How to Edit Makima for OLED Displays: A Step-by-Step Photoshop Tutorial

OLED displays—whether on your iPhone, Samsung Galaxy, or high-end LG monitor—offer something traditional screens can't: true blacks. However, most anime wallpapers aren't optimized for this. They often feature "crushed" blacks or gray-tinted dark areas that glow on an OLED. Today, we're fixing that using the iconic Makima as our subject.

Why Makima?

The Chainsaw Man aesthetic, crafted by MAPPA, uses a cinematic, muted color palette with heavy emphasis on shadows and silhouettes. Makima, with her pale skin, red hair, and yellow eyes, provides the perfect contrast against dark backgrounds. To make her "pop" on an OLED, we need to ensure the background hits a literal RGB (0,0,0) while her highlights stay vibrant.

Step 1: The "Pure Black" Foundation

Open your image in Photoshop. The first thing we do is check the levels. Create a Levels Adjustment Layer. Hold the ALT key while dragging the black slider. Anything that is black will disappear. Our goal is to make sure the non-essential background areas are 100% black so the OLED pixels actually turn off.

Step 2: Color Grading the Hair

Makima's hair isn't just red; it's a desaturated, blood-like crimson. Use a Selective Color layer. Target the "Reds" and increase the "Black" slider within that menu. This adds weight to the hair. Then, go to "Magentas" and slightly increase the "Cyan" to give it that MAPPA-esque cool undertone.

Step 3: The "Hypnotic" Eye Glow

Her eyes are her most striking feature. To make them glow on an OLED:

Create a new layer and set the blending mode to Linear Dodge (Add).
Sample the lightest yellow from her eye.
Use a soft brush (0% hardness) at 10% opacity and click once on each pupil.
This creates a subtle "bloom" effect that looks incredible when surrounded by the infinite contrast of an OLED screen.

Step 4: Sharpening for 4K

OLEDs are incredibly sharp. Any blurriness will be magnified. Use a High Pass Filter:

Press Ctrl+Alt+Shift+E to merge all layers.
Go to Filter > Other > High Pass. Set it to 1.2 pixels.
Set the layer blending mode to Overlay.
This brings out the texture in her suit and the sharpness of her eyelashes without creating halos.

Final Verdict

Optimizing for OLED is about respecting the shadows. By following this workflow, you ensure that Makima stands out as a vivid, lifelike figure against a void of pure black. Check out our Makima 4K Collection to see these techniques in action.