Photoshop - Supplemental Guidelines for Brush Tools (Burn and Dodge)

When using brush tools, such as burn and dodge, to improve the contrast within an isolated area of a digital image, you should use the following guidelines to avoid introducing visual artifacts that may obstruct your analysis of the object:

1. Always choose a soft (feathered) round brush.

2. Always choose a brush size that is at least four to five ridges in diameter. (Alternatively, you may choose a brush size that is larger than four to five ridges depending upon the size of the area in which you want to provide additional contrast.

NOTE: Generally, you should choose Shadows for the Range when using the Burn tool, and Highlights for the Range when using the Dodge tool.

3. Always drag the brush across the ridges and go across the ridge flow; do not go with the ridge flow. Alternatively, place the
cursor at a single location and click the mouse button one or more times to achieved the desired results.