WORKING WITH RAW FILES
Introducing Adobe Camera Raw
Learn how to use Photoshop Elements’ pro-level
image-processing digital darkroom, Camera Raw
Discover which tools to use to improve a raw file’s composition and colour
Overview The Raw editor’s tool bar
01 RAW FILE
Our ty_elements32.dng file has been
saved as a digital negative. The raw
format of the file means that the
image will automatically open in the
Photoshop Elements’ Camera Raw
editor. We can then apply a suite of
tools to process the image.03 WHITE BALANCE
This tool enables you to fix a white
balance problem by sampling
something that should be white. If the
sampled pixels are too warm, the tool
will cool down the colours, removing any
colour cast in the entire shot (as we’ll
demonstrate later in this chapter).02 ZOOM TOOL
When processing a raw file to sharpen
it you need to see the image’s actual
pixels. Right click with the Zoom tool
and choose 100% from the pop-up
menu. The adjacent Hand tool enables
you to drag a zoomed shot around to
examine different areas.04 CROP TOOL
This tool enables you to improve
composition by removing frame edges.
The raw editor’s Crop tool is non-
destructive, so you can restore missing
edge details at any time in the future.
Hold down the mouse button to modify
the way the tool behaves.05 STRAIGHTEN TOOL
The Straighten tool enables you to
counteract tilted horizons quickly and
effectively (such as the one in this
beach photo) to make them run parallel
with the edge of the frame. It can also
correct slanting vertical lines.06 RED EYE REMOVAL
Elements has Red Eye Removal tools in
most editing modes, and the raw editor
is no exception. Click this tool on any
flash-induced glowing red pupils to turn
them a healthy black.P
hotoshop Elements’ Quick, Guided
and Expert editing modes are
designed to help you edit JPEG
images. JPEGs are files that have
been processed in a camera to change their
colour and tones according to various preset
shooting modes (such as Landscape).
By saving a photo as a JPEG your camera
creates a small file that won’t take up toomuch space on your memory card (or PC’s
hard drive). However, the downside of the
JPEG format is that it’s compressed. Much of
the information about the colour and tone in
a photo is lost. All that remains is a shorthand
description of the scene. If you want to
restore missing highlight or colour detail to a
JPEG you may end up revealing compression
artefacts. A clear summer sky in a JPEG mayconsist of jagged bands of colour instead
of a smooth gradient, for example.
By shooting in a raw format (such as
.CR2 or .NEF) you can capture much more
information about the colours and tones in a
scene. This gives Photoshop Elements more to
work with. Here’s how to use the Camera Raw
editor’s suite of tools to reveal more colour
and tonal detail without adding artefacts...0102 03 06
04 05GET THE START FILES HERE: http://bit.ly/type-files