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Exposure Blending Using Adobe Photoshop CS6

Adventure photo journalist Jay Goodrich highlights how he will blend certain landscape images in Adobe Photoshop CS6 if his subject rises above the horizon ...

User Comments

flitcroftLA commented on 26 Apr 2013

In regards to painting white over the layer mask around 20:00, I prefer a couple non-destructive techniques: 1) duplicate your top layer, fill it with a black mask, then paint white in where you want it darker. If the white layer was on top you could put that layer in a folder and add a mask to the folder, which allows you stack 5 or 6 masks on top of each other. or 2) use a neutral burn/dodge layer to burn the tree trunk (a slightly different effect but a similar result)

Marshall Alsup commented on 25 Feb 2013

This video is amazing. I just faced a similar problem with a cityscape I was working on. I couldn't get the masking to result in a realistic look. I can't wait to try this technique on my image. I really appreciate you taking the time to put this video together and your willingness to share the technique. Thanks!

Lars Krafft commented on 25 Feb 2015

Thank you so much for making this Video! I was searching for this for so long and have watched a couple of other videos but I gotta say, this really helped me understanding the technic because it was well explained, slowly spoken and done step by step. Really great! Thank you!

Mujahid ur Rehman commented on 28 Jul 2013

Hi Jay, this is a great video. The only problem is that I it wouldn't allow me to use the brush tool on the "mask" and say I need to convert my image into 8 bit per channel. But when i do that, it says the bit depth doesnt match history state. I am not sure what to do?

td b commented on 29 Apr 2013

dude let me say something... I've watched a lot of tutorials and I think you explained yourself the best! People say use this tool and that tool but never explain why- I shook your hand youtubically- subscribed as well

gabriele lepri commented on 14 Apr 2015

imho the end result is not acceptable. the clouds have really hard directional light but the foliage, ground and wood do not. maybe you should add a GND filter that darkens starting from the sun on the left.

khairul hasbullah commented on 21 May 2013

Thanks for sharing Jay, it has open a new perspective to my landscaping shoots. Can't wait for my next photo outing to execute what you have shown here. Awesome is awesome!

Joey Ficetola commented on 27 Feb 2015

Does anyone else think he sounds a little like Christopher Walken...? Not so much the voice, but the pauses at awkward intervals... At any rate, great tutorial!

Jay Goodrich commented on 26 Feb 2013

Thank you Marshall. I am glad that it helped you out. I use this technique regularly when balancing out architecture images so you shouldn't have any problem.

MetallicHeadNZ commented on 02 Jun 2015

Love the way you explained your tutorial, so clear, concise and the pace was just perfect, both the narative and the tutorial itself. Great tutorial!

Wouter Mol commented on 25 Aug 2013

why dont you just merge these images to HDR in ps cs6 (export in 32 bit) and then bump up the shadows and bring down highlights in lightroom?

ajrestivo commented on 27 Nov 2015

why not deselect the tree from your filter... so that the tree isnt effected and your sky instantly looks like the picture on the right.

wyndscape commented on 07 May 2013

This is BRILLIANT. Fantastic educational value, and EXCELLENT technique for compositing! Thank you for sharing your knowledge with us.

Jim Waterbury commented on 14 Feb 2013

Jay -- Terrific ... like the clear, simple explanation ... and this is definitely a technique I use (and will use) often. Thanks!

Jay Goodrich commented on 03 Sep 2013

If we use CS6 it takes away our ability to make choices where the blends occur. This way you make the decision not a software.

Jay Goodrich commented on 26 Aug 2013

If use CS6 it takes away our ability to make choices where the blends occur. This way you make the decision not a program.

Mujahid ur Rehman commented on 28 Jul 2013

never mind, i got to know how to do that. but really, your video is great and it helped me a lot. thanks very much again.

Tom Gibson commented on 24 Jan 2015

I have watched many videos on blending and this is best of all with more explanations than any other. Thank you

Mark Anne Rhind commented on 22 Nov 2015

This is just what I've been looking for - the missing piece to my puzzle. Tnak You Thank You Much appreciated

mariosunshinerules22 commented on 21 Jul 2013

oh wow this tutorial is amazing! Very helpful to someone who is basically getting comfortable with Photoshop.

Jay Goodrich commented on 12 Feb 2013

Hi George you perform the same tasks in CS5 as well. It has all if the same tools. Don't know if that helps.

Jay Goodrich commented on 03 Sep 2013

I just adjust the exposure compensation on my camera up or down depending on which exposure I took first.

amitabh mukherjee commented on 25 Sep 2015

Thanks for showing how to blend a layer mask as Refine Edge method can be really intimidating.

Jay Goodrich commented on 15 Mar 2013

Thank you for the wonderful comment. I'm glad to hear that all my work is beginning to pay off.

Jason Scottish commented on 11 Nov 2014

Using luminosity masks works well also with a little less work, brilliant work nonetheless

Yvonne Lee commented on 22 Jun 2013

Thank you for your very good guide and all the detailed explanations. You are a good teacher!

tikkukko commented on 24 May 2013

Best exposure blending tutorial I've seen! Now how about a luminosity mask tutorial? :)

Lightroom & Photoshop Tutorial: Multiple Exposure Blend - PLP # 58 by Serge Ramelli

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User Comments

Miriam Sheridan commented on 20 Jan 2015

I just followed this technique but got really bad halos on my image when I put the highlights and shadows to 100 (I continued with the technique to the finished image in Photoshop but the halos are still there). Any tips?

Rizwan Ul Haq commented on 23 Feb 2015

you can't tweak the highlights and shadows to their extreme unless the original raw file (your camera) has high dynamic range. which camera are you using?

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