Adobe Photoshop CS5 One-on-One

2. Create a Curves adjustment layer. Like the other adjustments
   we’ve applied so far, the Curves command can be applied as a
   static adjustment (by choosing Image→Adjustments→Curves)
   or via an adjustment layer, as we’ll do here. To shake things
   up this time, create the adjustment layer by clicking the icon
   at the bottom of the Layers panel and choosing Curves from
   the pop-up menu.

The Adjustments panel should still be in expanded view from the last

exercise. This setting is “sticky,” meaning it should persist even if you’ve

closed Photoshop. If you didn’t do the last exercise, press in the upper-

right corner of the panel and choose Expanded View.

Pictured in Figure 6-32, the Curves option in the Adjustments

panel contains many of the same options found in Levels, in-

cluding the Channel pop-up menu, the Auto button, and the

eyedropper tools. (For explanations of each, see Step 6 of the

“Adjusting Brightness Levels” exercise on page 99.) But there

are a few differences:

• The central element of the Curves panel is the lumi-
  nance graph, in which you plot points along a line called
  the luminance curve. When editing an RGB image, the
  curve represents all brightness values in the image from
  black in the lower-left corner to white in the upper-right
  corner. Click the curve (initially a straight line) to add

Luminance curve Luminance graph

Targeted

adjustment

tool

Point tool

Pencil tool

Figure 6-32.

206 Lesson 6: Adjusting Color and Luminance