Les Jones

Photos > Photo-editing with Picasa: Graduated Tint

UPDATE: After looking at this example at Web resolution I decided it was too subtle. I've added a better example at the bottom.

A few months ago I discovered the Graduated Tint tool in Picasa, Google's free photo editor and organizer. Originally I used it to darken up colors, the way a neutral filter or polarizing filter might. Now with the summer months on us I'm using it more for its original purpose: darkening up overly-bright skies.

BEFORE: In this photo the sun above the roof is so bright it makes me want to squint to see the trees above it.

AFTER: With the sky darkened the wince-inducing haze is gone. A welcome side-effect is that the house and trees are sharper and have deeper colors.

How to do it

To access the Graduated Tint tool open a picture from within Picasa and click on the Effects tab.

When you click the Graduated Tint button Picasa applies a default tint with the settings shown above and the upper half of the photo tinted. At that point you can use your mouse cursor to redraw the line from the top of the photo to wherever you want it. Then adjust the settings as needed.

In the example above I used the Graduated Tint tool, dragged the cursor from the top of the photo to just above Katie's head, and moved the Shade slider a little to the right for extra darkening.

The Shade slider determines how much tint to apply: move left for less tint, right for more.

The Feather slider controls how sharp the dividing line is between the tinted and untinted areas. Moving the slider left makes a narrower, more abrupt transition. Moving the slider right spreads the transition out over a larger area for a softer effect.

Photo taken at Becky Cable House, Cades Cove, Great Smoky Mountains National Park.

UPDATE: Here's a better example.

BEFORE: Pale sky, washed-out marble.

AFTER: Dragged the cursor to the bottom of the door and darkened the tint slightly.