Adding color to a grayscale image is definitely a hands-on process. There is no “one-click,” quick and easy way to go about hand-tinting an image. However, if the images in your print design or layout require it, you can get really creative when performing this task.
Hue/Saturation Adjustment Layers
One way to colorize a grayscale photo is to apply Hue/Saturation adjustment layers to selected areas of the image. First, convert the image to RGB mode by choosing Image --> Mode --> RGB Color. Then select an area that you’d like to add color to by using any of the available selection tools. Next, choose the color you’d like to apply to the selected area by using the Color Picker. This is now your Foreground Color. Then add a Hue/Saturation adjustment layer and click the Colorize option in the Hue/Saturation dialog box. Keep the Preview option enabled to view the color in the image window. If necessary, move the adjustment sliders until the color appears the way you like it.
Click OK to add the adjustment layer. If you need to, you can always mute the color a bit by reducing the adjustment layer’s opacity. This reveals some of the gray from the layer underneath. You’ll need to add a separate Hue/Saturation adjustment layer for every color you add. Repeat the preceding steps for each color.
Brushes, Layers, and Blend Modes
Another much more hands-on way of adding color to a grayscale photo is to apply it with the Brush tool. For editing purposes, it’s best to apply each color on its own separate layer. Make sure the image is converted from grayscale to RGB, and then access the Brush tool from the Tools palette. Choose the foreground color you’d like to paint with by using the Color Picker. Before you start painting, you may want to save the color in the Swatches palette for later use. To display the Swatches palette, choose Window --> Swatches. You can save the color in the Swatches palette by clicking in the gray area at the bottom of the palette underneath the swatches, or choose New Swatch from the palette menu. Enter a name for the swatch in the dialog box that appears and click OK. You should do this for every color layer you add.
Next, Option/Alt+click the New Layer button at the bottom of the Layers palette. In the New Layer dialog box that appears, name the layer after the color you’ve chosen (you can use the same name that you gave the swatch), and set the layer blend mode to Color with an Opacity setting of 50%. Click OK to close the dialog and add the new layer. In the Options palette, choose a soft brush and click the Airbrush option. To start out with, change the Flow setting to 20%. The airbrush builds up color the longer you leave it in one place; therefore, this setting gives you the most control. Keep the Brush Mode set to Normal, because the blend mode of the layer has already been changed to Color. Begin painting over the areas of the photo where you’d like the color applied.
Blend Mode Settings: Brush or Layer?
The Brush tool works the same way whether you change the mode in the Options palette or in the Layers palette blend mode menu. However, painting with the layer set to Color rather than the brush gives you the option to change the blend mode later, should you need to.
As you paint, don’t worry about being precise. It’s okay if the edges are not perfect in your hand-tinted photo. Keep your strokes loose and free-flowing. As you add color layers, the edges will overlap, and it is okay if the colors interact with each other. Keep in mind that you can always edit the color layers later with the Eraser tool. As you paint, you can adjust the brush size by pressing the left and right bracket keys, and adjust the Flow setting by pressing the numbers 1 through 0 on your keyboard—1 through 9 being 10%–90%, and 0 being 100%. For an even more hands-on feel, try painting with a graphics pen and tablet. Because we’re painting using the Color blend mode, the darker the gray areas are in the photo, the more saturated the applied colors will appear. You can offset this some by lowering the opacity level of the more-intense-colored layers.
Hue/Saturation Adjustment Layers
One way to colorize a grayscale photo is to apply Hue/Saturation adjustment layers to selected areas of the image. First, convert the image to RGB mode by choosing Image --> Mode --> RGB Color. Then select an area that you’d like to add color to by using any of the available selection tools. Next, choose the color you’d like to apply to the selected area by using the Color Picker. This is now your Foreground Color. Then add a Hue/Saturation adjustment layer and click the Colorize option in the Hue/Saturation dialog box. Keep the Preview option enabled to view the color in the image window. If necessary, move the adjustment sliders until the color appears the way you like it.
Click OK to add the adjustment layer. If you need to, you can always mute the color a bit by reducing the adjustment layer’s opacity. This reveals some of the gray from the layer underneath. You’ll need to add a separate Hue/Saturation adjustment layer for every color you add. Repeat the preceding steps for each color.
Brushes, Layers, and Blend Modes
Another much more hands-on way of adding color to a grayscale photo is to apply it with the Brush tool. For editing purposes, it’s best to apply each color on its own separate layer. Make sure the image is converted from grayscale to RGB, and then access the Brush tool from the Tools palette. Choose the foreground color you’d like to paint with by using the Color Picker. Before you start painting, you may want to save the color in the Swatches palette for later use. To display the Swatches palette, choose Window --> Swatches. You can save the color in the Swatches palette by clicking in the gray area at the bottom of the palette underneath the swatches, or choose New Swatch from the palette menu. Enter a name for the swatch in the dialog box that appears and click OK. You should do this for every color layer you add.
Next, Option/Alt+click the New Layer button at the bottom of the Layers palette. In the New Layer dialog box that appears, name the layer after the color you’ve chosen (you can use the same name that you gave the swatch), and set the layer blend mode to Color with an Opacity setting of 50%. Click OK to close the dialog and add the new layer. In the Options palette, choose a soft brush and click the Airbrush option. To start out with, change the Flow setting to 20%. The airbrush builds up color the longer you leave it in one place; therefore, this setting gives you the most control. Keep the Brush Mode set to Normal, because the blend mode of the layer has already been changed to Color. Begin painting over the areas of the photo where you’d like the color applied.
Blend Mode Settings: Brush or Layer?
The Brush tool works the same way whether you change the mode in the Options palette or in the Layers palette blend mode menu. However, painting with the layer set to Color rather than the brush gives you the option to change the blend mode later, should you need to.
As you paint, don’t worry about being precise. It’s okay if the edges are not perfect in your hand-tinted photo. Keep your strokes loose and free-flowing. As you add color layers, the edges will overlap, and it is okay if the colors interact with each other. Keep in mind that you can always edit the color layers later with the Eraser tool. As you paint, you can adjust the brush size by pressing the left and right bracket keys, and adjust the Flow setting by pressing the numbers 1 through 0 on your keyboard—1 through 9 being 10%–90%, and 0 being 100%. For an even more hands-on feel, try painting with a graphics pen and tablet. Because we’re painting using the Color blend mode, the darker the gray areas are in the photo, the more saturated the applied colors will appear. You can offset this some by lowering the opacity level of the more-intense-colored layers.
Colorizing a Grayscale Image
![Colorizing a Grayscale Image]()
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