Dodging and burning in the darkroom required a lot of patience and skill. Fortunately Photoshop makes the process infinitely easier and accessible to anyone with a computer.
The Dodge Tool lightens underlying pixels giving a underexposed look and the Burn Tool darkens the pixels giving a richer, overexposed appearance. Both tools are used by setting a brush size and applying in strokes. In addition, you set these tools to affect highlights, shadows, or midtones so you don’t have to be so careful when applying changes. It’s also a good idea to set the Exposure in the Options Bar to a low number so your changes are more gradual with each stroke.
There are many situations where the Dodge and Burn Tools can be used to improve your photos by adjusting the tonal quality of selected areas. For instance, photos taken with a flash can often be overexposed in the foreground or underexposed in the background. People standing closer to the camera flash can be darkened by using the Burn Tool if they appear too light. Those standing further away from the flash can be lightened by using the Dodge Tool if they appear underexposed.
Another instance where dodging and burning comes in handy is in correcting an image to improve the focal point of the image. As an example, take a look at the following picture of a barn at the base of the Teton Mountains in Wyoming.
Before and after using Dodge and Burn Tools in Photoshop. Click to enlarge.
Notice the detail is practically lost in the dark shadow of the barn face. With just a little dodging, that area becomes a bit lighter and the details emerge once again.
Off to the extreme left of the barn you see what looks to be the metal roof of another barn glinting in the sun. Here the burn tool is used to tone down the brightness so as not to distract the eye so much when looking at the entire composition.
By adjusting the light and dark areas of your images using dodge and burn, a good picture can be made into a perfect print which reproduces all the tones in the original scene without any one area competing for undue interest.
Next: Non-destructive Dodge and Burn
Tags: Dodge and Burn, Photoshop Editing