Editing Backlit Images With Photoshop Actions

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One of my favorite ways to shoot portraits is backlit. I’ve found that with MCP’s Photoshop actions it makes it easy to enhance photos by giving it that bright, sunny, glowing effect. This is my blueprint on how to add nice warm, soft lighting to my backlit images using MCP’s actions.

Before:

mcpblog-2 Editing Backlit Images With Photoshop Actions Blueprints Free Photoshop Actions Guest Bloggers Photoshop Tips

 

  1. Ran the “Eye Doctor” action to enhance catchlights, brighten the iris, brighten the whites of the eye and used “Sharp as a Tack” to sharpen all to taste.
  2. Ran “Magic Powder” from the “Magic Skin action set” to smooth skin and brushed it on at 30% opacity.
  3. Ran “Define” from the “MCP Fusion Photoshop actions” to add contrast to the midtones.
  4. Ran “Magic Marker” – also from the “Fusion” set and painted it on the background only at 55% opacity.
  5. Ran “Color Fusion Mix and Match” under the “MCP Fusion” set and left “One Click Color” at its default while making the following adjustments: turned off “Seek It” because I thought the image was bright enough,  took “Protect It” down to 17% opacity  to tone down some of the highlights, left “Crispy It” at default, but masked 50% off of his face and 100% off of his lips, set “Brighten It” to 35%, took “Color It” down to 20% since I already used “Magic Marker,” Turned “Dim It” off to keep it bright, brought “Rich It” down to 20% opacity keep the yellows toned down, increased “Spot It” to 30% opacity, but masked it off his hair, turned “Edge It” off, and mixed in “Sentimental” at 50% opacity on the background only. This may seem like a lot of adjusting but it took just seconds.
  6. Ran MCP’s free Photoshop action “Touch of Light” to put some highlights in his hair at 17% opacity and used “Touch of Dark” at 40% opacity to darken parts of the field in the background and parts of his jacket.
  7. Lastly, I ran “High Def Sharpening” at 45% and got this beautiful backlit image.

After:

after-2 Editing Backlit Images With Photoshop Actions Blueprints Free Photoshop Actions Guest Bloggers Photoshop Tips

This Blueprint was created by Jessica Crawford. Find her at www.jessicacrawfordphotography.com and  www.framedweddings.com. She is based out of Raleigh, NC, specializing in Newborns, Children, Families, Engagements, and Weddings.

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No Comments

  1. Jeanette on October 13, 2015 at 10:47 pm

    I LOVE LOVE this post. I am a visual learner and all the details in the workflow screen shots are amazing, thank you!!!

  2. JulieWorthy on October 15, 2015 at 7:51 pm

    Where is: EVERYTHING : Adjust Opacity?Just can’t find it in the action set. And excellent edit!!!julie

    • Jodi Friedman on October 15, 2015 at 8:03 pm

      It is called “Group Everything” and it is in the last section of the action set of the full PS version.

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