post-production editing
Step 1c - Straighten and remove dust if present
Before moving on with the more subjective side of image enhancement it is important to straighten
the image and check for any dust if using image fi les from a DSLR (Olympus DSLR owners are
somewhat immune from the dust issue as Olympus’ ‘Sonic Wave Filter’ takes care of this pesky
problem). Strong diagonal lines in an image can look very dramatic. A 1 or 2 degree slope on a
horizon line does not fi t into this category. Although not disturbing for everyone a horizon line that
looks like a ski slope is best straightened. If in doubt check that it is running parallel to the image
frame.
Use the new Straighten tool if using Elements 4.0 for a super-speedy solution to the straightening
issue or rotate the crop marquee if using Elements 3.0. If using Photoshop CS or CS2 use the
Measure Tool to draw a line along the horizon and then proceed to Image > Rotate Canvas >
Arbitrary. The precise number of degrees required to straighten the image is entered into the
rotate fi eld automatically.
For dust removal zoom in to 100% (Actual Pixels) and use the Healing Brush Tool or Spot Healing
Brush Tool for a quick and effective clean-up job.
Note > Zooming in to anything less than 100% is not effective for spotting the dust that
may, or may not, be lurking in your fi le.