Adjusting hue/saturation
The Hue/Saturation tool allows you to make color adjustments in hue, saturation, or vibrance. All adjustments are relative.
- Hue: The color of pixels.
- Saturation: How vivid all colors are.
- Vibrance: How vivid primary colors are.
The Vibrance slider is better than the Saturation slider when you want to adjust only the saturation of foliage, the sky, water, clothing, make-up (things that contain reds, greens, and blues), but leave the saturation of skin and earth tones largely unchanged.
For example, compare the photos below.
| (a) original | (b) vibrance +50 | (c) saturation +50 |
 |  |  |
In (b), the vibrance has been increased by 50 resulting in more vivid make-up, but with the hair and background largely unchanged. In (c), the saturation has been increased by 50 instead resulting in unnaturally vivid colors overall.
To adjust the hue/saturation of your photo:
- Click the hue/saturation tool button in the tool bar. (A new hue/saturation tool will appear at the top of the tool stack.)
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Use the sliders to make adjustments:
- The Hue slider adjusts around the wheel.
- The Saturation slider adjusts along the radius of the wheel from the center to the edge for all colors.
- The Vibrance slider adjusts along the radius of the wheel from the center to the edge, but only for the primary colors of red, green, and blue.
- Optionally:
- Create a mask using regions.
- Select a different blend mode.
- Adjust the Opacity slider.
- Make a color/luminosity selection.