Enhancing Your Images with Photos for macOS

Learn how to use Photos for macOS to fix exposure and color problems, create dramatic black-and-white images, and more.

Introduction

• Want to edit photos with Photos for macOS?
• What you should know before watching this course
• Using the exercise files

1. How to Approach Color Correction in Photos for macOS

• Set the working environment
• Performing a triage, identify what’s wrong and get a fresh opinion
• Determining your working file format
• Working in full-screen mode

2. Nondestructive Workflows in Photos for macOS

• Work with a copy of the image
• Applying and removing effects
• Using a Photos for macOS extension
• Reverting an image to its original state

3. An Overview of the Editing Workspace

• Reading the histogram
• Setting RAW files as the default originals
• Starting with Auto Enhance
• Comparing before and after states
• Reusing image adjustments on another image

4. Controlling Exposure and Tonality

• Fixing exposure
• Recovering highlights and shadows
• When to use brightness and contrast adjustments
• Setting the black point for crisp blacks
• Controlling selective contrast with definition
• Making precision adjustments with levels
• Making precision adjustments curves
• Challenge: Controlling exposure and tonality
• A solution for exposure and tonality

5. Controlling Color and Color Casts

• Adjusting saturation of an image
• Increasing color contrast in an image
• Removing a color cast from a photo
• Choosing a custom white balance
• Advanced color grading with selective color
• Challenge: Controlling color and color casts
• A solution for color and color casts

6. Creating Dynamic Black-and-White Images

• Adding a black-and-white effect
• Controlling the conversion with light and exposure preprocessing
• Refining the black-and-white image with neutrals, tone, and grain
• Finalizing the black-and-white image with definition and sharpening
• Challenge: Creating dynamic black-and-white images
• A solution for creating dynamic black-and-white images

7. Finishing Images with Details Adjustments

• The importance of working at 100% magnification
• Sharpening your photos for clean edges, revisiting definition
• Reducing unwanted noise in a photo
• Stylizing with a vignette or power window
• Refining lighting for Portrait mode images
• Refining depth of field for Portrait mode images
• Challenge: Making details adjustments
• A solution for detailed adjustments

8. The Role of Filters and Color Correction

• Adding a filter to an image
• Combining filters with adjustments for precise control
• Filtering an image with multiple effects

9. Working with Extensions for Photos for macOS

• Finding and installing photo extensions
• Using extensions for lens correction
• Using extensions for portrait enhancement
• Using extensions for special effects
• Using external editors with Photos for macOS

Conclusion

• Next steps