Our November Forum Challenge is

Selective Color

I know this is really more of a post work challenge but, we thought it would be a good excercise.

As with all forum challenges..The limit is THREE per member..

Feel free to discuss this, add link to show different methods, and of course comments on the submissions !!

Of course the most important thing is to have fun !!!!

I found a few tutorials to help us out

Photoshop tutorials, four different methods.

[ http://www.renderosity.com/mod/tutorial/index.php?tutorial_id=1618

](http://www.renderosity.com/mod/tutorial/index.php?tutorial_id=1618)[http://www.photoshopsupport.com/tutorials/or/selective-coloring.html

](http://www.photoshopsupport.com/tutorials/or/selective-coloring.html)http://www.dcresource.com/forums/showpost.php?p=132026&postcount=3

[http://www.gfxtown.com/?id=46099&s=nature&lang=en

](http://www.gfxtown.com/?id=46099&s=nature&lang=en)A  pair of good tutorial for GIMP users

[http://www.gimp.org/tutorials/Selective_Color/

](http://www.gimp.org/tutorials/Selective_Color/)[http://www.gimptalk.com/forum/topic/Selective-Coloring-131-1.html

](http://www.gimptalk.com/forum/topic/Selective-Coloring-131-1.html)Paintshop pro
[
http://www.corel.com/content/pdf/paintshop/tutorials/283Selective.pdf

](http://www.corel.com/content/pdf/paintshop/tutorials/283Selective.pdf)http://www.hypergurl.com/selective.html

Great challenge here.  I used the first tutorial when I first started.  It took me about 5 minutes to learn the basics.  I think it's the best and easiest to follow.

Attached Link: Pensive

Thanks for the links to various ways of doing this!

"Morning Dew"

Keyboard, looks like a sothern USA shot...at least, that's where Dew really got popular right off. This selective color is nice and clean.

One hint if you have not tried selective coloring, once the image is looking close but a few areas need to be desaturated, the quickest method I use is to "lasso" the area and then desatruate the selected area.

Bruce, thanks for the tuts.  This should help encourage others who have not tried it to join in.  Tom.

very nice start to the challenge...Your welcome Tom..
I know folks have mixed feelings about this style of work. , but, here a chance to give it a try and put your own spin on it..

It's also cool if ya'all want to discuss which methods you like to use.

Thanks, I thought I might be stepping too far but thought some help for others..eer..and me..would be quite welcomed.     Tom.

seyya  Tunde

seeya  Tunde

Attached Link: my art

Astro, I used the method from  nattarious to do my first entry, simply because trying to paint a mask around foliage is almost impossible and terribly time consuming. Can you tell me what method you used for the sun shot?

Bruce said to go ahead and share methods and thoughts on selective coloring in this thread.  So, I will share a few from my personal opinions. Some apply to your entry.

1. Be very careful in what image you choose to use selective color.

1. Use selective color on only a very few colors and be sure those fit the final render.
2. Do not over saturate the color part but perhaps slightly desaturate it to make the final image appear more natrual and not focused on a central color that might seem somehow out of place.

Your image uses the technique is such a subtle manner I do not notice that selective coloring was used in first view. To me, that is a good thing.  Creation of a pleasing image more than a shock of color is to me more viable.  Of course, in some shots like the  Bennetor rose against a white background or the "mountain dew", the color is not shocking at all but works.  The soft drinks could easily be used in advertising and are appealing as "is" simply from the total effect of the image and the transparency of the soft drinks with the color.

Just a though or two.       Tom.      

I think it works quite well...thanks for the neat shot and the info.      Tom.

Tom's right, it would be more helpful if I had explained how I had done it so...

1. Create a copy of the background layer
2. Use the channel mixer to convert the duplicate layer to monochrome
3. Create a layer mask and paint on it to reveal the layer underneath. As I moved away from the sun I decreased the opacity of the brush, to about 10% I think, to help it blend in better.

Looking at it now I think it lacks a bit of punch, maybe I should have used an image with stronger colours to start with. I have tons of sunrise/set pics I'll fiddle around and see if I can come up with something a little better. :)

• Andy

Green Buoy
Here is my first contribution to this challenge, i have posted this picture in my galery last year ...
I will try to do something else this weekend !

For this one I played with an image from my gallery.

Another from my gallery...

Yikes..these last ones are super to my eyes. Astro, yes, this sunrise/sunset has much better compo and the coloring works well.  The bouy shot I like because of compo and the fact that the green is subdued and fits in very well. The giraffe..well, just fine!  The flower..a natural and nicely done.  

I better get serious and shoot a good image for this challenge soon.....Tom.

Astro, I agree with Tom, No2 shot is well worked. I am " hunting" shots like this in a gallery. Not many.

seeya  Tunde

Quote - 3rd and final shot. 'Bluebell Wood'

That is Beautiful excellent.

Anyway, tonight dinner was not fresh veggies but frozen pizza.

Critique please? I have not been a true fan of selective coloring, even it I do have an idea of what makes it work.  For this green bell pepper and two tomatoes,  looking at it now it does not work very well.  You might like it ok..I do not know. 

We are used to seeing the real green of the pepper and of course the red of the tomatoes.  Neither look good if desaturated all the way and the other is left with color.  Perhaps, with only one pepper and the chopping knife the image would be better.  Any thoughts?       Tom.

Hi TomDart
This looks very good. But is that the real color of the tomatoes?

Fun challenge!  I always learn so much from these things.  The tutorials are a bit over my head, but I did figure out a coule of different ways to make this happen.  Thanks!

@ Tom:  I'd love to see your pepper/tomato image done a slightly different way.  Maybe if you took the original image with the original colors and desaturated everything but the knife blade?  The only color then would be the reflection of the veggies in the knife.  Just a thought - it might be kind of cool.  (It might not, too - sometimes things look better in my head than they do on the screen!)  I wouldn't "dull down" the colors that were left, I don't think.

Wow! That Bluebell Wood is really cool!!! I will have to try some of that kind of stuff! I love the different ideas everyone is coming up with!!! Fun stuff!!!!

Aangus, quite well done I say.  Very clean and natural.

just a small offering

Attached Link: http://www.renderosity.com/mod/gallery/index.php?image_id=1558851

The image:  Too Many Shoes Look Alike.

Attached Link: What fire?

"Wake Me up Before You Go..."

It took several attempts to get a reasonably clear shot of this beautiful ceiling with all it's golds, blues, yellows and of course, reds!!

I've opted to select the reds from this one and then just played with the contrast and curves for the background - I sort of like the effect but would appreciate your views on it.

Some great shots posted here already though and it's great to see so many different variations on selective colouring and the many different methods used to achieve it.

Great work everyone!!

Chrissy xx