Converting to B+W

[kate8679]

I have photoshop v7 - does anyone know the best way to convert a pic to B+W?
When i use desaturate it just looks so... grey! i want to make it 'pop' more IYKWIM
Thanks for any help

[Lianne]

I'll be watching this one with interest as my B+W prints also look a bit grey. I use Corel Photo-Paint 10 so if anyone could help me that would be fab :)

Lianne xxx

[ibecks]

In Photoshop 7, go to Image> Adjust> Channel Mixer and tick the 'monochrome' box, then play with each of the channels until you find a pleasing balance. If you want to keep the same brightness, you'll need to have the values add up to 100%. The following settings are a good, but neutral starting point R30 G59 B11. You should also try adjusting the contrast (Image> Adjust> Brightness/Contrast).

[erisindevon]

The best way is to use 'curves' so you can mix the red, blue and green elements of the image. I only have Elements, sop doing this is very convoluted :lol:, but in PS7 you should have a tool that allows you to do it quite easily. Then it's mostly a matter of taste as to how much of each colour channel you prefer.

I'm sure other PS users will have more info but this might be enough for you to have a play.

hth, Eris
xx

[erisindevon]

there you go - knew I'd taken too long typing that!!

[ibecks]

Yes, there are lots of different ways of doing conversions and the most successful tend to be a combination of different techniques. After you've done the channel mixer conversion, try adjusting the levels and curves to really fine-tune the pic... and don't forget to post the results!

[Lianne]

Okay, I've just had a play about, first desaturating like I normally would, and then using the channel mixer and the results are so much better and brighter! Took me a while to figure out because I don't have a monochrome box to tick in Corel, it says Preview Channel Output Only :huh:

[ibecks]

Good to know that there's an equivalent for Photo Paint. Have fun with it!

[bridget.withers]

There's some great B/W Actions available here http://www.atncentral.com/download.htm#BW_Conv

[vandamk]

My technique is different again :)

I desaturate the image, copy it to another layer, set the layer mode to multiply, and then play with the transparency of the top layer. If it is set to zero, you have your original picture, and if you increase it, the grey will become blacker.

Will now have a go with the other techniques mentioned here too!

Karin

[kate8679]

thanks for all the replies - i had a go with the channel mixer method, then adjusted the curves a bit - thats pic 1
pic 2 is playing with adjustment layers - found it on 1 of the links at the top of the forum - desaturated top layer then played with colour balance on the layer underneath to adjust tones.
Its still not quite as dramatic as i wanted but i guess the original colour shot can't have been tonally different enough - i'll attach that so you can see
Any tips or suggestions welcome!
thanks

[ibecks]

If you want a bit more darkness to play with, when you're using the channel mixer, just make it add up to less than 100. Also, try playing with the levels - click on the black pipette and then click on a dark bit of the photo to tell it this is what you want the black point to be.

[Lolly]

You can also use a gradient map....a good tutorial is here (http://spraguelab.blogspot.com/2006/06/photoshop-friday-issue-8.html)

[LesleyN]

How about using the burn tool around the edges a bit - might make the hair & T-shirt stand out more?

[erisindevon]

If anyone has Elements, there's a great book called 'the Hidden Power of Photoshop Elements' which teaches how to get PS effects such as curves/channels using layers on Elements. I'm still learning, but I've had some great results.

[Lianne]

Okay, it's all gone wrong :( When I click okay to then go and save the image it reverts back to colour so I guess I need to play around a bit more and find another way to do it. Does anyone else out there use Corel Photo-paint 10?

[gismo]

i do it the easy way and literally add a gradient layer and then choose black & white - voila!

[Manda]

I agree I like the curves tool !