Known Participant

Question

Auto target a midtone value using levels or curves?

Forum|Forum|7 years ago
August 10, 2018
2 replies
1316 views

I want to target a midtone value of 230 230 230 in an action without clipping shadows, highlights or any colour adjustment but can't work out how to do this. Is it possible?

Many thanks!

This topic has been closed for replies.

Kukurykus

Legend

Can you post screenshots of image and panel you want to use from before/after this process to let us understand your goal?

T

tutmosesAuthor

Known Participant

NDA images so unfortunately not! But let's say you have two images of identical steel widgets, both side-lit but one too bright and the other too dark. For the customer's benefit, they should look the same. Can the mid-points be automatically shifted to 230 230 230 so that both panels look the same? It's almost like I need a grey-point that doesn't shift the colours, but only the tone.

Stephen Marsh

Community Expert

To illustrate my reply #6:

Upper left = low key image

Lower left = high key image

Upper centre = low key image equalized

Lower centre = high key image equalized

Upper right = equalized, average filter applied: RGB luminosity value 125

Lower right = equalized, average filter applied: RGB luminosity value 130

Conclusion: The equalize command will “even out” the tones of two very different tonal value images, however depending on image content unwanted side effects may be created. The closer the original image has to an “even distribution of tones” the better, these low/high key images are just an example of extremes to illustrate my point.

Edits can be faded or blended to luminosity mode, however this may or may not lead to satisfactory results depending on the image.

EDIT: Another possible option is the Match Color command:

Stephen Marsh

Community Expert

More info required please.

T

tutmosesAuthor

Known Participant

Hi Stephen, thanks for asking. I'm batching images and want to bring them all roughly within the same tonal range where the midpoint is 230 but the highlights and shadows are unaffected. Essentially, it's brightening OR darkening, whichever is appropriate according to the image. The action process would be Select Layer > Create Curves/Levels/SomethingElse Layer > Automagically adjust tone as described above. Let me know if you need anything more specific.

Many thanks!

Stephen Marsh

Community Expert

It is easy enough to limit the edit to the mid tones using blend if sliders or a midtone layer mask... But you wish to batch something that requires unique/individual image evaluation. I presume that the source images are all different in tones?

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