Try this trick that I like to use for photos taken with harsh sun and shadows:
-duplicate layer
-desaturate upper layer
-negative image upper layer
-gaussian blur of 4
-overlay to preference (usually between 10-30% seems to work well)
-flatten
It does reduce overall contrast, lightening shadows and darkening highlights. You could apply it selectively using masks on the upper layer, if desired.
That is an awesome tip, Yo_Spiff, but I would strongly suggest that drew_makeanimpact focus on understanding lighting rather than relying on post processing to eliminate shadows and unwanted effects. Trust me, in the end you will be thanking me.
That is an awesome tip, Yo_Spiff, but I would strongly suggest that drew_makeanimpact focus on understanding lighting rather than relying on post processing to eliminate shadows and unwanted effects. Trust me, in the end you will be thanking me.
It's always best to get it right in the camera, but sometimes the shot is what it is. My impression of his posted photo is that this is not a posed portrait and he didn't have a lot of control over the light when this shot presented itself. In a studio with models you can have that level of control. A reflector to the left could have helped to fill in the dark side of the subject perhaps...
Hey guys, this was a posed portrait, and not only that a white 42 inch white reflector was used to illuminate the left side of his body, the right being from the sunset. It took out a lot of shadows, but was not enough to soften the harsh ones remaining. It's ok though, I was able to get some great shots by positioning him differently. Just wanted to see if shadows could be removed because I like this shot the best.
Not sure what tools/sw you have, but in aperture 3 (and maybe in Lightroom?) there is a blur brush, a dodge brush, etc. So you could soften the line, lighten it slightly overall. Viveza plugin also allows you to place a "control point" on the shadow, and selectively lighten and alter contrast, etc.
