Using Layers in Photoshop to merge exposures

Photoshop is a gargantuan program developed for people to do everything they could ever want (aside from vector graphics..)  It's a huge undertaking to learn, but honestly I feel that no one knows everything that the program can do.  That's why it works well to break it down, experiment once in a while, but stick with the things that you know how to do for each image that needs it.

Final Image with outside and inside exposures combined.

Just typing this article seems daunting for me, but hopefully once you've read it you will have the know-how to layer your own images.

Don't be scared.... I'll hold your hand all the way through this!

Shadow/Highlights Masking with Photoshop CS4

before

after

One of my all time favorite adjustments that I will perform on just about every single image is shadow/highlights.  This is a very simple tool that if used correctly, will yield incredible results.  The most important detail about this tool is that it CAN be overdone.  If you over do highlight recovery, you will lose your true whites, and if you overuse shadows, you will have a halo around the darker spots of your images.