Photograph is too bright

Bright image

There are two ways to darken the image; the first is to use the level adjustment, the second is to adjust the tone curve. The level adjustment will shade the entire image, whereas the tone curve will shade the image smoothly while maintaining the appropriate levels of lightness and darkness.

To adjust the level in Photoshop, select Adjust from the Image menu and click "Levels." When the dialog box opens, click Preview, and drag the black triangle at the lower right corner of the histogram graph (not the shaded bar) to the right. This shades the image gradually. When you reach the desired level of shading, click OK.

To use the tone curve in Photoshop, select Adjust from the Image menu and click "Curves." When the dialog box opens, click Preview, place the cursor in the center of the line, and drag it to the lower right so that it forms a convex curve. When the image is shaded to the desired level, click OK.

Image after making adjustments

Compare:Understanding Printers/Photograph is too dark

Compare:Glossary/Tone curve