That Polarized Look

The original image was taken with the Olympus E10 on a bright sunny day. Even though it looked good it lacked the punch that can be achieved with a polarize filter. But in a few simple steps using Photoshop we can really add some impact to our image.

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The first job is to duplicated the Background layer by dragging it over the 'Create A New Layer' icon as shown above. You can make any minor adjustments to our image using Levels

Working on the new layer call up the Channel Mixer found under the Image>Adjust menu and tick the Monochrome box on the palette as shown above. This will change your image into a black and white image. Try experimenting with the sliders on the Source Channels setting until you find the ideal setting for your image. The values used for this image are shown above.

Working on the Layers palette from the Blend Mode select Soft Lights, this will blend the black and white layer with the original colour image. Try experimenting with the Opacity setting as well, as small adjustments can make all the difference to your finished image.

Finally a seagull was added to finsh the image of St. David's Hotel

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This effect works really well on images with clear blue skies. Used with other tools such as Quick Mask and experimenting with Blend Modes it can also work wonders on images.