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FIXING PHOTOS
Adjusting Contrast
Contrast refers to the range of grey tones contained in a photo. A photo with high contrast
has more white and black (and less grey tones) while a low contrast photo displays less
variation. Sometimes this is described as “muddy” or flat. If the lightest and darkest
colors are close to each other, a photo may appear to have higher contrast than a photo in
which other tones separate the extreme colors.
Increasing or Decreasing the Contrast
Each of the images shown below could be improved by changing the contrast. One needs
more contrast while the other needs less. Sometimes the lighting or colors in an image
can cause it to look murky. Increasing the contrast makes the darker colors darker and the
lighter colors lighter. Contrast helps objects stand out from the background.
Changing the contrast.
