Using the Equalize command to fix exposure and contrast

Equalize command is normally a destructive command that properly balances out the contrast …in both the light and dark areas of an image; …however, you can use it nondestructively by duplicating the image first. I'll go ahead …and right-click and duplicate the layer. Let's just name it Equalize and then I'll choose …the command, Image > Adjustments > Equalize. …By default, it does a nice job of pushing the two values and we get bright whites and …dark blacks, and you see the before and after is pretty dramatic. It becomes very simple …to then back off with Opacity between the two until you find the look that you're going for.…

I often find that a 50% to 60% blend between the equalized image and the original image …does a nice job of boosting color and restoring contrast. …Here's that technique again. I will simply duplicate the background layer, invoke Image >…Adjustments > Equalize, and you see it did a nice job there. If it is a little bit strong, …you might want to try changing the blending mode.…