Make color jpg black and white. Converting a black and white photo to color (5 lessons)
Hi all! We continue to conquer the basics of working in Photoshop. Today I have prepared a lesson for readers on the topic How to turn a color photo into black and white.
Sooner or later, when processing photographs and images in Photoshop, we are faced with the need to turn a color photograph into black and white. Therefore, I decided to prepare this short lesson for my readers to show how this is done clearly.
There are many ways to perform this operation. In this mini lesson, we will not consider the methods used by professional photographers, we will look at the simplest and quick ways How to turn a color photo into black and white. In future lessons, we will definitely return to this topic and look at other methods, more complex and professional, used by advanced Photoshop users.
Let's get acquainted with 3 ways converting color photographs into black and white, I’ll say right away that these methods are not professional, the quality after processing is not the best, but these methods are quite suitable for learning by novice users.
So, I propose to move from words to deeds. First, let's open the image we want to make black and white.
Now let's start processing. I present to your attention the first method.
Method #1:
We turn a color photo into black and white using the “G” function gray radiation".
To do this we need to go to Top Menu: Image/Mode/Grayscale. A window will appear with the question “Delete color information”, click delete and our photo will become black and white.
Go to the menu Picture/Modes/Grayscale
Very quick and easy, right? Let's move on.
Attention! Remember that you can always revert an action using the CTRL+Z hotkeys. Let's move on to the second method.
Method #2:
We turn a color photo into black and white using the “ Discolor".
We go up to the top menu of the program and go to:( Shift + CTRL+U ) . See below the result of the operation performed.
Go to the top menu Image/Adjustments/Desaturate or press hotkeys Shift+Ctrl+U
Method #3:
Making a black and white image using an adjustment layer " Black and white"
This method is also extremely simple and fast, its advantage is that when using adjustment layers, the Photoshop program makes changes and corrections to a special adjustment layer, and not to the original image, which we decided to make black and white. We also have such features as: reversing the entire editing process, controlling the opacity of the layer, turning the visibility of the layer on and off. This method allows you to get a more beautiful black and white image, unlike the previous ones.
Step 1:
So, we already have the photo open. Now let's go to the panel "Correction", if it is closed for you, then open it through the top menu Window/Correction. We find in the panel “ Correction» adjustment layer « Black and white" and click on it.
To open the adjustment layers panel, go to the top menu Window/Correction
Step 2:
After you click on the adjustment layer " Black and white“, our image was converted to black and white and a window with sliders appeared. In this window, using many simple parameters, you can adjust the black and white effect to suit you as you like. Move the sliders until you achieve a contrasting black and white image. Moving the sliders to the right turns areas that were previously colored the color of the slider into a lighter shade of gray, while moving the sliders to the left turns areas into a lighter shade of gray. dark shade grey.
At the top of this window, you can select already ready-made kits or create your own set and then save it through the “triangle with stripes” menu, which is located in the upper right corner of the window. If you click on the button " Auto“, Photoshop will automatically select the parameters of how it thinks the black and white image should look. This is what happened to me.
This is what happened to me
That's all for today, try to practice everyone 3 ways and write about your results below in the comments. See you in the next lessons!
HOW TO MAKE A BLACK AND WHITE PHOTO COLOR IN PHOTOSHOP
Today we will learn how to turn a non-color photograph into a color one. I’ll make a reservation right away for those who are looking for the “make a photo in color” button in this article. Alas, such a button has not yet been invented. You can desaturate a photo with one click, but you won’t be able to color it with the same click, because a black and white photo does not have color information. So we’ll have to work with our hands and fill our black and white image with color information in the most literal sense. Some plugins for Photoshop do a good job of colorizing photos, but we won’t discuss any plugins that we don’t know where to get from. Let's talk about what is available for colorization in Photoshop itself. And there is a lot in it.
The method of coloring a photograph is simple and primitive. A five-year-old child can master it in 10 minutes. I will tell you about all the ways to colorize a photo, and also show how this simple operation can be taken to a new, more professional level. So let's get started.
THE EASIEST WAY TO MAKE A PHOTO Blend Color
To colorize a photo you will need to know how to use the tool. Brush Tool, as well as have an idea of how other Photoshop tools work. It doesn’t hurt to be able to highlight areas of a photograph and initial knowledge about layers and masks, which you can learn from my article Masks in Photoshop. In this lesson you will see in practice how you can automate work in Photoshop using masks, and have full control to color settings.
I borrowed a photo from the collection of a photographer friend of mine. Black and white photographs look mysterious and conceptual, but what happens if we color it a little? Create a new layer on top of the photo Layer > New > Layer or click on the small layer icon in the layers palette Windows > Layers
Now select a tool Brush Tool, a soft-edged brush, make it larger and drag the mouse over the new layer with some red color. The natural result is a red smear on a skillfully taken photograph. This doesn't suit us. In order for the red color to color, you need to change the settings of the layer itself. These settings are called overlay settings Color Mode. You can find them only in the layers palette Layers, above the layers themselves. Click on this drop-down menu, you will see a whole list of different blend modes. The point is that by changing the color blending mode, we establish new rules by which the layer's color interacts with the colors of the layers below. The blending mode we need is called Color, and its meaning is simple - it colors the image in the color we need, while maintaining the naturalness of the colors. Install let's decide Color, choose the color you need and color the girl’s hair.
That's all. Quite simple isn't it? Spare me the trouble of stretching out this process over 10 pages and demonstrating how I paint the skin, gloves, eyes, and so on, step by step. The coloring depends on your imagination, and the realism depends on the quality of work and the naturalness of the selected colors. Work with the brush, select the size, adjust the opacity and fill parameters, which you will find in the brush settings menu Windows > Options
This is the “mask” my wife sketched for a few minutes of work. Note that the layer blending mode is Normal. I hope you are convinced that making a color photo in Photoshop is very simple.
And this is what happens if you change the layer blending settings to Color.
COLORING A PHOTO VIA LAYER STYLES
Now let's start going deeper and complicating the process. Complication is not meant to make the work more difficult, but to make the work easier. You know, all these kali malis on one layer are of course wonderful, but they are more suitable for creative individuals, those who like to sit and spin a clay pot on a gurney for hours. Spreading one color and another on this layer is perhaps convenient for artists from the academy who were banned from Google, which is why they still have not heard about Photoshop. Alas, even cartoons are drawn on a computer; 1000 drawings on paper, which are then quickly flipped through, remain in the 20th century. Personally, as a designer, I would like to have more control over color and settings. I would like to effectively and quickly tweak colors through the menu, rather than redraw the layer.
How could we bring more control over the image? To begin with, it would be nice to divide one layer into several layers. Let's create
There really are a lot of layers. And each layer will be responsible for its own area. Create a layer "hair", layer "eyes", "gloves", "nails" and others. I started coloring the photo myself, creating thematic layers for this. Now the management process is more manageable, according to at least The coloring is not on the same layer. Any part of the coloring can be muted, turned off, in other words, you can do with it everything that can be done with a layer. Other layers with coloring will remain untouched.
But none of this still makes much sense. The color of all layers is still arbitrary. On layer "Hair" You can still draw with both blue and red. In other words, still Kali Mali, but more manageable Kali Mali, divided into sectors. And I would like to control the color too. I want to change the entire color with one click, and not sculpt with a brush and constantly redo the result with my hands. I'll show you how to do this using layer styles. layer style.
Create a layer and name it "Hair". Dye your hair any color, even green. Go to the layers palette and set the fill Fill on 0% Thus, what you drew will become invisible.
Roughly speaking, we create a kind of raster area, turn off the fill fill and apply layer styles to the area. The area itself does not become invisible, as is the case with Opasity. The content of the area becomes invisible, but not the area itself. Therefore, the applied layer styles will be visible. But if we set the Opasity to 0%, the entire layer along with the styles would become invisible. We will give the area a certain style, but since we will still have to apply layer blending to paint, the original color must be removed by setting the Fill to 0%, otherwise when blending it will become visible and we will not get the desired result.
Now let's create a style for the layer Layer > Layer Style>Color Overlay In the mixing menu Blend mode set the mode Color. And in the color box, set the color we need.
If you forgot to set the fill to 0%, you can do this in the same window, in the blending settings tab Blending Options. If you did this in the layers palette Layers, then the fill will already be installed as needed.
Now we have full control over color. Give each layer a different style. Double-clicking on the layer will automatically bring up Layer Styles, where you can change the hair color with one click. You don’t have to smear everything 100 times, the color changes in one second, and you see the result online. Choosing a color has become much easier.
This is what I call color control. Now let's go even deeper.
COLORING PHOTOS THROUGH FILL LAYERS (fill lyers)
You know what I think. These efforts to control the image are certainly cool, but somehow difficult. What if you need to change the color? You have to constantly click on the layer, bring up the styles window, go to the tab Color Overlay and change something there. Not so much fast process, if you want to quickly change the colors of layers. Of course, if we have 2 layers it’s not difficult, but what if we had 102 layers? We need to make this process even easier. This is where the real work with layers begins. Now I'll show you how to color a photo using fill layers.
Create a new fill layer Layers > New Fill Layers > Solid Color The fill layer completely covers the photo, filling the entire working surface. We just don't need this. As you can see from the Layers palette, the fill layer is created with a ready-made empty mask. We need to turn the white mask into a black mask to hide the entire fill layer. You can click on the mask icon and select Delete.
Or select the mask icon and do the same from the menu Layer > Layer Mask > Delete. Now create a mask from scratch, but not an empty one, but a hiding one. We did this in my article "Masks in Photoshop". Select Layer > Layer Mask > Hide All
Or you can go another way. The mask is the same working surface as the layer itself. The mask can be drawn manually using any drawing tools. For example, with a brush Brush Tool. Only unlike a layer, the mask is created in a gradation from black to white, where white is the visible part, and black is the hiding part. Click on the mask icon in the layer palette. The mask must be selected so that you can draw on it. Then select the fill bucket Paint Bucket Toll and black color. Click on the work surface. An empty mask has become a hiding mask.
Now select a regular brush Brush Tool and white color. Create a hair mask by drawing on top of the mask exactly as you
would draw on a layer. You can enjoy all the benefits of brush settings. Make it transparent, change sizes, soft edges. All this will only affect how visible our mask is. And of course, don't forget to set the layer's blending mode to Color, so that you can immediately see the result of painting. We could have gone a different way. For example, leave the mask white and paint the entire area around the hair black. But you must admit, it is somewhat tedious to cover up 70%
work area. And of course, don’t forget to work on a mask, the mask must be selected. This can be done by simply clicking on its icon in the layers palette.
As a result, you should have a fill layer with a hair mask. The advantage of this method is that you don’t need to delve into color settings every time, which are unclear where. One simple click on the layer fill brings up a window with a color choice.
Paint other areas of the photo in the same way. In some areas where the color doesn't lend itself to soft transitions, you'll need to create highlight areas. For example, in the case of nails, I created selections with the tool Magic Wand Tool And Polygonal Lasso Toll. Otherwise, I made do with changing brush sizes and switching between soft edges and hard edges.
Once you've created all the photo area layers, you can create other tint layers that create hair tones, shimmers, and other lighting effects. This is a professional result. Now let's look at alternative options coloring photographs.
MAKE A PHOTO COLOR THROUGH ADJUSTMENTS LAYERS
Here's another way to make a photo in color. Let's use the color correction settings adjustments. I can already imagine how you open familiar ones to everyone Image > Adjustments, select an area and apply effects. No, we certainly won’t do that. We will get the same kala malya. Of course, select the area, apply color correction, highlight new area, applying color correction again is an option. Only this option is dull, without any opportunity to tweak and change the results.
Therefore, we will use color correction layers Layer > New Adjustment Layer. A color correction layer is the same color correction, only it is not applied to the graphics layer, but is itself a layer. Imagine that the photo is our layer. And on top we put red glass, which changed the color of the photo. The red glass is the color-correcting layer. You can remove it, make it invisible, apply layers, a mask and more.
Which color corrections are suitable for coloring? In my opinion, color correction is the best option. Photo Filter. Select Layer > New Adjustment Layer > Photo Filter Or create a color adjustment layer through the Layers palette menu Layers.
Now I want you to do everything that I described for coloring photographs through fill layers. Create a mask, fill it with black and use a regular brush to apply the filter to the area you need. This is what you should get:
At the same time, you can reconfigure the filter color, change the color and adjust the mask at any time. Just click on the color correction layer and in the palette Adjustments customize the color. If you don’t know where this palette is located, call it through Windows > Ajustments. You will see for yourself that using color correction to make a photo color is as easy as using fill layers, but I personally prefer the latter.
I hope there is no need to demonstrate step-by-step coloring. You already understand that you need to color all areas of the photo in a similar way. I will give you the final version of the photo colorization and wish you successful experiments in Photoshop. Now you know how to make a photo in color.
I was recently asked about the process of converting an image to black and white, specifically how you can tell if an image is suitable for it. So in this article I am going to talk about how to properly convert an image to black and white and how to do it in Photoshop without losing quality.
When is it better to convert an image to black and white?
There are three ideas that come to mind when I'm trying to evaluate whether I should convert my image to black and white (hereafter abbreviated as BW):
- First of all, this is a little obvious, but what kind of result do you want? Did your client specifically ask to take a B&W photo? Are you participating in a photo competition in the B&W category? You're doing a series for a B&W gallery (because actually, it doesn't look very good when you only have one or two B&W photos among the color ones, you want to have a good mix right?) Like I said, it's pretty obvious that you need to consider final result, but it was worth saying again.
- Secondly, you need to consider the value of dynamic range. In photography, the term “range value” refers to the ratio of dark and light areas of an image. So when I say evaluate the range of an image, I'm talking about whether you have deep blacks and bright whites in the photo. What's your dynamic range? For the most part, "flat" images don't look very good in black and white. Traditional B&W have good contrast and fairly spread values throughout the histogram. So, if your image has these components, then it may be a good choice for converting to B&W.
- I'll write an article on color theory and color relationships at some point, but if you have weird color combinations that don't look good together, that photo might be a good candidate for converting to B&W. Let's face it, some colors don't go well with others. B&W can be a great way to avoid inconsistency and get a great photo.
Just a tip: if you squint your eyes while looking at an image, you'll see fewer colors and a wider range. This can help give you an idea of whether your image actually has the appropriate dynamic range.
How to convert a color image to black and white
Okay, let's now talk about how to convert an image to B&W, because there are two ways: the right way and the wrong way. You can certainly get the same result, but if you do it wrong, you will actually lose quality (technically, you are sacrificing bytes of information). In this article I will talk about using Adobe Photoshop. There are other conversion programs you can buy, but in terms of practicality, why pay extra when you can do it very easily in Photoshop.
Step 1
If you find an image that you want to convert to B&W, the first step is to open the image in Photoshop. In my example, I'm using one of my wedding photos, which you can view on my website. It was taken during the first dance and I just really love this photo in B&W.
Step 2
Do not do that!
In short, you are actually cheating. color profile, this means you are losing pixel information in the colors. But you don’t want this, you want to preserve as much as possible more information in the image as much as possible.
What you want to do is done using the black and white settings. You can access them either from the top menu Image > Mode > Black and White(Image > Adjustments > Black&White) or in the sidebar on the right, click on the settings button (as shown in the picture), and then click on the Black & White icon, which is indicated by a black rectangle divided into black and white diagonally.
Step 3
Once you click this icon, you will see the value settings for each color (see picture). Note that Photoshop has preserved all the color information in the image, it just displays it as B&W, but all your color information is preserved.
This also gives you more control over how you change the B&W, as you can adjust it on a color-by-color basis. But keep in mind that you shouldn't go beyond acceptable values colors too far apart or you'll start to see bumps and jagged stripes in gradient areas like the sky. You'll see this immediately when viewing the image if you start moving the sliders too much, so you'll immediately see what I'm talking about.
Step 4
After that, you can use other adjustment layers (which act like smart layers, if you understand what that means, and which is very good decision) to adjust the image the way you need: exposure, contrast, levels, curves, filters, etc.
Step 5
Once you've made all the editing steps you thought necessary, hopefully you've ended up with an image that you're happy with as a result. Now all you have to do is save it according to your needs and depending on the desired result.
David Wahlman is a wedding and portrait photographer based in Redding, California. He works around California and strives to expand the geography of his filming. You can watch it best works over www.wahlmanphotography.com and follow his posts at
Hi all! As usual, I am with you, Dmitry Kostin. And today we will photoshop again. Remember how we did? Be that as it may, this is not surprising, since it is not at all difficult to desaturate the image. But how to turn a black and white photo into color? Is that possible?
Of course available. Already, even entire films are being colored. Why make some image color? But it’s still a very interesting experience. Can you imagine? You can come up with the colors you would like to see in this photo. For example, you can set the color of your eyes, hair, skin, clothes and much more. This is how I colored old photographs. It turned out funny)
Let me not make long introductions. Let's start coloring right away. Open any b/w photo (I chose a photo I found on the Internet).
Just look at what mode the photo is in. It's just possible that it was saved in the format "Grayscale", then you simply won’t be able to work with color.
Change the color mode to RGB. To do this, go to the top menu and select “Image” - “Mode”. Well, if it’s not RSL, then install it.
Let's look at the first method, namely the one familiar to you.
Blending Options
Here is another fairly effective trick for coloring photos. The main thing here is to create a separate layer for each element. I took new photo for these needs.
By the way, this was the very first method that I learned about. When I found out about it, I liked it so much that I colored a lot of photos).
Layer mask
Well, the last method of transformation for today is using a layer mask. Let's get straight to the point.
Well, in the end it turns out beautiful color photography and she looks completely different. Oh, but of course I messed up a little. But you can always correct this.
I will never cease to be amazed at the power of Photoshop. Indeed, in many cases, the same problem can be solved in several ways, and you yourself can choose the method that suits you best. By the way, which method do you like best? Or do you have your own way of turning a black and white photo into color in Photoshop, which I did not describe here? Please write in the comments.
If you want to as soon as possible to explore the possibilities of Photoshop and learn how to work with it, I strongly recommend that you take a look excellent video course. Everything is described in detail, everything is told in human language and laid out on the shelves. The material is easily absorbed. So I recommend it.
Well, I'm done for today. I hope that you liked my article. Be sure to subscribe to my blog updates, then you will always be aware of the latest information on the blog. I won't spam. I promise). I wish you good luck in mastering Photoshop. Bye bye!
Best regards, Dmitry Kostin.
Many photographers agree that vintage black and white photographs have such an attractive charm and allure that their modern digital counterparts, devoid of some kind of “soul,” cannot hold a candle to them. Of course, black and white photography does not require old photographic films, solvents and developers... To make it, you just need a modern digital camera.
What advantages do such photographs have?
Of course, not everyone is a creative person who has a keen sense of the style and character of a photograph. Are there any real benefits to black and white photography that an experienced photographer can take advantage of? Yes, and there are many of them.
The fact is that black and white photography not only arouses nostalgia in viewers, but also focuses their attention on the photograph itself. This is especially valuable for portraits: have you ever wondered why this particular photo format is preferred? The fact is that they allow you to focus attention precisely on the foreground, making everything that is behind the person unimportant. In addition, such an image allows extra costs process objects in photos.
In addition, black and white photography is indispensable when decorating a room in a vintage style, when you want to set a certain background. Even seasoned designers often use this method, so you can also try yourself in this field.
How to make it?
In most modern digital cameras There is a mode for automatic shooting in this mode. Is it worth using the mentioned program? No no and one more time no! It makes more sense to shoot in normal mode, “bleaching” pictures into application programs. In this case, you can adjust dozens of parameters that the camera simply “cuts down”. In addition, using the same Photoshop, you can restore old beautiful black and white photographs by scanning them and improving the color balance.
We'll first look at the extremely popular Photoshop, and then we'll cover a couple of other image editors.
A quick way to convert a photo to black and white
First, open any photo you need to convert. Go to the “Image” menu, go to “Adjustments”, where click on the “Desaturate” command. It should be noted that this algorithm will allow you to make any photo black and white in just a couple of seconds, but the result is unlikely to greatly inspire you for further research... This is how a black and white photograph is made in Photoshop if the user is too lazy to spend time on it.
The photo turns out flat and blurry. In a word, it’s better to use automatic modes on a soapbox...
Black and White Adjustment Layers
It's much better to use the "Black and White" layer. This method is not only simple, but also reversible. The fact is that when saving to the program, it makes changes to the second layer, and not to original image, which provides the opportunity for wide creative experiments. In addition, such black and white photography turns out to be really three-dimensional and beautiful.
Converting the image
First, open the photo you want to redo. Double-click with the left mouse button on the “Background” tab if it was previously inactive. To create a black and white layer, you have to follow a few simple steps.
First, you need to open the “Correction” palette (follow the “Window/Correction” path), and then left-click on the “Black and White” layer icon, which is visually similar to a rectangle divided into two halves by a diagonal line. Immediately after this, a layer with a desaturated image will be created, after which several dialog boxes with sliders with which you can set precise color gradation.
How can you make a photograph in black and white, but at the same time maintain maximum contrast between different zones in the image? To get the most contrasting picture possible, simply move the sliders until the quality suits you. Dragging the sliders to the right will make the colors lighter; dragging to the left will make them darker.
There is a drop-down list at the top of the palette: experiment with its options. You might get some interesting effect. If you click on the “Auto” button, it will display the parameters of the “ideal” image in grayscale on the monitor. This button can also be used if your experiments in desaturating images have gone somewhere wrong.
Sepia effect
Remember the relatively recent photographs from the times of the late USSR, where there were not only black and white colors, but also a shade of brown? Do you know how to achieve such an attractive effect in a modern photo? Nothing could be easier!
There is also a Tint checkbox at the top of the palette. If you check it and click "OK", the program will automatically add a brown tint (sepia effect), this applies to all elements of the image. To the right of the checkbox there is an icon in the form of a colored square: click on it if you want to add some other shades to the picture. This way you can take so-called false two-tone photographs.
Here's how to make a photo black and white.
GIMP
All of the above is true for Photoshop program. No doubt, this application is a recognized world leader. But isn't there another one that is just as functional? There is one. It's called GIMP and has long been positioned as an alternative to its paid competitor.
To be fair, it should be noted that not in all cases such a replacement will be adequate, but for desaturating photographs, the mentioned program will be more than enough.
Using adjustment layers in Channel Mixing
Let us immediately note that this photo program uses layers in the same way, so almost all the techniques that can be used in the case of Photoshop are quite relevant here. First, still make sure that the “Background” is open on the image you have opened, left-click on the icon with the image of a diagonally crossed out two-color circle at the bottom of the palette, and then in the appeared context menu select the Channel Mixing option.
After this, the “Correction” dialog box will immediately open, select the “Monochrome” checkbox at the top of it, and then select one of the lightening options offered by the program in the drop-down list located here. This method will allow you to get beautiful black and white photographs, each of the elements in which is edited individually.
Important! If you want to make a picture with printing quality (which can then be printed), then it is advisable to use in a special way calibrated monitor. Otherwise, you will probably be disappointed due to the mismatch in brightness of colors and shades.
Using "Brightness"
What is the Lightness channel for? In it, the application stores all the illumination parameters of the picture, which form all the visible contours of the image too. Thus, if you take it separately from all other picture settings, you will get a regular black and white photograph.
Open the “Image” menu, select “Mode” there, and then click on the “Channel” option. A palette of the same name will appear, on which you need to select the “Brightness” item. If you don’t like the result, go back to the “Mode” item and select the “Grayscale” option there. Left-click on the “OK” button, after which GIMP will automatically delete all existing color information.
Additional gradation of parameters
The picture will become black and white. If you need more careful and detailed processing of black and white photos, try “playing” with the parameters, achieving the ideal display of color, brightness and contrast of the image. It should be noted that in many cases this method produces an overly bright, but pale, pattern. However, you can play with such gradations of color, interestingly blurring
By the way, do you remember what we talked about the techniques of professional photographers at the very beginning of the article? Yes, yes, it is with the help of this method that they create amazing effect, when the face in the photograph literally has a life of its own. This “miracle” owes its existence to the usual psychological characteristics of a person: firstly, in color pictures we constantly pay attention background, even if unconsciously. Secondly, black and white photographs themselves force the focus to be on the central figure. Considering that the background is already becoming blurry, the brain involuntarily focuses on the foreground, picking out more and more details.
Using the Camera Raw plugin
If you are a professional photographer and work with RAW format, we recommend using the Camera Raw plug-in to convert your photos. It can be used with equal success not only in GIMP, but also in Photoshop. Download the module from the official website, after which you can start creating and experimenting.
Correct use of the module
In the main Camera Raw window, open the HSL/Grayscale window. To do this, you can click on the button of the same name. Check the “Convert to grayscale” checkbox. A panel with a set of sliders will immediately appear on the right side of the working window. To add contrast to the image, simply lighten any of the areas in the image by moving the slider to the right. However, we talked about exactly the same thing at the top of our article, so you can see the relevant recommendations there.
Then you need to open the “Basic” panel, and then “play” with the “Exposure” slider, adjusting in detail all the parameters of the black and white image. Try to “play” with the settings, after which you yourself will be amazed at what an irresistible impression “ordinary” black and white photography can produce!
PaintNet
If you are not an experienced user, then you have probably already doubted your ability to master the capabilities of the programs described above. Which, however, is not surprising, since they have a rather complex interface. Because of this, it is not advisable for novice users to install these applications just for the sake of converting several photos to black and white format.
Therefore, we would recommend that not too confident and “fledgling” artists install the completely free PaintNet program from Microsoft on their computer. Despite its compact size, it is very functional and can be successfully used for our purposes. However, almost everything free programs for photographs that currently exist can be described in exactly the same way.
Working with layers
Since this application also uses layers, the main stages of our work will be largely similar to the techniques described above, but your work will be much more pleasant. This is largely due to the fact that the interface here is as simplified as possible. First, you should copy the layer that will contain a copy of the color image. Go to the "Layers" menu, then select "Make a copy of layer." As you can see, everything is as simple and accessible as possible.
However, copy the right piece images can be created directly from the Layers window. We will need it later. After the mentioned procedure, you are left with two layers, each of which contains exactly the same fragment of the image. In the same “Layers” menu, turn off the top section of the picture by left-clicking on the corresponding item.
Go to the “Corrections” menu, after which select the item there with the characteristic name “Make black and white”. After this, the image is completely discolored. It should be noted that the picture quality in this case may not be too stunning. Keep in mind that it is strongly not recommended to process scanned old black and white photographs in this way, as their quality may be seriously affected.
Is it possible to colorize a monochrome image?
Having spent so much time describing the transformation of color images into monochrome, it’s time to tackle the exact opposite process. We will make a colorful collage from an old grandmother’s photo, as if it was recently captured on a modern camera. Is this real? Yes, but you will have to be patient.
First, you will need to take the Brush tool, and then begin to carefully and consistently paint parts of the photo. Once you're done with a section of the image, it's time to change the blending mode for that particular layer. You can choose “Darken” or “ Soft light" By the way, this method works great for coloring black and white photographs of flowers. Let us immediately note that this is necessary since you are unlikely to be able to achieve the necessary accuracy with a mouse.
Combining various algorithms in different parts of the photo, you can achieve the effect you want. We deliberately do not say the word “easy”, since this whole process will take a lot of your time. Yes, it’s long, monotonous and even a little boring, but the result is worth it! Here's how to colorize black and white photos. If you don’t want to pay immodest sums to organize photos from your family archives, you can try to do everything yourself.
Please note that such events require patience and perseverance, so we advise you to stock up on them. Good luck!