How to Achieve this Post-processed Effect

[jamesino]

How does one achieve these post-processed effects in these three photographs?

http://pretty-as-a-picture.deviantart.com/art/pray-for-us-87636151

http://pretty-as-a-picture.deviantart.com/art/baby-gone-bad-87636051

http://pretty-as-a-picture.deviantart.com/art/give-me-royal-treatment-90710103


The first two looks like as if the have been digitally cross-processed and the last one looks like it received a contrast boost.

 

[Alpha]

It's almost entirely unsharp mask. Perhaps a bit of toying with the color balance or saturation.

Others might tell you it's a contrast bump. It is, but not using the brightness/contrast tool. The unsharp mask adds the contrast.

 

[rufus5150]

Alpha's right, most of that can be achieved with USM. Medium-high amount, radius somewhere between 20 and 60 and a low threshold (under 5 or so) might get close to that.

The second picture uses a multiply layer and burns the corners of the image (would be my best guess) as well.

 

[snowalker]

On my monitor your pictures appears too red. It's my monitor?

 

[Alpha]

On my monitor your pictures appears too red. It's my monitor?

They are very red. I'd hesitate to call it "too red," since that was sort of the intended effect.

 

[Alpha]

Alpha's right, most of that can be achieved with USM. Medium-high amount, radius somewhere between 20 and 60 and a low threshold (under 5 or so) might get close to that.

The second picture uses a multiply layer and burns the corners of the image (would be my best guess) as well.

I would be careful about recommending particular values in the USM dialog. They're inherently tied to image size. A 20px radius on an image 2000px wide, for example, is not the same as a 20px radius on an image 4000px wide.

 

[rufus5150]

True enough. I'm too used to working in darn nearly exactly one size all the time. Thanks.