3.22. The age of jazz

Record covers, posters, and promotional stills amply demonstrate that photography has the power to evoke both an era and its sound. Asked to describe the typical jazz-age photograph, you'd probably think of black-and-white shots of performers in smoky halls, such as those taken by Herman Leonard and others such as William Gottlieb, Charles Peterson, and Francis Wolffall of whom used the camera to document the music they loved.

You can't always get close to the stage at indoor performancescameras (or just flash photography) may be banned, and you need such high ISO settings that your images are full of digital noise which becomes even more apparent when they are enlarged. There is smoke in the air, you are dazzled by stage lights, and, most of all, you've paid good money to enjoy the concert. Therefore it's often easier to capture great shots of friends or street entertainers and then jazz up the image with some digital magic.

Street festivals can be a great place for photography, but don't forget to enjoy the event.

Make the picture black and white by adding a Channel Mixer adjustment layer. Check the Monochrome box, and adjust the channel sliders (see page 72 for guidance on using these to best effect). A quick way to darken a black-and-white image is to add a Curves adjustment layer and set its blending mode to Multiply. You don't even need to change the curve, but you can if you wish. Important image areas can be restored by adding a layer mask and painting the mask black with a very softedged brush. Another method for darkening areas is to add an Overlay layer and paint areas black. Hold the Alt/Opt key and click the "Create a new layer" icon in the Layers palette. Set its blending mode to Overlay and check "Fill with Overlay-neutral color." Use a large, soft brush to paint around the edges, and a smaller brush for more detailed work. Do as much dodging and burning as necessary to create an "enclosed" feeling. Once the basic image is ready, add some smoke. Add a new layer at the top of the layer stack, name it "Smoke," and use Edit > Fill to make it completely black. Select the Brush tool and paint a line that roughly resembles gently rising cigarette smoke. Select the Smudge tool and choose a soft-edged brush of approximately the same width as the smoke column. Drag with the Smudge tool as though you were blowing and swirling the smoke. Keep changing the tool's size and softnessthis helps to avoid obvious, repetitive shapes. You can also use filters such as Motion Blur and Liquify. At any point, change the Smoke layer's blending mode to Lighten or Screen. If you like the result, the work's almost done. All you need to do is add another Smoke layermake a new one, or simply duplicate your existing Smoke layer and smudge it again. Use Edit > Free Transform to stretch and rotate it, and try adjusting its opacity. Where two such layers overlap, you'll get nice swirls and highlights. For extra atmosphere, simulate smoke particles in the air. In the Layers palette, hide all the layers that don't contain smoke, then activate one of the Smoke layers. Change the foreground color to white and the background color to black, and then choose Select > Color Range. Refine the selection with the Fuzziness slider and the dialog's eyedroppers, then click OK. Go to Filter > Noise > Add Noise, check Monochromatic, and set the Amount to suit your image. Another optional finishing touch is to mimic the lens flare from spotlights. Use Filter > Render > Lens Flare. This effect is generated in color, so use Ctrl/Cmd + U to desaturate the layer. A black-and-white smoky atmosphere has been added to this former street scene. Consider adding a blue tone to the pictureor should one say a "blue note?"