iCorrect Color Blog

Our annual St. Patrick’s Day Sale, Luck of the Irish, starts today. This year we are featuring a 17% percent discount on all iCorrect software.  Enter the Coupon Code PATRICK on the order page, click Apply, and the discount will be applied. The discount will apply to new orders place today through March 20th.

Photoshop Plug-ins-Add a plug-in and Save 17%
The sale includes all iCorrect Photoshop plug-ins; iCorrect OneClick, iCorrect Portrait, and iCorrect EditLab Pro. If you already have iCorrect OneClick and/or Portrait this would be a great time to add PictoColor’s flagship product, iCorrect EditLab Pro 5.5 Plug-in. You will save $17.00 if you order now.

Add iCorrect EditLab ProApp 6.0 to your Lightroom Color Workflow
Now is the perfect time to add iCorrect EditLab ProApp 6.0 with ProcessQ to your Adobe Lightroom color workflow. You will save $25.00 on the purchase of EditLab ProApp and save countless hours color correcting you photos. Just enter Coupon Code PATRICK and the discount will be applied to your order.

Tell a Friend
If  you already have our software do your friends a favor and let them know about the sale. You can send them to our website, www.pictocolor.com, or send them a link to this blog, www.icorrectcolor.com.

Wayne www.pictocolor.com

Introductory Offer for iCorrect Editlab Pro PowerSuite Extended–
Free iCorrect EditLab Pro Photoshop Plug-in with EditLab ProApp for Lightroom <Learn More>

Streamline  Adobe® Photoshop & Lightroom Color Correction Workflows
With
iCorrect® EditLab Pro Power SuiteiCorrect® EditLab ProApp 6.0 & EditLab Pro 5.5 Plug-in

• Simplify and speed up Photoshop CS4 Color Correction (iCorrect EditLab Pro 5.5 Plug-in)
• Seamless Lightroom color correction RAW Workflow (iCorrect EditLab ProApp 6.0)
• Batch ProcessQ™ Color Correction of TIFF & JPEG files (iCorrect EditLab ProApp 6.0)
• Noise Removal Integrated into Color Correction workflow process (Both EditLab products)
• Image Sharpening Integrated into Color Correction workflow process (Both EditLab products)

With iCorrect EditLab Pro PowerSuite you get both iCorrect EditLab Pro 5.5 Photoshop Plug-in AND iCorrect EditLab ProApp 6.0 Stand Alone Application (Lightroom compatible). This power suite will streamline both your Photoshop and Lightroom color correction workflow and help you achieve professional color quality much faster and easier than the color tools in either PS or LR.

For a limited time you can save $100 off the price of buying these software products separately. Click here to go to the PowerSuite page where you can purchase. Do it now before the introductory price expires. 

Wayne www.pictocolor.com

 * * Special iCorrect EditLab ProApp Offer* *
Click Here for Details

iCorrect EditLab ProApp can be integrated with Lightroom and/or used separately to Batch Process Color Correct JPEG & TIFF files
iCorrect EditLab ProApp is our stand alone application that seamlessly integrates into your Lightroom RAW color correction workflow making it easier and faster to achieve professional quality color. <Learn More>

Plus, with iCorrect EditLab ProApp’s ProcessQ you can batch process your color corrections.  <Learn More> 

• RAW Files in Lightroom Mode
•  JPEG & TIFF Files in Stand Alone Mode

PictoColor’s EditLab Color Correction Technology achieves professional quality color without the frustration and time consuming tools Photoshop and Lightroom. <Learn More>

•  Seamless Lightroom color correction RAW Workflow
•  Batch ProcessQ Color Correction of TIFF & JPEG files
•  Noise Removal integrated into color correction workflow process
•  Sharpening integrated into color correction workflow process

SPECIAL LIMITED TIME OFFER-SAVE $30-Click Here for Details of offer

Using iCorrect EditLab ProApp with Photoshop Lightroom

Photoshop Lightroom users can utilize the full power, ease and functionality of iCorrect EditLab ProApp with seamless integration via the Photo>Edit In… menu. Edits made using the software within Lightroom are non-destructive in nature, with edits applied automatically to a newly generated TIFF file and not the original.

iCorrect EditLab ProApp is a stand-alone program featuring the same color technology that make up our popular Photoshop plug-ins.  At the heart of iCorrect EditLab ProApp is our award-winning color architecture with its unique, frustration-free approach to color correction and color editing.  consists of four separate tool panels identified by four distinctly numbered tabs.  The four panels are logically arranged from left to right and offer a wizard-like approach to accurate color.  The tools are designed in such a way that as you progress from left to right, the tools will not, and in fact cannot affect any of the tools to its left.  This alleviates the common frustration of correcting for one thing while throwing off another.  With iCorrect EditLab Pro, one pass through the tools and you are finished.

iCorrect EditLab ProApp also features ProcessQ, an image queue that allows users to manage color corrections for efficient, time-saving workflows.   After images are added to ProcessQ via Lightroom, they are displayed as thumbnails in the filmstrip at the bottom of the main panel.  With ProcessQ, users can correct and save any number of images – either one at a time or as an entire group.  Users can even Synchronize adjustments across multiple images.  iCorrect EditLab ProApp also takes advantage of Lightroom and its efficiencies for every day tasks, like the ability to edit multiple images in one session.

Tutorial: Using iCorrect EditLab ProApp with Adobe Photoshop

The PGA Championship came to the Twin Cities last week and we were lucky enough to find a few tickets for Monday’s practice round.  Since we were looking for a topic for this month’s PictoScript, we figured we justify an afternoon walking the beautiful Hazeltine National Golf Club.  As it turns out, cameras (for non-credentialed observers) are allowed only during the three practice rounds, so off we went hoping to catch a glimpse of and maybe even a few shots of Tiger at work.  Mission accomplished. 

In order to show a possible RAW workflow, I did all the shooting in RAW.  Using Camera RAW 4.6 in Adobe Photoshop CS3, I simply relied on the Auto function with some minor tweaking to the Exposure and Brightness to establish an fairly good baseline image from which to start.  I prefer the tool set within iCorrect EditLab Pro Plug-in and iCorrect EditLab ProApp for making further refinements.

Whereas Camera Raw allows you to preserve the maximum amount of data and image detail during the raw conversion and sets a good baseline from which to work as you optimize your photos, it does not offer an entirely intuitive toolset for making additional color corrections.  This is especially evident with colors like blue sky and green foliage.  Take, for example the following image of the magnificent 9th hole.  Although the initial Camera Raw image looks O. K., and it provides a great starting point, the EditLab ProApp image, with just single click on the grass and one on the sky, looks absolutely stunning.  The built-in Memory Color definitions take care of everything.

ProcessQ Streamlines Color Workflow

At the heart of iCorrect EditLab ProApp is ProcessQ, the completely redesigned image queue that allows you to easily view, sort and manage your color corrections for efficient, time-saving workflows.   After adding images to ProcessQ, they are displayed as thumbnails in the filmstrip at the bottom of the main panel.  With ProcessQ, you can correct and save any number of images – either one at a time or as an entire group.  You can even Synchronize adjustments across multiple images.  

Although PictoColor Software is most widely known for our line of iCorrect Photoshop plug-ins, we also offer a unique stand-alone product for batch processing of high volume jobs.  iCorrect EditLab ProApp is a professional color correction and color editing software that combines iCorrect EditLab Pro color technology with automated workflow tools and advanced  batch processing features to make digital photo correction extremely fast and easy.

iCorrect EditLab ProApp’s workflow is built around the concept of an image queue called the ProcessQ, which is displayed at the bottom of the main EditLab window.

Images are held in the ProcessQ during an editing session, and although any edits that are applied do not become final until the contents of the ProcessQ are saved, the thumbnails in the ProcessQ do reflect the effects of any color corrections that have been applied.

Edited thumbnails also have “sticky notes” attached to them, making it easy to see which images have been corrected. A C indicates that a color correction has been applied, an S indicates that sharpening has been applied, and an N indicates that noise removal has been applied. The image that is open for editing in the main window is outlined in black. You can drag the bar above the thumbnails up and down to change the size of the thumbnails that are displayed. Note that the size of the main window will limit how large they can be.

Adding Images to the ProcessQ

You will be prompted to add images to the ProcessQ whenever it is empty, and you can place additional images into the ProcessQ at any time by clicking the Add… button, or by using the Add Images to the ProcessQ… command in the File menu. Multiple images may be selected at a time, and you can add as many batches of images as you want. When selecting multiple images from the Open File dialog (using the Shift and Control keys), EditLab appends that particular batch of images to the end of the ProcessQ. You cannot reorder the images in the ProcessQ. However, you may remove any number of images from the ProcessQ at any time.

Selecting Images in the ProcessQ

To select an image for editing, saving or removal from the ProcessQ, simply click on the corresponding thumbnail.

Whenever the mouse is not over the preview image in the main window, you can also use the arrow keys to advance from one thumbnail to the next. It is important to note that when you open a thumbnail, any edits that have been made in the currently open image are automatically applied to that image before the new image is opened, as described below. That is, opening a thumbnail is the same as clicking the Apply button and then selecting a new thumbnail.

You can select multiple thumbnails by using the Shift and Control keys, and you can select all of the thumbnails with the Control-A keys. Selected thumbnails will be outlined in black, and the image that is open in the main window will also be outlined in yellow. The titles of the Remove, Save and Sync buttons will be updated to indicate the number of images you have selected.

Removing Images from the ProcessQ

Clicking the Remove button, or selecting Remove from the File menu, will remove any selected thumbnails from the ProcessQ. The title of the Remove button and the corresponding File menu item will reflect the number of images you have selected for removal. Note that removing an image from the ProcessQ does not delete the corresponding image file from your hard disk. It simply removes the image from the set of images that is available for editing in EditLab.

Editing Images in the ProcessQ

To open an image for editing, simply click on the corresponding thumbnail. If any edits are already applied to that image (you can use the Add Image Preferences to specify an edit to be automatically applied to images as they are added to the ProcessQ), the controls in the main window will reflect those settings. Proceed to edit your image using the four edit tool tabs as described in Chapters 6-10 of this User Guide. When you are happy with the result, Apply and/or Save the edit.

It is important to understand the difference between Applying and Saving an edit. When you apply an edit, the edit parameters become associated with the image in the ProcessQ, the thumbnail in the ProcessQ is updated to reflect those edits, but the corresponding image file is not updated. This allows you to quickly edit many images, deferring the processing time associated with updating image files until you all done editing. This also allows you to re-open an edited image if you decide to make further modifications. Of course, you are also free to save an image at any time, at which point any applied edits are saved in the corresponding image file.

The most obvious way to apply an edit is by clicking the Apply button, which applies the edit, closes the image, and opens the next image from the ProcessQ. You can also simply select another image from the ProcessQ for editing. Any edits that have been made to the image that is currently open are automatically applied before a new image is opened. If you want to close the current image without applying any new edits, you must click the Cancel button. Finally, if multiple images have been selected from the ProcessQ, the Sync button can be used to apply the current edit to all selected thumbnails. The title of the Sync button will reflect the number of images that have been selected for synchronization, and if the Sync button title ends with ‘…’, the Sync Preferences will be displayed before any settings are applied.

Saving Images from the ProcessQ

When you are ready to finalize your edits by updating the corresponding image files, select the corresponding thumbnails and either click the Save button or select Save from the File menu. The title of the Save button will reflect the number of images that have been selected. To save all of the images in the ProcessQ, use the Control-A keys to select all of the thumbnails, and then click the Save all button. If the title of the Save button ends with ‘…’, the Save Image Preferences will be displayed before any images are saved.

Each selected image will be corrected according to any applied edits and then saved according to the current Save Image Preferences.

If you need to stop the Save operation, you can press the Esc key at any time.

Saving the ProcessQ as a Job File

If you need to interrupt an editing session before you are ready to save the edits, select Save Job… from the File menu to save the state of the ProcessQ in a job file. You can save a job, quit the application, and then resume that job later by selecting Resume Job… from the File menu. This is a convenient way to temporarily pause an editing session for a short period of time, but if any image files associated with the job are deleted, moved, or modified, the job file will be obsolete and you will not be able to resume the job. Therefore, after you have resumed a job, you will probably want to delete the corresponding job file.

At the heart of iCorrect EditLab ProApp is ProcessQ, the completely redesigned image queue that allows you to easily view, sort and manage your color corrections for efficient, time-saving workflows. Here is how to make ProcessQ work for you.  We color corrected 15, 3MB+ images with similar color issues in 2 minutes and 4 seconds.  Try that in Photoshop!

 

Step 1-Setting iCorrect EditLab ProApp Workflow Preferences
The first step is to customize EditLab ProApp’s preference settings for the specific job or your desired workflow.  You can access the Preferences selection window by clicking on File Menu/Preferences or the Preferences button located under the color tool panel. Detailed instructions for each preference category can be found in the User Guide. Click Here Each preference has a “recommended” default setting, however, each preference can be optimized to maximize your efficiency and workflow.

 

 

In our example job we used the default settings in each category except for the Save Image File Folder

Step 2-Add Images to ProcessQ Next we select and add images to the ProcessQ by clicking on the File Menu/Add Images to ProcessQ and selecting the pictures to be corrected from a folder   and clicking on Open and the pictures are added to ProcessQ. In this example we selected images that were taken under the same conditions.

Step 3-Color Correct Test Image

Next we select an image from the set that represents the average color of the batch and color correct it using the EditLab ProApp tool set.

Tool Tab 1: Color Balance   With the first tool tab, you begin by correcting the color balance by simply clicking on any neutral (black, white, or gray) colors within the image.  In this case the display shows that the original image had a predominantly yellow color cast.

Tool Tab 2: Tonal Range   The next tool tab establishes the tonal range by automatically setting a new black point and new white point.  You can also adjust the mid tones in the center of histogram display.

Tool Tab 3: Brightness/Contrast/Saturation   The third tool tab addresses brightness, contrast, and saturation.  You can even adjust the highlights and shadows independently. We simply increased the saturation slightly.

Tool Tab 4: Hue-Selective Editing   The final tool tab allows you to finely tune specific colors on a hue-selective basis.  Simply activate a color on the hue-wheel by clicking on a color in your image.  You can then adjust its hue along the color wheel as well as independently adjust its brightness and saturation.  We used the skin tone memory color to improve the skin tones. Click Apply to finish.

Step 4-Apply Color Correction to Selected Images-Sync
Next we select the images to apply the color correction parameters and click on the Sync button and the color correction settings are applied to all of the selected images. At this point the color correction is only applied to the proxy (thumbnail) image and can be still be changed.
 
 

 

 

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Step 5-Check Corrected Images and Save
Next we check a few of the images to make sure the color correction settings are okay.  If not, further adjustments can be made to specific images.  After checking a few images to be sure the color correction is okay, select the thumbnails you wand to Save.  The Save button title will reflect the number of selected images and, when clicked, will apply the changes to the images and put them in the destination folder selected in the Preferences (Step 1)

 

 

 

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 How Long Did it Take to Color Correct 15, 3MB+ images with similar color problems?

Total Time: 2minutes, 4 Seconds!!

Our line of iCorrect color correction and color editing plug-ins take the guesswork out of making the color right and simplify the process from start to finish.  Our engineers have created several software programs that utilize fairly complex digital color technology yet offer a simple, straight-forward and intuitive approach to the otherwise often difficult task of getting the color right.  Even though there are countless other color correction and color editing programs available for all levels of users. However, few offer the combination of speed, simplicity, and accuracy of iCorrect.

With iCorrect Color Blog we will try to show that color correction and color editing doesn’t have to be the most difficult, challenging or time-consuming aspect of your digital workflow.  Whether you prefer the automated approach of iCorrect OneClick, the point and click approach of iCorrect Portrait with its unique skin tone technology, or the more comprehensive tool set in iCorrect EditLab Pro for fine tuning and tweaking your images, iCorrect should minimize the frustration of your color correction workflow and improve the quality of your finished product.