{"id":1799,"date":"2024-04-24T10:00:00","date_gmt":"2024-04-24T10:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/skylinereptiles.com\/?p=1799"},"modified":"2024-05-01T16:14:13","modified_gmt":"2024-05-01T16:14:13","slug":"how-to-correct-skin-tones-in-lightroom-with-color-curves","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/skylinereptiles.com\/index.php\/2024\/04\/24\/how-to-correct-skin-tones-in-lightroom-with-color-curves\/","title":{"rendered":"How to Correct Skin Tones in Lightroom (With Color Curves)"},"content":{"rendered":"

The post How to Correct Skin Tones in Lightroom (With Color Curves)<\/a> appeared first on Digital Photography School<\/a>. It was authored by Erin Peloquin<\/a>.<\/p>\n

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<\/span>\"How<\/span><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n

Lightroom<\/a> gives you a million and one ways to complete most photo edits<\/a>; after all, having options is important! No two photos are alike, so no two edits are alike either. <\/p>\n

However, when it comes to correcting skin tones, I often like to use Lightroom’s color curves. In this article, I’ll show you what I mean – and how you can use color curves to handle skin tones in your own images. <\/p>\n

By the time you’re done reading, you\u2019ll be able to measure RGB skin tone numbers to give you a general idea of the edits your photo needs, and<\/em> you’ll know how to handle any and all color issues using Lightroom\u2019s color curves<\/a>. Here’s the sample image that I use for color correction throughout the article, just so you can see what you can achieve:<\/p>\n

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<\/span>\"skin-tones-Lightroom-curves-13.jpg\"<\/span><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n

Sound good? Then let’s dive right in!<\/p>\n

How to find RGB numbers in Lightroom<\/h2>\n

The image below came out of the camera with a pretty good white balance<\/a> and skin tone. Look to the histogram<\/a> in the upper right-hand corner. Do you see those numbers under the histogram? Those are Red, Green, and Blue (RGB) numbers, and they correspond to the child’s forehead:<\/p>\n

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<\/span>\"Skin<\/span><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n

I’m guessing you’re already familiar with RGB values, but if not, here are the basics:<\/p>\n

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  1. Every pixel in your image is made up of three colors: red, green, and blue.<\/li>\n
  2. For each pixel, the colors appear in different quantities, and these correspond to both color and tonal effects. An image that’s a bright red color will have a high Red (R) percentage but very little Green (G) and Blue (B) percentages. An image that’s a mid-gray color, on the other hand, will have 50% values for Red, Green, and <\/em>Blue.<\/li>\n
  3. Higher percentages correspond to lighter tones, while lower percentages correspond to darker tones. An image with only 100% values for Red, Green, and Blue will be detailless white, while an image with only 0% values for Red, Green, and Blue will be a deep black.<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n

    Displaying the RGB numbers for your photos is very useful, as we’ll soon see. It’s also quite easy! In Lightroom\u2019s Develop module, hover your cursor over the area you want to measure. Then look under the histogram for the corresponding RGB measurements.<\/p>\n

    (Note: RGB numbers are usually measured on a scale of 0-255, but in Lightroom, you generally see them on a percent scale.)<\/p>\n

    For my image above, I hovered my cursor over the child’s forehead. I’ve added a small arrow to the image so you can see exactly what I measured. My numbers tell me that the pixels next to the arrow had the following RGB values:<\/p>\n