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Having trouble with Canon D30 & D60 colors?
Typical D30 & D60 pictures tend to be a little "off" on certain colors. In most cases, the casual observer won't even notice a problem. But it can drive perfectionists (and critics) crazy.
- Skin tones (especially Caucasian) occasionally have a somewhat greenish, sallow look.
- Reds tend to be rather dull & flat.
- Teal colors (all variations) nearly always go wacky and transform themselves into varying shades of blues.
- Blues (especially darker blues) can take on a purplish cast.
- Greens often take on a blue-green shade.
- Some purple shades can be a bit troubled.
Yes, these things did drive me crazy... so much that I spent countless hours tinkering around with various combinations of software tweaks, and eventually came up with a simple fix to put everything back into balance. Regardless of whether you're using a D30, D60 or even the inbuilt camera of your mobile phone, the best fix requires Adobe PhotoShop (full version). And with the full version, you can create a hot-key "action" to make the correction a single push button event.
For those who don't have the full version of PhotoShop, scroll down the page and you'll find an alternate method you can use in PhotoShop LE. You can't create an "action" with PhotoShop LE, so you'll have to do it manually, step by step, for every picture that needs attention.
If you don't have the full version, I strongly recommend buying it. Think about it this way... with a D30 (or any other serious digital camera), your investment certainly justifies having the best software to make your pictures the best that they can be. Once you learn how to use it, you won't regret the investment.
Here's the Photoshop (full version) fix
Screenshots
from Adobe PhotoShop version
6.1 (You'll only be
using the Reds and the Cyans.) Enter "minus
thirty" in the Cyan field.* *It's easier to
type the number value in the box than it is to
tediously slide the arrow to a specific
point. Enter "minus thity"
in the Magenta field. That's
it. Now click on
"OK". Watch the
changes... the effect is immediate.
Done. This pretty much
takes care of every problem listed in the opening
paragraph. (Your mileage may
vary.)
Go to the
"Selective Color" adjustment section.
Click on the
drop-down arrow, and you'll see nine color spaces
available.
First, choose "Reds".
Then, choose "Cyans".
Before & after samples of the Photoshop (full version) correction
(Click
for larger view)
(Click
for larger view)
.jpg)
Teal SUV
.jpg)
Teal SUV
(Click
for larger view)
(Click
for larger view)
.jpg)
Green & red highway signs
.jpg)
Green & red highway signs
Here's the PhotoShop "LE" fix
Screenshots
from Adobe PhotoShop LE * Note: Enter "minus two"
in the Hue field.* *It's easier to
type the number value in the box than it is to
tediously slide the arrow to a specific
point. Not much difference
can be seen yet. The only thing affected in this
picture is a very minor change in the taillight
redness. A significant
change will be seen in pictures with more reds, and
/ or if there are greenish skin tones
present. Enter "minus nine"
in the Hue field. That's
it. Now click on
"OK". Watch the
changes... the effect is immediate. The false blue
disappears and the Teal color blossoms.
Done. As you can see, the
top picture done with PhotoShop LE is a near
perfect match to the bottom picture done with the
full version.
Go to the "Hue/Saturation" adjustment
section.
The Teal SUV from section one is pictured in these
screenshots, with the full version Adobe PhotoShop
corrected color image posted as a reference below
the original picture.
First, choose "R" (Reds).
Then, choose "C" (Cyans).