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If you are using the Windows platform, you can also rotate images while in the Organizer. Simply select the Rotate Left or Rotate Right icons at the bottom left of the screen. (You can also use the keyboard commands Ctrl+Left arrow or Ctrl+Right arrow. You can also use the rotate controls at the bottom of the Auto Fix window (Edit > Auto Fix Window), but if you are working on a JPEG image, your edited image will be slightly degraded because it will be recompressed and saved as a JPEG when you exit. (See the following note).
Regardless of how you do it, don’t worry if you rotate your image the wrong way. Most of the time you can undo your mistake by rotating your image until you get it right or by using one of the various Undo controls and trying again (“What Do You Do When You Mess Up?” earlier in this section).
| Note : If you start with a JPEG file, rotate the image as I have described, and then save the final version in the JPEG file format, the saved image can become slightly degraded. This is because every time you decompress, change, and then compress a JPEG file, there is a slight loss of quality. Although the effect is minimal, it is cumulative.the more times you open, change, and close a JPEG, the more you’ll degrade the image (another reason to leave your original image intact and always do a File Save As of your edited work). This is not an issue if you rotate and then save your file as a PSD or TIFF or other lossless file format. |
Look at the image in Figure 2.3. It’s a nicely composed scene, but something is wrong. It looks “flat” and suffers from a poor distribution of tonal values and poor color saturation. The hang glider blends into the sky without strong distinction. In the case of this photo—taken with a digital camera—it’s a matter of a wrong exposure. My autoexposure exposed for the sky and not for the hang glider. Sometimes the quality of light will make a digital image look flat. Think fog or haze.
Figure 2.3: Before applying Smart Fix.
I use one of three methods to improve images that suffer from this “dull” syndrome: Smart Fix, Auto Levels, or Levels. All three methods are available in Quick Fix or Standard Edit.
If you prefer to remain in the Organizer (Windows only), you can try using Edit > Auto Fix Photo from the Organizer menu bar, or Ctrl+Shift+I. You can also try the Auto Fix controls (Edit > Auto Fix Window from the Organizer menu bar). If you don’t get satisfying results with these methods, switch to either Standard Edit or Quick Fix and try one of the methods outlined later in this section. (In Chapter 11, I’ll explain a more powerful, yet complex way of using adjustment layers and masking to fix more problematic images).
Calibrate Your DisplayTo get the most out of your digital images, you’ll need to calibrate your monitor and make sure that when it comes to color and brightness, you are at least in the ballpark. How else will you know how much contrast or brightness to add to your carefully optimized image, or how will you know when your colors are right? If the monitor is off, there is no way to predict what the image will look like when it is printed. If you are really into precision, it pays to spend a few hundred dollars and get a sophisticated calibration device that attaches to your monitor and physically measures the colors and brightness. These products produce a color profile that can be applied to compatible desktop printers for even more consistent results. The following are two popular products that include a colorimeter and profiling software:
A less expensive way that requires just software and your own eyes is to use the Adobe Gamma utility found in Photoshop Elements’ Goodies folder (Windows only). If you are using a Mac, use the OS X Display Calibrator Assistant found in the Utilities folder. Both utilities walk you step-by-step through the process of calibrating your monitor. They also produce a color profile that can be applied to desktop printers. Before you proceed with either Adobe Gamma or the Mac OS X Display Calibrator Assistant, keep the following in mind:
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Smart Fix
Figure 2.4 (left) shows what happens when I apply Smart Fix and its default settings to the hang glider shot. Smart Fix adjusts for lighting, color, and contrast all at once and can be quite effective for some images but not at all for others.
Figure 2.4: Smart Fix applied at default settings (left). Smart Fix boosted about 75 percent (right).
To apply Smart Fix, use one of these methods:
In Quick Fix mode, click the Smart Fix button located in the upper right of the Control Center, below the rotate commands. A status bar at the bottom of the Quick Fix window informs you of the progress. If you aren’t satisfied with the results, click the Reset button located near the After version of your image. You can also use the keyboard command Ctrl+Z / +Z.
In Standard Edit mode, choose Smart Fix from the Enhance menu (Enhance > Auto Smart Fix).
In this example, there is improvement. But I can do better with Smart Fix by increasing the amount of correction:
In Quick Fix mode, boost the strength of Smart Fix via the slider located below the Smart Fix command.
In Standard Edit mode, use the Enhance menu (Enhance > Adjust Smart Fix). In the dialog box, just move the slider over until you get the results you want, or type in a percentage from 0–200 percent. If you select Auto, the fix amount will automatically adjust to 100 percent.
Figure 2.4 (right) shows what happens when I slide the Smart Fix setting in Quick Fix by about 130 percent. Much better. (Each hash mark on the slider is equivalent to 50 percent). After you determine the proper amount of correction by using the slider, click the Commit button located at the top of the Smart Fix box, next to the words General Fixes. If you can’t find an adjustment that works, click the Cancel button . The Commit and Cancel icons appear only after you adjust the slider amount. They are not available when you use the Auto option. You can also select any of the other options in the Control Center, and your Smart Fix adjustment will automatically be committed. Note that the Reset button found above the After view is dimmed until you either Commit or Cancel the Smart Fix adjustment.
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Created: March 27, 2003
Revised: November 30, 2004
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