I made a promise in April to try to write down how I use Silver Efex Pro. Here it is.
I start by choosing the film type I want.
After chosen film emulation, I run the panes from top to bottom. I start by setting Brightness, Contrast and Structure overall.
Then I add Control points and adjust B, C and S locally where I want to. After that I check that I haven’t introduced any artifacts from too aggressive adjustments by switching the control points off and on one by one.
If necessary, I use the protect highlights/shadows sliders, but remember to open the histogram so I see what I am doing, not only what happens in the photo.
Now it is time to emulate filters. I try out what looks best, and if I end up by one standard filter having too much and the next too little effect on balance, I set my own hue between the standard settings. It is possible to get a subtle or strong degree of the filter effect by adjusting the strength.
The last step before finalizing the edit is playing around in the stylizing pane until I get the look I want.
Final step is a last check of the tone placement in the zone system. I turn zone overlay on and hover the mouse pointer over each zone in turn and check that it is balanced the way I want before hitting save.
Here is an example
This is the starting point
PanF
Brightness, contrast and structure adjusted
Added control points
Slight protection of the shadows
A yellow-green filter applied
Selenium toning with an added yellowish paper tone
Checked tone placement. Only the deepest of shadows in zone 0 and the brightest highlights in zone 8
I start by choosing the film type I want.
After chosen film emulation, I run the panes from top to bottom. I start by setting Brightness, Contrast and Structure overall.
Then I add Control points and adjust B, C and S locally where I want to. After that I check that I haven’t introduced any artifacts from too aggressive adjustments by switching the control points off and on one by one.
If necessary, I use the protect highlights/shadows sliders, but remember to open the histogram so I see what I am doing, not only what happens in the photo.
Now it is time to emulate filters. I try out what looks best, and if I end up by one standard filter having too much and the next too little effect on balance, I set my own hue between the standard settings. It is possible to get a subtle or strong degree of the filter effect by adjusting the strength.
The last step before finalizing the edit is playing around in the stylizing pane until I get the look I want.
Final step is a last check of the tone placement in the zone system. I turn zone overlay on and hover the mouse pointer over each zone in turn and check that it is balanced the way I want before hitting save.
Here is an example
This is the starting point
PanF
Brightness, contrast and structure adjusted
Added control points
Slight protection of the shadows
A yellow-green filter applied
Selenium toning with an added yellowish paper tone
Checked tone placement. Only the deepest of shadows in zone 0 and the brightest highlights in zone 8
Very nice Peter! Thank you for taking the time to put that out...