Photoshop Actions

[Steve Everist]

I'm just curious how many of the Photoshop users save actions for some of the more common techniques that they use.

[Kasey Wertheim]

With no replies in several days, I had to chime in...

I save layers with detail I often use. For example, I have been making up some great charts with relatively large bullseye dots on the characteristics. These are for power-point slides, but they can be pasted into Word documents (I always size them to 7.5 inches in width to fill the width of a standard page). Furthermore, they can be printed in black-and-white, and the bullseye (black, red, and white) appears no matter what the background (light, black, or otherwise).

I have saved my bullseye in a layer, and I use him quite often. Instead of having to create a new one, I just drag the layer into my new image.

Could you share how you use actions along with a scenario?

-Kasey

[Steve Everist]

The actions that I've created and saved thus far are some pretty basic ones that are starting points for different prints.

The first one is for Ninhydrin prints. Since the discs we receive along with our 35mm negatives is all in RGB color, the first quick check is to isolate the green chanel and see how it looks.

But since ninhydrin is usually more of a magenta than a red, I like to go to CMYK space and select the Magenta channel. So I created an action that converts to CMYK then extracts the Magenta channel. It's only a couple of steps, but I can now do it with a single button click from my action pallet.

If for some reason it doesn't look like the best choice for me, I can go on with other, more advanced, methods of working with the image.

I've also created actions using Lab Color. Sometimes I find that I can get good contrast by using either the Lab Color "A" or "B" channel. But they also require doing an Auto Contrast adjustment to better visualize - and sometimes a color inversion (CTRL-I) to make the ridges dark. This last step isn't always necessary, and I'm comfortable with the ridges white or black, so I didn't save it as part of the action. So I've got a "Lab Color A" action and a "Lab Color B" action too.

What's nice is that now I have different choices all at the click of one button instead of a few for each technique. If I don't like the result, I still have to go back into history to get to the as-opened image, prior to doing the next action (you shouldn't stack color space changes on top of each other). I should see if there's a way that I can create an action that will let me go back to when I opened the image (thinking out loud).

Now these simple techniques may not be the best for all latents, depending on the different colors involved in the print and the background, but they are some of the more common things that I try. Thus I've created them into an action.

I was wondering if anyone else had some repetitive techniques that they've created an action for, or may like some help in creating one.

[Joe Heppler]

I have used actions extensively. It has made my life much easier and reduced the learning curve for people I teach. I use them for ninhydrin prints, laser prints, formating images for CAL-ID AFIS, and electronic transfer to the AFIS system. I used them to create a demo for non-users to demonstrate the basics of the imaging system to VIP's that would come through when I was not around. It worked great! I also use them for batch sizing and processing in the Photo Lab. Actions are one of the best things in Photoshop.

Joe Heppler
Senior Forensic Specialist
Digital Imaging Coordinator
Orange County Sheriff Forensic Science

[Kasey Wertheim]

I use them for... formating images for CAL-ID AFIS, and electronic transfer to the AFIS system... I also use them for batch sizing and processing in the Photo Lab.

Joe,

I am really interested in which formatting steps you use for CAL-ID, how they are "transfered" using Photoshop Actions, and batch processing of images. If you could share some detail either here or by e-mail with me, I would like to pass these on (along with the Actions of some others) as a Weekly Detail.

[Dennis Degler]

[s wiese]

Hey, Kasey, if you do decide to publish these actions in a Detail, would you publish the alternative, dumb version of that issue for folks like me who had never heard of an 'action'? I'm pretty good at Adobe, but almost all self-taught so there is much, much, much to know regarding the tools and how to use them for latent work. Or maybe something starting out for dumb folks like me and progressing up to the shorthand you all can use and understand??

Or better yet, why can't one of you just sit down and write a book about how to apply Adobe tools to latent work?! Yeah! That would be great and I promise to buy the first copy! ; )

Sandra

[Steve Everist]

Hey, Kasey, if you do decide to publish these actions in a Detail, would you publish the alternative, dumb version of that issue for folks like me who had never heard of an 'action'? I'm pretty good at Adobe, but almost all self-taught so there is much, much, much to know regarding the tools and how to use them for latent work. Or maybe something starting out for dumb folks like me and progressing up to the shorthand you all can use and understand??

Or better yet, why can't one of you just sit down and write a book about how to apply Adobe tools to latent work?! Yeah! That would be great and I promise to buy the first copy! ; )

Sandra

Sandra,

If you have any problems with the Photoshop Actions instruction in this weeks Detail, send me an email. If you go to the web version of the detail, you will be able to see the screen shots from each step as outlined in the email version.

[George Reis]

Or better yet, why can't one of you just sit down and write a book about how to apply Adobe tools to latent work?! Yeah! That would be great and I promise to buy the first copy! ; )

Well, my book is at the publishers now being proofread. Hopefully it will be out in four or five months. I'll try to keep everyone posted here as to the publishing date and how to find it (hopefully at a discount price).

George

[George Reis]

I've been playing around with saving the group of actions (as well as notes) for the particular latent print I'm working with in order to be able to reproduce what I've done at some later time (although the same thing could be accomplished with the notes themselves.)

Well, the History Log is a good tool for recording most steps that are done - but there are limitations with that. Most image enhancement processes can be done with Adjustment Layers, and these are non-destructive processes that remain part of the image itself. The exact settings remain in the Adjustment Layer, making the process fully verifiable and repeatable. Localized adjustments can be made with Layer Masks which, again, are non-destructive and become part of the file itself, making them also verifiable and repeatable.

There are definitely some ways to work in Photoshop that are better than others. By better I mean that both utilize best practices and that are more efficient than other ways. I present these in my workshops and in my book (pending publication).

Actions provide a power to apply some processes to multiple images, providing tremendous efficiency. I know that Joe Heppler has done much more with Actions than I have - he is kind of the Action King. He even has Actions that demonstrate how many image processing procedures are done. Steve Everist has also found many processes for Actions, and presents his information well. Both of them are great resources for learning about how to apply Actions in a forensic environment.

Personally, I don't use Actions as frequently as I once did. I use them for functions such as deinterlacing a sequence of video frames and for batch printing; but I no longer use them for analyzing individual images. I prefer to perform my analysis an image at a time. If I were still working for a law enforcement agency and had a large volume, I probably would still use them to batch process ninhydrin or flusorescing prints, but since my volume is lower, I don't find a need to do so.

George

[Steve Everist]

Well, my book is at the publishers now being proofread. Hopefully it will be out in four or five months. I'll try to keep everyone posted here as to the publishing date and how to find it (hopefully at a discount price).

George

George,

It's good to hear things are moving again on your book. It sounds like it could be ready just in time for the holidays! I'll have to put it on my list.

[Dave Grady]

I'm glad Mr. Reis mentioned adjustment layers. With the new version of Photoshop, CS2, they've really expanded the capability of adjustment layers. And as Mr. Reis said, it is a non-destructive layer that can be applied without changing the original image.
For those of you that are changing the mode of RGB images to CMYK and back again, I hope you're doing this on copies, and not originals. Although CMYK has more channels, it actually has a smaller color gamma (RGB is capabale of producing more colors). When you change a RGB image to CMYK, you are potentially throwing away some color info.
One final note for those in the Northeast. The Photoshop World conference is in Boston (for the first time in the east), Sept 7-9th, 2005. The classes scheduled look great.

[Steve Everist]

For a future Weekly Detail, I was planning on doing something with adjustment layers.
I would hope that users aren't changing from RGB to CMYK then back to RGB. I do understand going to CMYK to try some techniques, but if that space isn't giving you what you want, be sure to go back in history to the original RGB space for the image.
I would also hope that everyone using digital imaging is working from copies for any enhancement techniques.

Dave,
Does the Photoshop World Conference have many seminars that are useful in forensic sciences, or do you have to pick and choose what information you can apply to forensic image enhancement?

I went to an all-day kick-off seminar for the launch of Creative Suite 2 a few months ago. It was very interesting, but I had to filter out the tips and tricks that wouldn't apply in our field.

[Dave Grady]

The Adobe Conference will have several roundtable sessions and I've heard that some of them will target science, engineers and health care. I'm not sure if they have anything specific to forensics. I'll try to find out.
As with every class that Adobe offers you'll have to try and figure how it can help you in your particular situation. But, I think that's true for almost all users of photoshop, in any profession. It's such a creative program, that it's really up to you to figure out how you want to use it. Some of the classes I'm most interested in are:

1. From color to Black and White and back again - by Katrin Eismann

2. How to Copywrite and Protect your work - Jack Reznicki

3. Mastering Adobe Bridge - Dave Cross

4. Unsharp Mask is Dead - Deke McClelland (this class will be on the new "Smart Sharpen" filter). I've been dying to learn more about this.

5. Real World Color Management - Bruce Fraser (I already practice color management on my monitors, printers, and scanners. But this topic is so important, especially in forensics, that I always take classes on the subject when avaiilable).

6. Controlling Digital Noise and Moire - Eddie Tapp

7. The All-New Layers Palette - Ben Willmore

8. The Power of HDR & Extending Digital Range - Jack Davis

9. The Magic of LAB, Part 1 and Part 2 - Dan Marguilas

There are dozens of other classes, but these are the ones I'll probably be attending.

[Steve Everist]

It looks like they've got some good stuff that you could definitely find relevant.

Adobe Bridge is interesting, but it isn't really that much of a difference from using the file browser in the earlier versions. It's just pumped up a bit. The most important part of Bridge is for users that have the entire suite of software and the cross-functionality of all the programs when "bridged" together. I've got CS2 at home, so I've used it a bit and like the ability to further customize it beyond what can be done with file browser.

They did a brief piece on the new Smart Sharpen filter at the seminar I attended. I can't really remember the specifics though. Once again it's something most desired by graphics arts users.

Color management is definitely an area where I could use more information.

HDR could have some potential uses in forensics. The ability to layer multiple shots of the same image, using the highlights from the underexposed images, combined with the shadows in the overexposed images seems like it could have some great potential, especially for scene photographers.

I'm guessing The Magic of LAB is relevant to the Lab color space? I've used Lab in some situations, but I'd like to know more about it.

Do they have a location for next year's conference?