First, let me show you an example. The image in Figure A was taken from our clip art collection.

FIGURE A

A little saturation (on the right) can go a long way. Click picture for a larger image.

I chose this image because the color in it was so "flat." You can see how the grass on the left side of the image appears almost grayed out and lackluster. By contrast (or rather, by saturation -- bad photographer's joke), the greens on the right side of the image are far more punchy and vivid.

Saturation, by definition, means "Vividness of hue; degree of difference from a gray of the same lightness or brightness." We're going to use that; we're going to make the picture more vivid.

I accomplished the improvement on the right side of the image by using a single command. If you're using Photoshop, go to Image->Adjustments and select the Hue/Saturation menu item. If you're using another tool, you'll want to look for the image adjustment options and find the saturation adjustment. You'll see a dialog box like that shown in Figure B.

FIGURE B

Just a slight tweak of the saturation slider can make all the difference Click picture for a larger image.

All I did was move the saturation slide up a little less than half way. That's it. Just click OK, and the image looks a lot more vibrant.

You need to use some restraint with saturation, as with all adjustments of this nature. Adjust the least you possibly can to get the effect you want. If you oversaturate, your image will look like a bad blob. That's just as bad as having an overly dull image.

Here's a short extra-credit tip. Play with the hue (meaning color) and lightness sliders as well, to see how your image changes. Again, use restraint.

Oh, and make sure you do this on a copy of your image. Keep a backup of your original image somewhere safe.

For more than 20 years, David Gewirtz, the author of Where Have All The Emails Gone? and The Flexible Enterprise, has analyzed current, historical, and emerging issues relating to technology, competitiveness, and policy. David is the Editor-in-Chief of the ZATZ magazines, is the Cyberterrorism Advisor for the International Association for Counterterrorism and Security Professionals, and is a member of the instructional faculty at the University of California, Berkeley extension. He can be reached at david@zatz.com.