Frequency Separation Technique

[Rocco]

Hey all! I just learned and applied the Frequency Separation technique to one of the images I shot today. Figured I'd share the tutorial video I used, as well as my results.

The video (found here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=q_GE3QjRVUI) is one of Benjamin VonWong's. He shows the technique as it's applied to architecture and asphalt. I think it's more commonly used in beauty retouching, to even skin tones and what not. The basic premise is that it allows you to separate the texture of an image from the colors, and make adjustments from there. I can tell you this much.. it feels like cheating and it will become a staple in my editing arsenal.

Here is my base image out of camera. This couple was sealed in a Mormon Temple today and hired me to take group photos of both extended families. As we were leaving to go to the luncheon they surprised me with a request for a few shots of just the two of them. It was a surprise because we already have a session scheduled on the temple grounds for next week. Anyway, I had about three minutes to grab a couple shots before they left (they were already late).. which left me with a few issues with these images.

I had my assistant hold just a single PCB Einstein with a soft box attached. I took my shots and sent them on their way. The issue, which should be obvious, is that when I zoomed out for a wide shot that showed the full temple there is an annoying hotspot from my light.



Enter Frequency Separation:



You can see the impact it had on the image. I evened out the tones on the asphalt and removed distracting texture in the curb. I also got rid of what I thought to be distracting cracks in the temple itself.

I'm a fan.

Now, I seriously doubt that this is a new concept for many of you. If any of you who are familiar with the technique have any tips to share, please do! I fumbled around with it quite a bit before I started rolling with it. One thing I did learn is that you should do all of your global adjustments before applying the technique (sharpening, noise reduction, etc). This is kind of an end step.

-Rocco