a break! In reality, Photoshop is just a tool – a very powerful tool, but a tool, nonetheless. I think of it as my “digital enlarger” –

Hello, and welcome to my Photoshop blog…

Posted on March 9, 2007September 9, 2021 by John Watts

Updated 09/09/21, and still relevant today … ______________ Ah, Yes – Digital Imaging – Now you, the average Joe or Jane, can take the photographic process from conception to shooting to Photoshopping (since when did that become a verb?) to the final print … Such control! Such freedom! Such Artistic License! Piece of cake – or is it? Digital Photography presents a whole multitude of fantastic options and tools – The challenge is learning how best to use those options and tools without forgetting why we do this – to use your camera as