| |
| |
|
Photography Information |
|
|
|
Sepia Toned Prints from Your Colour or Black and White Photos - 5 Minute Digital Fix
Quite often I will have clients bring in old photographs of their "elder" relatives that were taken before colour photography was around. This generally means that the photos in question are either black and white or, in many cases, the photos have been tinted, usually a muddy brown colour better known as Sepia. Some clients will ask for their restored photos to be produced in pure black and white even though the original is in Sepia. Others will ask me to retain the warm Sepia tone and in fact there are some clients who bring in old black and white prints who ask that we produce a Sepia toned restored version because they like the "old world" feel that a Sepia toned print gives. Not only can you create a Sepia print from your old black and white photographs, but it is just as easy to create that "old world" feel from a colour photograph as well. The example image on our web-site is a simple colour floral arrangement which we will apply a Sepia tone to using Adobe Photoshop CS. Step 1 After opening the image up in Adobe Photoshop CS, the first step is to remove all of the colour information from the image by choosing Image-> Mode-> Greyscale. All of the colour information will have been removed leaving you with a pleasing black and white photograph with, hopefully, a full range of tones from pure white to pure black. Step 2 If your image appears a little flat, or is too dark or light, then use the Image->Adjustment->Levels command to "tweak" the left and right sliders below the histogram (looks like a black "mountain range") to get the desired result prior to toning. Step 3 Because we set the image "mode" to Greyscale in the previous step we do not have the ability to re-apply any "colour tinting" while the image is left as is. So the next step is to select Image-> Mode-> Duotone. Step 4 This is where the fun really begins ... Make sure the upper left "Type" option pull-down is set to "Duotone". This will activate Inks 1 and 2 field entries. Step 5 You will now be able to select two colours (hence the term "duotone") which will then be applied to your photo to produce the toned effect we are looking for. Click on Ink 1's colour swatch and select a "black" colour of your choosing. I generally set Ink 1 to "PANTONE Black C". Step 6 Now click on Ink 2's colour swatch and select a "warm reddish brown" colour of your choosing. I generally set Ink 2 to "PANTONE 145 C" (which looks like a nice "warm mustard brown" to me), but you can select any brown (or in fact any colour at all) and watch what effect a particular colour has on toning your photo. As you will see we have been able to turn a colour photo into a very pleasing Sepia toned print in less than five minutes using the "Duotone" feature in Photoshop. But we are not quite finished yet ... As you have seen you have total control of the tone colour by changing the value of the Ink 2 setting. What if the tone colour is correct but the photo is still too dark or too light and/or flat? Step 7 You can fine tune the final result by applying a "Hue/Saturation" adjustment layer. You will notice that if you try to add a "Hue/Saturation" adjustment layer to your duotone print it is "greyed out". You now need to revert back to a mode of "RGB Colour" by selecting Image-> Mode-> RGB Color. You will then be able to add a "Hue/Saturation" adjustment layer and make final adjustments to the overall appearance of your Sepia tone print. By the way ... Want to know where the term Sepia comes from? Sepia comes from the Greek word for the rich reddish-brown pigment obtained from a fluid that is secreted by the cuttlefish from their ink sac. The cuttlefish is a relative of the squid and octopus family (cephalopods). If you find the steps being taken are a little hard to understand in this text based article, you can click on the link at the end of this article to see the same method explained on our website with the aid of example graphical images. © Gary Wilkinson 2005 - All Rights Reserved You can see this method complete with example images at Sepia Tone Prints from Colour or Black and White Photos Feel free to re-print this article provided that all hyperlinks and author biography are retained as-is. Gary Wilkinson is a photographer, photographic restorer and the owner of a photographic retail business. He is also the publisher of the http://www.restoring-photos-made-easy.com website, where other methods of correcting common photographic restoration problems are discussed.
MORE RESOURCES:
Photography - Google News |
|
|
|
RELATED ARTICLES
10 Things You Can Do to Protect Your Photographs from Infringement While it would be nice to live in a house where you don't have to lock the door, it's not practical these days. Likewise, here are 10 things you can do to help safeguard your images from being stolen. Light and Depth of Field With such a fantastic device as the digital camera for the recreation of magic in arts, a lot of care needs to be taken so as to maintain the perfection of the end product. This perfection is not only obtained by the artistic feeling of the photographer but also with the intricate knowledge of every minute aspect of the medium of creation of art (in this case the digital camera). Digital Cameras vs. Film Cameras- the debate goes on One of the biggest debates in the photography world is whether digital cameras are better or film cameras better? The answer to this question cannot be answered in a simple yes or no. There are several issues which need to be considered while answering this question. Is Film Better than Digital for Weddings? As a professional wedding photographer I get this question asked more than anything else. Rarely will somebody ask me about my wedding photography education, awards, or professional memberships. Digital Cameras & Resolution While analyzing any camera, one of the most important qualities of a photograph that a person seeks, is resolution. This word itself needs a brief discussion before progressing onto its implication upon a digital camera. How To Reduce Red Eye The Easy Way With Any Pro Or Point & Shot Camera There is one simple technique any body can do to eliminate red eye. It can be done with any type of flash on any camera because red eye only happens when using flash. How To Make A Time-Lapse Video With Your Digital Video Camera Getting the most out of your digital video camera can mean being able to create some really cool stuff. You just have to step outside the manual a bit and find the cool things you can do with your digital video camera and your editing software. How a Digital Camera Works The digital camera is not something of a magic box that came out of the blue and made wonders! The digital camera is very much like the conventional analog camera, but the technology has been altered. It also contains most of the associated components that the conventional camera contains, like lens and a shutter for letting in light, however instead of reaching a photosensitive film, the light is made to fall upon array of image sensors or photosensitive cells. Tips for Taking Better Vacation Photos Photos are a great way to share your travel experiences with family and friends. Here are a few suggestions to help you capture vacation memories you will treasure for years to come. The Well-Dressed Photographer - Summer Outdoor photographers shoot year round. That includes the hot summer. Passionate Organizing: How To Create A System To Organise Your Digital And Traditional Photos Digital photography promises much. Store your photographs on your computer, print them when you want, email them to friends and family - share them to your heart's content. Digital Camera Metering Looking at the most intricate details of the digital camera as a technologically advanced device a lot of functions come into play. Such s a point is that of the digital camera metering. Photography Courses Online There are also some excellent online courses available and some of them are free, just type "Photography free online courses" into your search engine. Morguefile is an example they offer sound technical advice on a variety of subjects, as well as aspects of types of photography, it is a good point to start with, showing the resources Jodie Coston, a freelance photographer, has made available online, after a series of classes she gave. Get The Most Out of Your Digital Camera Today! Point and click. The new life of digital cameras gives us all the opportunity to capture images as we go. Tips for Better Vacation Photos Photos are a great way to share your travel experiences with family and friends. Here are a few suggestions to help you capture vacation memories you will treasure for years to come. Wedding Photography: How to Become a Successful Wedding Photographer Once in while I receive e-mails or phone calls from aspiring or beginner wedding photographers asking me for advise on how to become successful in the wedding field. My first question is always what their motivation is to become a wedding photographer. Removing Spot Scratches in Your Treasured Photos - 5 Minute Digital Fix Probably one of the most common problems you will be faced with in doing any type of digital photo restoration work will be to do with spot scratches on your old photos.When we first look at those old black and white or early colour photos they often have small scratch marks and spots on them from being stored incorrectly. Getting the Most From Your Digital Camera Memory Card Imagine taking your new digital camera on a vacation and then realizing that you can barely click 20-30 images at a go. So, what do you do to avoid such a situation? The answer to this question lies in the purchase of an extra memory card or two. Memories That Get Lost How many people have pictures in a shoe box? In a drawer? Inside a book? Sitting in the garage?Imagine 40 years from now. Someone will get those pictures and they will say: Who are these people? What are they doing in this boat?They won't have a clue about the stories that those pictures tell and they will probably throw part of your story away. The Paradigm: Going Digital As you might imagine the paradigm shift from traditional film-based photography to digital is rapidly creating new opportunities to learn and grow. The photography industry is moving at an incessant pace, and digital cameras sales have surpassed their film-based cousin at an alarming rate each year.
|
| home | site map | Seashell Photography |
| © 2006 |