Photoshop Elements > Levels >

Color Correction > Eyedropper Method >

1 - Introduction

If you haven't already done so, go to Levels Introduction.

Color Casts

A photograph may have a color cast, an overall color, that isn't wanted.

For example, light in shade is cyan (blue/green).

That's because the cyan-colored sky illuminates shade.

You can set the white balance on your camera to the shade icon to correct for the cyan color.

But, if you didn't do so, you can correct the color cast with the gray-point eyedropper.

The gray-point eyedropper is the middle eyedropper in the Layers window (Pre-8.0) or Layers panel (8.0).

Be sure to check off as you go along.

Levels Color Correction

Create a Levels adjustment layer.

Gray-point Eyedropper Method

To remove a color cast, do the following.

1) Click the gray eyedropper in the Layers window.

The gray eyedropper is in the middle.

2) Click an area in the photograph that should be gray, with the gray eyedropper.

The gray area has a tint from the color cast.

So it's not gray—but it should be—and it will be gray after the correction.

Example

The photograph below is slightly too cyan (blue/green).

By clicking on the gray building in the background, with the gray-eyedropper tool, the cyan color cast was removed.

Original

Corrected

No Gray Area?

If there's no area that should be gray, go to Enhance > Adjust Color > Remove Color Cast.

Click on a white or black area.

More About Finding a Gray Area

You can probably find a gray area by eyeballing your photograph.

However, here are three methods that will guarantee that you've found a gray area.

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