Inverting Luminosity WITHOUT Affecting Color in Photoshop
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When you invert luminosity in Photoshop without affecting color, the shadows and highlights of a photo swap places while every color stays exactly as it was.
A regular invert flips both the brightness and the colors of an image. The two methods in this tutorial flip only the luminosity, so the colors stay the same.
The first method uses a Curves adjustment layer set to the Luminosity blending mode. The second method inverts the Lightness channel in Lab Color mode.
Both methods suit beginners who can open a photo and find the Layers panel. When you finish, you’ll be able to invert the tones of any photo and keep its original colors.
The idea came from a question sent in by a viewer named Jonathan, just like the detail mask technique before it.
The video was recorded in Photoshop 2019 (version 20.0). Every step works the same way in the current version.
Key Takeaways
- Pressing CtrlI (Windows) or CommandI (macOS) inverts the whole image destructively, flipping both the colors and the luminosity.
- An Invert adjustment layer is non-destructive, but it still flips the colors along with the tones.
- Dragging the black point to the top and the white point to the bottom in Curves gives the same result as an invert.
- The Luminosity blending mode limits the Curves layer to brightness, so the original colors come back.
- In Lab Color mode, the Lightness channel holds the luminosity, and the A and B channels hold the color.
- Both methods give exactly the same result, but only the Curves method stays on its own adjustment layer.
Table of contents
- What You Will Learn
- Requirements
- What Invert Does in Photoshop
- Method 1: Invert Luminosity in Photoshop With a Curves Adjustment Layer
- Step 1: Create a Curves Adjustment Layer
- Step 2: Swap the Black Point and the White Point
- Step 3: Invert Only the Luminosity With a Blending Mode
- Method 2: Invert Luminosity in Lab Color Mode
- Step 1: Delete the Curves Adjustment Layer
- Step 2: Switch to Lab Color Mode
- Step 3: Invert the Luminosity in the Lightness Channel
- Step 4: Compare the Result in the Layers Panel
- Frequently Asked Questions
- Conclusion
- Related Links
What You Will Learn
- How to invert an image with a shortcut or an Invert adjustment layer
- How to swap the black point and white point in a Curves adjustment layer
- How to use the Luminosity blending mode to keep the original colors
- How to switch to Lab Color mode and invert only the Lightness channel
Requirements
Before you start
- Photoshop 2019 or the current version
- A color photo to practice on
What Invert Does in Photoshop
Before you invert luminosity, it helps to see what a normal invert does.
Press CtrlI (Windows) or CommandI (macOS), and the image inverts. This is a destructive effect, because it changes the pixels on the layer.
To invert non-destructively, create an Invert adjustment layer instead. It inverts all the colors and the luminosity.
That’s the problem to solve. You only want to invert the luminosity, meaning the shadows and highlights, and leave the color alone.
There are two ways to tackle it. Each one is below, step by step.
Method 1: Invert Luminosity in Photoshop With a Curves Adjustment Layer
The first method uses a Curves adjustment layer and a blending mode.
Step 1: Create a Curves Adjustment Layer
Create a Curves adjustment layer above your photo.
Curves is one of the most flexible adjustments in Photoshop. Besides inverting, it can also correct color with its Auto options.
Step 2: Swap the Black Point and the White Point
In the Properties panel, click the black point at the bottom-left corner of the curve and drag it all the way to the top.
Then click the white point at the top-right corner and drag it all the way to the bottom.
This gives you the same effect as inverting the image. The colors still flip, though, so there’s one more step.
Step 3: Invert Only the Luminosity With a Blending Mode
In the Layers panel, click the Blending Mode dropdown and select Luminosity.
The photo keeps its original colors, and only the luminosity inverts. That’s how you invert luminosity in Photoshop without affecting color.
Tip: If you’re new to blending modes, Blending Modes Explained covers every blending mode and what it does.
Method 2: Invert Luminosity in Lab Color Mode
The second method uses a different color mode instead of an adjustment layer.
Step 1: Delete the Curves Adjustment Layer
To try this method on the original photo, delete the Curves adjustment layer from Method 1.
Step 2: Switch to Lab Color Mode
Go to Image > Mode > Lab Color.
When Photoshop asks whether to merge the layers, click Don’t Merge.
You’re no longer working in RGB. Lab Color mode gives you different channels:
- Lightness: controls the luminosity
- A channel: holds color information
- B channel: holds color information
Step 3: Invert the Luminosity in the Lightness Channel
Open the Channels panel and select the Lightness channel.
Press CtrlI (Windows) or CommandI (macOS) to invert it. That inverts the luminosity, while the A and B channels stay unaffected.
Step 4: Compare the Result in the Layers Panel
Go back to the Layers panel. You’ll see exactly the same result you got with the Curves adjustment layer.
Note: The video stops in Lab Color mode. If you need RGB again for other edits, go to Image > Mode > RGB Color.
Frequently Asked Questions
Add a Curves adjustment layer and drag the black point to the top and the white point to the bottom. Then set the layer’s blending mode to Luminosity. The shadows and highlights flip, and the original colors stay put.
Press CtrlI (Windows) or CommandI (macOS). It inverts the colors and the luminosity of the selected layer by changing its pixels directly. Use an Invert adjustment layer if you want a non-destructive version.
Invert reverses the colors along with the brightness. To flip only the brightness, set an inverting Curves layer to the Luminosity blending mode. You can also invert the Lightness channel in Lab Color mode.
The Luminosity blending mode applies only the brightness of a layer to the image below. The colors underneath stay the same. On a Curves layer that inverts the image, it inverts the luminosity and keeps the original colors.
In Lab Color mode, the Lightness channel controls the luminosity of the image. The A and B channels hold the color information. Editing the Lightness channel changes the tones without touching the colors.
Both methods give exactly the same result. The Curves method keeps your photo in RGB and sits on its own adjustment layer, so you can hide or delete it later. The Lab Color method changes the color mode and inverts the channel directly.
No. Curves, the Luminosity blending mode, Lab Color mode and the invert shortcut have been in Photoshop for many versions. The video was recorded in Photoshop 2019, and both methods work the same way in the current version.
Conclusion
You now have two ways to invert luminosity in Photoshop. One is a Curves adjustment layer in the Luminosity blending mode, and the other is the Lightness channel in Lab Color mode.
Both flip the shadows and highlights and leave the colors alone. Pick the Curves method when you want the change on its own layer.
Watch the video to see both methods in action. If you have an interesting or challenging question of your own, comment on the video.
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Keep going
Next, learn how to build a detail mask in Photoshop, another technique that relies on Invert.
