iPhoto '08: The Missing Manual

chapter 7: editing your shots 169

Consequently, you may find that Enhance has no real effect on some photos, and only

minimally improves others. Remember, too, that you can’t enhance just one part of

a photo—only the entire picture at once. If you want to selectively adjust specific

portions of a picture, you need a true photo-editing program like GraphicConverter

or Photoshop Elements.

Tip: If using the Enhance command improves your photo, but just not enough, you can click it repeatedly

to amplify its effect—as many times as you want, really. However, applying Enhance more than three times

or so risks turning your photo into digital mush.

If you go too far, remember that you can press c-Z (or choose EditÆUndo) to backtrack. In fact, you can

take back as many steps as you like, all the way back to the original photo.

In some cases, you’ll need to do more than just click the Enhance button to coax the

best possible results from your digital photos. You may have to tweak away with the

Brightness and Contrast sliders, as explained later in this chapter.

Red-Eye

Let’s say you snap a near-perfect family portrait: The focus is sharp, the composition

is balanced, everyone’s smiling. And then you notice it: Uncle Mitch, standing dead

center in the picture, looks like a vampire bat. His eyes are glowing red, as though

illuminated by the evil within.

You’ve been victimized by red eye, a common problem in flash photography. This

creepy possessed-by-aliens look has ruined many an otherwise-great photo.

Red eye is actually light reflected back from your subject’s eyes. The bright light of

your camera’s flash passes through the pupil of each eye, illuminating the blood-red

The Enhance Button

Figure 7-6:

The Enhance command

works particularly well

on photos that are

slightly dark and that

lack good contrast, like

the original photo on

the left.