Help

[tresofbass]

Hi everyone, I absolutely love this image:

(full resolution at http://tasteofphilly.biz/HPIM0639.JPG (3MB))

But... I can't figure out how to make the foreground brighter - I'm too dark. I tried doing a magic wand and adjusting the levels of just me and it worked, sort of. I want to send prints of it out as Christmas gifts, and in its current form it won't work.

Could anybody who's a pro at this see if you can manipulate it to come out better?

 

[Peanuts]

Here's a quick try I did with photoshop. All i did was create another background layer, and adjusting the levels, and then earased all of on that same layer except yourself, and this is what I came up with. Very nice fall/winter photo.

P.S. I am obviously not a pro but decided to try it anways

 

[tresofbass]

Thanks for the tip! I did level adjustment on it before, and the edges came out looking bad. This time, with a combination of using a new layer (your idea) and feathering (my idea), I got the full-resolution image looking good. As much as I love traditional photography, there are some things about digital I'd never want to give up.