Capture One Tutorial.
Dodge-and-burn with Capture One.

Dodge-and-Burn is a technique widely used to sculpt and magnify detail in an image. Its impact goes far beyond simple correction, as it offers the possibility of transforming a photograph into a more lively, expressive and striking work of art. This technique is particularly powerful for giving relief to a photo, accentuating contrasts and embellishing light. On a landscape it can be used to emphasise the relief and guide the reader's eye through the photo. On a portrait, it can be used to shape the contours of the face, or simply to increase the light on the eyes or hair.

The only criticism of Dodge-and-burn is that it takes a little time to do. Fortunately, Capture One and its local retouching layers make it easy to use this technique. All you need to do is create two local adjustment layers, one to darken (Dodge) and one to lighten (Burn). The mask of these two layers is then drawn with a very soft brush (hardness close to zero) and low opacity (10% maximum).

The case to be treated.

We'd like to give this photo of ruins a little more bite, a little more dynamism and character. Firstly, as far as the sky is concerned, we're going to add a little more contrast by darkening it slightly. This would have the effect of dramatising it, creating a more striking background for the ruins.

Then, for the parts of the wall exposed to light, a subtle lightening would bring out the details and texture. The result will be to make these areas brighter and more attractive, while accentuating the contrast with the shadier areas. At the same time, by darkening the already dark parts of the wall, we will further enhance this contrast effect. This difference in luminosity will accentuate the sense of relief and give the ruins more character.

In the case of embrasures, a slight darkening will accentuate their depth, creating a penumbral effect that will add realism and atmosphere to the scene.

The method.

1

Click on the Local settings tool tab (layers). You can customise the position and display of the tabs, it may be that this tab is not displayed on your workstation. You can of course request that it be displayed (see the tutorial {c1->tutoCustomisation}), but remember that layers can also be accessed from the Color and Exposure tabs.

2

Click the . button to create a new settings layer.
Name this layer "Dodge". This will be our darkening layer.

2

Click the button again.
Call this second layer "Burn". This will be our lightening layer.

4

Choose button.

5

Right-click on the image to adjust the brush settings, or click on the button. Choose an opacity of 10% or even 5%, even if you have to go over the brush several times to get a visible result.

Examples.

As you'll see from these examples, I use Dodge-And-Burn without overdoing the effects: As a result, you may not see much difference on your screen between the original photo and the retouched photo. But the improvement is there, and it's a good thing that you can't see it without a careful comparison with the original.

The original photo

The photo reworked in Dodge-and-burn

The "Burn" layer mask

The original photo

The photo reworked in Dodge-and-burn

The "Dodge" layer mask

Other informations :

• You can quickly change layers by using the list of layers (on the toolbar).

  

• Another way of changing the working layer is to click on its selection point. The point associated with the active layer turns orange.

  

  Selection points can be displayed or hidden as required: click on the button and find the Display selection points command.

  

• On Capture One, you can manage either the opacity of the brush (as we have done here) or the flow parameter. By managing the flow, you can enhance the effect on part of the image by 'doodling' over this area, without needing to release the mouse button. Personally, I prefer to work with 100% flow and 5% opacity, but the opposite setting also gives good results.