Changing the color of a dark cloth to a lighter color

[Pranav5E53]

Hi there,

I'm trying to change the color of the police officer's uniform to a lighter pink (as shown in the images) but I'm unable to do so. So far I just got a bright, pixelated pink as you can see.

Any help on this would be greatly appreciate.

[c.pfaffenbichler]

»So far I just got a bright, pixelated pink as you can see.«

And how did you do that? 

Could you please post screenshots with the pertinent Panels (Toolbar, Layers, Channels, Options Bar, …) visible? 

[Pranav5E53]

[c.pfaffenbichler]

With three Curves Layers atop one another (in 8bit) banding does not seem that surprising. 

[c.pfaffenbichler]

Generally recoloring white and black objects is not a good idea as they are likely to miss contrast at the »opposite« end. 

In any case you may want to work in 16bit, even if you do not have the raw image. 

[Joolsey1973]

I think the best way is to cut around the areas you want, an put on it's own layer. Get then Ctl M to get curves up and lift in the mid tones but leave a bit of shadow in. Then sample the colour from the pink and mask over the top in color mode. I think a using a bit of the burn tool helps as well in the shadoes so that it looks more realistic.

[Joolsey1973]

For some reason edit isn't working

[jane-e]

"For some reason edit isn't working"

Only moderators can make edits. Is there anything besides the typo in "shadows" and the apostrophe in "its"?

~ Jane

[Joolsey1973]

No that is fine thank you.

[c.pfaffenbichler]

»Get then Ctl M to get curves up«

I strongly disagree with this recommendation for a needlessly destructive approach. 

A Curves Layer makes more sense in my opinion. 

[c.pfaffenbichler]

»I think the best way is to cut around the areas you want, an put on it's own layer.«

Again I disagree with the recommendation. 

I recommend a Layer Mask on a duplicate of the image (either on the duplicate Layer itself or a Group containing it and the Adjustment Layers). 

»I think a using a bit of the burn tool helps as well in the shadoes so that it looks more realistic.«

I recommend using additional Adjustment Layers with their own Layer Masks instead. 

[Joolsey1973]

I would also recomend using a layer mask, I didn't reallty have much time to explain that!

And the adjustment layers is also a good option. 

[D Fosse]

Just a few things to be aware of before you start:

"Color" doesn't mean the same ting in Photoshop as it does in everyday speech. In Photoshop, the color component is completely separate from the brightness component. A light pink and a deep crimson may well have the same "color". 

That's the way it has to be, or Color blend mode would be impossible. Then it would just be a standard opaque paintbrush.

White and black are not colors. They are the complete absence of color, only with low and high brightness respectively. In other words, color blend mode, or any tools derived from that, will have absolutely no effect on black or white.

Optically, every color has its own inherent brightness. This has to do with the eye's sensitivity to different wavelengths. Think of a bright lemon yellow, versus a deep crimson or purple. In any real object, such as clothing, this means that the whole tone curve (contrast curve) changes with different colors.

Short version: You can't just "change color" and expect it to look natural, because it won't. You need to remap the entire tone curve as well. And the only way to achieve that is to have the object in question on a separate layer or at least masked out, so that you can work on it without affecting the rest.

[c.pfaffenbichler]

And as for the masking: It may be necessary to decontaminate both the foreground and the background. 

With minor adjustments a Layer Mask may not need to be terribly precise anyway but the more extreme the adjustment the more it can become clear that a »pertfect« Mask is not possible and some edge pixels will look inadequate without additional editing. 

[JJMack]

A quick hand painting and blending into the original

[Norman Sanders]

Pranav, as you know when working in RGB, since both tone level and color are housed in each channel, a change in one of those two variables changes the other.

It would be wonderful if we could change the lightness of a point or a scale of tones without the color being affected. (I am using the term “color” in the context described by the expert @D Fosse in an earlier post.)

I have good news for you in the form of Lab Color. In that mode, tone is discrete from color with lightness residing in the L (Lightness) channel and color residing in the other two channels. 

Note that in the samples above the Lightness was changed while the  a  and  b  channels  remained constant.  (In the sample presented, for example, the color is  a combined Magenta and Blue.)   

Consider the option of changing the Mode to Lab color, establishing the pink ( a  and b channel vaues) and altering the Lightness curve to create your desired effect.  Then, change the mode to RGB and your preferred profile.

Note how a single point color change in RGB may affect the image in comparison to Lab.