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Discover the power of Adobe Camera Raw! This tutorial unlocks its secrets, showing you how to use it for non-destructive editing just like Lightroom. Learn how to open photos, master masking basics for selective adjustments, and make targeted exposure, brightness, and color corrections.
Follow along with all 30 episodes as we explore the the magic of Photoshop together!
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- Karsten Winegeart
Images sourced from Unsplash.
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AFTER
BEFORE
The power of ACR
Adobe Camera Raw is a powerful, non-destructive editing tool built right into Photoshop. If you’ve ever used editing software like Lightroom, you’ll feel right at home with ACR’s intuitive controls. It’s an excellent way to edit images, offering a more streamlined and flexible workflow than many of Photoshop’s other tools. The key benefit is that your original image remains untouched, allowing you to go back and make changes to your edits at any time.
Convert To Smart
First, open your image in Photoshop and convert it to a Smart Object. This is the most crucial step for a non-destructive workflow. To do this, go to Filter > Convert for Smart Filters. Once your layer is a Smart Object, you can access the ACR filter by navigating to Filter > Camera Raw Filter. This will open your image in the ACR interface, ready for editing.
Adjust Your Image
Within Adobe Camera Raw, you can now begin editing. Start by exploring the Lens Blur feature, a powerful tool that automatically detects your subject and blurs the background to make your subject pop. You can fine-tune the amount of blur and even adjust the bokeh type. Next, use the Masking tool to make targeted adjustments. For example, the Sky mask can automatically select the sky, allowing you to easily adjust its color and highlights. You can also create a Radial Gradient to add a subtle bright spot, drawing attention to your subject.
Finalize and Save
After making your adjustments, you can further enhance your image with Color Grading, which allows you to add specific color tones to your shadows, midtones, and highlights for a cohesive and artistic look. Once you’re satisfied with your edits, simply click OK. The changes will be applied to your Smart Object in Photoshop. Because you used a Smart Object, your ACR edits are saved as a Smart Filter, which means you can double-click on it at any time to re-enter the ACR interface and make more changes.
This is a fantastic way to begin editing your images in Photoshop, as it gives you a lot of control in a user-friendly interface. Join us tomorrow to learn how to easily remove distractions from your photos in no time!
