Damien Symonds

Absolutely.

https://www.damiensymonds.net/replace-background-hair

May I see it? Be very very careful. The complete absence of any distinct shadows in this photo makes it VERY obvious that it was taken under a heavily overcast sky. Any attempt to add a happy sunny sky will look instantly implausible. Of course there are some benefits, but none of them relate to this particular editing issue. Don't upgrade because of this.

Hi @Trudy, may I see the original photo?

I'm so sorry, I don't understand. Why can't you use the marquee tool?

She can have it sized exactly as a FB cover pic, and suitable for nothing else, for a small fee. Or she can have the whole file for ... https://i.imgur.com/NDBB96K.png

Yes, isn't that what you meant? If I buy a photo from iStock I expect it to be full resolution. And I would expect to be able to print it. AND I would pay for it appropriately.

Every pixel you captured.

Excellent! Then yes, crop it to exactly 851x315 pixels, and sharpen for web. That will be much too small to print, so you'll be quite safe. NFI, sorry.

Oh, good question! Do you know the exact purpose they'll be using it for? I mean, will they be adding text and making into an advertisement? Or will it be their cover photo? The more we know, the safer we can be.

Download PSD The first two layers (the Levels ones) are kinda like dodge and burn layers, but I've used Levels because it's a bit safer for the hair. The top three layers are from this method. You can make the Levels layers first, but don't actually do anything with them until after you've done the gradient layers. I hope you like it.

If you can't get your files back, I reckon you can legitimately demand a refund of every cent you've ever paid them.

Bummer. Then you really are screwed That's exactly what you need to ask them. If you can't get your PSDs back off a cloud when you need them, what the heck is the point of the cloud? Have you talked to them yet? It shouldn't matter a bit, no. You should be able to access your cloud files from anywhere.

Next question, what size are the files?

https://www.damiensymonds.net/scanning-guidelines-for-old-photo-restoration.html

No, XMP files aren't photos, they're just the data files. https://www.damiensymonds.net/2012/02/what-is-xmp-data-all-about.html If they truly are XMP files, then you're screwed, I'm afraid. But let's check to be sure. First, do you have filename extensions turned on? https://www.damiensymonds.net/2012/02/view-your-filename-extensions-windows.html

Download PSD

Mask it to the whole photo (except the people) using the brush tool first. Once that is perfect, then do the gradients top and bottom. For heaven's sake make sure your gradient tool is set to "Foreground to Transparent" in the options bar, not "Foreground to background".

With respect, that's a VERY silly thing to say. Muting vibrance is why you posted. It's what you asked for. It's EXACTLY what you asked for. You don't think Anna's photo would have been vibrant at first too? If you saw Anna's photo before she added the neutral effect, would you say the same thing?

How about this?

Oh crap, I forgot to show you how I'd cooled the water:

Well, sure! Hold on, I'll send you an email.

As I was already partway through playing with the photo before I saw your response, I pressed on anyway.

Thanks. Before we persist any further with discussing editing, are you aware that the focus is quite poor? This could only ever be a photo for editing practice, not to actually use.

No it's not, it's a PSD. May I have the raw file?