Luminance masks sound like the perfect solution to a perennial problem – restricting masks to specific brightness ranges. But how useful are they really?
Featured posts
Welcome to the Life after Photoshop archive of 'Featured' posts. These are favourite articles or tutorials that appear in the carousel at the top of the home page.
Preset picks: Analog Efex Pro Double Exposures
Analog Efex Pro’s double exposure tool is one of the features that makes this program unique. Here’s a breakdown of how its Double Exposure presets work and how they combine double exposures with other effects.
Recreating Kodak HIE black and white infra-red film digitally
Kodak HIE infra-red film was one of my favorite films, delivering dense black skies, dreamy soft highlights and heavy grain. Can I get the same effect digitally?
Selections and masks: what do they do, what’s the difference?
Selections and masks are subtly different, and the ‘parametric’ masks in non-destructive editors give more flexibility than ever.
Lightroom Color Grading tool: how does it work and is it useful?
I have to admit I wasn’t massively impressed by the Color Grading panel when it was added to Lightroom. It looked like it was replacing the Split Toning panel with something less focused and more complicated. I was wrong!
Color Efex Pro’s B/W Conversion filter is surprisingly good
Color Efex Pro might not be your first choice for black and white conversions when the Nik Collection also has Silver Efex Pro and Analog Efex Pro, but if you want strong results fast, it might be just what you need.
Open in Camera Raw: the Lightroom alternative right under your nose!
Adobe Bridge and Camera Raw make a great alternative to Lightroom, with all the same editing tools but in a simpler workflow with no tiresome imports, just ‘live’ image browsing and editing.
Volume distortion: this is what it looks like and this tool can fix it
Volume distortion (or volumetric distortion) is not a familiar term to most photographers, but it’s what makes ultra-wide shots look distorted at the edges, and it can be fixed… by the right software.
ON1 Effects 2022 review
Verdict 4.8 stars: ON1 Effects 2022 is a standalone version of the Effects module in ON1 Photo RAW. The effects and tools are excellent, and this is a cheaper proposition that can also fit perfectly with your existing workflow.
The Lightroom Select Subject mask tool and how it works
Lightroom’s masking tools have had a major overhaul. The old Adjustment Brush, Linear Gradient and Radial Gradient tools are still there, but they’ve been joined by new Select Subject and Select Sky AI masking tools and Color Range, Luminance Range and Depth range tools. Here’s how Select Subject works.