Photoshop Elements 5: The Missing Manual

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Chapter 9

chapter

9

Retouching 102: Fine-

Tuning Your Images

Basic edits like exposure fixes and sharpening are fine if all you want to make are

simple adjustments. But Elements also gives you the tools to make sophisticated

changes that aren’t hard to apply, and that can make the difference between a ho-

hum photo and a fabulous one. This chapter introduces you to some advanced

editing maneuvers that will greatly help you either rescue damaged photos or give

good ones that little extra zing.

The first part of the chapter shows you how to get rid of blemishes—not only those

that affect skin, but also dust, scratches, stains, and other photographic imperfec-

tions. You’ll also learn some powerful color-improving techniques, including the

newly arrived—and much requested—Color Curves tool, which gives you a pow-

erful new way to improve your image’s contrast and color.

Fixing Blemishes

It’s an imperfect world, but in your photos, it doesn’t have to be. Elements gives

you some amazing tools for fixing the flaws in your subjects. You can erase crow’s

feet and blemishes, eliminate power lines in an otherwise perfect view, or even hide

objects you wish weren’t in your photo. Not only that, but these same tools are

great for fixing problems like tears, folds, and stains—the great foes of photo-

scanning veterans. With a little effort, you can bring back photos that seem beyond

help. Figure 9-1 shows an ...