PHOTOSHOP USERS how can I underwater photos look brighter, clearer, better?

[Denvers Dawgs]

So I just got back from a 10 day vacation in maui, Hawaii. I took a ton of underwater pictures or the corals, and sea-life. I was told that the images probably won't come out that great (just used disposable Fuji & Kodak underwater cameras), heard they may be cloudy or somewhat dark. Do any of you have any tips on how I could use photoshop to possibly make the images shaper, or clearer? I'm looking for information more in the form of guides? Not so much try using brightness, etc. I was hoping for tips that others themselves have used to make digital photos bettter, clearer, brighter, etc. Thanks for any help you guys can provide...

[lordsmurf]

IMAGE > ADJUST > LEVELS > and then AUTO LEVELS.
Does that look good? If not, the do not use AUTO LEVELS.
Click cancel, go back, and then manually drag the black, gray and white arrows until the contrast and brightness is correct.

Remember what you see on screen, what somebody else sees on screen, and what you print, may not be the same unless you calibrate everything.

Sharpen is under FILTERS > DETAILS > and use UNSHARP MASK. How many megapixels are the image? Generally a diameter of 1-4 pixels works best, up to 30-50% sharpeness boost. A 10MP camera is good for 4 pixel-range, where lower ones need lower. If you oversharpen, you get aliasing (stair steps), and halos/blooming.

You can got to IMAGE > ADJUST > HUE/SATURATION, and adjust hues and saturations there.

If your image has a blue tint to it, for example, go to to IMAGE > ADJUST > COLOR BALANCE, and drag away from the color that is too powerful. On a blue-tint image, you'd drag a few points towards yellow, and then see how it looks. Maybe add a bit of magenta too.

Photoshop is just as much of an art as operating the cameras. It's a digital darkroom.

Good luck.

[fLYtRap]

That depend what exactly do you want to do with a picture. I do a lot of editing, most offten:
1- image-adjust-color balance
2- image-adjust-brightness/contrast
3- filter-sharpen-sharpen
4- image-image size
5- image-rotate canvas
6- select-color range

[lordsmurf]

Noise control is another aspect. Use a third-party, like NeatImage.

[handyguy]

Why not post one of your pics so we can see?

[racer-x]

A very good non-destructive way to brighten an image, is to duplicate the layer and change the mode from "Normal" to "Screen".

* Not bright enough? - Duplicate new layer again.
* Too bright? - Lower the oppacity.

[Webster]

There is also Image-->Adjust-->Variations. You can raise or lower the brightness, colors etc.. from there also.

[lacywest]

Good info ... thanks

[stiltman]

just used disposable Fuji & Kodak underwater cameras

Don't forget these cameras most likely don't have a magenta filter, so you'll have to search google for the corection level within Photoshop

[pijetro]

Ummmmmm, before everybody forgets...
It's one thing to try and play with levels and RGB, but it's another thing to try and create magic with non-existant pixels..Remember, he's using a disposable camera, and can't enjoy the benefits of pixel manipulation...

Otherwise, you'll need some very advanced layering, painting and blendmode techniques...

Yes, it can be done, but it's gonna take more work thana two step line dance...

Good luck!!!!

[pepegot1]

For overexposed photos:
1. Create a duplicate layer of background photo
2. Set Blend mode to "Multiply" on duplicate layer
3. If still washed out make duplicate copies of the copy background layer
4. Repeat, if necessary

For under exposed photos do the same thing except change Blend from "Normal" to "Screen"

Then you can apply whatever is needed , as alluded to above.