Color Corrections
Generally color corrections are the result of an off color cast in the image. Most often it is because the camera didn’t get the White Balance correct. Something was abnormal and camera couldn’t figure it out. Generally it will be in the entire image and when the proper correction is made everything will look better. If you shoot a picture indoors with outdoor film (outdoor white balance with a digital camera), everything will have a warm color cast to it. Fluorescent lights will have a greenish cast, etc. There is a Color Cast Tool, but I have always found it to be more frustrating then useful. The Quick Fix Auto Correction tool will work for average or normal images, but can be confused if anything is abnormal. The Color Variations Tool is probably the best and easiest to use.
The best way to determine color cast is to look at a neutral gray midtone. The next best is a flesh tone. A Fire Engine can be many different shades of red and no one will notice. If a face is off color everyone will see it. The Color Cast Tool depends on you finding something in the image that is suppose to be neutral. When you click on it, the cast is removed from the entire image. Film Photographers often include a neutral gray test card in the in the image for that very purpose.
Color Variations presents you with with 6 color cast variations. You have the choice of adjusting, midtones, shadows, highlights, saturation, Lighter, and Darker. With the Adjust Color slider, you can set the amount of correction. I prefer to set it fairly low and work up to what looks good. Each click is cumulative, either additive or subtractive.
Variations Choices The Same As
Increase Red - Decrease Red Decrease Cyan - Increase Cyan
Increase Green - Decrease Green Decrease Magenta - Increase Magenta
Increase Blue - Decrease Blue Decrease Yellow - Increase Yellow
Often increasing or decreasing one color cast will correct the color problem. However the correction might require more then a single color. Such as 2 clicks of Increase Red and 1 click of decrease Green. Unless you a very familiar with color casts, experimentation is the best way, until you reach a point where you are pleased with the results.
The Rubber Stamp is good for fixing flaws in and image, Graffiti in a landscape, removing power lines, adding clouds to a blank sky, etc. However, over use of the Rubber Stamp tool on a face can turn your subject into a mannequin. It is better to reduce the opacity to get a softening effect. Completely removing character lines is not a good treatment.
The Dodge Tool and the Burn Tool are used to lighten or darken specific parts of the Image. I find it best to set the the Exposure to 50% or less and build up the effect until I am happy with the results. The Range can be set to Shadows, Midtones, or Highlights to limit the part of the Tonal Range you want to work on. Selecting the right brush size is important. Trying to accomplish to much to fast will almost always lead to disappointment. If you go to far, use the History Pallet to back up to a point where things were working better.
The Sponge Tool is used to add or subtract color saturation to a specific area of the image. Again, like the Dodge and Burn Tools, make your tool attribute selections and work up to what pleases you.
When the camera flash is to close to the lens the light enters the pupil and reflects off of the retina, which is mostly blood vessels. The result is Red Eye. I find the best way to correct this problem is. Zoom in on the eyes.
Start with the Selection Brush and size it to the same size as the pupil. Select each pupil. I have found that people with brown eyes have a problem with the Red-Eye Brush and the selection will limit the corrections to the pupils only.
Choose the Red-Eye Brush and make the correction to each pupil. If the results are black pupils, you are finished. It the pupils are gray, choose the Burn Tool and make them black. Deselect the selection.