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Fine-tune tone curves in Camera Raw

Use tone curves to fine-tune images after you’ve made tone adjustments in the Basic tab.The tone curves represent changes made to the tonal scale of an image. The horizontal axis represents the original tone values of the image (input values), with black on the left and progressively lighter values toward the right. The vertical axis represents the changed tone values (output values), with black on the bottom and progressing to white at the top.

If a point on the curve moves up, the output is a lighter tone; if it moves down, the output is a darker tone. A straight, 45‑degree line indicates no changes to the tone response curve: the original input values exactly match the output values.

Use the tone curve in the Parametric tab to adjust the values in specific tonal ranges in the image. The areas of the curve affected by the region properties (Highlights, Lights, Darks, or Shadows) depend on where you set the split controls at the bottom of the graph. The middle region properties (Darks and Lights) mostly affect the middle region of the curve. The Highlight and Shadows properties mostly affect the ends of the tonal range.

 To adjust tone curves, do any of the following:

  • Drag the Highlights, Lights, Darks, or Shadows slider in the Parametric tab. You can expand or contract the curve regions that the sliders affect by dragging the region divider controls along the horizontal axis of the graph.

  • Drag a point on the curve in the Point tab. As you drag the point, the Input and Output tonal values are displayed beneath the tone curve.

  • Choose an option from the Curve menu in the Point tab. The setting you choose is reflected in the Point tab, but not in the settings in the Parametric tab. Medium Contrast is the default setting.