how to: duotone
Original Image:
ISO 400 JPEG format - 1/80th at f/7.1
18-200mm zoom set at 200mm
Final Image:
Photoshop CS2
RGB channel conversion to black & white then duotone
The first step in making a duotone from a
color image is to convert the color image to black and white.
There are several ways to do this. I prefer RGB channel conversion
as it allows you to adjust each channel's contribution to the final
image. Once you have your black and white image, flatten the
layers if needed and take the following steps:
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On the Image menu choose MODE --> GRAYSCALE
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Again on the Image menu choose MODE --> DUOTONE
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You should see a pop-up dialog box that resembles this...
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On the TYPE: dropdown, switch from Monotone to Duotone
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Notice that Ink 2: was added with a value of white (that's duotone speak for monotone)
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Click on the white box (directly under the black box in this case) and the color picker will appear
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For this image, I picked values of 253, 139, and 35 for R, G, and B, respectively. You can pick whatever color you like, or use one of Photoshop's presets by clicking on the "Color Libraries" button. The only rule of thumb, if you like it, it's good!
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Last step, click on the box with a diagonal line in it. This will pull up the Duotone Curve dialog box.
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Here I created a gentle S in the curve by adding the values as shown above. (Note, you can also manipulate the curve line directly if you like.) Changing the curve effects the blending of black and the color you have chosen. The best way to get a feel for how this works is to put some extreme values in and watch what happens.
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Click OK twice to close the curve dialog and the duotone dialog.
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Save, save, save!
Notes:
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For the RGB conversion, I choose to keep the greens at zero and emphasize red:blue 2:1. You don't have to do this - my goal here was to pop the girl out away from the green background somewhat.
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Don't assume that my choice of colors and values is best. It can vary from image to image and certainly by personal taste!