How to Use Curves and Brightness in Adobe Photoshop CS2

You can use the curves tool in Adobe Photoshop to adjust the brightness of an image. This powerful tool allows you to set exactly the type of brightness you want to see in each area of the photograph. The steps below will tell you how you can apply the curves tool to your images.

Difficulty: Moderately Easy

Instructions

Things You'll Need:

• Adobe Photoshop CS2

1. Start Adobe Photoshop CS2 and open an image that you would like to control the brightness of using the curves tool.

2. Choose the "Image" menu, point to "Adjustments" and click on "Curves" to open the "Curves" dialog box.

3. Select a preset from the "Preset" drop down menu in the "Curves" dialog box or click on the "Custom" option from the menu to create your own curves.

4. Choose a channel from the "Channel" drop down menu. The channel indicates what color you want to modify the brightness of. Choosing "RGB" will change the brightness of all the colors in the image.

5. Click on the upper black square on the curve in the "Curves" dialog box. Drag the black square upward to affect the input tones of the image and to the right to affect the output tones of the image. The more up and to the right you drag it, the more amount of light will be incorporated into your image.

6. Use the lower black square to also adjust the input and output tones. The more you drag this square down and to the left, the darker the image will become.

7. Adjust the squares until you are happy with the level of brightness within the image. Click the "OK" button to close the "Curves" dialog box and apply the changes to your image.

Tips & Warnings

• Change the "Input" and "Output" values in the text boxes in the "Curves" dialog box to set the black squares manually without having to drag them.
• You can save the custom curve you have created by clicking the "Save" button in the "Curves" dialog box.