Digital Scrapbooking Tips

If you liked last week’s tip for underexposed photos, you’re sure to like this week’s tip, too. Like last week’s tip, you’ll be able to complete the fix in just a few steps, but for this tip you’ll need to start with an overexposed or faded photo.

I find this tip especially helpful for old black and white or sepia photos that have been ravaged by light. It’s also useful for dull, lifeless, underexposed images. You’ll be amazed at the detail you can bring back to these pictures.

1. Open an overexposed or faded photo in Photoshop or PSE and select it.

2. Press Ctrl + J (Mac: Cmd + J) to make a copy of the photo. The photo copy layer will populate directly above the original photo.

3. Change the Blending Mode of the copy to “Multiply.” The Blending Modes Menu can be found at the top of the Layers Palette. The default blending mode is “Normal.” Clicking the down-facing arrow reveals the entire list of blending modes. “Multiply” is in the second box from the top.

4. If the photo needs to be intensified even more, select the top layer (the photo copy layer) and make a copy of it by pressing Ctrl + J (Mac Cmd + J.) This may be too intense for your liking. If so, adjust the Opacity of the top layer by moving the Opacity slider. Locate the Opacity slider by clicking the down-facing arrow in the 100% Opacity box.

5. When you are satisfied with your quick fix, flatten the image by selecting Layer > Flatten Image.