PhotoKit Color

[Jeff Schewe]

In addition to playing with all the pretty colors, make sure you run the RSA gray balancer through it's paces. It's pretty much a good thing on virtually any image-it's only supposed to do good, never bad!

[Ashley Karyl]

I like the tone enhanced set and in particular the the ones for boosting midtone contrast which is something I have been doing lately with USM in Photoshop. This is a nice group of add ons for those who liked playing with image tones in the original Photokit product.

[Ashley Karyl]

The green enhance action does a very nice job on general landscape images with a sunny blue sky. It brings out the green grass but also gives some strength to the sky areas without going too far.

[Marty Connelly]

You are absoulutly correct about being right on. I have used it on a bunch of images and it is working flawlessly. Nice , very nice

[Ashley Karyl]

Something seems to have altered with the latest variations on colour enhance. Blue enhance could be used before to bring out a sky without adversely effecting skin tones too much. Now with the darker enhance version skin tones are suddenly significantly more palid on the example I tested. I can paint them back with a brush by using the mask but its a lot more work.

[Martin Evening]

Ashley,

Can you send me an example of the image in question and a comparison for me to test with please?

Thanks,

Martin

[Ashley Karyl]

You should have received a couple of files by email.

[jsd]

In addition to playing with all the pretty colors, make sure you run the RSA gray balancer through it's paces. It's pretty much a good thing on virtually any image-it's only supposed to do good, never bad!

Hi Jeff...where does PK Color fit into the PS/CS workflow?

[Martin Evening]

PhotoKit Color is designed as a tool for automatic color balancing images using the RSA color correction effects. You can apply precision color adjustments with the CC and CT filters and correct colors with matching precision in any color space. That's the serious stuff. All the other effects are there for you to play and experiment with. As the Product designer I can tell you that there is more than meets they eye here. Try varying the opacity of the layers within thelayer sets and you can achieve all sorts of variations from any one of these effects.

Martin

[jsd]

Ok...thanks Martin. So, I am understanding that it can fit in the workflow wherever I desire, deem it necessary. Yes?

[Martin Evening]

That is correct. PhotoKit Sharpener was designed as a tool to improve your sharpening workflow. PhotoKit Color is an automated plug-in which is mainly designed for creating creative colouring effects as well as colour correction.

[astern]

Ok, If I understand correctly. Image comes into CS, then apply sharpener effect, but then what? Color, crop, levels, curves, etc....am confused about the order...thank you

[Martin Evening]

It depends. PhotoKit Color contains different types of effects for different purposes. It primarily contains special effects such as color overlays and cross processing and color enhance etc. These would most likely be used at the end of a retouching session to add an overall coloring effect. And the split toning effects would most likely be added after you had converted an image to monochrome in RGB.

With the CT and CC corrections, perhaps you may want to do this at the beginning of a session before anything else and then flatten the image. Ditto with the RSA corrections - you would be more likely want to deal with the color inbalance first. But you can just as easily do this at the end - there are really no rules. This is not really a workflow tool the way PhotoKit Sharpener is.

Martin

[Nick Decker]

Finally got around to installing PK Color this morning, and dammit, you guys have come up with yet another set of plugins that I'm gonna have to buy!

While the various "creative" color features aren't of major importance to me, the RSA Color Correction features are a godsend. I'm about half color blind (red-green deficiency), which makes color correction a real challenge for me, especially with skin tones. On the several photos that I've tried PK Color on, it looks to be exactly what I need. Good job!

Nick