DaveJays Blog

Using curves to help you find the perfect color scheme

AUG 14th 2008 • 3 Comments

I was recently working on a new design and I was about ready to throw in the towel because I could not latch onto a look that I liked. The primary problem was my color scheme. It just wasn't attractive, and I had a bad taste in my mouth when I looked at the design. Photoshop curves adjustment layer to the rescue!

Using Curves

The curves adjustment in photoshop is simply a way to control the output level of the dark and bright areas of an image. When the channel is set to RGB adjusting the curve will make certain parts of the image lighter or darker depending on where you adjust the curve. If you select a red, green, or blue channel you have control over the output level of a particular color instead of the whole image. Since I want to make the image warmer more romantic, I'm going to adjust the red channel to bring out all the highs and lows of reds.

By raising the output of the lows and highs of the red channel, the resulting color is much warmer and easier on the eye

Adding an adjustment layer

To add a curves adjustment to all the layers in your photoshop document, simply click on the little black and white circle at the bottom of the Layers pane and select "Curves...". This will create a new layer that will effect all the other layers below it. The best part is, you can go back later and adjust it some more if you're not happy with it. You can also adjust the opacity of the adjustment. Even when I'm working on an image, adjustment layers are all that I'll use now. They provide a significant level of control instead of directly adjusting a particular layer.

Here's a look at the finished design, G56ogle Paris. And here's a desktop wallpaper version of it.

posted in: Design |