Zoner Photo Studio: Do Your Travel Photos Lack Dynamism? The Clarity Tool Will Help You

Matěj Liška and Milujemefotografii.cz

The Clarity tool featured in Zoner Photo Studio helps to higlight details and create internal contrast within a photo. To try this tool out, download Zoner Photo Studio X and get a 30 days free trial. The Clarity tool is in the Developing section under the Exposition tools.

Which Photos Is It Good For?

When using the Clarity tool, contrast of outlines in a pohoto increases. Therefore, the histogram does not expand as it would be in case of a contrast increase. This prevents higher blowout. The higher dynamism is apparent when adjusting a photo with clouds in it. This effect is comparable to using HDR tone mapping.

Be Careful When Editing Portraits

HDR and Clarity are not suitable for portraits. These tools accentuate not only the eyes but also wrinkles and other skin imperfections.

Photos mostly contain people as well as clouds. Therefore, use the Clarity only in specific sections of a photo. This can be achieved by using the Gradient Filter which also features the Clarity tool. Now, you can apply Clarity in the upper section of a photo without having to worry about emphasizing any skin imperfections.

A Great Way to Improve Black & White Photos

The magic of black & white photos lies in the absence of colors since a viewer's attention is focused more on the content of a photo, its outlines, and contrast. The Clarity tool knows how to emphasize these features making it a great fit for black & white photos.

Clarity brings more drama even to black & white portraits. Yet noise or unwanted facial contours become also more visible. Therefore, before using Clarity, be sure to soften these features, or even retouch them.

They Fit Almost Anywhere, But Think How You Use Them

Clarity is a great tool which brings low-contrast photos to life. This tool makes them more dramatic and emphasizes outlines. You can use the tool on almost any photo, mostly to their benefit. However, keep in mind that a photo should be interesting for its content, editing makes it only better. Still, more editing does not necessarily mean a better photo. 

Source: ZONER software, a. s.