Curvemeister Forum

Greg:

Here are my lab and rgb efforts at the carousel.  I think I could have boosted the shadows a bit more on the RGB version, but otherwise liked the outcome.  The LAB version is just plain bad.  I couldn't get it curved into a natural look.

Brian

Brian,

Good job on the RGB...
The LAB version is also possible.  In fact LAB offers distinct advantages because you can adjust the L channel without changing the color balance.  You need to apply what mike calls a "Lizard Tail" to the L curve.  See the attached screen shot.

Don't forget the saturation slider.....

here is another article talking about the "Lizard Tail"

http://www.curvemeister.com/wiki/index.php?title=Special_Curves:_Lizard_Tail

Greg

RGB generally works well for underexposed images, because you usually want to add color as well as contrast to the image.  The colors are not easy to control, though, so using RGB may be a useful shortcut, but it may not always be suitable.  Greg's point about Lab is very well taken.