How to Adjust Specific Colors in Photoshop?

Adjusting specific colors in Photoshop is a straightforward process, often accomplished quickly using adjustment layers.

Using the Hue/Saturation Adjustment Layer

One of the easiest and most common ways to target and modify specific colors in your image is by utilizing a Hue/Saturation adjustment layer. As highlighted in the reference material, adding a hue/saturation adjustment is a very simple task that can be done in under a minute.

Here's how you typically use this method to target specific colors:

1. Add a Hue/Saturation Adjustment Layer: Go to the Adjustments panel or Layer > New Adjustment Layer > Hue/Saturation. This creates a new layer above your image layers without permanently altering the original pixels.
2. Target a Specific Color Range: In the Properties panel for the Hue/Saturation layer, you will see a dropdown menu (usually set to "Master" by default). Click on this menu to select the specific color range you want to adjust, such as:
   • Reds
   • Yellows
   • Greens
   • Cyans
   • Blues
   • Magentas
3. Adjust the Color: Once you've selected a specific color range, you can use the sliders below:
   • Hue: Changes the color itself within that range (e.g., shifting reds towards orange or purple).
   • Saturation: Increases or decreases the intensity/purity of the color.
   • Lightness: Makes the selected color range brighter or darker.
4. Refine the Selection (Optional but Recommended): Below the sliders, there is a color spectrum bar with adjustable sliders. These allow you to refine the precise range of colors that are being affected by your adjustments, ensuring only the colors you intend to change are modified. You can also use the Eyedropper tools (available in the Properties panel when the Hue/Saturation layer is selected) to click directly on a color in your image to automatically select its range in the dropdown and sliders.

This non-destructive approach allows you to easily experiment with different color adjustments and make changes later if needed. The reference specifically points to this adjustment layer as the primary tool for this task due to its simplicity and effectiveness in targeting individual colors.

Using the Hue/Saturation adjustment layer makes targeting a specific color easy and fast, as demonstrated by the reference material which notes how quickly this can be done.