Color Curves Matching

Tue, 04 Aug 2015 14:10:36 -0500

In my previous post on Color Curves for Toning/Grading , I looked at the basics of what the Curves dialog lets you do in GIMP . I had been meaning to revisit the subject with a little more restraint (the color curve in that post was a little rough and gross, but it was for illustration so I hope it served its purpose).

This time I want to look at the use of curves a little more carefully. You’d be amazed at the subtlety that gentle curves can produce in toning your images. Even small changes in your curves can have quite the impact on your final result. For instance, have a look at the four film emulation curves created by Petteri Sulonen (if you haven’t read his page yet on creating these curves, it’s well worth your time):

Basic Color Curves

Mon, 27 Jul 2015 10:26:49 -0500

Color has this amazing ability to evoke emotional responses from us. From the warm glow of a sunny summer afternoon to a cool refreshing early evening in fall. We associate colors with certain moods, places, feelings, and memories (consciously or not).

Volumes have been written on color and I am in no ways even remotely qualified to speak on it. So I won’t.

Instead, we are going to take a look at the use of the Curves tool in GIMP . Even though GIMP is used to demonstrate these ideas, the principles are generic to just about any RGB curve adjustments.

Curves on PIXLS.US

Color Curves Matching

Basic Color Curves