Removing glare from glasses in Lightroom is a common concern for photographers. Glare occurs when light reflects off surfaces, causing unwanted reflections in photos, especially with glass or shiny objects. Lightroom provides effective tools for this task.
You can use the adjustment brush to selectively reduce highlights in glare-affected areas. The graduated filter is also handy for decreasing exposure and highlights in glare-prone spots. While Photoshop offers advanced editing, Lightroom is capable of basic glare removal. With practice, photographers can effectively eliminate glare from glasses and shiny objects in their photos.
What you’ll learn in this article
Edit reflection on glasses:
When capturing a portrait of a friend or relative, you may find that the image is marred by the glare on their glasses. It is important to be able to see the subject’s eyes clearly in a portrait, as this not only captures their expression, but also provides a point of focus for the viewer. Fortunately, Lightroom offers several effective methods for reducing or eliminating glare from glasses. In this article, we will discuss two of the best techniques for editing reflections on glasses, either of which will enable you to easily remove the unwanted reflections from your images.
Edit sunglasses reflection:
Glare on sunglasses is a common issue that arises when bright light reflects on the eyeglasses of the subject. Although adjusting the subject, light, and camera position can help mitigate this issue, sometimes glare cannot be avoided, particularly when taking outdoor pictures on cloudy days where the entire sky is a significant source of glare. In such cases, a polarizer filter can be used to reduce glare. However, once the picture has been captured, Lightroom offers several options for editing sunglasses’ reflections. In this regard, two of the best tools in Lightroom are the Spot Removal tool and the Adjustment Brush tool, both of which can be used to remove reflections from glasses.
Remove ring light reflection in eyes:
When capturing images, it is essential to be aware of lighting and glare, including ring light reflections that can render an image unusable. However, with Lightroom, removing these reflections from your eyes is possible. Below, you will find two key methods to edit ring light reflections, which will enable you to use them more effectively whenever necessary.
Remove Glare from Glasses with Spot Removal:
If you want to get rid of annoying glare on glasses in your photos, you can do it easily with the Spot Removal tool in your photo editing software. Follow these simple steps:
Step 1: Zoom In
First, zoom in on the part of the photo where the glare is by holding your cursor over that area. You can also use the keyboard shortcut: Command/Minus (-). This makes it easier to see the glare up close.
Step 2: Adjust Brush Size
After zooming in, adjust the size of your brush to match the size of the glare. Set the feather to about 75% to make the brush edges soft, and set the opacity to around 90% for natural-looking edits.
Step 3: Brush Settings
Make sure to modify your brush settings to avoid creating obvious lines. Once you’ve tweaked the brush settings, you’re ready to start using it.
Step 4: Click on the Glare
Now, click on the glare itself. You’ll notice the color starts to match the surrounding area. Keep in mind that sometimes the software might not do a perfect job, and that’s okay.
Step 5: Adjust if Necessary
If the software doesn’t quite get it right, you can move the brush circle to a part of the photo that matches the area you’re fixing better. This helps ensure a more seamless result.
Step 6: Finalize
Once you’re happy with how the glare is gone and the edited area looks natural, simply click “OK.” You’ll usually find this option in the lower right corner of the screen, just below the image.
Remove Glare from Glasses Using Brush Tool:
In this case, the Spot Removal tool couldn’t fully fix the issues, as glare remained in the subject’s eyes, and cloning wasn’t possible. Instead, use the Adjustment Brush in Lightroom to target specific areas, reduce glare, and enhance the subject’s eyes. You can also adjust colors, highlights, and saturation to further reduce glare. Here are the steps:
Step 1: Access the Adjustment Brush Tool
Begin by opening your image in Adobe Lightroom. Locate the Adjustment Brush tool in the Develop module, which can be found on the right-hand side of the screen, just below the Histogram.
Step 2: Create a New Mask
Once you’ve selected the Adjustment Brush tool, you’ll want to create a new mask to isolate the area where the glare needs to be reduced. Click on the ‘New’ button in the Masking panel to initiate a fresh mask for this specific task.
Step 3: Select the Brush Tool
Now, to actually paint over the glare, make sure the Brush tool is selected. You can do this by either clicking on ‘Brush’ in the Adjustment Brush panel or simply pressing the ‘K’ key on your keyboard.
Step 4: Target the Glare
With the Brush tool active, carefully paint over the areas of the eyeglasses where the glare is present. Begin by adjusting the sliders in the Adjustment Brush panel. For glare reduction, consider modifying parameters like Exposure, Highlights, and Saturation to minimize the glare as much as possible.
Step 5: Utilize the Dehaze Effect
To further enhance glare reduction, you can incorporate the Dehaze effect. Access this by clicking on the ‘Effects’ drop-down menu in the Adjustment Brush panel and selecting ‘Dehaze.’ Experiment with the Dehaze strength, occasionally reducing the Highlights as needed. Adjust the brush size, Feather, and Flow settings to ensure precise control over your edits, typically setting them to 100 for seamless blending.
Step 6: Activate the Overlay
Press the ‘O’ key on your keyboard to activate the overlay. This overlay visually indicates the areas where the mask is applied, helping you pinpoint any missed spots or unintended coverage. Additionally, you can engage the Erase brush within the Adjustment Brush panel to remove the mask from any areas that shouldn’t be adjusted.
Step 7: Turn Off the Overlay
Once you’ve successfully covered the glare and are satisfied with the results, press ‘O’ again to deactivate the overlay. At this point, consider slightly increasing the Dehaze slider to fine-tune the reduction of glare.
Step 8: Refine Adjustments
To achieve optimal results, delve into further adjustments. Tweak parameters such as Exposure to reduce brightness, and play with Blacks, Shadows, and Whites to emphasize details. Every photo is unique, so the specific values you adjust will vary. Remember, subtlety is key; small, subtle tweaks can enhance the overall quality of the image without overdoing it.
Conclusion:
Capturing photographs of individuals wearing glasses can be challenging, which is why photographers should possess the knowledge of removing glare from glasses in Lightroom. The process involves several steps and requires a significant amount of time and effort. If glares appear in any of your images and compromise their quality, Lightroom offers various tools to fix them, such as the Spot Removal tool, Adjustment Brush, Radial Filter, or Graduated Filter. By following the instructions mentioned in the article ‘how to remove glare from glasses in Lightroom’ above, you can learn how to remove glare from glasses in Lightroom effectively.
