Learn Photography
Photoshop Elements >
Color Correction /
Methods /
Remove Color Cast
Be sure to check off as you go along.
Preparation
1) Preserve your original file.
If you haven't already done so, go to Preserve Your Original File.
2) Create a Background copy layer.
If you haven't already done so, go to Create a Background Copy Layer.
Remove Color Cast Method
3) Go to Enhance > Adjust Color > Remove Color Cast.
The Remove Color Cast window opens.
4) Follow the directions in the window.
If the result is poor, click Reset in the window and click elsewhere on the photograph.
Example
The photograph below was taken on a sunny day.
The rocks were in the shade.
No sunlight was reaching them.
The cyan (blue/green) sky illuminated the rocks.
The camera's white balance was set to Auto.
It did a poor job of removing the cyan color cast.
The rocks should be gray—but they're colored by the cyan light from the sky.
Click the eyedropper on the should-be-gray rocks to remove the cyan from the gray.
Before
After
Why Can't You Click Anywhere?
You have to click on something that should be gray, white, or black—that isn't—due to the color cast.
Why?
Photographs are made up of color and luminosity.
Luminosity is the black-and-white "structure" of a photograph—exposure and contrast.
Photoshop Elements can remove all of the color—leaving the luminosity behind.
The program can't remove a color that's mixed in with another color.
For example, look at the orange leaf, in the white circle, below.
The leaf is orange plus the cyan from the sky.
Photoshop Elements can't remove the cyan leaving the orange behind.
Before
If you were to click the eyedropper on the orange + cyan leaf, the entire orange + cyan color mixture is removed from the entire photograph.
The photograph's color shifts to the color that's the opposite of the orange + cyan leaf.
It becomes "mega" cyan.
After
Saving the Photograph
If you haven't already done so, go to Saving Files.