Enhancing the Eyes with Photoshop

Here is a great video to watch and follow along with to enhance the eyes.
Enhancing the Eyes

Accenting a Photograph

This tutorial is to help you learn how professional photo editors accent specific parts of a picture in order to lead their viewers attention into certain places. With this technique you can darken what is not important and brighten what is important to your photo. This technique uses a 50% gray overlay layer. But remember that this example is a somewhat extreme demonstration of this method, it is more commonly used to create very subtle accents.

• First of all, create a new Layer (Layer>New>Layer).
• Then when the New Layer Dialog box comes up Choose Overlay from the Mode drop menu, and Then check the box that says, "Fill with Overlay-neutral color (50% gray)"
• Then choose a big preferably soft paintbrush and set the opacity down to somewhere between 7% and 14%.
• To Darken Areas: with the color black carefully stroke your paintbrush on the Overlay layer that you created.
• To Brighten Areas: with the color white carefully stroke your paintbrush on the Overlay layer that you created.
• For different photos, the process and amount of adjustment won't be exactly the same. But with this technique you can attract a viewers eye to any subject that you want. You can brighten shadows on people's faces, or darken the flash bulb effect on a photo. This technique becomes almost a necessity to touching-up any photo once you get used to using it.

Hue and Saturation without losing the Exposure

• Adjust the Levels, (Image>Adjustments>Levels).

• Make sure the levels range is set to fit the range of color, for this photo I had to move the right end of the levels range in to fit the colors.

• Change the Image Mode to Lab Color, (Image>Mode>Lab Color).

• Create a New Curves Adjustment Layer, (Layer>New Adjustment Layer>Curves).

• Change to Channel a

• Move the corner adjusters in approximately one square, you may wish to adjust them more or less depending on the photo.

• Change to Channel b

• Move the corner adjusters in approximately half a square, you may wish to adjust them more or less depending on the photo.

Using the Clone Stamp Tool to remove unwanted objects

This tool can be time consuming and difficult so take your time and keep practicing :)

• Select the Clone Stamp Tool from the tool bar, pick a good sized brush and set the opacity to about 95%.

• Hold alt and click somewhere to take a good sample. (Wherever you take a sample, that's what your going to be drawing in place of the removed object).

• Release alt and carefully click and drag the mouse over the item you wish to remove. (You will notice that the spot where you took the sample will follow your movements).

• Continue to repeat steps 2 and 3 until the unwanted object is completely gone. You might have to change techniques a little based on available places to take a good sample. With practice this tool is very valuable.