Hello Dave, excellent video with clear and concise explanations on using the magic mixer. You selected a great picture to illustrate your approach. Cheers!
So Dang Cool!!! This lesson was very helpful to clarify and reinforce how to do multiple B&W conversions and very useful. So much potential for powerful B&W images. Thank you Dave.
I want to make sure I understand the intended operation of using multiple magic channel mixer layers. For example, I can create a selection, say a square in the middle of a photo, then add a magic channel mixer layer,, I will have created a small black and white area of the photo that I can adjust. If I then create a second magic channel mixer layer with no selection, I notice that the changes I make in this section channel mixer layer don't affect the square area that I created in the first channel mixer layer. So even though I would have expected the entire image to be affected by the second channel mixer layer, it's as if I've masked out the area of the first channel mixer layer mask. If the second channel mixer layer is the normal Photoshop channel mixer, the result is different. In this case, the entire image is affected by the Photoshop channel mixer. Dave Kelly alluded to this in his video, but didn't explicitly mention the difference compared to the normal Photoshop channel mixer. I purchased the Magic channel mixer but quickly scanning the instruction manual, I didn't see this difference mentioned. Maybe I missed it. I just want to make sure I understand the operation of both channel mixers. Anyway, great video and great piece of software as a really low price.
See Tony's response to another comment about why you don't see a change in the image when you adjust the second Magic Mixer layer. When you adjusted the standard channel mixer layer did you adjust more than one slider so as to keep the total at 100%? Magic Mixer is coded so that changing one slider alters the others to keep the total the same, normally 100%. In the Magic Mixer there is the Brightness Slider which adjusts the Total. If you adjust this on a second Magic Mixer layer then it will impact the brightness of the whole image, greater than 100% and image becomes brighter, less and it becomes darker. The impact of the brightness slider is mentioned on page 8 of the instruction manual. Now Dave has come up with the concept of using different Magic Mixer layers to carry out different black and white conversions to different parts of an image that is something that could be added to any future revision of the manual.
@@datstheone1 Sorry. I missed the previous comment about this issue. Now it all makes sense. I gave the instruction manual a quick look and didn't see this difference between the Magic Mixer and Color Mixer mentioned (maybe I didn't look close enough). Thanks for the response. Great tool!
Thank you, Dave, for another great Tutorial on the TK Magic Mixer. You did say you are using a stock photo. Where could I download this image to follow your editing?
Hello Dave... Wow, great editing! I subscribed. Unrelated question: Is there a paper/lab you recommend for black and white printing out of digital files? What is your favorite look, matte or surface, fiber or RC?
Good stuff Dave, but I don't understand why the masks on the later Magic Mixer layers are white in the areas from below and the effect remains unchanged. EX: why doesn't the boat layer affect the sand layer below it since the mask on the sand is white? Is this something special with the magic mixer tool?
Magic Mixer works by altering the contributions of the Red, Green, and Blue channels on the channels panel to the overall image. In order for there to be an effect with the Magic Mixer, there needs to be differences between the color channels that an be exploited by changing the percentage contribution of each of these channels. For areas that are already black and white in an image, the three color channels (Red, Green, and Blue) are identical. Once they are identical, there is no difference between the three channels that can exploited when their contribution to the image is changed with the Magic Mixer sliders. You can see this for yourself quite easily by creating a black and white image with the Magic Mixer. Now, look at the individual Red, Green, and Blue channels on the channels panel. You'll see they are all the same. Now, create a new Magic Mixer layer directly above the first one. On this new Magic Mixer layer, moving the three color sliders will have no effect even though both Magic Mixer layers of pure white masks. That's because the first Magic Mixer layer made all the channels identical. There are no differences that can be exploited to make changes based on color in the second Magic Mixer layer. Bottom line is that only if color is present in an image can subsequent Magic Mixer layers have an effect. Once color is removed, the Magic Mixer's color sliders no longer work.
Tony & Dave - Tony’s response is a really very informative, I wish there was someway to copy it and post it on top of all the comments so everyone can read it. Regardless, great job on this plug in and on this video lesson Dave.
To add to Tony's detailed response, while the colour and contrast sliders in subsequent Magic Mixer layers have no effect on any areas that were converted to Black and White by earlier Magic Mixer layers the brightness slider on any Magic Mixer layer will impact any areas that it is not masked out of.
That's correct. The Brightness slider affects all thee color channels, but it affects them equally. The data in each channel remains identical with respect to the other color channels and the image stays black and white. The brightness of the black and white image changes depending on which direction the Brightness slider is pulled, but the color channels on the Channels panel are still identical relative to one another.
Excellent explanation of using the Magic Mixer with masks. It's almost like the masks are working in reverse. Thanks for another good one.
Thanks for this "deep dive" on all the possibilities with multiple conversions within a single file...time to get practicing on some B&W conversions!
Hello Dave, excellent video with clear and concise explanations on using the magic mixer. You selected a great picture to illustrate your approach. Cheers!
So Dang Cool!!! This lesson was very helpful to clarify and reinforce how to do multiple B&W conversions and very useful. So much potential for powerful B&W images. Thank you Dave.
Wonderful tutorial Dave. Clear as water! Thank you so much!
Thanks for the great info, Dave. The magic mixer is a nice piece of work, Tony.
Great explanation Dave. Thank you.
Excellent set of tips. Never thought of this method.
awesome explanation Dave, thank you!!
Dave, beautiful work. Thank you!
Very cool technique - eager to try it myself.
Thanks Dave!
Very useful Dave.
Thanks Dave, this is lot of good information 😊
I want to make sure I understand the intended operation of using multiple magic channel mixer layers. For example, I can create a selection, say a square in the middle of a photo, then add a magic channel mixer layer,, I will have created a small black and white area of the photo that I can adjust. If I then create a second magic channel mixer layer with no selection, I notice that the changes I make in this section channel mixer layer don't affect the square area that I created in the first channel mixer layer. So even though I would have expected the entire image to be affected by the second channel mixer layer, it's as if I've masked out the area of the first channel mixer layer mask. If the second channel mixer layer is the normal Photoshop channel mixer, the result is different. In this case, the entire image is affected by the Photoshop channel mixer. Dave Kelly alluded to this in his video, but didn't explicitly mention the difference compared to the normal Photoshop channel mixer. I purchased the Magic channel mixer but quickly scanning the instruction manual, I didn't see this difference mentioned. Maybe I missed it. I just want to make sure I understand the operation of both channel mixers. Anyway, great video and great piece of software as a really low price.
See Tony's response to another comment about why you don't see a change in the image when you adjust the second Magic Mixer layer. When you adjusted the standard channel mixer layer did you adjust more than one slider so as to keep the total at 100%? Magic Mixer is coded so that changing one slider alters the others to keep the total the same, normally 100%. In the Magic Mixer there is the Brightness Slider which adjusts the Total. If you adjust this on a second Magic Mixer layer then it will impact the brightness of the whole image, greater than 100% and image becomes brighter, less and it becomes darker. The impact of the brightness slider is mentioned on page 8 of the instruction manual. Now Dave has come up with the concept of using different Magic Mixer layers to carry out different black and white conversions to different parts of an image that is something that could be added to any future revision of the manual.
@@datstheone1 Sorry. I missed the previous comment about this issue. Now it all makes sense. I gave the instruction manual a quick look and didn't see this difference between the Magic Mixer and Color Mixer mentioned (maybe I didn't look close enough). Thanks for the response. Great tool!
Thank you, Dave, for another great Tutorial on the TK Magic Mixer. You did say you are using a stock photo. Where could I download this image to follow your editing?
You're welcome. I believe it was Pexels, if I'm not mistaken.
Awesome !!
Hello Dave... Wow, great editing! I subscribed. Unrelated question: Is there a paper/lab you recommend for black and white printing out of digital files? What is your favorite look, matte or surface, fiber or RC?
Thanks. I print my images on an Epson P800 printer. I like matte papers.
Good stuff Dave, but I don't understand why the masks on the later Magic Mixer layers are white in the areas from below and the effect remains unchanged. EX: why doesn't the boat layer affect the sand layer below it since the mask on the sand is white? Is this something special with the magic mixer tool?
Magic Mixer works by altering the contributions of the Red, Green, and Blue channels on the channels panel to the overall image. In order for there to be an effect with the Magic Mixer, there needs to be differences between the color channels that an be exploited by changing the percentage contribution of each of these channels. For areas that are already black and white in an image, the three color channels (Red, Green, and Blue) are identical. Once they are identical, there is no difference between the three channels that can exploited when their contribution to the image is changed with the Magic Mixer sliders. You can see this for yourself quite easily by creating a black and white image with the Magic Mixer. Now, look at the individual Red, Green, and Blue channels on the channels panel. You'll see they are all the same. Now, create a new Magic Mixer layer directly above the first one. On this new Magic Mixer layer, moving the three color sliders will have no effect even though both Magic Mixer layers of pure white masks. That's because the first Magic Mixer layer made all the channels identical. There are no differences that can be exploited to make changes based on color in the second Magic Mixer layer. Bottom line is that only if color is present in an image can subsequent Magic Mixer layers have an effect. Once color is removed, the Magic Mixer's color sliders no longer work.
Tony & Dave - Tony’s response is a really very informative, I wish there was someway to copy it and post it on top of all the comments so everyone can read it. Regardless, great job on this plug in and on this video lesson Dave.
To add to Tony's detailed response, while the colour and contrast sliders in subsequent Magic Mixer layers have no effect on any areas that were converted to Black and White by earlier Magic Mixer layers the brightness slider on any Magic Mixer layer will impact any areas that it is not masked out of.
That's correct. The Brightness slider affects all thee color channels, but it affects them equally. The data in each channel remains identical with respect to the other color channels and the image stays black and white. The brightness of the black and white image changes depending on which direction the Brightness slider is pulled, but the color channels on the Channels panel are still identical relative to one another.
@@TonyKuyper Thanks Tony, I understand it now. I had to look at Dave's video a few times to make sure I didn't miss something, but now I get it.👍
wow!