Photoshop How To

The bane of outdoor photographers is that it’s not always possible to be in the right place at the right time. So what do you do when you come across a nice scene during harsh, midday sun? One option, of course, is to return later. But if that’s not possible, the following tutorial will help you edit those lifeless photos and really make them sing.

Colin Smith is an image-editing expert known for helpful advice on rehabilitating problem photographs in Photoshop and Lightroom. In the easy-to-follow lesson below he demonstrates how to bring the best out of images shot in direct sunlight, using Lightroom and Photoshop Camera Raw.

Smith walks you through the process of adjusting contrast, enhancing dull colors, and arriving at a proper exposure, so you won’t hesitate to pull out your camera at high noon. And whether you use Lightroom or Adobe Camera Raw, the necessary settings and adjustments are identical.

As you’ll see, excess contrast with overly bright skies and filled in shadows can all be easily fixed with Smith’s simple techniques. You can find more helpful image-editing tutorials on his YouTube channel and in another video we posted recently, explaining the best way to sharpen and reduce noise in Lightroom.