Food photography is all about highlighting those beautiful details in our recipes. And when it comes to editing, we want to find the tools that are going to help us do just that. Let’s look at clarity tools and how we can use them to perfect the details in our image.
Prefer to watch this video? Press play below!
Before continuing, Capture One has a Structure Tool and Lightroom has the Texture Tool. They are essentially the same tool, just with different names.
We use the Clarity Tool to add edge contrast to pixels across the entire image. It adds contrast in an impactful way that adds depth to the image. Another way we can use it is in reverse or in negative values if something needs to look soft.
What is the Structure or Texture Tool?
The Structure or Texture Tools are both used to add fine detail to areas in our image that have detail. For instance, in food photography, fine detail could be the fuzz on a ripe summer peach or the crispy skin on a fried chicken strip.
Let’s use these ideas to edit a photo.
Use clarity when you want an impact globally on the image for detail and contrast. This can be a heavy adjustment, and this can be an example of when less is more.
If you want a soft feeling to an image, you can use clarity in negative values.
When to Use Structure or Texture in an Image
If you want to enhance finer details in your images, you would instead use the Texture or Structure Sliders. This will target only those areas and have a more targeted effect on the image.
You can, of course, use both of these sliders to achieve your desired look.
To see how I used both of these editing tools, check out this video.
Capture One Magic
If you’re interested in taking your photos to the next level and ready to unlock the secrets to the industry’s most powerful editing tool, then make sure you check out my masterclass, Capture One Magic.
FAQs
The Clarity Tool is used to add edge contrast to pixels across the entire image. It adds contrast in an impactful way that adds depth to the image. Or it can be used in reverse or in negative values if something needs to look soft.
Contrast is a great way to add definition to a photo. Through editing tools like Clarity or Curves.
Bokeh is an effect that occurs when an image has a soft, out-of-focus background with a crisp subject. This is achieved through a combination of focal length, distance from the subject and the aperture used to capture a photo.