Photoshop: Creative Lab Color

Course details

Explore the tools, techniques, and creative possibilities of Lab Color in Adobe Photoshop. Lab opens new opportunities for photo enhancement and creative image making, enabling you to apply contrast, sharpening, inversion, and equalization adjustments to individual LAB channels. If you want more exciting images, it's time to explore Lab Color. In this course, Harold Davis explains how Lab compares to other color spaces and how it is implemented in Photoshop. He walks through his own professional post-production workflow for enhancing and transforming images with Lab Color. Then learn how to use Lab for more creative fun and image-making prowess with Harold's custom Photoshop Lab action, color channels, and blending modes. Plus, learn how to leverage images in Lab for pattern making and surface design.

Learning objectives
Converting images to Lab Color space
Applying Curves to Lab channels
Selective sharpening
Inverting channels
Making per-channel equalizations
Using the Lab action
Combining Lab Color with blending modes
Making patterns with Lab images

Concepts

0. Introduction

01 - The creative power of Lab
02 - Color spaces and gamuts
03 - The properties of Lab in Photoshop
04 - Converting to Lab
05 - Exercise files and software download

1. Fine-Tuning an Image with LAB and Curves

06 - Using a Lab all-channel equalization
07 - Applying a curve to the L-channel
08 - Applying a curve to the A and B channels
09 - Selective application of a curve
10 - Selective sharpening with the L-channel

2. Using the Inversion Adjustment

11 - Lab inversions and L-channel inversions
12 - Inverting the A channel
13 - Inverting the B channel and AB-channels
14 - Adjusting contrast with a curve
15 - Working with the exclusion blending mode

3. Working with Equalizations

16 - Per-channel equalizations
17 - The power of opacity
18 - Selective equalizations
19 - Clouds in landscapes and seascapes
20 - Faces - Eyes and lips

4. A Palette of Lab Possibilities

21 - Installing Harold's Lab action
22 - Using Harold's Lab action
23 - Lab meets Andy Warhol
24 - Lab adjustments and blending modes
25 - Making Lab patterns

Conclusion

26 - Creative Lab in your workflow

Photoshop: Creative Lab Color

Authors

Harold Davis