The Digital Photography Companion



CONVERT COLOR PICTURES TO B&W

152

When you’re done, click OK, and Photoshop will do additional processing and present

you with an untitled 16-bit HDR image. Save it as a Photoshop file. Now you can spruce

up your picture with your favorite controls, such as Levels, Hue/Saturation, Curves,

and Unsharp Mask. When you’re done, save the image again, keeping it as a Photoshop

file. is becomes your master print. If you need to use your image in screen presenta-

tions, such as a slide show or a web page, use the Save As command to create JPEG

duplicates.

Convert Color Pictures to B&W

Even though digital cameras can shoot just fine in B&W mode, for the best quality I

recommend that you capture in color and then convert your images to B&W on the

computer. is is an easy process that lets you have both versions of the file, ensuring

that you have maximum flexibility when it comes time for output. Nearly every photo

management application provides you with this option.

Once you have your pictures uploaded to the computer, open your favorite image edi-

tor and look for the option that enables you to convert to B&W. is is an option that

should be available regardless of the application you’re using. But I do like the convert-

ers in some image editors better than others. I’m going to walk you through a few of my

favorite applications her ...