I have been using Photoshop CC for a while now, and although it is pretty similar to CS6, there is something that I find myself doing a lot that I wasn’t able to do in CS6. What I am taking about is adding clarity with the clarity slider available in Camera Raw (and Lightroom) while in Photoshop CC. I have some various different techniques in Photoshop that I use to simulate this slider, and have built actions for them, but in some cases I like the clarity slider better, and miss it in Photoshop.
Image open in Photoshop CC
Above is an image open in Photoshop CC. If I want to add some clarity with the clarity slider, the first thing I need to do is make a merged “pixel based” layer. This is basically a flattened image layer, but on top of all of your other layers keeping them all still in tact. Someday hopefully Adobe will make all of these types of adjustments available as adjustment Layers, but for now adjustments like this, as well as noise reduction, shadow/highlights, sharpening, etc. need to be done on a merged layer like this. To do this, just type “Command(Control)/Option(Alt)/Shift+E”.
Merged layer on top of layer stack
Now you have a merged layer named “layer 1”. Go ahead and rename this layer “Clarity”. The next step is to select the “Camera Raw Filter”, under the “Filter” menu up top. You will see Camera Raw open up within Photoshop, and under the first tab of adjustments is the clarity slider.
Image still in Photoshop CC, with the Camera Raw filter active. Arrow is showing the clarity slider.
Make your adjustment, then press OK. I like to go a bit over what I think will look good for the whole image or the part of the image that I am working on. (+73 in this case).
Clarity adjustment of +73 made to image.
Now you can leave it as-is, or you can adjust the opacity of the layer to your liking. Take it a step further by masking out the layer and painting it in to the areas that you want the adjustment.
Clarity layer with mask and adjustment made to selective parts of the image. These parts can be seen in white a grey on the mask.
Here is the final image with adjustment applied:
Final image with adjustments made.
I demonstrate many similar techniques in my image editing videos available here:
Location: Spokane, Washington
Website: www.chipphillipsphotography.com
Instagram: www.instagram.com/chipphillipsphoto
Facebook: www.facebook.com/chipphillipsphoto
Chip Phillips began his relationship with photography in 2006 when his father gave him his old Pentax Spotmatic film SLR camera. Chip was immediately hooked and soon made the transition to digital. Given his lifelong love of the outdoors, he naturally made the progression to focusing on landscape photography. A professionally trained classical musician, Chip also performs as Principal Clarinet with the Spokane Symphony Orchestra, and is Adjunct Professor of Clarinet at Gonzaga University. Chip resides in Spokane Washington with his wife and son.
Recent Comments