tutorial #8: colouring (medium level)
operaticingenue requested a tutorial on how I achieved this colouring (particularly #4), and so this is a brief guide on how to make your average dark/brown/yellow screencaps a bit more vivid in colour.
===>
Program used: Photoshop CS2 (transferable for most versions)
Uses selective colour, curves & colour balance.
Please note: This tutorial assumes basic knowledge of your program; not suitable for beginners.
I will however be willing to answer any questions you may have.
1. I started off with this lovely screencap of Cameron by worried_bubble:
2. After cropping it to the size I desired, I ended up with the following base:
3. It's looking a little dark, so I duplicated the base a couple of times at set them to "screen".
In this case, I had three extra screen layers.
It now looks a little washed out, but we'll fix that in a second.
4. I'm going to balance the lightness with a curves layer.
Five points on the RGB channel:
0, 0
71, 71
131, 137
234, 234
255, 255
(first number is input, second is output)
It should be a straight line with a small kink in the middle. Press 'OK' and make sure the curves layer is above your screen layers.
5. Now the fun part, the colouring.
Selective colour layer (relative):
REDS:
cyan: -61
magenta: +39
yellow: +83
YELLOWS:
cyan: -64
magenta: +100
black: -41
NEUTRALS:
cyan: +40
yellow: -25
black: -14
Your subject should now be frighteningly pink:
6. Another selective colour layer (relative):
REDS:
cyan: -38
magenta: -12
yellow: +5
black: +10
YELLOWS:
cyan: +25
yellow: -18
GREENS:
cyan: +40
CYANS:
cyan: +43
BLUES:
cyan: +26
MAGENTAS:
cyan: +22
magenta: -30
black: -20
NEUTRALS:
cyan: +20
magenta: -10
yellow: -12
black: +8
Your subject should hopefully have the pink under control now!
7. Time to present the most amazing of all tools. A colour balance layer:
MIDTONES:
cyan/red: +22
magenta/green: -8
yellow/blue: -38
IT'S MAGIC.
8. Another selective colour layer to control the colour:
YELLOWS:
cyan: -40
yellow: +35
GREENS:
black: +50
CYANS:
cyan: +55
BLUES:
cyan: +55
yellow: -30
MAGENTAS:
cyan: -70
magenta: -15
yellow: +10
black: -20
I'm also going to add a Hue/Sat layer just under the colour balance layer we put in the last step to help with the color:
MASTER:
sat: +20
REDS:
sat: -10
9. Duplicate your base later and drag it to the top of all your layers. Set this to 'Soft Light' at a opacity of about 65%.
This makes the colour, and image as a whole, seem bolder.
10. For the finishing touch, I added this texture (unknown maker) to the top of the layers:
And set it to 'Overlay' at 25%. This brings out the greens & yellows.
I also added another Hue/Sat layer under this texture (increasing master saturation by 25, and decreasing the reds by 18) and adapted the opacity of the earlier screen layers & selective colour layers so the colouring fits the particular screencap.
My final result:
& the PSD file: download here
Comments? Questions?
===>
Program used: Photoshop CS2 (transferable for most versions)
Uses selective colour, curves & colour balance.
Please note: This tutorial assumes basic knowledge of your program; not suitable for beginners.
I will however be willing to answer any questions you may have.
1. I started off with this lovely screencap of Cameron by worried_bubble:
2. After cropping it to the size I desired, I ended up with the following base:
3. It's looking a little dark, so I duplicated the base a couple of times at set them to "screen".
In this case, I had three extra screen layers.
It now looks a little washed out, but we'll fix that in a second.
4. I'm going to balance the lightness with a curves layer.
Five points on the RGB channel:
0, 0
71, 71
131, 137
234, 234
255, 255
(first number is input, second is output)
It should be a straight line with a small kink in the middle. Press 'OK' and make sure the curves layer is above your screen layers.
5. Now the fun part, the colouring.
Selective colour layer (relative):
REDS:
cyan: -61
magenta: +39
yellow: +83
YELLOWS:
cyan: -64
magenta: +100
black: -41
NEUTRALS:
cyan: +40
yellow: -25
black: -14
Your subject should now be frighteningly pink:
6. Another selective colour layer (relative):
REDS:
cyan: -38
magenta: -12
yellow: +5
black: +10
YELLOWS:
cyan: +25
yellow: -18
GREENS:
cyan: +40
CYANS:
cyan: +43
BLUES:
cyan: +26
MAGENTAS:
cyan: +22
magenta: -30
black: -20
NEUTRALS:
cyan: +20
magenta: -10
yellow: -12
black: +8
Your subject should hopefully have the pink under control now!
7. Time to present the most amazing of all tools. A colour balance layer:
MIDTONES:
cyan/red: +22
magenta/green: -8
yellow/blue: -38
IT'S MAGIC.
8. Another selective colour layer to control the colour:
YELLOWS:
cyan: -40
yellow: +35
GREENS:
black: +50
CYANS:
cyan: +55
BLUES:
cyan: +55
yellow: -30
MAGENTAS:
cyan: -70
magenta: -15
yellow: +10
black: -20
I'm also going to add a Hue/Sat layer just under the colour balance layer we put in the last step to help with the color:
MASTER:
sat: +20
REDS:
sat: -10
9. Duplicate your base later and drag it to the top of all your layers. Set this to 'Soft Light' at a opacity of about 65%.
This makes the colour, and image as a whole, seem bolder.
10. For the finishing touch, I added this texture (unknown maker) to the top of the layers:
And set it to 'Overlay' at 25%. This brings out the greens & yellows.
I also added another Hue/Sat layer under this texture (increasing master saturation by 25, and decreasing the reds by 18) and adapted the opacity of the earlier screen layers & selective colour layers so the colouring fits the particular screencap.
My final result:
& the PSD file: download here
Comments? Questions?