Digital Photo Tinting
by Jen White

Revive the vintage technique of photo tinting with a quick adjustment layer and the Brush tool in Photoshop or Photoshop Elements.

For this tutorial you will need:

• Adobe Photoshop or Photoshop Elements
• A vintage style photo

If you’d like to follow along, you can download the photo I am using by clicking on this link.

Note: This encore tutorial was originally published by Sara Horton in May 2009.

Step One: Open a Photo

• Open a photo (File > Open).

To follow along with me exactly, download the photo I’m using above.

Here are a few suggestions for photos that will work well with this technique:

• Close-up portraits of children
• Photos of children in fields of flowers or dressed up in cowboy clothing
• Photos of friends or family members wearing old-fashioned clothing
• Formal portraits

NOTE: Avoid using photos with bright, neon coloring and wild designs. Simple, classic clothing lends itself well to the hand-tinted look.

Step Two: Convert the Photo to Black and White

• Press Ctrl J (Mac: Cmd J) to create a duplicate layer of the original image.

In Photoshop Elements:

• In the Menu Bar, choose Enhance > Convert to Black and White.
• In the dialog box, try the different Styles to see which one works best for your image. I’m choosing Portraits.
• If necessary, adjust the Intensity sliders until you get a look you like.
• Click OK.

In Adobe Photoshop:

• In the Menu Bar, choose Image > Adjustment > Black & White.
• In the dialog box, try the different Presets to see which one works best for your image. I’m choosing Darker.
• If necessary, adjust the Color sliders until you get a look you like.
• Click OK.

Step Three: Reduce the Effect of the Black and White

• In the Layers panel, lower the Opacity of the black and white layer to around 85%.

The trick is to allow only a small percentage of color back into the photo. 85% works great for most images, but highly saturated images will need a higher percentage.

Step Four: Paint Color Back In

• Get the Brush tool.
• In the Tool Options, open the Brush Picker and choose a Soft Round Brush from the Default Brushes. Set the Opacity to 25% and the Mode to Normal.
  (PS: Choose a Soft Round Brush from the General Legacy Brushes. Set the Mode to Normal, the Opacity to 25%, and the Flow to 100%.)
• In the Layers panel, click on the Add Layer Mask icon.

This will add a layer mask to the black and white image layer and the mask should be active. You will know it is active when you see a border around the mask. If you are not sure if the mask is active, click on it.

• The Foreground Color Chip should be black, if it is not, press the letter X.
• Hover your cursor over the cheek of the subject.
• Press the Left or Right Bracket key until the cursor is approximately the size of the cheek. (See the image below.)
• Click once or click and drag in a small circle on each of the cheeks.

Here is what the image looked like before and after this technique:

Step Five: Save the New Image

• Save the new image (File > Save As) as a JPG file with a unique name.
• Close the working image without saving.

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Author: Jen White | Contact Us
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