Mastering Highlights and Shadows in Photoshop: A Step-by-Step Guide

In this video, we will be going over highlights and shadows. Let us start by opening our file.

For this video, we will be using our “sunset.arw” file. Click Open. As we have discussed before, the ARW file signifies that this is a Sony RAW file, meaning that the image has not been compressed much by the camera sensor. Therefore, we have additional options before we import this into Photoshop that allow us to get the most out of our image.

Typically, with RAW photos, we get extra detail in our shadows and highlights that we are able to manipulate. However, for this video, we will simply open our image. As always, the first thing that we want to do is create a new layer from our background. Let us title this layer “Sunset Adjusted” and rename our background layer “Sunset Original, ” then lock it.

Next, let us save our file by going to File > Save As, and we will save this as “sunset adjusted.” Press ENTER and click OK. The first thing that we will be doing is adding highlights and shadow adjustments to our Sunset Adjusted layer. If we go into our Adjustments, we can see that we do not have the option to adjust highlights and shadows here.

Therefore, we must make these changes as destructive adjustments to our image. It is important to make sure that we have the Sunset Adjusted layer highlighted for these changes, since they will alter the image permanently. In order to make these changes, we will go to Image > Adjustments and then click Shadows/Highlights at the bottom.

As you can see, when the Shadows/Highlights dialog box appears, it automatically applies a change. We currently have 35% shadows on this image. Let us make some adjustments. First, we will adjust the shadows, increasing them from the original 0% to about 40%. Next, let us work with the highlights.

As we increase the highlight value, we will see it lessen. When we achieve nice color in the background, it may begin to look unnatural. Therefore, we will set the highlights to about 33% and click OK. Again, as we can see in our Layers panel, we do not have an Adjustment Layer here, so the changes we made are now set to the image and are destructively applied.

Next, let us introduce two tools that we can use to help adjust our highlights and shadows.

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The first tool is the Burn Tool, found in the Tools Bar. This tool works similarly to the Brush Tool, where we can adjust the brush tip, hardness, and size. With this tool, we can also adjust the Exposure setting.

Currently, it is set to 100%. We can also adjust the Range—or the target area within the image. With the Burn Tool, let us choose Shadows and darken some of the plants in our image. Currently, it is too dark, so I will press CTRL + Z to undo and bring the exposure down to about 35%.

Clicking again, we can apply just a bit of darkness to the shadows in the image. We will go over a few of these areas to add contrast against the white below. In addition, I want to add some darkness to the side of the hill, so we will click and drag. Finally, we will add a bit of darkness to the bottom area as well.

Because this is such a large area, I will change the size of my brush tip and press CTRL + Z to undo my last action. Let us now go to the Options Bar and increase the size to about 140 pixels. Then we can click and drag, adding more darkness to the hillside and giving it stronger contrast against the white tones.

Oftentimes, when working with a photo like this, I will adjust my brush tip size and take more time to carefully target every highlight and shadow. However, in this case, we will move quickly to demonstrate the effect of this tool. With a lower hardness setting, you gain more flexibility over the areas you can edit.

I will add some additional darkness to brighter spots simply by clicking, and this looks quite good. The next tool we will be working with is the Dodge Tool. The Dodge Tool can be found in the same gallery as the Burn Tool and has the opposite effect—it brightens parts of the image.

Let us brighten all of the white buildings using a large brush tip. We will increase the size from the Options Bar. In this case, we will only target the midtones, or the middle brightness range in the image. Let us increase the size a bit more, and with the hardness set to 0%, we will have maximum flexibility.

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In addition, we will reduce the Exposure to about 10%, and we can paint broad strokes across the image, brightening where needed. If we click and drag repeatedly, the Dodge Tool will continue stacking brightness, making the area progressively lighter. For example, I will drag over these buildings several times to enhance the effect.

Because I have only the midtones selected in the Options Bar, I do not need to worry about brightening the shadows on the hillside. I can click on the white buildings confidently, knowing the tool will not extend too far beyond the intended area. Lastly, I will click on the edges of some buildings.

As stated earlier, I might normally spend more time on a photo like this. A full edit could take 30 to 60 minutes. However, it is helpful to demonstrate the workflow quickly and show how these tools benefit an image.

Let us add a little more brightness to the bottom, and finally, we will add a touch to the top. I think this looks quite good. Let us now compare it to our “Sunset Original” layer. We can clearly see that this is a significant improvement.

Looking back, let us brighten one more spot—on top of this building here—to bring out a bit more light. This now looks complete. Let us go to File > Save, and in the next video, we will be working with color balance.

See you there!