204 essential skills: photoshop CS essential skills >>>>>> PHOTOSHOP CS >>> 3. With the layer mask active click on the ‘Elliptical Marquee Tool’ and draw a large ellipse in the canvas area just large enough to accommodate the main subject matter. To angle the selection to suit the angle of the subject matter select ‘Free Transform’ from the Edit menu. Move to just outside one of the corner handles and position the cursor until a double-headed arrow appears. Drag the selection to rotate it to a new position. Creating the selection in a layer mask rather than the layer itself will allow you to rotate the selection without moving the pixels. When you are happy with the new angle of the ellipse press the return/enter key to commit the transformation. 4. From the Select menu choose feather (‘Command/Ctrl + Option + D’) and select a very generous feather radius (80+ pixels for an A4 image). Go to ‘Select > Inverse’ and then ‘Edit > Fill’. Fill the selection with black. If black is already the foreground color you could use the keyboard shortcut ‘Option/Alt + Delete’. 205 special effects essential skills >>>>>> PHOTOSHOP CS >>> 5. Lower the opacity of this layer and/or experiment with the blend modes until you get a pleasing balance between the two layers. 6. Bring in the third component to this montage and create a selection (using all of your favorite techniques) to separate the bird from its background. When the selection is complete (don’t forget to feather it by one or two pixels – no pun intended) hit the ‘Add layer mask’ icon once again. 7. With the bird now transplanted to its new background all of the elements are in place but are not ‘at one with each other’. What we need are some shadows to give the subject a sense of three- dimensional form that was removed by the fl at light of the scanner. This together with the addition of a drop shadow will unite the bird with its new background. Time to save the work in progress and put the kettle on for a cup of tea because we are nearly there. 206 essential skills: photoshop CS essential skills >>>>>> PHOTOSHOP CS >>> 8. Click on the ‘New Layer icon’ at the base of the layers palette and then hold down the Command/ Ctrl key whilst clicking the layer mask thumbnail on the bird layer to reload your selection. When the selection reappears click on the new layer in the layers palette and fi ll the selection with black. The next step may seem a bit strange but we are going to hide the black bird (or should that read magpie) by setting the ‘Fill’ opacity of the layer to 0%. If you are using an older version of the Photoshop you can fi nd the ‘Fill opacity slider’ in the ‘Blending Options’ by double-clicking the layer. To this invisible bird we will now add the shadows. Strange but true! 9. From the ‘Add a layer style’ icon at the base of the layers palette choose ‘Drop Shadow’. Choose settings that appear as if the object were now sitting on the background. 207 special effects essential skills >>>>>> PHOTOSHOP CS >>> 10. From the styles palette choose ‘Inner Shadow’ and reverse the lighting direction. The mixture of inner shadow and drop shadow should give your subject the depth you may be looking for. Before you start patting yourself on the back and rushing off to get that cup of tea I asked you to make you will need to check the accuracy of your masking skills. Set the screen view to ‘Actual pixels’ (double-click the magnifying glass in the tools palette or use the keyboard shortcut ‘Command/ Ctrl + Zero’) and then drag the image around to inspect your handiwork. Any halos or fringes can usually be corrected by working directly on the layer you applied the layer styles to. 11. To remove any unsightly ghosting or fringes that may appear around your main subject try applying the ‘Maximum’ or ‘Minimum’ fi lter to your layer styles layer. Go to ‘Filters > Other > Maximum/Minimum’. This should shrink or expand your mask to conceal those unsightly lines you have been trying to get rid of for years. 208 essential skills: photoshop CS essential skills >>>>>> PHOTOSHOP CS >>> 12. The image can be ‘tarted up’ for good measure with the application of a subtle vignette (Gradient tool with the foreground to transparent option) to further darken the edges and a thin contrasting border color (‘Select > Select All’ and then ‘Edit > Stroke’). Layer Comps As you move through the infi nite number of variables that can be selected for layer visibility, position and layer styles to achieve a visual outcome it is possible to record each variable as a ‘Layer Comp’. It is similar in practice to creating a ‘snapshot’ in the histories palette or using the non-linear histories to explore a variety of compositing options. The advantage to Layer Comps is that unlike histories and snapshots they are saved with the image fi le and therefore available when the fi le is reopened. 209 special effects essential skills >>>>>> PHOTOSHOP CS >>> Gradient maps Burning, toning, split-grade printing and printing through your mother’s silk stockings are just some of the wonderful, weird and positively wacky techniques used by the traditional masters of the darkroom waiting to be exposed (or ripped off) in this tantalizing digital tutorial designed to pump up the mood and ambience of the fl at and downright dull. Seeing red and feeling blue It probably comes as no small surprise that ‘color’ injects images with mood and emotional impact. Photographers, however, frequently work on images that are devoid of color because of the tonal control they are able to achieve in traditional processing and printing techniques. Toning the resulting ‘black and white’ images keeps the emphasis on the play of light and shade but lets the introduced colors infl uence the fi nal mood. With the increased sophistication and control that digital image editing software affords us, we can now explore the ‘twilight zone’ between color and black and white as never before. The original image has the potential to be more dramatic and carry greater emotional impact through the controlled use of tone and color. ACTIVITY 2 www.photoshopessentialskills.com/effects.html The tonality of the tutorial image destined for the toning table will be given a split personality. The shadows will be gently blurred to add depth and character whilst the highlights will be lifted and left with full detail for emphasis and focus. Selected colors will then be mapped to the new tonality to establish the fi nal mood. 210 essential skills: photoshop CS essential skills >>>>>> PHOTOSHOP CS >>> 1. For the best results choose an image where the directional lighting (low sunlight or window light) has created interesting highlights and shadows that gently model the three-dimensional form within the image. Adjust the levels if necessary so that the tonal range extends between the shadow and highlight sliders. In the layers palette drag the background layer to the New Layer icon to create a background copy (a safety-net feature). 2. Bright areas of tone within the image can be distracting if they are not part of the main subject matter. It is common practice when working in a black and white darkroom to ‘burn’ the sky darker so that it does not detract the viewer’s attention from the main focal point of the image. In the tutorial image the overly bright sky detracts from the beautiful sweep of the dominant sand dune. To darken the sky start by clicking on the foreground color swatch in the tools palette to open the ‘Color Picker’. Select a deep blue and select ‘OK’. In the Options bar select the ‘Foreground to Transparent’, ‘Linear Gradient’ and ‘Multiply’ options. Drag a gradient from the top of the image to just below the horizon line to darken the sky. Holding down the Shift key as you drag constrains the gradient keeping it absolutely vertical. Note > You may need to make an initial selection of the sky if the gradient interferes with any subject matter that is not part of the sky. See ‘Selections’ page 129 for more detail. 211 special effects essential skills >>>>>> PHOTOSHOP CS >>> 3. Duplicate the ‘Background copy’ layer and select ‘Desaturate’ from the ‘Image > Adjustments’ menu. 4. Use an ‘adjustment layer’ to adjust the tonality of this layer. ‘Group’ the adjustment layer with the desaturated layer to limit the adjustments to this layer. Hold down the Alt/Option key on the keyboard and click on the ‘Create new fi ll or adjustment layer’ icon. In the ‘New Layer’ dialog box check the ‘Group With Previous Layer’ option. Click ‘OK’ to open the ‘Levels’ dialog box. 5. Drag the highlight slider to the left until the highlights disappear. Move the ‘Gamma’ slider (the one in the middle) until you achieve good contrast in the shadows of the image. Select ‘OK’ to apply the levels adjustment. 212 essential skills: photoshop CS essential skills >>>>>> PHOTOSHOP CS >>> 6. In the layers palette switch the ‘Mode’ of this grayscale layer to ‘Multiply’ to blend these modifi ed shadow tones back into the color image. 7. Go to ‘Filter > Blur > Gaussian Blur’ and increase the ‘Radius’ to spread and soften the shadow tones. With the preview on you will be able to see the effect as you raise the amount of blur. Go to ‘View > Zoom In’ to take a closer look at the effect you are creating. Note > This effect emulates the silk-stocking technique when it is applied to only the high contrast part of the split-grade printing technique made famous by Max Ferguson and digitally remastered in his book Digital Darkroom Masterclass (Focal Press) . 213 special effects essential skills >>>>>> PHOTOSHOP CS >>> 8. Create an additional adjustment layer to modify and fi ne-tune the tonality that results from this blending exercise. This second adjustment layer should not be grouped with the previous levels adjustment layer. 9. Create a ‘Gradient Map’ by clicking on the Create new fi ll or adjustment layer icon in the layers palette. Click on the gradient to edit it. [...]... in some really toxic chemicals and you will have the full sensory experience of the good old days 215 >>> PHOTOSHOP CS ACTIVITY 3 www.photoshopessentialskills.com/effects.html >>> Cast shadows essential skills >>> essential skills: photoshop CS Cast shadows, instead of drop shadows, are often an essential feature in montage work In order to create the illusion that an object or subject belongs in the... non-destructively, into your black and white images whilst at the same time limiting the color to the tonal range that you have selected >>> essential skills >>> >>> PHOTOSHOP CS essential skills: photoshop CS 236 >>> PHOTOSHOP CS special effects ACTIVITY 8 www.photoshopessentialskills.com/effects.html 1 If your original is a color image then you will need to ‘desaturate’ the file first Create a new Hue/Saturation... film emulsion used but the characteristics are pinkyorange highlights with blue-cyan shadows Detail is often lost in both shadows and highlights 225 >>> essential skills >>> >>> PHOTOSHOP CS essential skills: photoshop CS ACTIVITY 5 www.photoshopessentialskills.com/effects.html 1 Start with the ‘glamor portrait’ image from the activity in the ‘Advanced Retouching’ chapter Create a ‘Curves’ adjustment layer... to 75 % and keep the size and spread values small Precise settings of the shadow can be modified later 5 Go to ‘Layer > Layer Style > Create Layer’ to place the Shape 1 drop shadow on its own layer Switch off the visibility of the ‘Shape 1’ layer 2 17 >>> PHOTOSHOP CS essential skills: photoshop CS 6 Use a guide dragged from a ruler or the ‘Line Tool’ to mark the horizon line within the image >>> essential. .. basic skills, a copy of Photoshop CS and a reasonable color printer can reproduce the characteristics of lith printing without the smelly hands, or the dank darkroom >>> Image courtesy of www.able stock.com essential skills >>> A digitally produced lith print can exhibit similar color and grain characteristics to those typically found in chemically produced originals 2 27 ACTIVITY 6 www.photoshopessentialskills.com/effects.html... the first step is to change the file to a mode that is capable of displaying color For our purposes a switch to RGB color will suffice (Image > Mode > RGB Color) >>> essential skills >>> >>> PHOTOSHOP CS essential skills: photoshop CS 228 >>> PHOTOSHOP CS special effects 3 Now open the Hue/Saturation feature (Image > Adjustments > Hue/Saturation) With the Colorize box ticked you can select the color of... variation in the process and relies mainly on the use of layers, blending modes and the ‘Gaussian Blur’ filter >>> essential skills >>> Diffused image made by combining a sharp and a blurred layer with the Luminosity blend mode 230 >>> PHOTOSHOP CS special effects ACTIVITY 7 www.photoshopessentialskills.com/effects.html The Gaussian Blur filter that can be found in most image editing packages effectively... from within the image area when the Color Picker opens Select OK and then lower the opacity of the vignette layer until you have achieved the required effect 223 >>> PHOTOSHOP CS essential skills: photoshop CS >>> essential skills >>> 7 Paint into the vignette with a large soft edged brush using a reduced opacity to control any halos that may be present 8 Go to Filter > Noise > Add Noise to turn the... to the shadow tones in the picture Click OK >>> essential skills >>> 2 Creating a grayscale in this manner often produces flat or low contrast results Use a Curves or Levels adjustment layer (Layer > New Adjustment Layer > Levels or Curves) to improve any contrast or brightness problems resulting from the conversion 2 37 >>> PHOTOSHOP CS essential skills: photoshop CS 4 To tone the highlights a different... reposition this smaller shadow 11 To complete the illusion the ‘Bloat Tool’ in the ‘Liquify’ filter was used to distort the ripples in the sand visible through the sphere 219 >>> essential skills >>> >>> PHOTOSHOP CS essential skills: photoshop CS Posterization Sometimes the difference between a good portrait and a great portrait is simply the quality of light used to illuminate the subject Soft directional . old days. 216 essential skills: photoshop CS essential skills >>>>>> PHOTOSHOP CS >>> Cast shadows Cast shadows, instead of drop shadows, are often an essential feature. kettle on for a cup of tea because we are nearly there. 206 essential skills: photoshop CS essential skills >>>>>> PHOTOSHOP CS >>> 8. Click on the ‘New Layer icon’. unsightly lines you have been trying to get rid of for years. 208 essential skills: photoshop CS essential skills >>>>>> PHOTOSHOP CS >>> 12. The image can be ‘tarted up’