![]() The Noise tab offers basic noise reduction capabilities. This tool often comes in handy because Adjust can enhance the noise that is already there or sometimes create noise as a side effect of the adjustments made. It is best used as a mid-workflow tool specifically for eliminating the noisy effects that can occur while working in Adjust. The Curve Tool offers additional control and flexibility over image contrast, brightness and tone. You can make adjustments here manually or use any of the pre-loaded curves presets. There is also a built-in histogram for added convenience. If you look at the boxer’s face and arms you may notice that the applied effects are too harsh on his skin. ![]() We can use the brush in the new local adjustment tab to fix this. Topaz ReMask makes light work of extracting images even images with high demands on extraction.By brushing out some of the effects we can create a more pleasing effect and detail balance. I chose this image (from Colourbox) as an example because it is problematic in 2 main ways: the colour at the edges of the dress are very similar to the background the hair is highly detailed and difficult to extract. The latest version of Topaz Labs ReMask (5) can be run either as a stand-alone program or as a Photoshop Plug-In. For this tutorial, I am using the Plug-In since I want to take the image into Photoshop afterwards.Ī really important thing to remember before you run the Plug-In, is to add a Layer Mask to the layer you are on before you open ReMask. ![]() If you do not do this, your saved layer after remasking will only be the extracted layer. Making a layer mask allows for your extraction work to be saved on the mask. This is really useful if you want to further refine the mask in Photoshop. I usually prep images using a Levels Adjustment on a duplicated background layer. This accentuates the contrast between your image and the background, making life a little easier once you open ReMask. Since the work will be saved on a layer mask it is then easy to move the layer mask to your original (un-adjusted) layer. This is where you select what you want the program to compute. The basic brushes in are Green (keep), Red (cut) and Blue (compute). The blue areas are where the program works the hardest, deciding what the boundaries for what is kept and what is removed are. When I first started using ReMask I mistakenly thought that the more precise you were in prepping the image with these brushes, the better job ReMask would do. This is, however, most often not the case as ReMask does an exceptional job of problem solving. The default on opening the program is that everything is filled in green (keep). Here I have traced around the model and her hair using the blue brush, containing the green within these boundaries. Next I use the red ‘Fill’ option to select the areas to remove. ‘Compute Mask’ calculates the initial extraction and you can select various ways to view the results. You can see from the traditional, layer mask view, that ReMask has done a pretty good job. In the top right hand corner of the window there are options for viewing either a single image, side by side image (which you select your preferred view from the top of each of the 2 images), or 4 images. Screenshot 4 shows the Trimap, the Mask, the Original image and the extracted, Keep image. You can work within any of these views and indeed can switch between them. There is a quicker selection method that actually works very well when you have difficult to define areas such as hair. When you open ReMask, as mentioned above, the default is for the image to be filled in green. BUT it is actually better to fill the image in blue. This will extend the regions that ReMask has to compute but the program is extremely efficient. Make some broad lines and marks in green within the area you want to keep. Make a rough outline in red to show where regions are to be removed. Screenshot 6 shows what a great job ReMask does using this minimal information. So really, there is no need to carefully trace around the edges of everything prior to hitting the Compute button. Here is a closer look at the result in the four view option. When you are working on the extracted, ‘keep’ image it is usually easier to view it against a background. You can add a background of either solid colour (screenshot 8) or an imported image.
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