How to Polarize in Adobe Photoshop
Many photographers buy expensive polarizing filters for their cameras to polarize their photos. Polarization makes skies look darker and blue, scenery appear more sharp and makes colors appear more bold. While Photoshop polarization won't remove reflections from water or glass as most polarizing filters do, it can give your photo the look and feel of a photo that has been shot through a polarizing filter.
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Instructions
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1
Open the photo you wish to polarize by choosing the "File" selection from the top navigation menu and selecting the "Open" option. Navigate to the folder containing your photo, select it and click the "Open" button.
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2
Create a duplicate layer of your photo by right-clicking the original layer and selecting "Duplicate Layer" from the options that appear. If your layer window isn't visible, activate it by selecting the "Windows" pull down menu from the top navigation menu and selecting the "Layers" option.
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3
Desaturate your image by navigating to the "Image" menu on the top navigation menu and selecting "Adjustments > Desaturate." You can also desaturate your image by holding down the "ctrl," "shift" and "U" buttons on your keyboard at the same time.
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4
Apply a Gaussian blur to the photo. To access the Gaussian blur settings, select the "Filters" pull-down menu from the top of the screen and select "Blur > Gaussian." Play with the settings until you achieve a nice look, but typically, a setting between 50 and 70 will achieve the look you want.
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Invert the colors of the image by selecting the "Image" pull-down menu from the top navigation menu and choosing "Invert" from the options that appear.
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6
Set your new layer's mode to Overlay by right clicking the layer and choosing "Blending Options." On the window that appears, set the blend mode to "Overlay" via the pull-down menu that appears under "General Blending."
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Adjust the "Levels." To access the "Levels" window, select the "Image" pull-down window at the top of the screen and choose "Adjustments > Levels." Play with the settings until you are happy with the results.
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