If you use Adobe Lightroom, or Adobe Camera RAW (part of Photoshop), then you’ve come across the Clarity slider.
Check out this six-minute video on Adobe TV, describing the pros & cons of this great tool.
Used well, your photos can improve dramatically with just a few seconds of effort.
But it pays to know when it DOESN’T work well.
Avoid using much/any Clarity Slider for portraits of subjects that do not wish to appear “hard.” In other words, not good for any subjects other than maybe guys trying to look tough.
In fact, I dial the Clarity slider DOWN for many of my portraits. Subjects around my age usually appreciate it!
But for sports shots, sunrise, sunset, landscapes & a range of other image types, the Clarity slider bumps your midtone contrast in a way often more pleasing than the more-blunt Contrast slider.
CLICK on the image below to launch the viewer. Then slide back/forth between the two images. The mountains gain particular pop, from just a 20% bump in the Clarity slider. The foliage in the foreground also pops more pleasantly.
For another post: the Vibrance slider is an improved cousin to the Saturation slider, in much the same way Clarity tends to work better than its near relative, the Contrast slider.
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