masking cloud edges

[rdtindsm]

One of the problems with taking photos in mountains is the contrast between a bright sky and a valley in the shadows. The linked photo was taken in the Everest region of Nepal and shows the problem.

The photo was actually taken with a gradient ND filter, but the sky of the original needed to be darkened, the valley lightened a little. I used quick mask with the sort of random brush to outline the sky, then darkened the exposure a little. The photo you see has been overly darkened to show the problem at the interface between the sky and the clouds, which needs some sort of gradient. The exposure has been reduced by .7, actually need about .4-.5, I start seeing the artifact at about .2.

Need to be pointed in the right direction. The most important thing I am looking for is how to blend the two areas better. It might be nice if I could make one exposure layer for the sky and use the inverse for the valley without creating a new mask, although the photo would be better if the low lying cloud in the middle was not modified.

 

[Tron]

I fixed the image for you.

I'm not sure I understand exactly what you are asking, but you can easily make one mask and then use it's inverse by duplicating it and then clicking Invert from the Masks Panel.

If you can be more specific with your question about the transition area of the mask maybe it will help.

 

[Steve]

I assume you feel you have all the detail you need in this single image.
If it's a RAW file or a JPG you can open it in ACR.
Open it, in ACR then PS.
Open it again in ACR and adjust the sky the way you want in ACR and send that to PS
Combine the images as two separate layers in one file by Shift dragging one image over to the other. The Shift aligns the images

Put the sky layer on top and normal image on the bottom.
On the top image create a Mask.
While holding down the Alt key click the Mask icon (box with a white circle) on the bottom of the layers pallet, by holding down the Alt key you created an inverted mask.
Now you should just see the normal image.

With the brush tool selected and mask layer selected, and the color set to white, paint the sky in the mask.

The adjusted sky will show through.

 

[rdtindsm]

I can use basic masks to change the exposures on different layers, no understanding about the different blending methods. That is not the problem. The problem is that the edges of the clouds are very poorly defined and there is no particular edge to define. and you can see the artifact that this causes when the darkened portion of the sky meets the sky that is still at the original exposure. I need a way to blend the edges with some sort of gradient, to change the opacity of the layers in a linear way along the boundary so that there is not an abrupt change in exposure.

I did find a work around by using the healing tool and smudge at the boundry. I used a large soft brush along the edges that I wanted to use as a boundary, then filled in the middle with a hard brush. This still left a darker boundary where the different parts of the sky met. The boundary between the sky and the ridge on the left, or the middle part of the cloud in front of the mountain came out good. There was still a dark boundary where the masked sky met the unmasked sky. But these are clouds and there is hardly any way that you can screw up an attempt to edit a cloud. After flattening, I just started using the healing tool, pulling sections from the darkened portion to the original portion, and vice versa. There was also a little bit of smudging used.

I've found instructions to create gradients indicated by the direction of a line and from a diamond outward. I want to do the same thing along an arbitrary edge.

 

[Tron]

I've found instructions to create gradients indicated by the direction of a line and from a diamond outward. I want to do the same thing along an arbitrary edge.

If I am understanding you right I don't think that is possible.

 

[rdtindsm]

I have the basic understanding on how to use the masks and invert the selection. The problem is / was that that I wanted to use the edge of the cloud as the demarcation between the exposure adjustments. Very hard to do with a cloud, and the picture which was posted for me (thank you tron) shows what was happening when I tried various to use a brush. You don't see the demarcation when the mask follows the ridge lines, but you clearly see the edges of the mask along the cloud. If the edge of the mask had a gradient to it, then the exposure would change gradually.

I finally came up with a solution that worked. The light bulb came on when I realized that it is almost impossible to screw up the totally amorphous shape of a cloud. I used a large soft brush in quick mask and ran it along the edge of my selection area. Then I changed the brush to a hard brush, and finished filling in the selected area. This still left an objectionable artifact along the edge of the cloud, but not horrible. I flattened the image, then started using the healing tool to move samples from the adjusted sky to the darker unadjusted cloud, along with some judicious smudging. Nobody'll every know. I'd actually done something similar in erasing a spot in another cloud.

rdtindsm

 

[wilwells]

Set the layer style to "screen". Done.