Clarity slider in Lightroom

Janice

Janice

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Janice
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Do any of you who take portraits and use Lightroom 2.0 use the clarity slider? It seems to give the faces a tad more sculpture.

What do you think?

Janice
 
i use it, i think it might be contrast for dummies, but i like the results :D
 
Photomatix ftw :P ... I need to have a real play with LR2 only got it the other day
 
I find the clarity adjustments work best in bright but low contrast images that can't really handle a contrast adjustment per say, like a high key image or, (in my case), a figure skating image with a hefty white background.

It's the king when you want to add some definition while preserving detail in the highlights.
 
Kerioak said:
If you push the clarity slider down on portraits it has the effect of smoothing the skin
Click to expand...

That works quite well, make sure you have another layer underneath, add a mask to the upper one and paint over features like the eyes to bring sharp versions through.
 
Geordi69 said:
That works quite well, make sure you have another layer underneath, add a mask to the upper one and paint over features like the eyes to bring sharp versions through.
Click to expand...

Layers in Lightroom? :thinking:
 
On my standard import preset I put a bit of clarity on, the slider is at 20 I think.
 
Seconded now the negative setting smoothing portraits. I use a little sometimes, but have to careful without masks.
 
As has been alluded to here already - the best way I have found to use the clarity slider on portraits is to use it on the image overall as a negative setting to soften the skin (if, of course, this is desirable), and then as a brush on a positive setting over the eyes and mouth. This produces a wonderful effect.
 
pxl8 said:
Layers in Lightroom? :thinking:
Click to expand...

I tend to have preset export functions to do exactly this sort of thing. It works for doing HDR-manual-in-Photoshop style shots too.

1. Set up a new Export setting to export a photo to a folder on the desktop. I have a "Photoshop" folder sitting there for this.

2. Open your image. Tweak so it's nice & sharp. Export it. This is your "sharp" version. If you leave the "Photoshop" folder open on your desktop, you can quickly rename it.

3. Tweak the image again in LR so you get your soft focus effect. Export that.

4. Open PS. Open "sharp", open "soft". Copy & paste one over the other and you have your two images, one as a layer, ready to be masked/erased.

I really find the export function of LR to be brilliant for this. It's so very quick to do. And LR is excellent for fast general editing.

Got a good sky in one image and a good foreground in another? Export both.
Got a great RAW capture and want to HDR it? Use the exposure slider in LR. Set to -1, export, set to 0, export, set to +1, export. Done.

With PS opening from the same place (Photoshop folder on the desktop for example), that's fast too.
File management is easy, as the export function effectively makes copies of the original. When you've finished editing, just clear out the PS folder secure in the knowledge that you haven't touched the original. If you save your finished work back to the same PS folder, you just need to Synchronise that folder in Lightroom and you can drag/drop the completed images into your file structure.

-H
 
Harlequin565 said:
I tend to have preset export functions to do exactly this sort of thing. It works for doing HDR-manual-in-Photoshop style shots too.

1. Set up a new Export setting to export a photo to a folder on the desktop. I have a "Photoshop" folder sitting there for this.

2. Open your image. Tweak so it's nice & sharp. Export it. This is your "sharp" version. If you leave the "Photoshop" folder open on your desktop, you can quickly rename it.

3. Tweak the image again in LR so you get your soft focus effect. Export that.

4. Open PS. Open "sharp", open "soft". Copy & paste one over the other and you have your two images, one as a layer, ready to be masked/erased.

I really find the export function of LR to be brilliant for this. It's so very quick to do. And LR is excellent for fast general editing.

Got a good sky in one image and a good foreground in another? Export both.
Got a great RAW capture and want to HDR it? Use the exposure slider in LR. Set to -1, export, set to 0, export, set to +1, export. Done.

With PS opening from the same place (Photoshop folder on the desktop for example), that's fast too.
File management is easy, as the export function effectively makes copies of the original. When you've finished editing, just clear out the PS folder secure in the knowledge that you haven't touched the original. If you save your finished work back to the same PS folder, you just need to Synchronise that folder in Lightroom and you can drag/drop the completed images into your file structure.

-H
Click to expand...

Why not make virtual copies of the original and ajust the exposure on those? no renaming then.
 
^^ Exactly what I do. Create as many VC's as needed, adjust the exposure on them accordingly, then select them and use the Export to Photomatix plug-in which automatically opens them in PMatix allowing you to work on the settings in there. Once you finalise the process in Photomatix by processing your final image, the plug-in ensures the finished image is imported back into LR adjacent to the images used to create it.

Voila! Easy peasy eh!
 
swanseamale47 said:
Why not make virtual copies of the original and ajust the exposure on those? no renaming then.
Click to expand...

I thought about this, and did do it for a while. I ended up with multiple virtual copies of images, and no clue as to what they were for. Do I delete, do I keep? Of course, I could Export, then delete whilst still in LR, but it's an additional step, and there's always FFS* that could cause a deleted image.

My way, I have one copy of the shot in LR, and a "working" folder on the desktop of all the images I'm thinking of working on. I tend to get interrupted a lot whilst working on photos, and when I go back to the computer, I only need to check one folder to see what I was working on last.

My memory is failing me these days, so my method, whilst not as streamlined as your suggestion, keeps things ordered for me.

-H

*FFS - Fat Finger Syndrome
 
Harlequin565 said:
I tend to have preset export functions to do exactly this sort of thing. It works for doing HDR-manual-in-Photoshop style shots too.
Click to expand...

[snip]

I think you missed the point somewhat ;)
 
In ACR (which I assume is very similar to Lightroom?) - the Clarity slider has an effect visually similar to sharpening - so positive clarity sharpens an image, while negative clarity softens it - both effects work by producing changes to the mid-tone contrast curve

Using the Clarity slider in conjunction with some of the other sliders allows for selective softening of an image, such as skin (i.e. skin smoothing)

The above is a paraphrase from the last Professional Imagemaker mag, which has an extensive & useful article on sharpening :)

DD
 
DiddyDave said:
In ACR (which I assume is very similar to Lightroom?)
Click to expand...
Only in regard to the image processing/editing Dave. I haven't used ACR but I gather there are similar image manipulation controls in both ACR and Lightroom.

However, Lightroom is also a feature rich, extremely versatile cataloging and EXIF manager.
 
I really like the Clarity slider. For sports pics, the contrast it subtly adds around the subject makes it "pop" really nicely and isn't really obvious unles you compare the before & after versions.
 
as others have said +20 on import, really works well based on the output from my d50
 
I just started using it in ACR on some portraits and really ramping it up, usually 100% but combined with adjustments on other sliders too, to give a more highly detailed image, a bit 'grungy' looking I suppose, hard to explain, but almost tone mapping without the actual tone mapping. Someone on here posted their method for a particularly good portrait shot so started playing, and found it can be used very effectively. As mentioned, can also be great for softening skin tones where needed or desired. :thumbs:
 
Careful with the use of the Clarity slider for portrait shots Yv, as it often has the effect of whatever the opposite of softening is. Sometimes makes faces contain harsh edges and shadows - OK in some instances such as B&W rugedness, but not in all portrait work.

For many of the portrait shots where people request a print, I tend to use a negative clarity on the image overall, then use a brush preset I created with +ve clarity that I then use to lift the eyes and mouth.
 
theMusicMan said:
Careful with the use of the Clarity slider for portrait shots Yv, as it often has the effect of whatever the opposite of softening is. Sometimes makes faces contain harsh edges and shadows - OK in some instances such as B&W rugedness, but not in all portrait work.

For many of the portrait shots where people request a print, I tend to use a negative clarity on the image overall, then use a brush preset I created with +ve clarity that I then use to lift the eyes and mouth.
Click to expand...

Yes John, I know, hence I said on 'some' portraits. Though having said that, have used it on ones where you would perhaps normally want softening [or the client would ;) ] and you can still make it work, but not on its own, it has to be combined with other adjustments to result in a flattering image. A a stand alone tool, I will tweak if necessary, but nothing major. ;)
 
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