macformat.com @macformatMono enhancements APPLE SKILLS
JUNE 2019 | MACFORMAT | 43
HOW TO Produce a mono makeover
1
Open an image
Choose File > Open. Browse to a photo and
click Open. Our camera raw file opens in the
Develop Persona. You can create a black and
white version by dragging Saturation to -100%
but this creates a wash of greyscale tones.2
Change workspace
Restore Saturation back to the 0 default.
To access powerful conversion tools, switch to
the Photo Persona (the purple icon near the
top left). Go to View > Studio > Adjustment to
bring up the Adjustment panel.3
Play with presets
Click on the Black & White adjustment to
desaturate the shot. A dedicated Black & White
panel appears. Click on the preset thumbnails
in the adjustment panel; the Warm preset
blows out the tonal differences in our foliage.4
Make manual adjustments
Click on the Default thumbnail to recover
blown-out highlight detail. To darken the sky
and make the clouds stand out, drag the Blue
and Cyan sliders left in the additional panel.
The darker sky adds drama to the landscape.5
Lighten the brickwork
If you’re not sure what to adjust, click
Picker (lower left). Click on an area to sample it
and drag the picker right to lighten the colour.
Here we’ve lightened the reds to make the
bridge’s pillars stand out more in contrast.6
Create a high contrast
Click on the Levels adjustment layer. Hold
å and drag the Black Level slider right until
white patches appear, indicating pure black
shadows. Hold å and drag the White Level
slider left until you see a few colour patches.Genius tip!
To add a delicate wash
of colour to your mono
conversion, go to Layer
> New Adjustment
Layer > White Balance
Adjustment. Drag the
White balance slider left
to cool the shot down or
drag right to tint it sepia.Jargon buster
The Levels technique
(in step 6) provides
clipping warning
patches that indicate
the presence of some
black shadows and
some white highlights.
This helps ensure that
your mono conversion
has a healthy range of
shadows, midtones and
highlights (rather than
consisting of a dull wash
of greyscale tones).