Basic assistance requested

[mikemeister_admin]

Hello -- I'm brand new to Curvemeister and have had some success with it using the supplied wizard (thank you so much for that) - it really works well when there is gray in the photo to use as a neutral.  However, the lady with the gray pants wasn't in ALL my pictures,,,,, and when she isn't there with her neutral tone, the pictures look quite different (ie using skin tones for the neutral).  This is a set of pictures I took at a ballroom dance showcase - the lighting is all pretty much the same.  I really got the color off on these -- they painted the walls yellow and I must not have set my white balance correctly.  Anyway, all the shots are pretty bad and need correcting.  I have tried using the previous curve when I open a picture without the gray pants lady, but it doesn't always work.  Most of the photos do have white in them -- is there a way to use that for the neutral?  I am hoping to take the Eclectic Academy class that is going to be offered, but wondered if there was anyone out there with ideas for me in the meantime.  I am using this with PSE 5.  Thanks in advance.
Marianne

[-default]

Hi Marianne,

You've got the right idea.  If the images are similar, the right place to start is by loading the previous curve - I've done this a million times for weddings and similar occasions where I'm spinning through a large number of images from the same event.  White works very well for a neutral, although I generally try for something more like a middle gray if that is available.  Or you can drag a skin tone pin onto the image, if the image has people.

We're glad to help here with specific images if you would like to provide any.  If you resize the image down to 640 x 480, or slightly larger, you can upload it, using the instructions at the link at the bottom of this message.

[derekfountain]

It's easy to get obsessed with trying to find a neutral, but don't lose track of what it is you're trying to do: you're trying to remove a colour cast. That is, you're trying to get rid of a tinge of colour that effects the image, in whole or in part. The way to do that is to find a part of the image that shouldn't have any colour, then make the adjustment that removes whatever colour is actually in that area. If the same adjustment is made across the whole image, the colour cast will be removed entirely. CM does all of this for you, except the first bit: finding the area that shouldn't have colour.

A grey area, by definition, shouldn't have colour, so that's best, but as you say, sometimes there isn't a grey thing in the image. But black and white areas also shouldn't have colour, so they can work too. They're not as effective at making correction curves as grey areas (for reasons Mike will be able to explain) but they do work. In an image with no obvious grey area, I look for a white area and try a neutral point there. If that doesn't work I try a black area. If the effect still doesn't look right I drag the neutral marker around a bit looking for the "sweet spot" - I sometimes drag into random areas of the image to see what happens. Quite often the effect is a good one. If that doesn't work, switch to RGB mode and try placing several neutrals in dark and light areas. This pulls the curves about quite a bit, but often makes a good result. When I get a neutral that clearly is a step in the right direction I hit Apply and then go back into CM for another go. If you can correct 80% of a cast in one crude swipe, getting rid of the rest of it using a more subtle skin tone correction is then easier and more effective.

Finding the right area for your neutral is often more about experience than knowing at a glance what's right. Try a few places and see what happens. If you're really stuck, post the image here.

[mikemeister_admin]

Thank you so much for your replies.  I have been out of town and hope to get back to the project tomorrow and will try the ideas. 

[Arielle22]

Hi Marianne,

You've got the right idea.  If the images are similar, the right place to start is by loading the previous curve - I've done this a million times for weddings and similar occasions where I'm spinning through a large number of images from the same event meilleures mutuelles France.  White works very well for a neutral, although I generally try for something more like a middle gray if that is available.  Or you can drag a skin tone pin onto the image, if the image has people.

We're glad to help here with specific images if you would like to provide any.  If you resize the image down to 640 x 480, or slightly larger, you can upload it, using the instructions at the link at the bottom of this message.

Anyway, thank you very much for bringing this information to us.