Photoshop® CS3 Channels and Masks Bible

Chapter 7. Mixing Color Channels

IN THIS CHAPTER

• Copying color information

• Blending channels

• Excluding color

• Offsetting color channels

As you've seen in other chapters, the color information in a Photoshop image is nicely separated into channels so that you can independ-ently access and control each color component. The ability to change the image into different color modes lets you configure the image for a specific purpose. You can apply channel specific adjustments, filters, or other Photoshop operations to target color channels. You can also swap or blend color channels to create interesting color relationships. With channel jug-gling techniques, you can combine the best parts of multiple images, empha-size detail, balance highlights, and create 3D effects.

In this chapter, I show you a few not-so-obvious techniques that use the information inherent within color channels to modify and improve color relationships.

Swapping Color Information

The most direct method of channel juggling entails copying the content from one color channel and pasting it into another. Depending on the image, this method can produce odd, but colorful results as shown in Figure 7.1. You can try this for fun and as a means to understand how color channels work. Remember, as with all color manipulations, you are simply changing the numerical composition of the channel information. The results vary considerably depending on your choice of source and destination channels. Here is a basic method for swapping color ...