User manual JASC SOFTWARE PAINT SHOP PRO 8.0

[. . . ] Paint Shop Pro User Guide Copyright Information Copyright © 2003 by Jasc Software, Inc. No portion of the contents of this publication may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means without the express written permission of Jasc Software, Inc. Trademark Information Animation Shop, ImageCommander, Media Center Plus, Paint Shop and the Jasc orbit logo are trademarks of Jasc Software, Inc. Jasc, Paint Shop Pro, and The Power to Create are registered trademarks of Jasc Software, Inc. Acrobat, PostScript, Photoshop, Photoshop Elements are either registered trademarks or trademarks of Adobe Systems Incorporated. [. . . ] For information on how to begin correcting your photos, see "How to Approach Color, Contrast, and Saturation Adjustments" on page 53. The histogram displays a graph of the distribution of red, green, blue, greyscale, hue, saturation, and lightness values in an image. You can analyze the distribution of detail in the shadows (shown in the left part of the histogram), in the midtones (shown in the middle), and the highlights (shown in the right part) and decide how to make corrections. After you analyze the histogram, you can correct the image with Paint Shop Pro's color and contrast correction commands or you can use commands that adjust your image based on its histogram features: Equalize, Histogram Adjustment, and Stretch. To display the histogram for an image: 1 To limit the histogram data to a specific area, make a selection in the image. 2 Choose View > Palettes > Histogram or press F7. The graph represents how many pixels are at each value of the selected channels. The vertical axis represents the number of pixels and ranges from zero pixels to the highest number of pixels in the graph. The horizontal axis represents the value from zero to 255 of a selected channel: Red, Green, Blue, Greyscale, Hue, Saturation, and Lightness. 202 Chapter 8: Making Color and Tonal Corrections For detailed information on the graph, see "Understanding Histogram Values" on page 203 and "Guidelines for Analyzing the Histogram" on page 203. 3 Mark or clear the check boxes below the graph to display or hide the values for the channels. 4 Choose the image data that is graphed: Sample merged If this check box is marked, the histogram graphs all layers in the image. If this check box is cleared, the histogram graphs only the current layer. Selection only If this check box is marked, the histogram graphs only the active selection. If the check box is cleared, the histogram graphs the entire layer or image. 5 Do one of the following: To view information about a specific value, place the cursor at that point on the histogram. These fields show information about the selected point or range: Value(s) The value or range of values (from 0 to 255) of the point over which the cursor is positioned in the graph. % in Range The percent of image pixels that are the value(s) of the selected point or range. The number in parentheses is the number of pixels that are the selected value(s). % Above The percent of image pixels that are above the value(s) of the selected point or range. % Below The percent of image pixels that are below the value(s) of the selected point or range. 6 To view the mean and median values for a channel, in the Display channel drop-down list choose a channel: Red, Green, Blue, Hue, Saturation, Lightness, or Greyscale. The Median field displays the middle value in the range of values for the selected channel. Note: The Display Channel has no effect on what is graphed in the histogram and also does not affect the four statistics immediately below it. Chapter 8: Making Color and Tonal Corrections 203 Understanding Histogram Values The value of a selected channel is graphed from 0 to 255 along the horizontal axis of the histogram. The meaning of the value depends on the selected channel: Red, Green, and Blue values represent the amount of red, green, or blue in each color channel. [. . . ] If you make color corrections after you change the monitor gamma, the colors may look distorted on other monitors or in applications other than Paint Shop Pro. To adjust the monitor gamma: 1 Choose File > Preferences > Monitor Gamma to open the Monitor Gamma Adjustment dialog. 2 Lean away from your monitor and look at the red, green, blue, and grey rectangles. Each color contains an inner, solid color rectangle and outer, patterned rectangles. [. . . ]