Tonal Balancing With Luminosity Masks

[@Smi77y1]

I sent you a long question on Facebook about raising shadows and such. I've watched your tutorials tons of times but for whatever reason certain things didn't click. I glad I watched this video again out of boredom because I'm not sure what I was thinking, you manage to work the levels adjustment like magic, so I realized I just need to get better with the levels adjustment tool. Best tutorials ever. Thanks again Sean!

[@HusamNurein]

This may be the best luminosity masks video I have ever seen ... Thanks mate ...

[@paricomninos2987]

Unbelievable. I´m working with the TK Aktion Panel, but have still a lot to lern. Thank you for sharing your knowledge with us. Please keep up your awsome work.

[@sauravus]

One of the best tutorials on post processing on KZbin! Very well done (y)

[@AdamMarland]

I have understood luminosity mask theory for years but continue to struggle to execute; masking the mask is going to solve a LOT of my problems. Excellent video; great pace, great information, and a beautiful image! 10/10

[@ALCOR_46]

This may just be the best video on YT covering post processing. Thank you soo much for sharing your knowledge. I am using LumMasks for some time and it works for me greatly, but sometimes I ran into trouble due to not knowing the "mask the mask" technique. :) I am sitting on the edge of a chair, waiting to go home and knock myself out of fine tunning my work. Good luck with your work!!

[@SeanBagshaw]

Thanks Milos Vasic. I agree that masking the mask is extremely helpful. Chip Phillips and Tony Kuyper worked out the technique together several years ago and showed it to me.

[@jaharris1701]

amazing instruction Sean, I learn so much when watching your videos, you are so well spoken, concise and I find your instruction very easy to follow and comprehend, I bought your TK actions panel and Luminosity mask video and LOVE it !! after watching THIS video though I will also be buying your new Extended Range 2,, excellent work and its opened up endless possibilities

[@4uPhotos2c]

Great tutorial, lots of information, and great sample image. You make it look easy, which shows that you really know what you're talking about. Thanks.

[@2candan1]

This is revolutionary for me - addresses a problem I've been struggling with in photoshop, so thanks! Subscribed!

[@davidroby8493]

Beautifully and clearly described, explained and illustrated. Thank you.

[@FilmFactry]

Excellent demo of the power of Luminosity Masks!

[@DebduttoBanerjee]

One of the best tutorials ever

[@jorgepm62]

Después de mucho tiempo de intentar dominar la técnica de las máscaras de luminosidad tu gran tutorial me ha dado la clave. Muchas gracias por tu aporte Sean

[@Tigga490]

Absolute genius!!!! This video was a gem find of Photoshop greatness. Thank you for sharing. Now I'm off to re-edit my entire library of work... 😁

[@SeanBagshaw]

Glad you found it helpfulness! Have fun working with this technique. Just FYI, I have long series of video tutorials filled with this kind instruction at my website. Www.outdoorexposurephoto.com. Cheers :-)

[@ronaldochang]

Thanks for sharing! Your videos are always informative.

[@jeanthomasf8]

Excellent Video...Very methodically presented

[@sam5941]

i follow your step until 7:39 but i find out my group mask doesnt control by luminosity mask which doent control where it is going. my group mask remain dark or whiten where i painted but it just doesnt show alike what luminosity mask show.

[@ivanyang2022]

This is gem. Thank you so much for sharing this.

[@gavvvvvinrocks]

Masking the mask! Just the technique I was looking for!

[@ChadForemanCreative]

Awesome video! Thank you so much. Learned a ton. Very useful stuff indeed.

[@Aphex083]

Excellent, as usual. Thanks for sharing ! :)

[@MrMgmuhilan]

Thanks a lot for this Sean! Very useful !

[@tommiestrydom973]

Bloody brilliant. Subscribed and thank you for the info

[@majamagdamarcin]

amazing tutorial! thanks Sean.

[@desotopete]

Hard for me to rap my mind around this, but excellent tutorial-explanation.

[@nicken86]

Sean Bagshaw Just watched your series. At first, I struggled somewhat to see the benefits of this in addition to the Lum. mask tutorial, but after completing it - boy am I a new person as far as editing and processing high dynamic range shots goes! And, when watching the final video time lapse, I was kinda starstruck! You mentioned there that it might already exist a video on your complete workflow of an image. Is that something that's available, or are you still working on that? Keep up the fantastic work! I'm certain the world of photography and editing would not be the same without your contributions!

[@SeanBagshaw]

Thanks for that feedback Nicklas Winger. The complete, one image workflow video is still in the works. Not sure when I'll be able to complete it yet. I put that note in there in anticipation of when it is available. :-) So glad you found this new series useful. I produced the original dynamic range series back in 2010, so I needed to bring it up to date in terms of software and production quality. However, I hope I was able to significantly raise the bar with the content and examples as well. As you point out, the luminosity mask series spends some time on the dynamic range topic, but it is clearly a big enough concept to warrant a full series all to itself.

[@svetlozarasparuhov8251]

Amazing job! Thank you for sharing.

[@Nimiinixx]

Thx for the awesome tutorial sean! But how come i dont have the same action appearance as yours ?

[@SeanBagshaw]

Hi Nimiinixx, There are several versions of the panel so you probably have a different version than the one I am using in the video. This is the V4 CC version. If you have the V3 version or the V4 CS6 version then the appearance will be somewhat different. The V4 CS6 panel is nearly identical to the V4 CC panel in function but the graphic design looks a bit different due to differences in the different code languages the two versions use.

[@PatrickPoendl]

Excellent. Thank you!

[@satori1312]

Awesome tutorial!!!

[@chusc0]

Great Explanation, Thank you!

[@VSargues]

Great tutorial!

[@TerryStoa]

Helpful for a TK7 newbie.

[@ammenting05]

I have been studying the images of photographer phil koch for awhile and I am wondering if you are able to discern how he achieves his distinct look.

[@SeanBagshaw]

andrew menting - Cool stuff. Hard to say exactly, but probably a variety of different techniques. A lot of it comes from his lighting conditions. He almost always is shooting directly into the sun when it is near the horizon, producing very long shadows and strong back lighting. The extreme dynamic range indicates that he is blending exposures. He might be doing some layer masked exposure blending and luminosity mask adjustments, but some of the color clipping, sky noise, cloud ghosting and chromatic aberration I see indicate that he may also be using an HDR app. It is also clear that he composites in birds, so some other elements may be composited also.

[@maxleveladventures]

The TKActions panel clearly saves a ton of time. I'm just a hobbyist (at the moment) on a low budget (until I replace my stolen gear), but would you say it's totally worth it anyway? Do you know of any free alternatives? Or should I just make some custom actions (I assume that's what the plugins do)? Also, I loved the tutorial. Many others I've seen show what you can do with several exposures, but seeing these effects applied to just a single exposure is truly depressing/inspiring. I take way too many photos on my trips to do this for everyone one, but I'm definitely going to stop being lazy in Lightroom and open up Photoshop to apply this technique on some of the more portfolio-worthy images! Thanks!

[@SeanBagshaw]

Tony's actions are amazing. He has a free beginners panel that you can use to get started. You can get it here: goodlight.us/specialoffers.html

[@dorispage3152]

Excellent!

[@kbqvist]

Thanks, great tutorial!

[@photography6777]

Outstanding !!!! Thank You !!

[@nedis4]

Where is the place this photo was taken? Very nice tutorial, btw!

[@SeanBagshaw]

Thanks Denis. This is Chimney Rock in Southern Colorado.

[@mark4pros]

Awesome tutorial!!! ty

[@Argyll9846]

Very impressive.

[@jamel23]

just recognize the action is well organize.. do create it or it can be downloaded like presets

[@SeanBagshaw]

+Jamel Macas You can find out more about the TKActions panel here: www.outdoorexposurephoto.com/index.php/video-tutorials/tkactions-v4-panel

[@Pianopod]

Hi Sean, Is this technique of masking the mask still relevant for the TK5 panel?

[@SeanBagshaw]

Absolutely! This is one of the most useful luminosity masking techniques I know. The technique as it relates to luminosity masks was developed by Tony Kuyper and Chip Phillips several years ago. The V5 panel makes creating and applying luminosity masks more powerful and easier than ever, but the fundamentals of this particular technique haven't changed. Once you have used the V5 panel to create an adjustment layer (or layers) with a luminosity mask, simply put that layer (or layers) in a group with either a white or black mask on the group, and then paint on that mask to locally apply the adjustment. This can be done with two button clicks in the V5 Control Module.

[@Pianopod]

Thanks for the prompt reply Sean!

[@g_young_h]

I've been trying to do this for a couple days now with a couple sets of photos. Having the worst of times haha.

[@SeanBagshaw]

All part of the learning process Grant. Every photo has different characteristics and needs. If you are only a couple days in then you are doing great! I've been doing this stuff for almost 20 years and I still experience the "worst of times"...especially when trying to figure out something new. That's what keeps it interesting though :-)

[@g_young_h]

Definitely not giving up, and I plan on picking up your course. Going out this weekend to shoot specifically for this process. I started shooting portraiture and got neck deep in that, that I gave up landscape - my true passion for photography. I need to "perfect" that art again, for myself.

[@SeanBagshaw]

I went through something similar many years ago. I took any job with a camera but found I was shooting all sorts of things I had no connection to. It took a while, but I eventually found a way to be able to focus on landscape work.

[@heuristriccrat]

I have both the v4 and v5-v6 panels and don't see this panel in either of them. Am I missing something?

[@SeanBagshaw]

Not missing anything. This video is from two years ago and features the V3 panel. Tony Kuyper is continually refining and improving the panel so it will continue to evolve. It isn't possible for me to completely re-make all my tutorials every time the panel changes. Fortunately, this technique works essentially the same regardless of which panel version you use...just that the newer panels create the masks evey easier and with more control. Make sure to watch my V5 Quick Tip videos for help with seeing how to accomplish basic masking procedures with the V5 panel. kzbin.info/aero/PLgqk854DUkNk3jxJtr8YlhqJ5AUaefZ3d

[@heuristriccrat]

Thanks so much for the quick reply.

[@this.is.music.and.me.oliver]

thanks a lot

[@ammenting05]

Also, it might be a fun challenge for you.

[@144zxc]

Thanks, Great work

[@chrisrigoni]

Thank You !!

[@jeremyzhu8885]

this is sosososo helpful

[@johnbirch6072]

It must take years to learn to do this properly and with finesse. It's definitely a dark art. I've tried but apart some basic expose blending using a luminosity mask, when trying to treat a photo in multiple sections like this I just end up with a mess. It's also very time-consuming. I'm not sure I have the patience to master these techniques and I'm still unsure how to choose which mask for each purpose. Perhaps it's just beyond me .. anyone else feel like that?

[@MostlyBrowsing]

thanks you the real mvp

[@JeanPierreJacques]

Ok i need to move out of my comfortable lightroom place and explore photoshop.