How to Lighten and Brighten Eyes with Photoshop CC and CS6 (2023)

Step 1 - Add a level adjustment layer

Before we begin, let's take a quick look at ourslayers panelwhere we see our photo on the sitbackground layer. At the moment the background layer is the only layer in the document:

The Layers panel with the photo on the background layer.

To light the eyes we use aLevels Adjustment Layer. To add one, click theNew fill or adjustment layerIcon at bottom of Layers panel:

Click the New Fill or Adjustment Layer icon.

then chooselevelsthe list:

Choose an adjustment layer from Levels.

Nothing will happen to the image yet, but if we look back in the Layers panel, we can now see our level adjustment layer called "Layers 1" which sits on top of the background layer:

The Layers panel with the adjustment layer on top of the image.

Step 2 - Change the layer blending mode to "Screen"

Options and controls for the Levels adjustment layer appear in the Photoshop window.property pane, but you can safely ignore them as we don't need them for this purpose. Instead, to brighten the eyes, all we have to do is change the adjustment layerblend mode.

At the top left of the Layers panel you will find the Blending Mode option. By default, the Blending Mode is set to Normal. Click on the word "Normal" and change the Blending Mode toScreen:

Change the blending mode for the Levels adjustment layer to Screen.

Once we change the blending mode toScreen, the entire image becomes brighter. The only problem is that, well, theoverall picturenow it is lighter. All we really want to do is brighten the eyes, so we'll fix that next:

The screen blending mode instantly brightens the entire image.

Step 3 - Fill the layer mask with black

One of the many great features of adjustment layers in Photoshop is that each one has its own unique featureslayer mask. We can use the layer mask to easily control which areas of our image are affected by the adjustment layer. In other words, we can use it to keep the glow effect on the eyes but hide it in the rest.

If we look at the adjustment layer in the layers panel we can see itLayer mask thumbnail. The preview image shows us a small preview of what the layer mask currently looks like. Notice that the thumbnail is filled withwhite, and that's because white is the default color for a layer mask:

The layer mask thumbnail is filled with white.

Operating a layer mask in Photoshop is very simple.BlancoThe areas of the mask represent areas where the contents of the layer reside.100% visiblein the documentNegroThe areas of the mask represent areas where the contents of the layer reside.100% invisible. The reason we can see the level adjustment layer's effect throughout our image is that its layer mask is completely filled with white.

We can hide the adjustment layer effect on the whole image by filling the layer mask withNegro. To do this, go upstairsEditin the menu bar at the top of the screen and selectTo fill:

Go to Edit > Fill.

This will open the Photoshop Fill dialog box. change thatContentsoption above tooNegro, then clickOK(Note: If you are using Photoshop CS6, change theUseoption toNegro):

Change "Content" to "Black" in the "Fill" dialog box.

If we look at the layer mask thumbnail again, we can see that it's now filled with solid black:

The layer mask for the adjustment layer is now filled with black.

And since the black in the layer mask obscures the effect of the adjustment layer, we see the photo again as it originally looked without the glow applied:

Go back to the original photo.

Step 4 - Select the brush tool

To restore the glow effect in the eyes, we need a way to fill only those areas of the mask with white, and the easiest way to do that is to paint over them with a brush. Select Photoshopbrushof thetoolbar:

Brush tool selection.

Step 5: Paint the eyes with white

We have to paint with youwhite, since white on a layer mask reveals the layer's contents, which means we need to make sure our brush color is set to white first. Photoshop uses the streamforeground colorlike the color of the brush. We can see our foreground color (and our background color) in bothFarbmusterat the bottom of the toolbar. The foreground color is the swatch in the upper left corner.

Since the default foreground color is white, there's a good chance you're ready. However, if your foreground color is not set to white, press the letterDon your keyboard to reset the foreground and background colors to their default values, making your foreground color white and your background color (which we don't need to worry about) black:

Make sure the Foreground Color (upper left swatch) is set to white.

So that I can see better what I'm doing, I move closer to the eyes. To do this, I hold down the buttonspacebarand thecontrol(Win) /Domain(Mac) on my keyboard. This temporarily switches me from the Brush tool to Photoshop.zoom tool. I click the area between the eyes several times to enlarge it. Then I switch back to the brush tool by releasing the keys:

approaching the eyes.

Now that we've zoomed in, with the Brush tool in hand and white as the brush color, simply paint in the iris (the colored area in the center) of each eye to brighten it. You should use a small brush for this, and the quickest way to adjust the brush size is to use the keyboard. pressing theleft parenthesis([) the brush gets a little smaller with each press while theright bracket key(]) makes the brush a bit bigger.

You should also want the edges of your brush to be fairly smooth. To adjust the hardness of the brush, press and holdChangeand press the buttonleft parenthesis([) repeatedly to soften the edges. tenureChangewhen pressing theright bracket key(]) the edges of the brush become harder.

Because we're painting on a layer mask, you won't see the color of your brush as you paint. Instead, the adjustment layer's glow effect is displayed. Here I paint in the left eye:

Painting in the iris of the first eye.

Don't worry if you accidentally paint on the whites of your eye or on your eyelids because we'll clean it up later. This is what my first eye looks like after painting the entire iris:

The first eye was enlightened.

Once you've illuminated the first eye, continue with the other eye and do the same, painting the inside of the iris with white to reveal the lighting effect:

Both eyes are now illuminated.

Step 6 - Set your foreground color to black

We lightened the eyes, but most likely we also lightened some areas around the eyes. To clean up these unwanted areas, all we have to do is paint over them with paintNegro. To quickly change the color of your brush from white to black, just press the letterXon your keyboard. This swaps the foreground and background colors, making the foreground color (and the brush color) black:

Press "X" to swap the foreground and background colors.

Step 7 - Paint around the outside of the eyes

Then, using black as the brush color, paint around the outside of the eyes to hide any shine on the white or lids. Here I am painting around the left eye:

Cleaning the area around the first eye.

If you make a mistake and remove some of the iris glow, just press on the letterXback to your keyboard to change your foreground color againwhiteand paint over the area to repair it. then pressXagain to change the foreground color againNegroand continue painting any unwanted areas. Here I am cleaning the area around the right eye:

Clean the area around the other eye.

After cleaning up the eye area, I zoom out so I can see the full picture. I'm going upstairs for thatVistain the menu bar at the top of the screen and selectfit on the screen. Or you could press the key combination,Ctrl+0(Win) /command+0(Mac):

Go to View > Fit to Screen.

This is what my picture looks like with glowing eyes:

The eyes appear brighter now.

Layer mask display

After we've lightened the eyes, if we look again at the layer mask thumbnail in the Layers panel, we can see the two small white areas we painted over the eyes. These are the only two areas that show the effect of the adjustment layer:

The layer mask thumbnail shows us where we painted with white.

Indeed if we keep the button pressedAlternative(Win) /Possibility(Mac) on the keyboard and click theLayer mask thumbnail:

Alt-click (Win) / Option-click (Mac) on the skin thumbnail.

The photo is temporarily replaced with the layer mask itself, so you can see exactly where we painted:

The layer mask is now visible in the document.

To return to the image, press and hold the button again.Alternative(Win) /Possibility(Mac) and click the againLayer mask thumbnail:

Alt-click (Win) / Option-click (Mac) on the skin thumbnail again.

The layer mask disappears and the photo reappears:

The image returns.

Step 8: Decrease Layer Opacity (Optional)

If you find the eyes now, they will appearAlsobright, it's easy to reduce the brightness. All we have to do is lower itopacitythe level adjustment layer. You will find themopacityin the upper-right corner of the Layers panel (directly opposite the Blending Mode option).

By default, the opacity value is set to 100%. The more we lower it, the more we let the original photo show through on the background layer, reducing the effect of the adjustment layer. Keep an eye on your image as you lower the opacity to find the value that works best. In my case I will lower it to 75%:

Decrease the opacity of the level adjustment layer.

before and after

To compare the result with your original image, just click on itvisibility icon(the eyeball) for the Levels adjustment layer in the Layers panel:

Click on the layer adjustment layer visibility icon.

This turns off the adjustment layer so we can see the original image:

The original photo again.

To reactivate the adjustment layer, click on its layer again.visibility icon(the empty square):

Click the visibility icon again.

And here, with the brightening effect visible again, my end result:

The final result.