Lesson:Simple Photography Editing
From Wikiversity
[edit] Converting a Color Image to Black & White
NOTE: A true black & white image would consist of 2 colors: black and white with absolutely no gray.
A so-called black & white photograph actually contains many shades of gray. Technically, this is called a grayscale image.
Since most people are interested in turning a color image into a grayscale image, (rather than a true black and white) both of the following methods create grayscale images - like what is commonly called a black & white photograph.
[edit] Method #1
- Open the photo you want to convert.
- Choose Image > Mode > Grayscale.
- When asked if you want to discard color info, click OK. Photoshop converts the colors in the image to black, white, and shades of gray.
(this is called a grayscale image)
[edit] Method #2
Use Photoshop's Desaturate command.
A color image is considered saturated with color. When you desaturate an entire image you remove the color and create a grayscale image.
- Open the photo you want to convert.
- Choose Image > Adjustments > Desaturate or
- use the keyboard shortcut: "Shift+Ctrl+U" to Desaturate the image.
One advantage of the Desaturate command is the ability to perform this command only on a specific area of the image. For instance, you can use the Marquee Tool to select the part of the image to be desaturated (grayscale) while leaving the rest of the image in color.
