Lighten a specific area of an image
Last updated
Last updated
The Lighten tool is used to lighten a specific area of an image. You could, for example, lighten a dark area of an otherwise well-exposed image to add extra emphasis to it.
Do one of the following:
Choose the Lighten tool in the Tools sidebar, or choose it from the grouped tools.
Choose Tools > Retouch > Lighten from the Tools menu at the top of your screen.
In the Tool Options pane, customize the Lighten tool.
Brush Size: Drag the Brush Size slider to adjust the size of the Lighten tool brush. Press and hold the Option ⌥ key to extend the range of the Brush Size slider beyond 100%. You can also manually enter a value from 0% to 200%.
You can use the [ and ] keys on your keyboard to change the size of the Lighten tool brush.
Softness: Drag the Softness slider to adjust the softness of the edges of the Lighten tool brush. With softer edges, the lightened areas will usually blend in better with the rest of the image.
Strength: Drag the Strength slider to adjust the intensity of the lightening effect.
Select a tonal range to lighten:
All: When you brush over an area to lighten it, the darkest, brightest, and midtone areas are lightened equally.
Shadows: When you brush over an area to lighten it, only the shadows are lightened.
Midtones: When you brush over an area to lighten it, only the midtones are lightened.
Highlights: When you brush over an area to lighten it, only the highlights are lightened.
Brush over the area of your image you’d like to lighten.
Show Original: Click the Show Original button to see what the image looked like before.
Show Split Comparison: Option ⌥ – click the Show Original button or press Control ⌃ + C on your keyboard.
Click Reset to discard all the current changes.
