How to Use Color Splash, Black and White, Sepia, and Other Color Effects in PhotoDirector
Turn a photo black and white, keep just one color, or swap that color for another.
Updated Oct. 25, 2026 · 6 min read
In a hurry? Use the Color Effects quick guide instead.
PhotoDirector's Color effects change the colors in a photo from one panel. Black & White, Sepia, and Tint recolor the whole picture, Color Splash keeps only the color you pick, and Color Replace turns one color into another. Use them to make a subject stand out from a busy background, or to try a new color on clothing without a reshoot.
- In PhotoDirector, open Guided & GenAI > Effects > Photo Effects > Color.
- Click Black & White, Sepia, Tint, Color Splash, or Color Replace.
- For Black & White, Sepia, or Tint, click Auto and brush down the person to keep them in color.
- For Color Splash, click the dropper, then the color you want to keep.
- For Color Replace, pick the color with the dropper, then drag Hue to set the new one.
- Click Export at the top to save the photo.
Steps to Open Color Effects
Step 1: Open Color
From the PhotoDirector launcher, choose Guided & GenAI.
Click Open at the top left of the canvas to bring in your photo. Then click Effects in the rail on the left and choose Color under Photo Effects.
Step 2: Pick an Effect
The panel shows five effects. Click a thumbnail to apply that effect to the photo, and its settings appear below the thumbnails. To remove the effect, click Clear at the bottom of the panel.
To compare with the original photo, click and hold the show-original button, the fourth icon at the bottom left of the canvas.
| Effect | What it does and when to pick it |
|---|---|
| Black & White | Removes all color. Pick it for a classic look, or to keep one person in color against a gray background. |
| Sepia | Gives the photo the brown tone of an old print, for a vintage look. |
| Tint | Washes the whole photo in one color you choose, to set a mood. |
| Color Splash | Keeps only the color you pick and turns the rest black and white, so one object stands out. |
| Color Replace | Turns one color into another, to try a new color on clothing or an object without a reshoot. |
Steps to Use Black & White
Step 1: Apply Black & White
Click Black & White. The whole photo turns black and white right away, and there are no sliders to set.
Step 2: Keep the Person in Color
To bring back the original color in part of the photo, use the brushes under Select a brush, below the thumbnails. Click Auto, then paint a single stroke over the person. PhotoDirector detects the whole person and restores their color, while the background stays black and white.
To work by hand, paint with Brush to clear the effect and with Eraser to put it back. Inverse swaps the two areas, so the effect covers only the subject and the background keeps its color. Sepia and Tint have the same brushes.
Set each stroke with the controls below the brushes:
| Setting | What it does |
|---|---|
| Size | Sets the size of the brush. |
| Feather | Sets how gradually each stroke blends into the pixels around it, for a softer transition. |
| Strength | Sets how strongly each stroke applies. |
| Fit to edges | Keeps each stroke within similar areas of the photo, so the brush follows edges for you. Check it when you paint along an outline. |
Steps to Use Sepia
Step 1: Apply Sepia and Set the Amount
Click Sepia, then drag Amount to set how strong the brown tone is. At the default of 100 the photo looks very yellow, so this example uses 58 for a softer vintage look.
Steps to Use Tint
Step 1: Apply Tint
Click Tint, and the photo turns green, the default color. Under Tint Settings, drag Intensity to set how strong the color is. It starts at 50.
Step 2: Pick the Tint Color
Click the Color swatch under Tint Settings to open the Color Picker. Click a color under Basic Colors, then click OK. This example uses blue.
To match an exact color, type its HSB or RGB values in the boxes on the right, or its hex code in the # box. You can also pick a color on the Color Wheel tab at the top. Or click the eyedropper above Add Color, then click a color in the photo.
To reuse a color later, click Add Color, and it shows up under Custom Colors the next time you open the Color Picker.
Steps to Use Color Splash
Step 1: Pick the Color to Keep
Click Color Splash, click the dropper button below the thumbnails, and then click the color you want to keep on the photo. Everything else turns black and white. In this example, a click on the jacket keeps the orange, and the face and hands keep their warm tones too.
Drag Tolerance to the right to keep a wider range of shades, or to the left to keep fewer. This example uses 20.
Click the photo only while the dropper button is highlighted, because a click without it zooms the photo to 100%. To see the whole photo again, choose Fit in the zoom box above it.
Step 2: Clean Up or Change the Kept Color
Under Select a brush, below Tolerance, paint with Brush to clear the kept color from spots like the face and hands. Paint with Eraser to bring the color back. Size, Feather, Strength, and Fit to edges work once you pick a brush, the same as in Black & White.
To turn the kept color into a different one, drag Hue Shift at the bottom of the panel. At 146, the orange jacket turns green.
Steps to Use Color Replace
Step 1: Pick the Color to Replace
Click Color Replace, click the dropper button, and then click the color you want to change on the photo. Drag Tolerance to set how wide a range of that color is picked. This example picks the orange jacket and uses a Tolerance of 34.
Step 2: Set the New Color
Drag Hue under Target Color to shift the picked color to a new one, and adjust Saturation and Lightness if you need to. Or click the Target Color square and choose the color in the Color Picker. In this example, a Hue of 152 turns the orange jacket green, with Saturation and Lightness left at 0.
Step 3: Add or Remove Shades
Click the dropper with the plus sign, then click a shade the first pick missed to add it. The dropper with the minus sign takes a shade out. In this example, the plus dropper adds the pink-lit part of the shoulder.
To see what will change, check Show affected areas. The photo turns into a mask, with the picked areas in white. Here a few brown tree trunks are picked up along with the jacket.
Step 4: Clean Up with the Brushes
Under Select a brush, paint with Brush to remove the new color where it doesn't belong, and paint with Eraser to put it back. In this example, the face and hands had turned green, so the Brush cleared them, and the Eraser brought the green back on a cuff. Set the brush with Size, Feather, Strength, and Fit to edges, the same settings as in Black & White.
Steps to Export the Photo
Step 1: Export the Photo
Whichever effect you used, click Export at the top of the window to save the photo.
The Result
The same park photo with each effect, as exported. Only Color Replace keeps the photo's other colors as they were.
We tested these steps in PhotoDirector 365 version 18.0.10 on Windows.
Don't have PhotoDirector yet? Go black and white, pick out one color, or recolor a jacket, all from one panel.
Download PhotoDirector Free →FAQ About Color Effects
Click Clear at the bottom of the Color panel. The photo goes back to its original colors.
Yes. Sepia and Tint have the same brushes as Black & White. Click Auto under Select a brush and paint a stroke over the person to bring back their color.
Color Splash keeps the color you pick and turns the rest of the photo black and white. Color Replace changes the color you pick into a new one and leaves the rest of the photo as it was.
