advanced photoshop vol.18 - legend

Build advanced composites Create surreal effectsBuild fantasy landscapesConstruct stunning graphics Discover digital painting Enhance portraits

Master the art of Adobe® Photoshop®

PREMIUM COLLECTIONVolume 8

NEW FOR CC

Over 500professionalPhotoshop tips

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Welcome to

It’s an exciting time to be a digital artist, and a detailed knowledge of Adobe

Photoshop is now a valuable asset. With that in mind, this book compiles the best

content from the last 12 months of Advanced Photoshop magazine, consisting of

immersive features and top tutorials to help you develop expert Photoshop skills.

With sections covering photomanipulation, digital painting, photo editing, typography

and graphics, all the essential techniques are accounted for. Follow the guidance of

experts and creative industry professionals, who have drawn on a wealth of

knowledge to bring you in-depth example projects incorporating a wide range of

tricks, secrets and shortcuts. In addition, this book comes supplied with a free disc

containing asset files to use alongside many of the tutorials, plus free fonts worth

$60, brushes, wallpapers, textures and more. We hope you enjoy the book.


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Advanced Photoshop Premium Collection 8 © 2014 Imagine Publishing Ltd

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Contents

PHOTOMANIPULATION

DIGITAL PAINTING

22 Creative retouching

32 Create dynamic lighting

38 Master layer masks

44 Advanced compositing

50 Apply liquid paint effects

54 Expert blending

62 Expert matte painting

70 Paint a fantasy snowscape

76 Create a cyborg

82 Produce fantasy lighting

88 Character design and illustration

94 Paint a steampunk-inspired portrait

44PAGE

6 Advanced Photoshop Premium Collection

Great art is most often reached through a patient use of your basic tools

8PAGE

76PAGE


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TYPOGRAPHY

GRAPHICS

PHOTO EDITING

100 Photo-editing techniques

108 Retouching in Photoshop CC

114 Stylise architectural images

120 Expert automotive retouching

126 Cra� atmospheric landscapes

134 20 type secrets

142 Design illustrative type

146 Design 3D Type

152 Create stylish vintage type

156 3D type projects

164 15 ways to master infographics

172 Master portrait illustration

178 Blend graphics and type

182 Master polygons

188 Metro-style websites

156PAGE

108PAGE

Advanced Photoshop Premium Collection 7

Both illustrative and collage type are a growing trend in digital art

146PAGE

182PAGE


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There are various ways to use Photoshop

successfully, and it is likely that many of

you will already have a set routine for

creating great effects quickly and

efficiently. But a little help can’t hurt, right? In this

mammoth tips feature, you’ll find everything you

need to know to use Photoshop to its full potential

across a plethora of themes and subjects. We’ve

got 75 tips from some of the creative arena’s

biggest and best digital artists, covering tools,

graphics, photography, painting, new media and

Photoshop CC, all ready for you to put into practice.

We’ve also provided you with some of the most

essential shortcuts to help you speed up your

workflow even further.

Over the next few pages you’ll find great advice

on creating inspiring effects, mastering specific

tool techniques and improving your productivity.

We’ve gone into detail with an array of relevant

topics, including commercial lighting effects, ways

to tackle 3D with Photoshop, professional

retouching tricks and more. We pore over

Photoshop tools old and new, from the latest CC

options to wielding the always-reliable Pen tool.

You can put these tips into action in the tutorials

throughout this book.

Photoshop CC is explored in particular on page

11, providing you with creative tidbits you may not

even know about. So read on, grab a tip and get

creating now!

75 PROFESSIONAL PHOTOSHOP TIPS

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PROFESSIONAL PHOTOSHOP TIPSIndustry experts let you in on their essential tips for illustrating, designing, retouching and more

When working with 3D, it’s best to

render multiple passes and composite them in

Photoshop. This offers you more flexibility when

colour correcting the final image. Once you have

rendered your passes, there’s an easy way to bring

them all into Photoshop quickly by selecting

File>Scripts>Load>Files to Stack. Browse to the

folder containing the passes and select the ones

you want to work with. Everything will be brought

into one document as layers. From here on in you

can tint the shadow pass blue or reduce the

ambient occlusion pass by 50 per cent without

having to re-render.

J. R. SCHMIDTwww.cargocollective.com/jrschmidt

USE SCRIPTS

Photoshop CC now includes a very quick and easy

method for correcting vertical and horizontal

distortions in photographs. It’s well hidden within

the Camera Raw dialog box, which can now be

applied through the Filter menu. Switch to the Lens

Correction area and open the Manual tab. There is

now a series of icons under the heading of Upright

that makes quick work of distorted perspectives.

It’s perfect for those challenging city shots where

the building appears to be curving in towards the

vanishing point.

AUTO UPRIGHT

Before

A� er

Start by adding a Black & White

adjustment layer as a clipping mask to your image,

then set the layer’s blending mode to Multiply. You

will then need to invert the attached mask and

apply a 25px soft brush to this, which will create

deeper shadows. Add another new clipped Black &

White adjustment layer, set the blending mode to

Screen and add the same brush in the same way,

this time adding light.

ADAM SPIZAKwww.spizak.com

EDIT LIGHT002 003

001© Jeffrey R. Schmidt

© Adam Spizak

© Kirk Nelson

© Kirk Nelson


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TOP TEN PHOTOSHOP TOOLSDiscover little-known ways to apply the most essential tools

This is used a lot by

retouchers looking to

remove elements like

tattoos. Many of you will

work solely in Source mode.

However, when working

with skin, use this mode to

clean and Destination mode

to rebuild skin areas.

The Clone Stamp is great for

editing images, but the Spot

Healing brush is more

intuitive, especially when

editing out very fine elements.

Set its mode to Darken, paint

over stray hairs with a

similar-sized brush and

they’ll disappear.

04. PATCH TOOL 08. HEALING BRUSHDodge and Burn are used by

creative retouchers and

photographers to stylise

photo-based images. When

working with them, always

have Protect Tones active.

It’s good at preventing

problems with haloing and

washed out colours.

This adjustment can be used

to nicely equalise shadows

and highlights in your

photos. Simply add a Black

& White adjustment to the

top of your layer stack and

apply a Luminosity blending

mode. Now tweak sliders to

get the best effects.

05. DODGE & BURN 07. B&W ADJUSTAccurate selections are the

name of the game with this

tool. Set this to Paths and

always activate the Rubber

Band setting for the most

accurate application. To

instantly change a path to a

selection, hit Cmd/

Ctrl+Enter.

With this tool, always make

sure that Smart Radius is

active; this will evaluate the

radius for hard or soft edges

separately. This generally

provides a better selection

than when it’s turned off,

which treats the entire

border uniformly.

06. PEN TOOL

11. REFINE EDGELayer styles can create

exciting effects and change

the appearance of layers, but

sometimes when sharing

across Smart Objects the

settings update to all

duplicate layers. Resolve this

by selecting Layer>Layer

Style>Create Layers.

To make accurate

selections, duplicate a

channel, then apply a Curves

or Levels adjustment to

increase the contrast. Use

the Dodge and Burn

brushes to paint in areas,

then hold down Cmd/Ctrl

while clicking the copy.

10. LAYER STYLES 13. CHANNELSDon’t ignore these. The right

one can really enhance the

outcome of painted effects,

especially with lighting.

Screen and Color Dodge will

ensure that specular

highlights shine. Multiply

and Color Burn really

saturate shadow areas.

12. BLEND MODES

004 005

010

006

011

007

012

008

013



009

Many Photoshop artists will

use a layer mask to paint

out detail. However, you can

invert it (Cmd/Ctrl+I) or add

an inverted mask (Alt/

Opt-click>Add Layer Mask)

to paint elements in. You can

even affect your masks

using filters.

09. LAYER MASKS


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TOP TIPS IN PHOTOSHOP CCDiscover new ways to add the latest tools and options, with advice from Kirk Nelson

Photoshop’s Brush engine has seen

many improvements over the last several version

releases. From the Mixer Brush tool to the Natural

Media Bristle tips, the painting capabilities in

Photoshop continue to expand. However, one

feature frequently overlooked is brush rotation. This

is a huge help to digital painters who regularly use

custom brushes in Photoshop.

Previously, to adjust the rotation of a brush tip

you would have to have the Brush panel open then

focus on the Brush Tip Shape section. This was

cumbersome because the Brush panel is fairly

large and consumed a good deal of screen real

estate. Now in Photoshop CC, the same brush

rotation widget is available through the context-

sensitive Brush menu, activated by Ctrl/right-

clicking on it. Adjust the rotation then hit Enter/

Return, or just click back on the canvas to hide the

menu away again. This will really speed things up.

The beloved Liquify filter has seen some dramatic

improvements. In CS6, Liquify became much faster

and responsive due to the increased performance

of the Mercury Graphics Engine. In the Creative

Cloud version of CS6, Liquify was even supported

by Smart Objects. Now in Photoshop CC there’s

another reason to love Liquify: it has a new Smooth

tool. This tool is related to the Reconstruct tool, but

instead of scaling back or removing a warp it

actually smoothes the effect.

This tip is really trivial, but is one of those tiny

details that just makes life a little bit easier for

anybody attempting to illustrate in Photoshop. The

spacebar has long been a favoured hot key

associated with moving control elements. It lets you

scroll along a project and reposition a selection,

even while you are drawing it out. Now in

Photoshop CC, the spacebar allows you to move a

path control point before you’ve even finished the

path. While using the Pen tool to draw out a path,

hold it down to reposition the last point.

Ever since Adobe took a brave step into 3D with

Photoshop CS3 Extended, every subsequent

version has pushed its capabilities a little bit further.

One of the most recent capabilities was the ability to

LIQUIFY SMOOTH TOOL

PEN AND SPACEBAR

IMAGE BASED LIGHTING

light a scene by using a high dynamic range image.

This was used to control light sources and

variations in ways that would be nearly impossible

to accomplish when setting up lighting rigs in the

3D space.

This is known as Image Based Lighting (IBL).

Renders using IBL are more realistic and

convincing because lighting and shadows better

mimic a real-world environment. In Photoshop CC,

IBLs are the default setup for 3D environments.

This alone improves the quality of 3D renders many

times over previous default lighting setups. Use it

as the starting point for any 3D scene, then add

lights to further develop the appearance you want.

Adobe even offers additional IBL images to freely

download and use on its website, available at www.

photoshop.com/products/photoshop/3d#.

KIRK NELSONhttp://thepixelpro.com/

BRUSH ROTATION

Automatic enlargeLet the new Image Resize command

do the hard work for you. Always make sure

it’s set to resize fast by hitting Opt/Alt+1.

018

Affect multiple shapesPhotoshop CS6 supplied us with

completely new Stroke and Fill shape options.

Now you can add these to a number of layers

at once by activating layers simultaneously.

019

Path Isolation modeDouble-click on any path with the Path

Selection tool to isolate that path for easy

editing. Turn off the isolation mode with the

switch at the top-right of the Layers panel.

020

3D object managementIn the 3D workspace, Ctrl/right-click

on a mesh in the 3D panel to add, delete,

group or duplicate objects within the 3D scene.

It’s now even easier with the upgrades to CC.

021

Instance 3D objectsCreate instances of 3D objects that

can be moved independently, but will reflect

edits made to the source. Links to the original

can be broken by freezing the instance.

022

PHOTOSHOP CC SHORTCUTS

014

015

016

017

© Kirk Nelson

© Kirk Nelson



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DIGITAL GRAPHICS TECHNIQUESQuick and exciting ways to perform image effects and create stunning illustrations

I always find it best to colour my

images digitally using a drawing tablet and a hard

brush. Applying strokes with this brush creates a

solid contour. After this initial pass you can start to

alternate your tool size and style. Try to combine

solid colour with detailed areas to create a more

visually appealing piece of art.

Once you are satisfied with the results, you can

play around with various texture brushes and paint

effects. Splatters, rust, watercolour or ink will

suffice they blend to create bold colours enhanced

through texture. Practically anything goes at this

stage, as long as it’s barely visible and just enough

for the image to become more intense. Play around

with different blending modes and layer opacity too.

A lot can be achieved when

you are shading graphics using

the Gradient tool (G). Make a whole

selection of the graphic then use a

Linear or Radial gradient set to

‘Foreground to transparent’. Try out

different opacities and blending modes.

Here, a red to transparent gradient was

used to accentuate the mystery behind

the character.

GRADIENT IMPACTGRZEGORZ DOMARADZKIhttp://iamgabz.com/

KRZYSZTOF DOMARADZKI www.studiokxx.com

DIGITAL COLOUR

DKNG STUDIOS www.dkngstudios.com

POSTER ART

Photoshop contains an essential final

step for converting smooth vector graphics into

clean halftones, while avoiding moiré patterns. This

is great when creating final print separations for

screen printed posters. The trick is to make sure

that each halftone separation is at the correct

halftone screen angle.

In order to give you the best chance of avoiding

moirés in the printing process, make sure each

separation’s screen angle is 30 degrees apart from

the previous screen, beginning with an angle of 22.5

degrees for the first screen.

For example, a four-colour poster would have

screen angles of 22.5 degrees, 52.5 degrees, 82.5

degrees and 112.5 degrees respectively. The

pattern that these complementary 30-degree

angles create is called a rosette and is considered

the pattern most pleasing to the eye.

025

PRO TIP

There’s one easy way to distress an

image and make it more interesting while keeping

control of the elements. Start by making a flattened

copy of the whole image by clicking Cmd/

Ctrl+Shift+Opt/Alt+E. Activate your Lasso tool (L)

and draw out a selection of your liking. Now copy

this selection to a new layer (Cmd/Ctrl+J).

Experiment by moving the layer around until it

fits your composition. Repeat this process where

necessary, using smaller selections to break the

image up in a more subtle way. You can refine this

technique by changing the layer blending mode or

by using a layer mask to keep what works best.

RAPHAËL VICENZI www.mydeadpony.com

USE SELECTIONS

PRO TIP

GORDON REID www.middleboop.com

INNER SHADOW

A good tip for using Inner

Shadow is to add a small distance, around 15%

choke and 45px size, which will give you a

fantastic shadowed effect. To add a worn effect

to your piece as a finishing touch, use

Filter>Noise>Add Noise and set it to Gaussian,

check Monochromatic and keep the amount

between 20% and 40%.

023

024

026

027

© Whooc Publishing Ltd

© Grzegorz Domaradzki

© DKNG Studios




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DIGITAL GRAPHICS SHORTCUTSGroup layersThis way is a lot

quicker than using the

Layers panel fly-out menu.

Simply select the layers you

want to bring together then

hit Cmd/Ctrl+G, for instant

layer grouping.

033 Paragraph TextUse Paragraph Text

to fit type to a design space

without distortion. Ctrl/

right-click your text layer

then select Convert to

Paragraph Text. Continue

typing before resizing points.

034 Editable boundaryCreate a shape path

then add your Type tool in

this, mapping text to the

shape boundary. Now you

can use the Anchor Point

tools to edit the path and

how text interacts with this.

035 Select all layersThis is especially

useful when looking to

merge all to create a group

from all existing layers.

Simply hit Cmd/Ctrl+Opt/

Alt+A. All layers will become

active simultaneously.

036 Reselect layerThis Adobe

Photoshop shortcut saves

any designer from

performing accidental clicks

away from a section. Just

press Cmd/Ctrl+Shift+D to

reselect your layer.

037

MIKE HARRISONwww.destill.net

Add depthBuild up depth in your

background by using a mix of

textures. Start with a base image

and use adjustment layers to

darken or lighten, then add

Watercolour texture on a new

layer set to Multiply mode.

A sense of movementUsing a custom brush,

target an area or element to

accentuate. Add the brush to that

area on a new layer then add a

mask to the layer and mask out

parts, leaving only a trail of paint

that gives a sense of movement.

Varied detailUse Particle brushes, or

make your own on a new layer.

Duplicate this multiple times, then

resize, rotate, reposition and

re-colour each one. This will help

to avoid repetition of detail.

Creative maskingAdd in a Watercolour

texture then add a layer mask to

it. Use a few Watercolour brushes

to mask out parts of that texture,

creating an entirely new one that

works better in your composition.

Organise adjustmentsCreate a folder above all

other layers. Now add adjustment

layers to this, such as Levels and

Gradient Map. Play around with

them to try out different colour

options that can dramatically

change the mood of your image.

028

029

030

031

032

028

029

030

031

032

© Nike



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GREAT WAYS TO PAINT DIGITALLYMaster Photoshop brushes, blend modes and more to paint light, colour and form

Designing appealing characters can

be a challenge, especially when there are many

aspects to be aware of. A crucial thing is to avoid

too much repetition. You will only limit your actual

capabilities if you draw the same type of characters

over and over again. Try to think outside of the box

and challenge yourself with new techniques to

come up with your initial character sketches.

It’s very useful to explore new characters by

putting yourself in the character’s position. In that

way you can ask yourself questions that eventually

can reveal more of the character’s personality and

look. Let these thoughts guide you to an expression

that reveals a certain emotion and attitude, or an

interesting pose that holds a story to make it more

believable. All of which should appeal to you.

Although matte painting works with

photos, many of the special effects you see are

actually painted by hand, much like in this example.

Fire at night stock was gathered from the internet

and placed into the scene, in the right positions with

the proper scale. These layers blending modes

were then set to Screen in order to hide all the black

parts in the photograph. However, this still wasn’t

enough and painting techniques were needed.

A new solid layer filled with black was created a set

to a Color Dodge blending mode. A soft yellow

brush with airbrush options enabled was then

painted to the layer above the fire stock at a low

Add in radiating streaks moving outward from the

pupil, using several colours for a realistic effect.

Including random dots of colour will also add some

variety and uniqueness. For the lashes, use a small

brush and paint each one beginning at the eyelid

then curve your stroke slightly. Finish by applying

small, light-coloured specks, with the brush mode

set to Vivid Light, creating eye reflection. Also add

this brush around the tissue and bottom eyelid.

TOMMY KINNERUP www.tommykinnerup.com

FRANCESCO CORVINO www.francescocorvino.com

SARA BIDDLE www.salizabeth.net

CHARACTERS

PAINTED GLOWS

REALISTIC EYES

PRO TIP

I sketch the line drawing on a canvas

smaller than A5. This way you can

experiment with different designs, and you don’t

have to worry about getting stuck with detailing

too early. It’s also helpful because the file won’t

get too heavy. Also, try to have as few layers as

possible when you draw. Keep things rough and

loose when you start. Go nuts.

040

brush opacity. This created a realistic yellow glow.

Smoke effects were also painted in, using smoke

texture brushes also at a low opacity. If you need to

add believable fire or smoke to your scene, this

technique is useful as well as quick.

In order to create a traditional effect with digital

software, you need to use textured brushes. These

let you create an expressionist style in your base

image using several brushes strokes. Another way

to create this effect is to paint onto a new layer and

then emulate brush strokes by erasing with a

textured eraser. This will show and combine the

layer below.

Creating custom Photoshop brushes can be a great

way to add extra interest and yield unexpected

results. Paint with these brushes while adjusting

brush settings, such as transparency, spacing and

angle jitter. If you experiment with blending modes

you can quickly achieve impressive depth and

colour in your images.

MARTA NAEL www.martanael.daportfolio.com

JEFF LANGEVIN www.jefflangevin.com

TRADITIONAL EFFECTS

PLAY WITH SETTINGS

START SMALL ANDREA FEMERSTRANDhttp://noukah.com

038

039

041

042

043

© Tommy Kinnerup

© Francesco Corvino

© Andrea Femerstrand

© Sara Biddle




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FLIP HORIZONTALLYFlipping your canvas makes you

look at the painting with fresh eyes, and you

can see any proportions or compositions that

may be a bit off. Create an action that flips it

when pressing a specific key, perhaps F2.

047

SAMPLE COLOURQuickly sample a colour with one

of the Pencil, Paintbrush, Colour Replacement,

Gradient or Paint Bucket tools activated by

holding down Opt/Alt, switching to the

eyedropper tool.

052HUD COLOR PICKERActivate the HUD Color Picker by

holding down Cmd/Ctrl+Opt/Alt when the Color

Picker is selected. Swap between wheel and

strip views by going to Photoshop>

Preferences>General menu.

051SWAP BRUSHESDial through the brush styles in

your brush panel more easily using these

shortcuts. Hit < on the keyboard to jump to the

next brush in the list or hit > to go to the

previous brush on the list.

050

044

045

046

PAINT ATMOSPHERECustom brushes are a handy alternative to

the standard Photoshop airbrush, depending on the

kind of atmosphere you’re looking for. Using

smoke textures in your brushes is a great way to

quickly add movement and volume to image

atmospherics without too much hassle.

ESSENTIAL BACKLIGHTINGIf you’re hoping to create a darkened,

moody scene, backlighting is the key to achieving

this atmosphere. For authentic effects, electively

add illuminated haze behind the objects in your

scene to accentuate silhouettes and call attention to

focal points.

USE THE LASSO TOOLUse Photoshop’s Lasso tool to isolate

objects you wish to backlight. Not only does this

allow you to paint illuminated haze only where you

want it, but it also keeps your backlit edges as crisp

as possible. This is especially effective in higher

image resolutions.

044 045 046

MICHAEL PEDROhttp://mpedro.com/Painting atmosphere

ALTER HARDNESSChanging the brush settings with

sliders makes your workflow slower. Hold

down Shift and hit the bracket keys to decrease

or increase the brush hardness in 25%

increments instead.

049RESIZE BRUSHThere’s no need to fire up the brush

panel and use the Size slider to select a style.

Instead, just hit Cmd/Ctrl+Alt/Opt and drag left

and right to change the size, and up and down

to adjust the softness.

048

DIGITAL PAINT SHORTCUTS

© Michael Pedro



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GREAT PHOTO EFFECTSMaster effects using adjustments, layering techniques and masks

There is a wide variety of techniques

available to you when trying to create realistic

robotic looks. One way is to draw and paint using

brushes until you reach a point where you obtain

the same realism as a photograph. However, you

can work smarter and do 50 percent less work but

Creating a successful hyper-real look

in your image hangs on how you choose to apply

Dodge and Burn techniques. Start by creating a

blank layer above the image and change the

blending mode to Soft Light. It’s this blank layer that

you’ll be painting to, using black and white brushes

set to 20% Opacity. White makes things brighter

and shinier, with black making things darker and

the colour richer.

OLIVER WETTER http://fantasio.info/

JOSH ROSSI http://joshrossi.com/

WORK WITH BLUR

HYPER�REALISM To create your hyper-real look, start by applying

your black brush. Follow the contours of an object,

making them darker and bolder. Now with your

white brush, add some shine to the light areas by

decreasing the brush size with each stroke. Apply

three or four strokes. The shine will start to appear.

still achieve credible results just by using the right

filter. For example, when adding synthetic tubes,

apply the Field Blur filter that can be found in

Photoshop from version CS6 onwards under

Filter>Blur. The example supplied here shows

where the blur is being applied. Similar to a rotary

knob, you can perfectly assign the amount of blur

desired on a specific part of the canvas. The goal is

to make the whole image look artificial with a

strong blur and solve the problem of an unfinished

look in the painted tubes all at once.

053

054

© Josh Rossi Photography

You can do 50 percent less work but still achieve

credible results by using the right filter




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With the majority of my photo collage

illustrations, I like to be able to separate the light

and dark tones of a photograph into separate

layers. This offers the versatility to use these areas

in a number of creative ways. Desaturate the image

to black and white and using Levels to boost the

contrast, getting the most dramatic light and shade.

Use Color Range to select the black or white areas

and lift them onto a new layer to use as you wish.

Fill with a vivid pop-art colour, paste texture in or

reselect areas from the original photo.

ANDY POTTS www.andy-potts.com

SEPARATE TONE

ShadowsA good way to add shadows is to take

a small to medium sized brush with Hardness set

at 80% and Opacity at 50%. By Opt/Alt-clicking

you can find the desired colour for your shadow

right in the dark areas of your image.

057

Gradient hazeA mystical aura can be added using the

Gradient tool. Use a Foreground to Transparent

style, applied from the bottom to the top of the

image. Fog and haze have a higher density at

ground level, getting clearer as they near the sky.

058

Frontal lightAn easy but effective method of adding

details is to go with silhouettes. Pick a dark colour

befitting your haze and paint outlines with a small

hard brush. Fill with the same colour afterwards

and go for minor detailing.

059

Soft edgesIt’s important to soften the edges of

your layers when working with stock images. To

do this, make a selection of your layer, set Select>

Modify>Contract at 2px then Select>Modify>

Feather at 2px. Invert the selection and hit Delete.

060

Monochrome noiseTo add some monochrome noise,

create a new layer, fill it with solid black and place

it on top of all the other layers. Go to Filter>

Noise>Add Noise set at 50% with Gaussian and

Monochromatic active. Change the layer’s

blending mode to Soft Light and Opacity to 15%.

061

EDMOND YANG www.yangmedia.com

LIGHT WRAP

Make it easier to composite a

subject into a background with a light wrap.

Adding a low opacity inner glow, using the

background colour is one way. But for more

control, duplicate your background and add a

Gaussian blur to it. Add an inverted layer mask,

hiding all, then use a soft white brush to paint

edges back in around the subject. Change this

layer’s blending mode to Soft Light.

PRO TIP

055

056

© Tobias Roetsch

© Edmond Yang© Andy Potts



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COMBINE 3D AND CREATE WEB ASSETSSee how Photoshop helps you to enhance your new media workflow

Cinema 4D (C4D) and Photoshop

were combined to create the 3D shatter shapes you

see in this image. The model sequence was shot in

a studio environment using strobes and a fill light.

Each shot of the sequence was then isolated from

the background using Photoshop masking tools.

The sequence was then set up in one Photoshop

file with each shot on a separate layer. The majority

of the scene was modelled in C4D. After adding a

plane to the scene, texture it using a shot of the

person in the sequence then select the alpha

channel from the Photoshop file. This process is

repeated for each shot in the sequence.

Now you’re able to place your planes in a true 3D

space behind the desk and have them interact with

the lights in a very realistic way. They will cast

shadows across any cubicle elements in a true 3D

space and this helps quite a bit when finally

compositing back in Photoshop.

The great thing about using CGI is

that as the artwork evolves, you can create more

stock imagery to meet your exact requirements.

This image started out with solid curved 3D models,

using them to build the main structure. But they

were too flat and uninteresting alone, so the 3D

frameworks and lighthouse model were produced

to create more details. Photoshop’s adjustment

layers along with Dodge and Burn can then be used

BARTON DAMER www.alreadybeenchewed.tv

MARC GOODMAN www.behance.net/elnombre

C4D STYLES

MERGE STOCK

Illustration for HTML5 is so easy to

make in Photoshop, even when starting from a

sketch. Spend your time organising the major

shapes into separate layer groups. This is essential

as most of these images are eventually animated.

On top of this, CS6’s ability to clip layers onto groups

makes adding detail amazingly easy. Before CS6 it

was a pain to build your image up like this.

ZEE DURRANI http://creative9.com/

HTML5 DESIGN

PRO TIP

MATEUSZ SYPIEN www.digi-mental.com

EXPORT LAYERS

Prepare your work in a way that

lets you modify particular elements without

touching other parts of your composition. Simply

break your 3D scene into objects, textures and

lights. Render them separately and combine

everything back in Photoshop. This will give you

every possibility to experiment with blending

modes and apply different effects, and save time.

to blend those elements together, with more

traditional photographic stocks.

Creating atmosphere is much easier

in Photoshop than in a 3D space. Once I’ve exported

my rendered type unit to Photoshop, I bring in a

number of textures with consistent patterning, like

concrete, smoke, clouds and mountains. I

desaturate these then apply different blending

modes, such as Screen and Soft Light, to add extra

tactility to a layer. Using an image of a snowy

mountain range is great for adding depth because

of the exposure range between light and dark.

LUKE CHOICE www.velvetspectrum.com

ADD TEXTURE

Blend 3D renders into a composition

with ease using these few basic steps. Firstly, try

and match the lighting as closely as possible in your

3D application, which will reduce the amount of

relighting work needed in Photoshop. Exporting

your renders with an alpha channel will prevent

having to trace around it. Matching colours can

require an array of Photoshop’s adjustment tools.

Start off with a custom Gradient Map based on the

area you are trying to blend.

NIK AINLEY www.shinybinary.com

BLEND 3D FAST

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063

064

065

066

067

© Nik Ainley

© Zee Durrani

© Digimental Studio

© Marc Goodman




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Puppet Warp on the toe Using Puppet Warp instead of the

usual Transform Warp feature allows the

user much more accuracy when distorting

the object. Play with the density and mode of

the mesh to give the desired effect.

068

Specular PassYou can add authenticity to 3D

elements just be ensuring that you apply

light effectively. Using the Specular Pass

from the CGI renders on a Screen blending

mode adds the extra highlights that bring the

metal to life.

069

High Pass filterAdding a High Pass over the top of the

whole image on Soft Light gives it extra

punch. The amount you need depends on the

size and sharpness of the image. We used a

High Pass of 5 on 50% Opacity for this image.

070

DIGITAL GRAPHICS SHORTCUTSFlexible guidesWhen laying out

web design, guides become

essential. You can set

specific measurements by

selecting View>New Guide

and input Position, which is

easier than eyeing it in.

071 Layer cloningSo you’ve applied

several layer styles to your

web elements and want to

add them to other layers in

your design. To do this, hold

Opt/Alt and drag the fx icon

to another layer.

072 TrackingThis works great

with your type logos being

designed in Photoshop. Hold

down Opt/Alt and press the

< key to start decreasing the

type’s tracking, or > to

increase it.

073 Drag selectionYou can keep your

selection live after moving it.

Make a selection with the

Marquee tool and hold the

spacebar to move. Once

released, you can continue

to edit your selection.

074 Fold all groupsWhen working with

web you can have many

layer groups open at one

time. Close them all at once

by pressing Cmd/Ctrl+Opt/

Alt and click the triangle

icon. Repeat to open all.

075

TAYLOR JAMES www.taylorjames.com

WORK WITH CG

This Spring/Summer collection

image for the popular Mizuno sportswear

brand is a complete Taylor James production,

including an eclectic mix of CGI, photography

and that added vibrancy in retouching. The

campaign for the new Mizuno range,

developed by agency Thinking Juice, highlights

the broad functionality of their trainers.



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Discover the world of photomanipulation; learn from Photoshop experts and get started with advanced image transformation

Photomanipulat

22 Creative retouching Discover the tricks behind creating

stunning and other-worldy effects

32 Create dynamic lighting

Achieve surreal lighting effects with

compositing and blending tools

38 Master layer masks Paint with layer masks and develop

an imaginative colour scheme

44 Advanced compositing

Combine 3D and photographic

elements to create an action scene

50 Apply liquid paint eff ects

Use photomanipulation tools to

transform a model with paint stock

54 Expert blending Build a sci-fi floating city by

combining multiple techniques

54PAGE

Digital artists are now turning to 3D software in the pursuit of

enhanced believability


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tion


32PAGE

44PAGE

50PAGE


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PHOTOMANIPULATION


TECHNIQUES XXXXXXXXXX

James Lucas and Tom Rosewww.limehousecreative.com www.radoxist.com www.edvin.lv

WE REVEAL HOW DIGITAL ARTISTS COMBINE CG SOFTWARE AND PHOTOSHOP TO ACHIEVE EFFECTS OTHERWISE IMPOSSIBLE IN REAL�WORLD SHOOTS

PHOTOMANIPULATION


C reative retouching is all about the viewer’s

suspension of disbelief. Global advertisers

are increasingly turning to digital artists to

produce effects that wouldn’t be possible in

any real-world photo shoot, but that look wholly

credible due to creative retouching.

As creatives, it’s our mission to ensure precise

colour, sharpness, believable textures and a sprinkling

of magic are achieved in our results – supplied through

a highly technical skillset. Understandably, many digital

artists are turning to 3D software to aid in this pursuit

of enhanced believability. This is a technique

commonly known as CG photography.

In this feature we take a look at all the key stages of

production. We’ve gathered an impressive host of

professionals who share their advice and show you

how to achieve expert composition, photorealism and

special effects. First though, we start with the

ever-essential concept stage.

Every creative retouch project starts with either a

sketch or a photo mockup, with the latter often

following the sketch and using it as a blueprint. When

piecing together a draft, the reference images used

must contain sound aesthetic qualities. These include

defined lights and shadows, as well as a high image

resolution, so all the details are visible and pliable in the

following phases. Factors such as these are crucial to

the success of the final outcome.

Working with larger resolutions offers the ability to

scrutinise a composite more thoroughly. Creative

retoucher Radoslav Žilinský, (www.radoxist.com)

reveals how he ensures maximum quality in this

preliminary stage: “I often work [with an image] with a

resolution that’s at least 30 per cent larger than it

needs to be. When you paint something into the image,

or cut elements out, you can often miss leftover edges

or image artefacts [when working with low-res stock].”

However, you won’t when working at higher

resolutions, which are likely to look just perfect.

MEET THE EXPERTS

CREATIVE RETOUCHING


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CREATIVE RETOUCHING


Jonathon Eadie and Bruce Bigelowwww.electricart.com.au

Gordon McBrydewww.featherwax.com © Limehouse Creative 2012


CREATIVE RETOUCHING


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PHOTOMANIPULATION


EXPERT SELECTIONSBuilding a plausible fantastical scene will also

depend on the selections you make. Working at

larger sizes enables retouchers to navigate issues

faster, but if you know the best ways to cut out, you

can avoid these problems entirely.

Creative retoucher and art director Edvin

Puzinkevich (www.edvin.lv) uses three separate

methods to detach his elements from the original

backdrop. “Generally I use the Polygonal Lasso with

Smooth and Feather settings active,” he reveals. “I

use the Pen tool to target curved edges in

automotive, human and industrial objects. I apply

separation and outline hair, plants or other highly

detailed shapes and particles using Channels.”

Often a creative retoucher must combine several

techniques to get the perfect edge. Žilinský agrees:

“When cutting out a model, it’s good to separate

tricky parts, such as hair or a transparent dress, into

individual layers. [It’s best to] work on these using a

combination of the Refine Edge tool and edit by

applying Levels to the attached layer mask(s).”

Once all the elements are prepared, a retoucher

has to then fit them together in a realistic and

effective way. This means presenting believable

depth-of-field effects (DOF), but isn’t always a case

of simply eyeing everything into place. Instead,

professionals will use Photoshop’s tools to devise

ways to create authentic results.

BELIEVABLE PERSPECTIVEMany artists, including Puzinkevich, will turn to

Photoshop’s grid-based options. He explains: “To

HOW TO SHOOT FOR A CREATIVE RETOUCH

01 SKETCH IT OUTThe more accurate the sketch, the more

likely it will be accepted by the client and the shoot

phase is likely to be more stable. Here establishing

colour, shape and image tones was key.

04 TIME TO RETOUCHAlways try to capture the most natural

aesthetic and maintain advertising qualities such

as clear contrast, plasticity and nice colours –

especially when retouching for fashion.

03 SHOOT RESULTSHere the main light source wasn’t

enough, so we added extra lighting behind our

models to mimic light pouring through large

windows, which would be added later.

06 FINAL COLOUR GRADINGColour grading makes the final result. Apply a Brightness/Contrast adjustment in combination

with Hue/Saturation, because when the contrast is increased, tones will become oversaturated. Continue by

adding a Color Balance adjustment, then finish with a Gradient Map set to Color or Hue blend modes.

02 PREP THE SHOOTA simple 3D scene was prepared, so we

knew the exact camera placement, lighting

conditions and perspective necessary. From this, we

knew we’d need to shoot with a 35mm camera lens.

05 A LITTLE 3DThough we did go and apply 3D elements

to the background in this image, be aware that this

actually doesn’t always have to look super-

realistic. Sometimes the smaller details and

irregularities are much easier to add in Photoshop.


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CREATIVE RETOUCHING


The models in the base image had to be removed

and the interior space was rebuilt by Puzinkevich.

“I duplicated usable pieces of the window frame,

using Free Transform to scale these layers down

to the new window width, then skewing and

distorting to match the perspective,” he explains. “I

also added 1% Noise to imitate a light grain.”

The floor was restored by cloning from its

cleaner parts, however, the light reflected on this

wasn’t even. Puzinkevich added two inverted

Curves adjustment layers and painted to these

with a soft white brush to match light and shadow.

The ladder was comped in and the Polygonal

Lasso tool was applied, set with a low Feather

amount. “I made multiple selections of the top of

the ladder, then painted these with a light-grey

brush to achieve correct lighting,” explains

Puzinkevich. “I painted the parts of ladder affected

by the light from the window with a darker grey.”

All models were separated from their

respective backgrounds in two steps. “The guy

with the laptop’s head was replaced. The new

element was separated using a duplicate Red

channel with increased contrast and the

Brightness/Contrast tool,” explains Puzinkevich. “I

used the Polygonal Lasso tool again to cut out the

original model’s body. I applied a low Feather

amount (around 0.5) to this selection to achieve

more-believable edges.”

The Pen tool played its own part and was used

to create and place the separate paper sheets in

the image. “Holding the Cmd/Ctrl+Opt/Alt keys

when applying this tool enables us to adjust paths

perfectly,” Puzinkevich concludes.

build geometrical perspective I specifically use

shapes and guides. First I use the Line tool to find

the correct horizon line in my start image, then mark

this with a Photoshop Guide. I continue to apply the

Line tool to mark other directions and map out the

scene. I also draw out perspective grids using the

very useful Vanishing Point filter.” Once this tool is

mastered, retouchers can map out guides for

straight, perpendicular and rounded perspectives,

using corresponding Angle values.

However, depth of field isn’t just a matter of

varying the size and position of elements, as

Photoshop also offers the means to tweak colour

and light to boost realism. An advanced colour-

correction and matching process can then gradually

be applied to build a believable environment in what

is an otherwise incredible scene.

It’s also vital that photo elements react to any light

source in the image, as this will also determine

colour casts and where any shadows will be placed.

Photoshop’s Black & White adjustment layer can be

applied first, to simplify the perception of existing

highlight and shadow areas. A Curves layer can then

be added to achieve a perfect contrast and integrate

elements seamlessly.

COLOUR GRADINGFor this stage Puzinkevich uses three tools to

correct tones. “I add a Hue/Saturation adjustment

layer to saturate and desaturate objects and make

big colour moves,” he explains. “Selective Color

adjustment layers are also used to make precious

tonal changes, then there’s the Gradient Map tool.

This is awesome as it enables me to add

comprehensive tones across the entire image and

bind all the objects.”

Žilinský also applies the Gradient Map tool, but

more specifically to colour-grade water elements.

“An aquamarine tone resides in water’s darker areas

and cyan is in its brighter ones,” he explains. “I’ll

apply a Gradient Map on top of my water layer,

setting the adjustment’s blending mode to Color.

COMPOSITING YOUR IMAGE ELEMENTSEDVIN PUZINKEVICH REVEALS HOW HE USED SIMPLE PHOTOSHOP TECHNIQUES TO PIECE TOGETHER THIS CREATIVE RETOUCH FOR BAHRAINI CREATIVE AGENCY, UNISONO

© Unisono

EDVIN PUZINKEVICH / WWW.EDVIN.LV

Selective Color adjustment layers are

used to make precious tonal adjustments, then there’s the Gradient

Map tool. This is awesome as it enables me to add comprehensive tones across the entire image, binding all objects


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PHOTOMANIPULATION

26 Advanced Photoshop Premium Collection26 Advanced Photoshop Premium Collection

“I work with greyscale (desaturated) photos

beneath,” Puzinkevich continues. “This way I can be

absolutely sure that there are no colour shifts in the

final water composite.”

WORK WITH CGIt’s clear that a large amount of a retoucher’s time

will be spent endlessly chasing photorealism.

However, working with photo stock alone can

quickly become an arduous task. Also, with time in

short supply, retouching studios are turning to 3D

software and what this has to offer.

Taylor James (www.taylorjames.com) is a studio

that’s leading the way in promoting the use of CG

assets. President and founder Glen Taylor explains

why working this way is such an advantage to the

workflow. “CG provides the flexibility and creative

license to make the unbelievable believable, in

instances when we couldn’t achieve it with

photography alone,” he explains. “It enables us to

realise the most imaginative or simply logistically

impossible concepts.”

The beauty of working with CGI is that it lets us

achieve any look or feel we want and there will be a

few instances where photorealism isn’t a

requirement. However, it’s often the basis for

commercial projects – creating images people can

relate to without questioning what they see

Taylor James embarks on a rigorous modelling,

lighting, shading and texturing process to achieve

such believability. This ensures that all CG assets

hit a high level of detail early on. “Our retouchers

are experts at compositing many passes, such as

shadows and Alpha channels, which CG can output

accurately to get all the details,” Taylor tells us.

CG AND PHOTOSHOP3ds Max is primarily used and supplemented with

V-Ray for rendering images. “Often there are

requirements to use specific software, such as

ZBrush, to virtually sculpt organic forms,” adds

Taylor. Photoshop is used to texture and retouch.

Channels are added to enhance and control the

lighting in the scene, with tried and trusted

Displacement maps also being utilised to wrap

textures and add imperfections.

When bringing CGI elements into a photographic

background, a creative retoucher must once again

seamlessly integrate these into a scene. “We need

to be aware of where the light source is coming

from, then use adjustment layers and Channels

to play with light, shadows and colour,” reveals

Taylor. “We often use customised brushes,

adjustment layers and different blur techniques to

integrate these.”

Photoshop blending modes also come in handy,

especially when working with CGI render passes.

PHOTOMANIPULATION


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CREATIVE RETOUCHING


■ CONCEPTThe agency supplied us with a 2D concept and a

quick mockup. This gave us a basic idea of what they

wanted. We imported this into a 3D space, where

detailed parts were created and camera and lighting

angles were positioned.

■ CGI TALKA chalk material was applied to the modelled scene,

which enhanced the details, ensuring that the correct

angles, shadows and light intensity were presented

clearly. This enabled the actual materials, lighting

and textures to be applied.

■ DETAILING THE SCENEThe details in soil, grass and water were created

separately then combined in the scene. This meant

each component could be viewed in greater detail to

ensure a photorealistic effect. Materials and textures

were added to each part to enhance the realism.

■ LAYERING ON THE TEXTURESAt this stage the CGI car was rendered out and

supplied for retouching. This shot shows all straight

RGB render parts created, combined in a full scene

before applying any other passes or colour work.

■ FINISHING TOUCHESHere you can see the render passes created in CGI,

separated so that colour work could be applied and

aligned. Keeping them separate enabled more

control over stylised lights, reflections and shadows.

CGI PHOTOGRAPHY WORKFLOWTAYLOR JAMES EXPLAINS HOW CG SOFTWARE AND PHOTOSHOP WERE COMBINED TO CREATE THIS IMAGE COMMISSIONED BY DDB CANADA, FOR SUBARU CANADA

Agency DDB Canada. Client: Subaru. © Taylor James

GLEN TAYLOR / WWW.TAYLORJAMES.COM

CREATIVE RETOUCHING


CG gives us flexibility and creative license to make the unbelievable

believable, in instances when we couldn’t achieve it with photography alone


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PHOTOMANIPULATION


“These enable us to bring all the elements

together in terms of lighting, texturing and depth of

field,” says Taylor. “Blending modes also mean we

can put the CG passes back together in a way that is

mathematically correct.”

Even in the few instances where photorealism isn’t

overly required, believability is still in the back of a

creative retoucher’s mind. The beauty of working with

CGI and Photoshop is that we can achieve any look or

feel we want. However, when applying special effects,

a creative retoucher must always enhance the

message of a client’s ad campaign first and foremost.

APPLYING SPECIAL EFFECTSThe end results can be either more stylised or surreal,

depending on a client’s needs, but attention to quality

must be assured. This is a reaction to the print

medium that retouch work is presented in. “There is

far less flexibility than in other mediums, such as

animation and film,” explains Jonathon Eadie,

managing director at Electric Art (www.electricart.

com.au). “In print the tiniest details can be scrutinised

close-up over time and the tiniest detail can shatter

the illusion for the viewer. Detail in lighting and colour

are extremely important.”

Nowhere is this more evident than when making

essential relighting edits to certain parts of an image.

Even when the overall treatment is more intense, if

the underlying basics are correct, the viewer won’t

question what they perceive. This means that special

effects become the most challenging phase in a

creative retoucher’s process. Gordon McBryde,

director at Featherwax (http://featherwax.com)

concurs: “We try to [achieve] the visually impossible

while retaining a realistic edge. If special effects went

purely for realism alone, there would be some pretty

tame adverts out there.”

FANTASTICAL ATMOSPHEREThe application of effects can be very tailored, with

each instance producing very different outcomes.

McBryde elaborates: “Special effects in post-

production are very much bespoke. While similar

techniques are often used, every project and image is

a new challenge that requires a fresh approach.”

Bruce Bigelow, creative director at Electric Art (www.

electricart.com.au) adds: “Each job is individual,

however we do have a group of effects that can be

used time and again, with slightly different outcomes.

Using Channels, we can create brushes or layer

masks for colour to add atmospherics. This way

we’re using the existing lighting to enhance the

overall image.”

Photoshop is a very flexible program that can

enable an image’s atmosphere to be enhanced in a

number of ways. Retouchers tend to use several

layers to build effects in what must become a

three-dimensional workspace. “This tends to start

with stripping in a new sky,” explains McBryde. “If

CREATE A DYNAMIC CAMPAIGN IMAGEELECTRIC ART REVEALS HOW PHOTOSHOP WAS USED TO CREATE THESE SURREAL EFFECTS

01 BASE IMAGEBy combining photographic and 3D

elements we created a desolate, almost lunar

terrain for the hawk to sit in. One of the biggest

challenges here was creating the correct scale for

the shrubs and rocky outcrops. The other

challenge was to ensure there was enough sense

of distance in a restricted frame for all the action to

take place. Adding atmosphere helped to create

the illusion of depth.

02 BUILD VOLUME WITH CHANNELSThe 3D render of the hawk was gradually

replaced with photographic material of dust,

combining voluminous dust clouds with wispy

trails. We applied this through a combination of

layer styles, Channel masks and opacity tweaks. A

selection was made using the Channel that gave

the best definition between the dust and the

background. This selection was used to increase

or decrease detail contrast where applicable.

03 DUST EFFECTSBlending modes were either left at

Normal or set to Screen to enhance contrast. Once

we had the main form, it came down to detailing

the eyes, claws and beak. We created our own

brushes, using specific areas from a Channel

mask to create trailing dust. Once all the elements

were in place, we added extra grit and flying dirt,

applying a final overall colour grade to bring the

entire image together.

Creative Directors Ben Coulson and Chris Northam, Art Director Paul Meates. © Agency GPY&R Melbourne, Photography Andreas Smetana


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CREATIVE RETOUCHING


GORDON MCBRYDE / HTTP://FEATHERWAX.COM

CREATIVE RETOUCHING


We try to [achieve] the visually impossible while retaining a realistic edge. If special

effects went purely for realism alone, there would be some pretty tame adverts out there


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PHOTOMANIPULATION


TECHNIQUES XXXXXXXXXX

we’re creating a dramatic image, we use Curves

and the Black & White tools to make this new sky

suitably moody. We then layer different effects such

as ice, rain and particles in the wind. These tend to

be achieved by applying Screen or Multiply blend

modes or clipped using a Channel mask.”

It’s very important to ensure the colour and focus

levels in these atmospheric details are matched to

their surroundings, as nothing makes an image

scream “Photoshop” more than a rain texture that’s

too sharp or background clouds that are too green.

“Broad adjustments to contrast and colour using

adjustment layers help here,” Eadie explains.

“Selective adjustments can be localised. Often

it’s the sum of many small details and colour

treatments that are most effective when it comes

to enhancing atmosphere.”

Sharpness is the final piece in creating hyperreal

looks and the High Pass filter is greatly endorsed by

our professionals, as McBryde adds: “Many people

will use a destructive sharpening process by

merging the layer stack then using either the

normal Sharpen tool or the Unsharp mask.

ADVANCED SHARPENING

“This sharpening technique can be useful at times,

especially if the layer is duplicated a few times, with

an Unsharp mask applied,” McBryde continues.

“One blend mode is set to Lighten the other to

Darken. However, the preferred method of

sharpening in creative retouching is to apply the

High Pass filter to a duplicate layer set to Soft Light.

This method is non -destructive, as the filter sits at

the top of the stack, affecting the work below.”

The Unsharp mask doesn’t need to be avoided

entirely. In fact, this tool is capable of producing an

interesting selective contrast treatment, when set

with a low amount and a high pixel radius. “We

used this technique on a job for Olympus Tough

cameras (seen at our website),” McBryde explains.

“An alternative to this is of course the High Pass

filter. We apply this in combination with different

layer blending modes, which provides very

interesting and unique results. Each image is

certainly unique and experimenting with various

techniques is important to find the best results.”

It almost goes without saying that over-

sharpening must be avoided, as this can end with

obvious fringing in high-contrast areas. It can also

lead to an increase in image noise, beyond

acceptable levels. Of course this is all determined

by a factor already discussed – the quality of your

CG and photographic assets. “We have worked with

RAW files from large-format hasselblad and the

tonal range available really determines how much

flexibility we have in retouching believable looks,”

McBryde explains.

Retouch Diego Angarita and Gordon McBryde. © Discovery Channel

PHOTOMANIPULATION


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CREATIVE RETOUCHING


01 THREE DIMENSIONAL SPACEWe always work on a file in a three-dimensional space. So the

first step is always building the background. This has been achieved

here by blending several photographs, such as the sky and water.

02 PAINT WITH CURVESThe hero talent is composited, so we focused on lighting the

elements. If each element is in its own folder with a mask, it’s simply

a matter of using Curves adjustments to paint areas of light and dark.

03 CREATIVE LIGHTINGDynamic contrast really adds something special. This is

achieved by increasing the contrast Curves adjustments, set to a

Luminosity blending mode and painting in selective areas. A straight

curve set to Soft Light at 50% Opacity is a nice final tweak.

04 POST EFFECTSA Black & White adjustment layer at 20% Opacity is added to

mute the colours. A High Pass set to Soft Light adds overall

sharpness. A second finer High Pass can be added and selective

details, such as water splashes, can be sharpened with a layer mask.

CREATE DYNAMIC LIGHTINGGORDON MCBRYDE EXPLAINS HOW TO CREATE EXCITING LIGHTING IN YOUR CREATIVE RETOUCH IMAGES


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PHOTOMANIPULATION


PHOTOMANIPULATION


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CREATE DYNAMIC LIGHTING


CREATE DYNAMIC LIGHTINGCOMBINE PHOTO STOCK, TEXTURES AND BLENDING MODES TO PRODUCE A SURREAL IMAGE

S urrealism is the name of the game in this

tutorial, as we take you through a

Photoshop process that will help you

achieve high-end, photoreal, and surreal

effects, using an array of comped resources. Lighting

effects feature heavily, as we show you how to apply

contrast, highlights and shadows to tie all your

elements together in a believable fashion.

You’ll need to be familiar with basic Photoshop

functions as we tackle ways to cut out images using

the Pen Path tool. We’ll also look at how to enhance

manually applied lighting, using both brushes and

Blend Modes. These lighting effects will bind our

image elements together, creating realism in an

otherwise unbelievable image.

We’ll start with a model image that forms the

foundation of the artwork. Once you have completed

this tutorial, you will be able to light and construct a

photoreal, surreal image and reapply many of the

techniques across other light-inspired images.

01 RESIZE YOUR DOCUMENTOpen a new document at 3,800 x 4,900px,

then open the ‘Girl.jpg’ and place it in the centre of

your workspace. Once you’re happy with your

placement, begin removing the subject from the

background. We’ll use the Pen Path tool to make a

selection and then cut the model out.

02 REFINE THE HAIR DETAILSoften the edges of your model so they’re

not overly sharp. Do the same with the hair using

the ‘Painted Hair Brushes’ supplied, painting to a

separate layer so we can use the Transform tools

to manipulate our elements later. Now merge the

hair layer with the model layer.

03 MAKE A BASIC RETOUCHFor this particular image we need to remove the model’s freckles, so we’ll edit using basic

retouching techniques by applying the Spot Healing brush. This is the best tool to clear up blemishes fast, but

we’ll also use the Patch tool for some of the obstinate areas.

DARKNESS TO LIGHT

Step 19: Refine lighting

WORK IN PROGRESS

Step 7: Arrange elements

Step 1: Pick a subject

Kode is an artist from Melbourne, Australia, setting his sights on New York. As a self-made graphic artist he continues to learn and apply new skills.

KODE ABDOwww.facebook.com/BossLogicInc

OUR EXPERT

All the images and brushes used to create this image, including the model, photo stock, textures and rendered images, are supplied. Ready-made PSD files also feature.

SOURCE FILES

BRING THE COMPOSITION TOGETHERARRANGE ALL ELEMENTS BEFORE YOUR LIGHTING PROCESS BEGINS


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PHOTOMANIPULATION


04 CREATE YOUR BACKGROUNDWe don’t want to make an overly complex

backdrop, so instead we’ll add a new layer titled

‘background’. Next, activate a brush with a soft edge,

increase the size to around 4,000px and apply once

behind the subject using a shade of blue on its own

layer. Now we’ll drop the layer’s Opacity to 80%,

which is especially useful in the cases when the

paint leaves areas far too strong and overpowering

for this project. Remember, we’re attempting to

complement the piece, not overwhelm it.

07 BLEND IN THE LIQUIDUsing either your Eraser tool, set with a soft edge, or a layer mask, erase from the bottom of the

subject, specifically the feet. The look we’re trying to achieve is one where the model’s feet are submerged in

the water. This doesn’t have to be too deep, just up to the ankle so her hand can still be seen over the water

level later in the tutorial. Also, make the water look seamless with the rest of the background by erasing the

hard edges of the water layer, using a soft Eraser tool or a layer mask.

05 INSERT TEXTURE TO BACKGROUNDImport the supplied ‘waterdrops 3.jpg’ file,

place it on top of the blue-brushed layer and set the

blending mode to Soft Light. Desaturate the image to

make it completely black and white. To improve the

contrast in the monochrome layer, apply Brightness/

Contrast and amend the settings until the right effect

is achieved. If it still feels weak, duplicate this layer

and set its blending mode to Overlay. Merge the

background, blue-brushed and ‘waterdrops 3’ layers

together and apply a light Gaussian Blur.

06 APPLY WATER ELEMENTSOpen and import the supplied ‘waterdrops

2.jpg’ file and transform it using the Free Transform

tool. Grab the top-middle anchor point and compress

it to give the illusion that the ripple is flat on the

ground. This method is all about getting the right

perspective. The Transform tool is powerful enough

to achieve this, so once you’re happy with your

outcome, desaturate your ‘waterdrops 2’ layer

(Cmd/Ctrl+U) so it’s a little less vibrant and matches

the image’s overall atmosphere.

08 PLACE A SOUSAPHONEOpen the supplied ‘Sousaphone.psd’ then

select, cut, copy and paste it into sections. You can

duplicate and place these in your scene as you see

fit. Place your sousaphone layers closely around

the subject and consider these elements as part of

a giant metallic snake moving in and out of the

water and around the composition. Feel free to

experiment with your own placement to create the

movement you want in the piece.

QUICK TIP To make lighting pop out of the image, blending mode layers are your best friends. Experiment with modes like Soft Light and Overlay to intensify exposures. You can tweak the strength of effects using the Opacity slider, or duplicate the layers to boost brightness.


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11 DUPLICATE THE RIPPLESUsing the ‘waterdrops 2’ layer we applied in

Step 6, select the ripple area of the image and

duplicate this. Slightly manipulate it to look different

from the main ripple using Transform tools and

place it on the surface of the water under the

instruments to create entry points for the

sousaphone. Erase the excess areas of the

sousaphone to make them seem like they are

submerged underwater. Darken the tips of the

sousaphones closest to the water so they blend in.

12 TWEAK THE BACKLIGHTINGSelect a soft brush and then create a new

layer behind the model and the sousaphone. On this

layer we’ll create an outer glow to make the centre

of the image stand out. With a light shade of blue,

brush some lighting strokes behind the model and

the instruments. Make sure you apply just beneath

the edges, because we’re using a soft brush that will

automatically spread beyond the edges. To finish this

step, duplicate the layer and set the new layer’s

blending mode to Soft Light.

13 TEXTURE THE SOUSAPHONEApply the supplied ‘cracks 05.jpg’ and

‘cracks 06.jpg’ files to texture the sousaphone layers

and give them a rusty look. Take your time when

placing these textures to produce the greatest

impact and realism. Apply an Overlay blending mode

to these texture layers to obtain a stronger effect. If

this becomes too strong for you, try dropping the

Opacity slider to around 80% or a little lower. You can

experiment and set this layer to Soft Light if that’s an

effect you’re aiming for.

10 PLACE THE BODY TEXTURENow we’ll add texture over certain parts of

the model’s body. Open the supplied ‘Crack Texture’

folder to access seven texture images that will help

us achieve the look we want. We’ve placed a ‘cracks

04.jpg’ file over the model’s left shoulder and just

over her elbow. Both are blended using a Multiply

blending mode. Apply the same effect to the

model’s thighs, but using the ‘crack 03.jpg’ file.

Finally, change the tonality to match the water.

09 ADJUST YOUR TONESFirst, tone the sousaphone to fit the image using Hue/Saturation>Colorize settings (Cmd/Ctrl+U)

and apply a slightly desaturated dark-blue tone. Here we’ve also added a gradient map to our model using a

blue-to-light-blue style. Set this gradient map layer’s blending mode to Soft Light and adjust the Opacity until

you’re happy with the outcome.

001Cut out the model, add her hair back in, then merge the layers

002Add the background behind the model, paint with the soft brush, texture and merge

003Cut up and place the sousaphone where you want it to create a snake-like appearance

001 002 003

UNIFY YOUR SCENEUSE HUE/SATURATION AND OTHER ADJUSTMENTS TO SET THE TONE OF THE COMPOSITION


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PHOTOMANIPULATION


14 Duplicate the model layer and brighten this

by applying Adjustments>Brightness/Contrast.

Create a look that seems a little overexposed, but not

too harsh, because we still want to see details in the

lit areas. Use a soft-edged Eraser and remove from

the centre as in our example. This is done to create

more dynamic lighting, which means we have

something to work with later in the lit edges.

15 Make a selection of your model layer by

Ctrl-clicking the layer thumbnail. With your selection

active, create a new layer and use a soft bright-blue

brush, set to Soft Light, to highlight the edges of the

hairline. Create another new layer on top of this and

repeat the technique using a lighter shade of blue

and setting your blending mode to Overlay. Repeat

this method on the sousaphone layers.

16 To enhance the sense of motion, open the

supplied ‘Music Notes’ folder where you’ll find a host

of PSD files that we can combine to create the effects

we’re looking for. Place these new layers under the

sousaphone layer, making it seem as though these

elements are being blown out. Change the size of

each of these layers to create a sense of perspective

and to enhance the detail in the image.

18 Repeat the techniques from Step 15 to

insert lighting in your liquid areas, but this time we

want these to be a little brighter as they are

reflecting from the glow emitting from the model

image. To get this effect we’ll add an extra layer, set

to Soft Light blending mode. Next, apply a Gaussian

Blur filter to this layer, which will result in brighter

surroundings, then add motion blur to some of the

liquid to inject more movement.

17 We’ll simulate motion in the piece further by applying images from the supplied Black Ink folder.

We’ll apply them around the sousaphone and exiting the water, to create a splash effect. You can also mix

your ink layers with the music notes, adding in the previous set, to evoke a chaotic look. Remember to apply

Hue/Saturation>Colorize, which will let you add a shade of purple, matching the tones in the water.

BRING FOCUS TO YOUR IMAGEBLEND LIGHTING LAYERS AND BRING FOCUS BACK TO THE CENTRE

QUICK TIPUse the liquid images supplied to create your own splashes and abstract elements in the image. Don’t be scared to play around with the Motion B option to produce a sense of movement. Strive to make effects your own and let your imagination take over.

BELIEVE THE UNBELIEVABLEThe key to achieving a believable image, even when creating surreal elements, is correct placement. Use the Transform tools to achieve the best angles and perspective. Make sure the image doesn’t get too cluttered, give elements room to breath and display a strong sense of depth. Understanding focal lengths and blur is a core skill to have. Using the right amount of blur will help create an accurate sense of background and foreground. This is more diffused in the backdrop, harder and brighter in the foreground, especially in this image. These dynamic effects are what augment the realism in an unreal scene.


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19 INCREASE THE SURREALISMOpen and import layers from the files in the

supplied Hands folder. Using the techniques of the

previous steps, tone the arms to match the colour of

the water using Hue/Saturation>Colorize settings

(Cmd/Ctrl+U). Add texture to the arms just like in

Step 10, duplicate the ripple layers as in Step 11 and

continue to mask your arm layers so they look like

they are reaching up from the water.

20 FOCUS ON EXTRA DETAILRepeat Step 10, but add effects to the

model’s right leg that sits in the background. Use the

Pen Path tool to make a selection around this leg,

then duplicate and create a new leg layer. Tone this

so the colour matches that of the water and the two

arms. Apply crack textures to the knee and use the

Eraser to work out some of the coloured leg layer, so

it looks like the knee is visible through the cracks.

23 REPLICATE A RADIANT LIGHT EFFECTReferring back to what we’ve learnt in Step

15, we can now use similar techniques to add

highlights under our model’s legs, creating the

illusion of light emitting from the water. Doing this

will draw the viewer’s eye to the centre of the

composition once more. First use the Pen Path tool

to target the areas you want to highlight. Also create

a new layer set to Color Dodge blending mode

before painting in your lights using a light-blue soft

brush set to 80% Opacity.

24 USE A SMOKE TEXTURE Import the ‘smoke.psd’ supplied and place

it around the image at a very low opacity. This adds

that fine detail in the image and brings a dark, misty

atmosphere. Feel free to use the smoke.psd to add

extra detail to the lighting layers, by blending it using

an applied Soft Light or Overlay blending mode and

setting a low layer opacity. This will add texture to

your lighting. Place similar effects in the lighting

under the model, to evoke a sense of movement.

21 LIGHT ELEMENTS INDIVIDUALLY Now we’ll repeat the same method used in

Step 15 to add highlights to the hand layers. Some of

the hands in the image are set some distance from

the main light source, so when you do apply light,

make sure you use separate effects to individual

hand layers. This will enable you to have maximum

control over the brightness and means you can alter

the intensity of light correctly for each element.

22 INSERT SHADOWS We’ll now add some directional shadows behind the two arms on the right of the image. This is to

enhance the direction and realism of the light, by casting shadows away from our main light source. Create a

new layer and with a soft brush paint two black lines away from the direction of the light, making sure these

are on top of the arm layers in the corner. After you’re happy with the angle of the brushed lines, drop the

layer Opacity to 80% to produce a transparent look.

QUICK TIP Adding new colours to the image’s lighting and mixing tonality can create interesting looks. We’ve added a new layer and applied a soft brush over the already vibrant areas of our image. This brush is set to Soft Light blending mode and we’ve inserted pink tones, which produce an eye-catching look.


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PHOTOMANIPULATION


JONO HISLOP AKA KIVEXwww.somethingfresh.co.nz

OUR EXPERT

Kivex is a New Zealand-born illustrator living in London. Most of his work is created for colleagues in the music industry and their associate record labels, including Atlantic, Warner, Sony and Tikidub.

SOURCE FILESOn the disc you will find a model image that you can use to duplicate this tutorial (‘Heroine_stock.jpg’).

PHOTOMANIPULATION


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MASTER LAYER MASKS


MASTER LAYER MASKSUSE BRUSHES, LAYER MASKS AND LIGHTING TECHNIQUES TO CREATE SURREAL LANDSCAPES WITH PHOTOGRAPHY

G reat art is rarely the product of a complex

chain of elaborate techniques. In truth, it is

a destination most often reached through

a sound understanding and patient use of

your basic tools. A great eye for detail develops

through perseverance.

The following tutorial will teach you how to use

simple Photoshop tools in advanced ways, and in

doing so perhaps you will come to see them in a

new light. In particular, this tutorial focuses on

painting with layer masks and developing a colour

scheme with adjustment layers and gradient maps.

Perspective and the idea that ‘less is more’ will

guide you through the tutorial as a concept that will

be continually revisited. You should walk away not

just with a new art piece, but a set of skills that will

stick with you throughout your career, assisting you

in getting ideas onto your Photoshop canvas with

less technical frustration.

This particular photomanipulation was inspired

by a piece of music that has a spacious, ‘lost at sea’

feel. Music that stimulates your imagination and

creates a sense of location can help your creative

flow and encourage originality.

MASTER LAYER MASKS


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PHOTOMANIPULATION


03 BRING IN PHOTOSYou’re going to build the top half of the canvas first. Drag and drop in photos of skylines that you like the look

and feel of. Try to keep the colours similar by choosing photos that were taken around the same time of day. There’s no

need to be exact, though, as you can make adjustments later. For every image you bring into your piece, add a layer

mask. With the layer selected, at the bottom-right of your screen click on the rectangle with the circle inside it. Layer

masks allow us to paint in and out parts of the photo without being destructive.

02 CREATE PERSPECTIVENow you need the sunray perspective, which is essential in establishing focal direction. Make a new

layer and draw a white line across the canvas, starting from the sun. Cmd/right-click the layer and select

Duplicate Layer. With the new line, press Cmd/Ctrl+T and move the anchor point to the centre position of the

sun. Rotate 15 degrees by holding Shift and repeat the process of duplicating and rotating the line until you

have a rising sun type perspective grid.

01 SET UP THE CANVASOpen a new document with dimensions

2,560 x 1,440 and a black background. Press Cmd/

Ctrl+K to open Preferences. Click on Guides, Grid &

Slices from the list on the left and change the

settings for Grid Section to Gridline every 100 per

cent, Subdivisions 3. Pressing Cmd/Ctrl+’ will bring

up your new rule of thirds grid, which sets the guide

for the sun and the boat. Vertically pull down a ruler

(Cmd/Ctrl+R), locking in the middle of the canvas.

This is where the sea and the sky will meet.

It’s good to get into the habit of non-destructive

editing. Try avoiding the Eraser tool at all times

COLLAGE TO PAINTING

Step 19: Lighting effects

WORK IN PROGRESS

Step 7: Add focal elements

Step 1: Build a backdrop


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MASTER LAYER MASKS


07 CREATE THE SUNSET Bring in an image of the sun. Using a layer mask and soft brush, paint out the sky around it. Leave a

light glow around the outer circumference with a 25% opaque brush. Align with the rule of thirds grid, and

using the marquee tool (M), cut off the bottom of the sun and align with the horizon. Make a new layer and

using a 200px or larger brush, paint on some blues and pinks with a 10% opaque brush and set the layer to

Overlay to bring in some beautiful hues.

08 MIRROR THE IMAGEMerge the image with Layer>Merge

Visible. Hit Cmd/Ctrl+A and copy the merged

canvas. Track back with Edit>Step backwards until

your layers return. Paste in the image, and using

Transform, flip the layer vertically. Align the image

with the centre of the canvas and erase anything

that cuts into the top half of the canvas. Use a

Motion Blur at 0 degrees and a Distance of 25%.

Follow it up with Filter> Distort>Ripple (66%,

medium size) on your newly created ocean to add a

touch of realism.

06 USE ADJUSTMENT LAYERSWhen you bring in colours that don’t fit,

use an adjustment layer! This is another non-

destructive technique. With the layer selected, click

on the half circle next to the layer mask and choose

Curves. Change RGB to your choice of red/green/

blue to play with individual colour spectrums, and

click to create a point. Boost up or down to add

intensity or pull out the required colours. In this

case, some of the clouds are too blue, so we have

boosted the red to match the sunset’s warmth.

05 MERGE TECHNIQUESWhen using the Brush tool, there are two

shortcuts that greatly speed up your workflow: X on

your keyboard switches between black and white.

The square brackets vary the size of your brush.

With each new image you drop onto the canvas,

experiment with merging them by playing with

layer styles. Use Screen and Lighten next. These are

good for merging bright elements, while Multiply

and Overlay/Soft Light are useful for creating

vibrancy and intensity.

04 MERGE PHOTOSSee that white square that has appeared

next to your layer? With it selected, your colour

palette resets to black and white. Painting with a

black brush will act as an eraser, while painting in

white will do the opposite. It’s good to get in the

habit of non-destructive editing. Try avoiding the

Eraser tool at all times. Bring in another layer of the

sky. Using a soft brush, set the Opacity to 25% and

remove parts of the photo until you have a

seamless merge with other images on the canvas.

QUICK TIPEstablish your focal points early on when imagining your art. In the case of this image, the sun’s brightness captures the viewer’s attention first, leading you to the heroine and finally to the islands, sweeping your eyes from left to right across the canvas. Try to avoid cluttered backdrops that can dismantle the flow of the piece.


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PHOTOMANIPULATION


QUICK TIPIf your finished piece is too dark, put a Brightness/Contrast adjustment layer at the top of the layer chain with +15 Brightness at +5 Contrast. Is the image lacking depth? Use a Levels adjustment, slightly moving the middle slider (midtones) to affect the colours inside the vignette and around the sun.

10 FIT THE HEROINEFor the highlights, make a new layer and

Opt/Alt-drag over the heroine’s layer mask to make

a copy. With the layer selected, set it to Overlay and

paint white highlights on areas of the heroine facing

the horizon. For the shading, use a black brush and

paint parts facing away from the sun. Leave the layer

style on Normal. Mix in her shading layer at 80%

Opacity. Using Curves, boost the reds and blues.

09 VIGNETTES AND OBJECTSCreat a new layer, paint black around the edges of the canvas and set it to Multiply. Create another

new layer and paint with a dark-blue brush (#00192a) on the edges of the vignette towards the centre and set

to Color Burn. Mix this layer in at 40-50% Opacity to accentuate the outer colours. Drop in a photo of a boat

from dreamstime.com and align and transform it to match your perspective grid. Drop in the female

adventurer (available on the disc) and use a layer mask to paint out the background.

12 LIGHTINGWith a new layer set to either Overlay or

Soft Light, paint white streaks from the sun going

outwards, following the perspective grid to create

sunrays. Add a soft glow by creating a layer set to

Lighten at 80% Opacity. Paint a mix of yellows and

oranges around the sun with a large soft brush.

Now create a Soft Light layer at 17% Opacity. Fill the

canvas with blue #0319f0. Using a layer mask,

erase out the centre so you’re only affecting the

outer rims of the horizon and the vignette.

11 FIT THE BOAT Repeat Step 10 with the front and back of the boat, shading at 50% Opacity. With Curves, pull down

the reds and greens and boost the blues. Using a Levels adjustment layer, boost the contrast by inserting the

following numbers into the three boxes: 57, 0.63, 250. On a new layer with 40% Opacity, paint the girl’s casting

shadow inside the boat, following the perspective grid. Paint some ripples into the water around and behind

the boat. For realism, add Filter>Distort>ZigZag, with Settings at 2 and 14 and Pond Ripples selected.

Stock image


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MASTER LAYER MASKS


13 NIGHT SKYFind a free NASA photo of a star-filled sky

and drop it in. Set the blending mode to Screen to

remove the black backdrop. It will almost certainly

leave light artefacts, so use Levels (Cmd/Ctrl+L),

bringing the far-left slider up a few numbers until

black is at #000000, thus becoming 100 per cent

transparent. With a layer mask, paint out the stars

that have landed in awkward places. Use the

Marquee tool (M) to move stars around if needed.

15 THE FINISHING TOUCHTo add polish to any finished piece, duplicate a merged version of all your layers and use

Filter>Other>High Pass with a low setting (1-2px). This exaggerates the edges. Set the layer to Overlay to

sharpen the quality of your art. Areas that don’t require focal attention or sharpness such as the sun and the

ocean can be painted out with a layer mask, making the heroine and the stars around her crisper.

14 TYING THE IMAGE TOGETHERAdd a Curves adjustment layer. Select blue and raise the ‘output’ +2, to tie the black vignette into the

ocean with a subtle dark blue hue. Add a gradient map with these settings from left to right: #ffe89a, #c38f7b,

#324a59 and #060c14. At 100% Opacity, the gradient map desaturates and ties the colour scheme together.

Bring the opacity down if you want to retain some of the original vibrancy, but don’t oversaturate your work.


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PHOTOMANIPULATION


BLEND MULTIPLE ITEMS TO CREATE THIS HIGH�ENERGY SCENE

ADVANCED COMPOSITINGT his tutorial will show you how to create a complex action scene by combining 3D and photographic elements in

Photoshop. We’ve always wanted to flip the story of James Bond on its head – where the woman is the one

saving the day. Hence why Jane Bond was born! We sketched out an idea of the villain in his escape car being

pursued by Jane Bond and her Bond boy.

With all the moving parts we were imagining, Photoshop was the only way to convincingly bring it all

together. We enlisted the help of uber-nerds Isaiah Mustafa, Alison Haislip, and Zachary Levi to get just

the right casting and look for the piece. Photography was handled via Hasselblad H4D-50 to get

super high-resolution assets to pull from for our photomanipulation. After a quick shoot, it

was back to the post-production studio to whip out our Cintiq 22HD and get chopping.

This image is one in a series of nine images that tell the story of how Jane Bond

foiled an international jewel thief from stealing the crown diamond.

PHOTOMANIPULATION


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ADVANCED COMPOSITING


SOURCE FILESTextures, particles, 3D renders, as well as the RAW camera files are available for your use on this project. Download them at blog.advancedphotoshop.co.uk/tutorial-files under Issue 117.

WIL WELLSwww.elevendy.com

OUR EXPERT

Wil Wells is the creative director and lead artist at Elevendy, a creative support studio based in California. His work has been used on numerous videogames, including Splinter Cell: Blacklist.



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PHOTOMANIPULATION


04 ADD MOTION BLURClick OK to apply the Vanishing Point Clone to your composition. You now need to add motion blur

to the background to give the feeling of speed. Since this is a dynamic scene with a car moving towards the

viewer, the standard motion blur filter will not give the look you want. This can be done better using

Filter>Blur>Radial Blur. Set the Blur Method to Zoom and position its source at the far end of the street. Set

the Amount to 5 and click OK.

03 CLONE WITH THE PERSPECTIVE STAMPYou now have a mesh that will keep your

background cloning in perspective. Click the mid-

right handle of the mesh and expand it to the edges

of the composition. Still within the Vanishing Point

window, you can now select the Vanishing Point

Stamp tool. Sample the bottom-right of the plain

selection with Opt/Alt-click. From here, Ctrl/right-

click to stamp in new buildings cloned in perspective

from the original building. Make sure that the

different lines of the building align with each other.

02 EXPAND THE BACKGROUNDTo get that long, dramatic look down the

road, you need to expand the background by cloning

the building. To do this and not lose the vanishing

point perspective, use the Vanishing Point tool

found under Filter>Vanishing Point. Once inside the

Vanishing Point window, the default tool should be

set to Create Grid Plane. Select the four corners of

the building on the right and make sure that the

lines stay with the perspective of the scene. Ensure

that the vanishing point clone is successful.

01 SET THE STAGEFor the first step, you will create a scene

that’s very dynamic with a lot of great lines. Create a

new document and size it to 5,000px wide and

3,000px high with a DPI of 300. A city street with the

road coming towards the camera is a perfect stage

to place the chase. You can download this base

image from blog.advancedphotoshop.co.uk/

tutorial-files. This shot is perfect since it has a wide

camera angle, and will place the car racing right at

the viewer for maximum drama.

You need to add a motion blur to the background

layer to give the artwork a feeling of speed

FROM CAMERA TO ACTION

Step 19: Colour and grain

WORK IN PROGRESS

Step 7: Place the elements

Step 1: Set the scene


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08 BEAT UP THE CARIt’s always great to collect textures. In this case, you’ll be using scratched metal textures, available in

the tutorial files. To keep the textures organised and make sure they adhere to the constraints of the car body,

drop them into the masked group that you created for the car. Set these textures to assorted blend modes

such as Overlay, Hard Light and Darker Color. It’s better to experiment with different blending modes to find

the best match, but we’ve also provided the modes in the file names of the scratched metal images.

09 ADD THE TYRESWe’ve rendered out 3D versions of the

tyres to get the lighting right (tire.png). You’ll be

using the same tyre for both the front-left and

back-left, and a rear-facing tyre for the right-hand

side. Before dropping the tyres into your

composition, go to Filters>Blur>Radial Blur. Set the

amount to 6.0, the Blur Method to Spin, and pinpoint

the Blur Center to the wheel’s centre, then click OK.

Apply this method to both tyres and move them into

the composition under the car body group.

07 CREATE A CAR GROUPSelect both car layers by selecting one

then Opt/Alt-clicking on the other. With both layers

now selected, press Cmd/Ctrl+G to put the two

layers into a group. Next, expand the group to see

the two layers and Cmd/Ctrl-click the layer preview

icon of a car layer. This should create a selection

around the layer. Finally, select the top group layer

and click Add Layer Mask in the bottom of the

Layers tab to adhere the selection to a mask that

constrains the layers of the group.

06 ADD REALISM TO THE CARThe render directly out of CINEMA 4D

doesn’t look like a very convincing part of the

scene. Using some tricks in Photoshop, you can

get it looking real in no time. The first step will be

to duplicate the car layer (Cmd/Ctrl+J) and then set

the top car copy’s blending mode to Overlay. Then

go to Filters>Other>High Pass and set the pixel

radius to 10.0. This will add some fine detail and

contrast to the look of the render, to help it

integrate into the scene better.

05 INSERT THE CARIt’s now time to add the car to the scene.

We prefer using 3D elements in scenes like this

because you can choose any combination of

camera and lighting angles, as opposed to the

limitations of shooting a real car. There are plenty of

places to pick up fantastic 3D car models online if

you want to add your own getaway car. If not, we’ve

modelled, rendered and lit one using CINEMA 4D.

This image is supplied in the download pack (‘car.

png’). Note we have not yet included the tyres.

QUICK TIPBlur methods are a tricky thing to master, especially when you need to account for objects going in different directions. With its different blurs, Photoshop can handle nearly anything. However, when working in 3D, most applications have the ability to add motion blur. This can increase the quality of the final image exponentially.


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PHOTOMANIPULATION


15 HAIR DETAILSOn the hair layer, press Cmd/Ctrl+L to do a

Levels adjustment. Bring your low input level to 93

– this will make the darker coloured background

disappear and the brighter hair shine through. To

make sure the hair and body layers come together

naturally, feather the body layer’s mask where it

meets the hair using the Paint tool. To account for

the light source of the flare, create a new layer and

paint a faint orange colour above the flare and hero.

14 JANE BOND MASKINGUse the Pen tool to cut out and mask the

hero (Hero 1.fff), but don’t cut her hair out on your

mask. Drop your masked hero into the composition,

size and place her on top of the car. To create a clean

mask of her hair, first copy the photo, remove the

existing mask and create a new one. With the icon

for the new hero copy’s mask selected, press Cmd/

Ctrl+I. This will invert the mask. Set the blending

style to Screen and paint in the hair.

12 PLACE THE VILLAIN IN THE SCENEDrop and size the villain into the composition. Like you did with the car’s body, create a group folder

by selecting the layer and pressing Cmd/Ctrl+G. To add more detail to the photo, duplicate the villain layer and

set the blend mode to Overlay. Navigate to Filters>Other>High Pass and set the pixel radius to 5.0. On the top

layer of the group, add a new mask to account for the dash. Paint in black along the outline of the dash.

10 ADD SHADOWSNext, add shadow below the car body and

tyres. Set the colour to black and select the Brush

tool. We like to work with a bigger brush size to

better ensure a smooth shadow. Set the Hardness

to 0 to make sure you don’t have hard edges within

the shadow. Start directly under the car, painting

outwards with smooth, even strokes. Ensure that

the darkest shadow is where tyre meets road.

11 OPEN THE VILLAIN PHOTODownload ‘Villain.fff’ from the tutorial files

and open the image in Photoshop for masking. We

prefer to mask using the Pen tool due to its ability

to create perfect lines and curves. Note that you

only need to mask the upper torso since the car

dash will obscure the lower body, and you’ll use a

different hand. After you’ve done the outline, select

the path and create the villain’s mask.

13 THE GUNSHOTDownload ‘gun-hand.jpg’, mask the hand

and gun, then drop it into the scene and size it

accordingly. To get a realistic muzzle flash, first

insert the ‘MuzzleFlash.jpg’ file and size it to the top

of the gun. Set the blending mode to Screen then

duplicate it, moving the new copy to the roof of the

car where the bullet is exiting. Take the ‘Particles.

png’ file and place it at the bullet exit to get the look

of paint and metal breaking off the car.

QUICK TIPSometimes you get lucky and can use contrast to make a perfect hair mask. We were able to use the Screen blend mode because our hero’s hair contrasted the darker background. The same method can be used on dark hair with a light background by using the Multiply blend mode.


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19 LITTLE DETAILSNow that all of the elements are in place, it’s time to add some smaller details. Place the ‘Smoke.jpg’

file at the base of the tyres and set the blending mode to Lighter Color. Again, use the ‘Particles.png’ file to

create small bits of gravel being thrown by the tires. You can also use the particle file behind the car to show

the path of debris caused by the collision with the brick wall. Finish off by adding a little more orange to the

cabin of the car from the flare.

20 COLOUR AND GRAINLastly, it’s time to tie everything together

using colour and grain. Create a Curves adjustment

layer at the top of the composition. Adjust the

darker levels on the blue, green and red channels,

creating a consistent black level on all elements of

the composition. This really comes in handy when

all of your assets come from different sources. On

top of the Curves layer, wrap up the composition by

placing a grain layer, giving consistent grain to

every part of your finished photo.

18 HITTING BRICKSDownload the ‘bricks.jpg’ file, place it into

the scene and create a new mask. Using the Brush

tool, feather the dust cloud to remove the edges of

the photo while still maintaining the solidity of the

bricks. To add more energy, use ‘Particles.jpg’ to

cover the bricks, some of the car, as well as a little

on the hero to tie the elements together. Then take

‘windshield.jpg’, size it to the windshield and set the

blending mode to Screen to account for the brick

hitting the glass.

17 SHADOWS AND SPARKSFollow the path of the Bond boy’s body,

painting in black just to the right of it. Remember

that the closer his arm is to the car, the closer the

shadow will be to his arm. Paint all the way down

the door to the ground, accounting for the shadow

of his leg and gun on the ground. Reuse the

‘MuzzleFlash.jpg’ file that you downloaded earlier to

create the spark made by the gun hitting the

ground. Composite it into the scene and set the

blending mode to Screen.

16 ADD THE BOND BOYYou can now mask and add the Bond boy

to the composition. Download ‘Hero 2.fff’ from the

Advanced Photoshop website and open it in

Photoshop. Since there’s some lens distortion on

the hand, duplicate the layer. On the top layer, mask

out the hand to the sleeve, and on the bottom layer,

leave only the hand to bring it down the size. Now

create a new layer under the Bond boy and select

the Paint tool in black. Create a shadow on the car

by painting black to the right of his body.

Create a consistent black level on all the elements.

This really comes in handy when your assets are from different sources


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PHOTOMANIPULATION


PHOTOMANIPULATION


For those interested in applying the exact stock images used here, make sure you head over to dreamstime.com. Below are the image IDs so you can search for them:

27702508

14257226

14257319

15233790

17285721

SOURCE FILES


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APPLY LIQUID PAINT EFFECTS


01 PREP OUR IMAGECreate a Photoshop image document,

then open our starting stock photograph by

dragging it into the new canvas. Transform it

(Cmd/Ctrl+T) so that it fits nicely into our new

canvas. Before adding effects, we’ll need to cut the

model out. Zoom in and use the Pen tool to do this.

02 ISOLATE THE MODELWe’ll use the Pen tool to isolate the

model from the background. Pick a start point,

where her hands meet her dress, and then begin

drawing a path around her. The Opt/Alt key will

help you to be more accurate with the path, and

also when zooming in and out with the mouse.

03 CONTINUE TO CUT OUTDon’t worry about the hair for now. Make

a rough selection and we can fix next. We can be

rough around the dress area too, as both these will

be replaced with paint. Close the path, then Ctrl/

right-click and choose Make Selection. Duplicate

the model layer then activate Quick Mask.

This is a fun tutorial that we can get very creative with. It does offer more than just entertainment, though,

because we’ll discover core techniques that can then be easily be applied to any future photomanipulation projects

DISCOVER HOW YOU CAN MANIPULATE PAINT STOCK AND CREATE ENERGY USING LAYER MASKS, SELECTION AND TRANSFORMATION TOOLS


SCRUBBING UP THE FACEUSE THE CLONE STAMP TOOL TO REMOVE BLEMISHES

P aint splash effects can be used in many

different ways. One that’s very popular is to

replace clothing by using photo stock.

That’s what we set out to achieve here,

showing how we create our own photomanipulation

of a model with paint splash fashion. Once finished

we’ll have created enough depth and movement

that our effects will look realistic. The Pen tool will

be essential for selecting and cutting out our model.

We’ll reveal how to retouch and mask her out,

replacing her dress with paint alone. We also

explain how the Transform tools can be used to

directly paint layers and fit them in place.

You will find that isolating and changing the

colour and appearance of your paint stock layers

will be very easy when you start using the colour

adjustment tools and further masking techniques.

We use these so that our layers fit seamlessly

together in our composition. We are also going to

tackle different blend modes and show how these

react with our image in order to create specific

lighting effects.

All in all, this is a fun tutorial that we can get very

creative with. It does offer more than just

entertainment, though, because we’ll discover core

techniques that can then be easily be applied to any

future photomanipulation projects.


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PHOTOMANIPULATION


04 BACKGROUND WORKWe can now work on the background. We’ll want to

make it lighter, so create a new layer behind our masked model

and fill it with a 50% grey. Apply Layer>Layer Mask>Reveal All

and apply a soft brush at 11% Flow to paint in some of the

original background detail. Press X to switch between black and

white brushes and alternate masked areas and effects.

05 FIX THE MODEL Click on the model

layer and zoom in. Fix areas

of the mask that don’t look

right, especially around the

hair. Select a black flat brush

to paint around the black

areas of the hair and the

parts to hide from our model

layer. Lower the brush’s Flow

to 12%. If you make a

mistake, hit X then paint

areas back in with a white

brush. Fix areas around the

outline that may have been

missed during the Pen

tool selection.

06 RETOUCH PHASEDuplicate our masked model layer

and hide the original. Create a new layer and

merge that with the model layer (Cmd/

Ctrl+E). Continue to fix our model’s hair using

the Smudge tool and a small flat brush. Apply

a Brightness/Contrast adjustment, setting

Brightness at 10 and Contrast at 40. Duplicate

this layer and hide it, so we have a backup if

needed. Also use the Burn tool at 18%

Exposure and the Dodge tool at 14%

Exposure, both set to Midtones, to increase

the contrast in certain areas.

07 CHANGE COLOURMake a new black layer beneath our

model. Choose Select>Color Range and click on a

white part of the dress, setting Fuzziness to 200,

then use the plus and minus pickers to select tones

in the dress. With our selection active, hold Opt/Alt

and use the Lasso to remove areas of the dress.

Copy Merged then paste into a new layer. Add a

Hue/Saturation adjustment, activate Colorize then

change Hue to a blue colour and increase

Saturation. Rename this layer Dress, duplicate it

and delete the black layer.

08 MORE DRESS WORKWith the duplicate active, select

Layer>Layer Styles>Color Overlay. Make it blue.

Move the original dress layer above this duplicate

and set it to Overlay. This brings out the dress

highlights. We can change the Color Overlay of the

duplicate layer and the Hue/Saturation of the

original dress to get the perfect natural look. Bring

some of the white and light back in by setting a

Reveal All layer mask on our dress copy layer,

using a black soft brush set at 20% Flow to mask

into areas we want highlighted.

REMOVING OBSTRUCTIONS FROM SCENIC SHOTSCLONE OUT OBJECTS WITHOUT BEING DETECTED

QUICK TIPWhen adding the Smudge tool to hair, use a combination of different sized brush strokes with different Flow amounts. Use different colours and parts of the hair for variation. Apply strokes outwards for spiky hair strands, and then curve these to modify the hair and tidy edges.

This option comes in handy when isolating areas of colour. In simple cases we can just use the Magic Wand to select solid colours, but when working with paint images like those in this tutorial, or ones with existing lighting, Color Range becomes a must. Make the most of the black and white preview to see what you’ve selected, and use the plus and minus droppers to specify detailed areas. Once you’ve clicked OK, you can easily remove parts of the selection by holding down Opt/Alt or Shift and then applying the Lasso to add or remove active areas and match selected edges.

USE COLOR RANGE

When working with paint images or ones with

existing lighting, Color Range becomes a must


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10 ARRANGE LAYERSOnce you’ve brought in and processed all

the paint splash layers, you’ll need to arrange

these in a way that makes each seem to be a part

of our model’s dress. For the ones placed higher

up, near the torso, use light blue-coloured layers

on top and dark blue layers beneath. Use the

original model dress layer as a reference. Also

erase parts of the dress that get in the way and sit

behind our paint splat layers.

12 CREATE DEPTHBring the highlights of the original paint

back in and add darker tones to certain areas,

producing greater contrast. Duplicate one of the

top paint layers, then set the copy to Overlay.

Adjust the hue of the original layer to make it

deeper. Repeat this with the other paint layers.

13 ALTER BRIGHTNESSSome bottom dress layers would be in

shadow. Repeat the previous step, but decrease

Lightness in a Hue/Saturation adjustment. You

could duplicate a layer, apply these settings and

add an inverted layer mask. Edit using this mask

and a white soft brush to paint in areas of light.

REMOVING OBSTRUCTIONS FROM SCENIC SHOTSCLONE OUT OBJECTS WITHOUT BEING DETECTED

09 APPLY PAINT SPLASHESBuild effects using stock and basic adjustments

11 MORE PLAY WITH PAINTSelect and cut parts off the paint layers to

make them fit. Cut some off and add them to the

top half of the dress. Make the dress feel like it

ruffles using different paint splats and hues. Apply

a soft round black brush to attached layer masks

and blend areas of the paint realistically. Use

Edit>Transform>Warp to enhance the flow.

14 MANUAL EFFECTSAdd paint stock to the floor. Add light to

areas using a soft white brush and darken others

using this brush, with a deep blue colour and set to

Overlay. Dodge and Burn, and fix the lighting on the

right. Add more paint to the upper dress; blend

with the bodice using previous techniques.

001Open a paint stock image in Photoshop and choose Select>Color Range. Use the dropper tool to select a red colour, set Fuzziness at 200 and use the plus dropper to select a deeper red, so we get all the red tones. Pull Fuzziness back a bit, so the background in the preview is black again rather than grey

002Arrange the layers that we’ve introduced over the top of the model’s dress, and then select one of them. Apply Image>Adjustments>Hue/Saturation. Make the selected paint splash blue to match the woman’s dress. This can just be a rough adjustment before merging the model with both dress layers

003Copy and paste the paint layer into our main image. Put it into a new folder called Paint, set at the top of our layer stack. Repeat this process with all the stock images, placing each onto the canvas. Solid colour backgrounds can be removed by using the Magic Wand tool to select them and then hitting X to delete

001 002 003


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PHOTOMANIPULATION


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FITTING THE ELEMENTSRETOUCH ALL IMAGES BEFORE GETTING STARTED

02 The seascape on the canvas will act as a

background for your sci-fi image. Select part of the

sky with the Lasso tool (L). Ctrl/right-click on it and

select Layer Via Copy. After this, go to Edit>

Content-Aware Scale (Cmd/Ctrl+Opt/Alt+Shift+C) to

stretch the sky up to the top. You can also use the

Gradient tool (G) if you prefer.

01 The first step is to create a file 5000

x 7000px at 300dpi. Go to www.

shutterstock.com and download

image ID 109899800, which is a

photo of a seascape with land on

the horizon. Copy and paste it into

the blank file and use the Free

Transform tool (Cmd/Ctrl+T), press

Shift and fit it to the bottom,

interpolating around 190%.

03 Download ‘sky.jpg’ from the Advanced

Photoshop website. Select all of these layers, flatten

them, then apply a Gaussian Blur at 9.0px. Create a

new layer, colour it black and go to Filter>Render>

Lens Flare. Add a flare at 100% Brightness and

50-300mm Zoom on the right-hand side to create a

point of light. Set this layer to Screen at 100%.

LEARN HOW TO COMBINE MULTIPLE ASSETS IN PHOTOSHOP TO BUILD THIS UNIQUE SCI�FI IMAGE

Photomanipulation is one step beyond

simple image retouching. The two have

various techniques in common but for a

photomanipulation to have life, it is also

necessary to master its lighting, composition and

depth of field. This can sometimes feel like piecing

together a huge puzzle, but if you are an advanced

user of Photoshop, it shouldn’t be a problem.

In this tutorial you will learn how to build a

surreal scene based on normal photographs. The

idea here is to create a utopian floating city, with its

composition involving aspects of entertainment,

technology, beauty and all the structure that a city

needs to have. The Warp, Free Transform,

Content-Aware Scale and Clone tools will be widely

used, along with blending modes and clipping

masks. It is necessary to cut out and balance each

photo before you start bringing them together. Only

Photoshop is needed!

Fit the elements together to give the scene a

harmonious and commercial character. Links to the

stock imagery used in the image you see here are

provided, but you can create your own or add and

remove elements as you wish. The real aim of this

tutorial is to teach you about composition, lighting

and how to make images as close to the real – or

surreal – as possible. Be as creative as you can.

Let’s get started!

EXPERT BLENDING


EXPERT BLENDING

Elton Fernandes lives in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. He has worked with Photoshop since 2007 and loves to transform simple photographs into impressive surreal images.

www.eltonfernandes.com

OUR EXPERT

Files are available online at blog.advancedphotoshop.co.uk/tutorial-fi les under Issue 115.

SOURCE FILES

TRANSFORMING THE REAL INTO THE SURREAL

Step 14: Colour changes

WORK IN PROGRESS

Step 7: Placement

Step 1: Compile everything


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08 INSERT A ROLLER COASTERAdd more interest to your city by pasting

in an image of a roller coaster, available from

Shutterstock. Image ID 55522621 works well in this

case. You will need to cut out around every detail of

the roller coaster for a professional and convincing

result. You can use the Eraser tool (E), Polygonal

Lasso tool (L) with a layer mask or the Pen tool to

do this. Whatever your choice of technique, you

need to have patience. Every detail is important in

ensuring that the final image is of a high standard.

06 CORRECT DISTORTIONDownload image 77785429 from

Shutterstock and cut out the buildings in the same

way that you cut out the island. In the stock image,

they have a wide-angle distortion that you will need

to fix. Use the Free Transform tool (Cmd/Ctrl+T) to

correct the distortion by placing them in line with

the straight angle. Download image 74919148 from

Shutterstock and place it into the canvas to

compose the full set. Lift up the fourth building to

help balance the image.

05 CREATE A CLIPPING MASKNow you will need to create a new blank layer with a Soft Light blending mode. Ctrl/right-click on

the layer and select Create Clipping Mask. With a white brush, start to paint in highlights on the left of the

island, and then repeat for the right side in the dark areas. This will help to acclimate the lighting. It is

important that you follow the direction of the light source. You can do this using the Gradient tool with black

and white colours, but this will be more generic.

07 FIT THE MONORAILNow it’s time to fit the monorail into the

composition. Download image ID 46658332 from

the Shutterstock website and fit it into the image so

that it snakes around the buildings. You will need to

extend the columns for a better result. You can use

the Clone Stamp tool (S) to do this, or use the

Rectangular Marquee tool (M), Ctrl/right-click and

select Layer Via Copy. Extend the columns until

they disappear behind the green plants. You can

then flatten all of these layers.

04 FLIP THE LAYEROnce you have prepared the background,

you can begin to add in the individual elements that

will make up your floating city. First, you will need

to download image ID 59083051 from Shutterstock,

which is an image of a rocky island. You need to use

the Pen tool (P) to make a precise cutout of it.

Select Free Transform (Cmd/Ctrl+T), Ctrl/right-click

and choose Flip Vertical to turn the island upside

down. You now have a base to work your floating

city onto. You can modify the image of the island

and add new rocks if you wish.

PHOTOMANIPULATION


Whatever your choice of technique, you need to

have patience. Every detail is important in ensuring that the

image is of a high standard


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09 DISGUISE WITH TREESCover the missing areas of the roller

coaster with trees. Go to www.stockfresh.com and

download image ID 1494530. Isolate the trees using

Select>Color Range with a Fuzziness of 50 and

create a mask. Select it and go to Filter>Blur to

improve the edges. Create a layer with a clipping

mask and use the Clone Stamp tool (S) to fix the

areas where Color Range doesn’t work. The trees

are great disguises, so use them! You could even

get creative and add some fruit to the trees.

12 APPLY TEXTURESNow you are going to apply some texture. Go back to the island layer. Open and apply

the image of ‘earth_texture.jpg’ (available to download from the Advanced Photoshop website)

onto the rocks. Hold down the Cmd/Ctrl button and click on the layer of the cliffs to make the

selection. Apply this selection in the texture layer and set the blending mode to Overlay at 100%.

Note that the shadows and colours are improved with Overlay blending. You can use this

method in other parts if you wish.

10 PLACE THE SATELLITENow download an image of a satellite

(Shutterstock ID 101799472). Cut it out and place it

in a harmonious position on the right-hand side of

the city. Always pay attention to the direction of the

light source. In this case, you will need to select the

layer using the Free Transform tool and apply the

Flip Horizontal option. Arrange the satellite

according to the lighting of the buildings and rocks.

Coherent lighting is essential. Use the Dodge and

Burn Tool (O) to correct this.

11 FIT WITH WARPWith Step 10 completed, you will now need

to download image ID 100612153 from Shutterstock

and use the brick edge to better integrate the city

with the island rock. Paste it onto your canvas and fit

it using the Free Transform tool (Cmd/Ctrl+T), Ctrl/

right-click on it and choose Warp. Pick up the edges

and fit it in as best a way possible. Adjust using the

Dodge and Burn tool (O) to create shadows and add

light effects. Erase the parts that are not needed, for

example the pavement.

QUICK TIPAlways try to use high-quality images from the same viewpoint and with similar, identical or generic illumination. This way, the photo stock will blend together nicely. To improve the lighting you can (and should) use the Dodge and Burn tool (O) to harmonise the different elements within your photomanipulation.

EXPERT BLENDING


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PAY ATTENTION TO THE AESTHETICSCOLOURS, DEPTH OF FIELD AND SHARPNESS

14 FIX DETAILSDownload an image of recycling bins from

Shutterstock (image ID 96735547) and use the

Clone Stamp tool (S) to remove the words and

create highlights and shadows, then add it to the

park. While you’re cloning, go back to the second

building in from the left. Remove the reflection with

the Clone Stamp tool (S). Be patient! Download

‘fence.png’ from the Advanced Photoshop website

and place it in the left-hand corner if you feel

necessary. This will help to harmonise the image

and give more detail to the photomontage.

15 THE COMPOSITION CONTINUESNow add in the flag of your favourite country. In this case, we placed the Brazilian flag at the top of

the first building on the left. Download image 28260301 from Shutterstock and desaturate just the white parts

of the plane. We scaled it down to make it quite small in the image, but you can use it as you wish! To

improve the composition of the scene, download an image of birds from Shutterstock (19079998) and place

them around the cliffs. You can also cut small pieces from the cliffs and simulate earth and rock falling

from them.

PHOTOMANIPULATION


To improve the composition, you can

cut small pieces from the cliffs and simulate earth and

rock falling from them

13 ISOLATE WITH COLOR RANGEIt’s time to add some roots.

Download the bonsai tree image 28329367

from Shutterstock. You can isolate the roots

from the tree using Select> Color Range.

Place the roots so that they appear to be

coming out of the rocks. Cut pieces of

texture (you will find a wide selection at

http://cgtextures.com) and apply it between

the edge of the city and the rock, creating

volume with the Dodge and Burn tool (O).

That way you’ll be able to give more volume

and detail to the rock. In this part you can

include your own personal touch!


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16 LIGHTS AND COLOURSCreate a Brightness adjustment layer set to -18. Create another with Color Balance. In the Tone

drop-down menu, choose Shadows and set Red to +1 and Blue to +5, then choose Midtones and set Green to

+5, Red to +2 and Yellow to -27, then choose Highlights and set Cyan to -16 and Blue to +1. Create a new

layer, paint it black using the Paint Bucket tool (G) and create a flare, but this time on the right-hand side. Use

a mask with the Gradient tool (G) to minimise the entry of light in front of the city. Set this layer to Screen at

100% as in the third step.

18 HIGH PASS AND NOISEApply an Unsharp Mask with an Amount

of 20% and a Radius of 50%, then apply a 70%

Fade. Duplicate the last layer and create a mask set

to Overlay. Only paint the areas where you can

improve the colour and contrast. Duplicate the last

two layers and flatten them again. Add a High Pass

filter with a 2.0px Radius. Desaturate it and apply an

Overlay blending mode at 100% to that layer. To

finish, select all the layers from the first flat layer,

duplicate and create the last layer. Apply the Add

Noise filter at 1%.

17 DEPTH OF FIELDYou should now have a complete composition, so let’s get to work with adding some details! Select

all the layers, duplicate and flatten them. Duplicate this flattened layer again. Apply 1.0px of Gaussian Blur.

Create a mask, Invert it (Cmd/Ctrl+I) and paint only the parts you want to be blurred. These parts should be

the buildings at the back, the plane, some roots of the rocks and the birds. Finally, select the last two layers

and apply Flatten again.

BLURRING TO GIVE REALITY

Depth of field is one of the most important features of photography. Putting it into practice in photomanipulations is extremely welcome. Besides the Gaussian Blur suggested in this tutorial, you could also create this effect using the Blur tool, blurring the edges, part or all of the element. Make sure you apply these effects to images a�er they have been cut out! When you have applied the blur, flatten everything and apply the Add Noise filter. This makes the image look more natural.

EXPERT BLENDING


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Compose stunning portraits and lavish fantasy landscapes with just a swipe of your digital brush

Digital painting62 Expert matte

painting Learn about the techniques experts

use to construct amazing worlds

70 Paint a fantasy snowscape

Create a digital illustration of a

dramatic frozen bay

76 Create a cyborg Work from a simple photograph to

build a futuristic cyborg with

blending modes and compositing

82 Produce fantasy lighting Sketch, paint and blend to develop

advanced fantasy artwork

88 Character design and illustration

Develop a character from the

conceptual stage to completion

94 Paint a steampunk-inspired portrait

Construct a compelling portrait

with a variety of digital painting


70PAGE

88PAGE


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One of the key elements of digital painting is realism. When creating these imaginary extensions into worlds unknown, the audience must be convinced of their reality; otherwise the illusion

– and the viewer’s immersion – is shattered Advanced Photoshop Premium Collection 61

94PAGE

82PAGE

76PAGE


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DIGITAL PAINTING

INDUSTRY EXPERTS OFFER THEIR TOP TIPS AND TRICKS TO HELP YOU CREATE DRAMATIC AND REALISTIC SCENES

F rom the famous closing shot of Raiders Of

The Lost Ark to the fantastical kingdoms

of The Hobbit’s Middle-earth, we have a lot

to thank matte painting artists for. Since

the early part of the 20th Century, the extremely

talented work of incredible illustrators has

transported us to amazing worlds that couldn’t

otherwise exist.

In recent years, however, the discipline of matte

painting has changed a great deal, with the

growing utilisation of 3D and digital tools

changing the approach to the craft. “It’s amazing

that 15 years ago traditional matte paintings were

still being created, but in this short time the craft

has evolved into a technique that involves many

other disciplines,” says Jaime Jasso, senior

digital matte artist at Industrial Light & Magic.

“There’s the use of 3D, fast photomanipulation

techniques, dynamic effects, compositing; the

digital era broke all boundaries for matte painting.

There’s no shot or environment that cannot

be achieved.”

Due to camera moves in film becoming more

complex, elaborate and ambitious, 3D software

now plays a larger part in the process, says

Anthony Eftekhari, matte painter at videogame

developer Blizzard Entertainment: “Directors are

demanding more from their camera moves for

matte painting shots. It’s no longer just a push in

or a pan; the camera now moves in and out of the

environment in an incredibly fluid way. To create a

matte painting shot for this kind of camera move

requires all of the elements in the shot to be 3D.”

As such, 3CG programs such as CINEMA 4D,

Maya, 3ds Max and the 3D texturing tool MARI are

now heavily used in the DMP process. “It would

DIGITAL PAINTING

EXPERT MATTE PAINTING


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029

be impossible to accomplish all of the visual

effects shots that a modern movie requires

without them,” says Francesco Corvino, matte

painter at RODEO FX. “There are specific tasks and

challenges that Photoshop alone cannot

accomplish, and although it’s great software, it

needs help from a 3D package.”

Frederic St-Arnaud, a DMP artist with 16 years

of experience, agrees. “Photoshop is an important

part of the process, but it shouldn’t be your only

strength,” he says. “You need to be able to create

photorealistic environments, but you should also

be able to project and composite the images in

software like NUKE.”

This isn’t to say that Photoshop doesn’t remain

an incredibly important part of the DMP pipeline.

Indeed, an expert knowledge of Photoshop, along

with a deep understanding of artistic

fundamentals, remain two key elements in the

DMP artist’s arsenal.

“Nothing beats learning about the foundations

first as an artist before going into being a DMP

artist,” says David Luong, senior cinematic artist

at Blizzard Entertainment. “Strong painting and

drawing skills, perspective, colour theory, art

history, light/shadow studies, photography and

real-world exposure understanding are all

important. On top of this, knowing how to paint

digitally in Photoshop, texturing, hard-surface

modelling for landscapes and cityscapes, lighting,

rendering and compositing are all important.”

A sound knowledge of Photoshop is now an

industry standard, and if you want to get into the

challenging world of DMP, it really is key. Read on

to find out how to use it to move forward with

your work.

David Luong www.davidluong.net

A senior cinematic artist

at Blizzard

Entertainment, Luong

also co-wrote the

fabulous book d’artiste:

Matte Painting 3.

Francesco Corvino www.francescocorvino.com

Corvino is a concept

designer and digital matte

painter who has recently

worked on such feature

films as World War Z and

The Hangover Part III.

Tim Matney www.timmatney.com

Matney began his career

as a 3D generalist in

games before transitioning

to feature films, where

he discovered digital

matte painting.

Frederic St-Arnaud www.starno.net

St-Arnaud is a visual

effects art director, with

film credits including

Indiana Jones and the

Crystal Skull, Sin City,

Silent Hill and more.

Harry Wormald www.harrywormald.com

Wormald studied 2D

animation at The Arts

Institute in Bournemouth

and has worked at The

Mill, LipSync Post

and Framestore.

Jaime Jasso www.jjassodigitalworks.com

Lead digital matte painter

at Industrial Light &

Magic, Jasso has worked

on films including Avatar,

Iron Man 2, Transformers,

and The Avengers.

Anthony Eftekhari www.artofae.com

Currently working in the

videogame industry,

Eftekhari creates

artwork as well as digital

matte paintings for

Blizzard Entertainment.

DMP TODAYDMP ARTIST TIM MATNEY DISCUSSES THE CHALLENGES HE FACES“Modern matte painters must be able to work with and within 3D software, as well as have good compositing skills. An understanding of cameras and lighting sure doesn’t hurt either. Also, being able to work and communicate with other people in the production pipeline is very important. You need to be able to work in many Photoshop layers and break your matte paintings out under specific Alpha masks. That way they can be reassembled and manipulated again by others later on.”

© starno.net

© timmatney.com



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DIGITAL PAINTING

Sometimes, when time is of the essence,

using photos is the best way to tackle DMP.

“If you need to create a realistic artwork in a

quick amount of time, you have no choice

but to use photos!” says Frederic St-Arnaud.

“If you don’t have your own camera or can’t

find the reference you need, I would search

for some on the internet, or if you really

have to, buy some stock photography,” says

David Luong.

Corvino agrees: “Having accounts with

stock photo websites can definitely be

useful. Also, Google Images offers a gigantic

library full of great photographs if you know

how to properly search for them. With time,

building your own library of images

becomes an extremely useful tool.”

Wormald has been building up his own

personal photo library for several years now.

“I try to shoot my own reference whenever

possible. That way I can go out and shoot at

the right time of day and the angles that I

need,” he tells us. “However, there are

instances when you can’t physically go out

to a certain location and shoot, so that’s

when photo stock comes in handy.”

Although 3D has grown to play a large part in DMP, Corvino

still believes that 2D work – including the use of photo stock

– remains an essential element of the craft. “Utilising

photographs to make a photoreal image is definitely the

backbone of every DMP piece,” he tells us. “Without the

constant and extensive use of photographs, it would be

impossible to deliver high-level photoreal images, at least

not with the short deadlines of the modern VFX industry.”

“I’ve often described DMP as ‘advanced photo collage’,”

adds Tim Matney, a digital matte painter with experience

spanning films, television and videogames. “DMP artists

often work from photographs, manipulating them,

combining them, and painting over and between them. The

overly painted look is not really desired in VFX as

photorealism is often our goal.”

Eftekhari agrees: “I use photography as often as I can,

because no matter how good a painter you are, you can’t

beat real life. To use photography in your paintings, you need

to have an understanding of colour correction to match your

plate or other reference images you’ve used, and alpha

extraction to cut out the parts of the reference image you

need for your painting.”

Although Google offers a gigantic repository of images,

and photo stock websites can certainly be useful, Luong

believes that using your own camera is usually the best

approach. “As I’m travelling, I’m snapping away pictures of

buildings in all sorts of angles and lighting scenarios. You can

shoot trees, roads, cars, walls; anything that you can use as a

texture later that is photoreal already. You can then colour

correct, transform and paint on top of it to make it work in

your matte painting. It’s essential to know how to manipulate

the photo for texture use, as well as know how its

perspective, camera lens, lighting and scale would fit into

your image. This is about as essential as knowing how to use

3D in DMP these days.”

Harry Wormald, digital matte painter at VFX studio

Framestore, is often provided with the studio’s desired source

imagery, or plates from the shot sequence to work with. “I

also personally have a large library of photographs that I

keep as reference, but I never use them outright. I only use

parts as a base, and change them to extremes. My own

personal work is almost entirely based from photographs,

which may seem like cheating to some, but hey, even

Vermeer used a camera obscura!”

For Jaime Jasso, use of photo stock is an integral part of

the DMP process, but it doesn’t necessarily make for an

easier approach. “I use a lot of photo stock even from the

concept art stage. It’s just more efficient to me,” he explains.

“However, blending images together is not easy at all. It’s not

a case of simply throwing the images together; you need to

visualise dozens, sometimes hundreds of images from

different sources as one single image.

“There’s no software that can tell you if you’re doing a good

or bad integration. Your trained eye will be the best judge, but

your eye will only know what your experience has taught it.

The more you practise and the more you study other artists’

work, the better you will be.”

© davidluong.net

© starno.net

CAPTURING REALITY

PHOTOS INTO DMP

BUILDING YOUR COLLECTIONOUR PANEL OF EXPERTS DISCUSS THE IMPORTANCE OF A LARGE LIBRARY OF REFERENCE PHOTOS


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001 BUILD A LIBRARYEven if I can rely on my personal photographic library, sometimes I have to do specific research to find a large number of elements with a very specific lighting or perspective. In this case, I spent quite some time gathering photos of clouds fitting my composition.

002 PLACE PHOTOS ON THE CANVASNext, I started to rotoscope and carefully place the photos I gathered on the canvas. The challenge here is choosing similar clouds that blend together, and building a sky with coherent lighting and perspective. Before this, you can paint a rough sketch of the sky to guide you.

003 INTEGRATE PHOTOGRAPHIC ELEMENTS When all the main photographic elements were in place, I started calibrating the contrast and colours of each image to reach a seamless integration. I like to use the Curves tool to achieve this. A lens flare placed over the sun was a nice touch to finalise the composition.

CREATE A STUNNING SKYFRANCESCO CORVINO REVEALS HOW HE BUILT THIS COMPLEX SKY FOR THE AARON SIMS TETHERED ISLANDS SERIES



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DIGITAL PAINTING

“If, during the day, the sun is casting dark shadows on

the ground, at night all of those shadows must

disappear or be significantly diminished, and be

replaced, for example, by the bluish and diffuse lighting

of the nocturnal sky dome and by the silver light of the

moon. This isn’t to mention that many times some sort

of artificial lighting is involved, such as lamps, each one

generating light and casting shadows.

“The best lighting to start with is definitely the one of

an overcast sky that’s casting very soft and diffuse

shadows. At that point the transformation to night-time

lighting can actually be quite simple, even for complex

environments. A quick colour correction of the whole

scene can be easily achieved in Photoshop.”

One of the key elements of DMP is realism. When

creating these imaginary extensions into worlds

unknown, the audience must be convinced of their

reality; otherwise the illusion – and the viewer’s

immersion – is shattered.

“Lighting is definitely one of the most relevant

and fundamental features in creating a great DMP

image. It’s what makes an environment believable

and deep,” says Corvino. Wormald agrees: “Lighting

in a matte painting is key to achieving realism.

Before starting any work on a matte painting, it’s

important to have a clear idea of where the main

light source is in the environment. Also consider

whether the light is clear and strong, or whether it’s

slightly softened by clouds or something else. Think

about how this will affect both the shadows and

the highlights.”

For Luong, realistic lighting demands a delicate

balance of light and dark. “Lighting is a very

powerful way to lead the eye in an image,” he

explains. “Show too much and your environment or

object will become flat, boring and unfocused. If you

light too little then it doesn’t showcase what needs

to be shown. If you’re going for an ambient

approach, highlighting some areas with soft light,

and then hitting one or two spots with a hard light

and cast shadow, could make for nice, contrasting

interest. Remember: shadow quality plays a strong

role just as much as light does. They work hand

in hand.”

When it comes to Photoshop techniques, Matney

cites “non-destructive manipulation” as his mantra.

“I use many adjustment layers, creating highs and

lows with Curves layers, painting within the mask.

The Gradient tool can be your best friend here!” He

also follows principal photography concepts to

ensure he is integrating light into the scene

properly: “Understanding such terms as directional,

bound, rim or ambient, among others, can be

highly empowering.”

Eftekhari asserts that good reference is vital to a

quality image. “The most important thing is the

ability to look at reference images and understand

what the light is doing and what the elements are

that make it look real,” he says. “You have to

consider the intensity and colour of the light, the fill

light from the sky, the amount of atmosphere in the

air and so on. These essential lighting cues will

bring up other elements such as contrasts of light

and dark, and the amount of detail and information

we see through atmospheric perspective.

“With night scenes, I see a lot of images that are

really dark, but in reality when we go outside at

night and look around we can see quite a bit,”

continues Eftekhari. “This usually causes the viewer

to question the believability of the lighting.” © starno.net

© harrywormald.com

© The Aaron Sims Company

LIGHT FOR REALISMHOW TO ACHIEVE BELIEVABLE LIGHTING

It’s important to have an idea of where the main light

source is. Also consider whether the light is clear and strong or slightly softened

MASTER NOCTURNAL LIGHTINGFRANCESCO CORVINO OFFERS SOME TIPS AND TECHNIQUES FOR THE


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001 ADJUST CURVESCreate a Curves adjustment layer above the daytime Florence photograph, and then adjust all four curves: first, RGB for brightness, drastically dropping the highlights, then lifting the midtones and shadows. Next, adjust the R, G and B curves individually to make the image more blue and saturated.

002 CREATE LAYER MASKSDuplicate the Florence layer, desaturate it, and then with Levels crush it to hard black and white forms. Duplicate your Florence layer again, group it and add a mask to the group. Copy your black and white crushed city into the mask, discarding the black and white layer. Adjust as in Step 1.

003 ADD LIGHT WITH SOLID COLOURS Create two yellow Solid Color adjustment layers, one for window lights and another for the streets. Paint your desired lighting within the masks, using a Color Dodge blending mode for the streets. Where needed, mask certain areas with the Lasso tool, and use a Radial Gradient to create glow.

CHANGING DAY TO NIGHT



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DIGITAL PAINTING

Matte painting requires a diverse range of skills,

thanks to the incredibly varied locations and

environments that modern-day films and

videogames require. From verdant forest worlds

to the towering spires of sci-fi cities, the DMP artist

must be capable across a variety of disciplines.

For Wormald, even creating a standard city can

vary greatly within itself. “If the city is far off in the

distance, it can be a relatively simple exercise,” he

explains. “If you have buildings in the footage

already in the distance, you can use these as a

guide for the black levels and colours of shadows

and highlights. However, if a city is closer to the

foreground, and with no reference in the plate, this

can be much more of a lengthy task,” he

continues. “In this situation, I would lay out the

basic structure in simple 3D geometry to get the

correct perspective. Then it’s a matter of working

photos and textures into this structure so they

follow the perspective, grading each element so it

fits and applying correct shadows and lit faces to

match the lighting of the scene.”

Jasso warns of creating too much chaos in

urban environments. For him, a sense of order is

key: “It’s important to set the architectural style

and correct mood,” he explains. “A nice balance

and visual composition is key in huge cityscapes.

If you don’t have order, you end up with a cluttered

image with tons of visual detail but no flow.”

In Corvino’s experience, the type of city can

drastically alter the pipeline used to tackle it.

“When I’m dealing with the destruction of an

existing city, my approach is significantly more

photograph-orientated. I grab photos of

demolished or damaged buildings and other types

of debris and I integrate them into the original city

plate. Many Photoshop tools are ideal for this. For

example, using the Curves tool, you can control

the contrast, brightness and colours of your

photographs and achieve seamless results.”

When working on natural environments such

as countryside scenes or areas of forest,

Wormald feels like he has more scope to be

artistic, but there’s still a challenge involved.

“Getting a good key from a tree against a sky can

be tricky around the edges,” he says. “This often

involves a fair amount of clean-up work in the

mask. I’ve been using the new Color

Decontaminate tool under Layer>Matting, which

is helpful for reducing the spill of the sky onto the

edges of the tree. This is also under the Refine

Mask tool, which has some other useful options

for work with edges.”

In addition, Matney believes that resolution

must be carefully considered when working with

scenes of this nature. “There’s a lot of overlapping

fine detail in natural environments, and it’s a great

deal of work separating and cleanly masking

them. One technique I use is to work at twice the

output resolution. Once scaled back down to the

output size, a lot of small details or loose areas

will condense and tighten up. So, if the matte

painting was for a TV show at HD 1080p (1920 x

1080), I would work at 3840 x 2160.”

From verdant forest worlds to the towering spires of

sci-fi cities, the digital matte artist must be capable across a variety of disciplines

STORY SETTINGS MASTERING ENVIRONMENTAL DESIGN


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© starno.net

“When working on space scenes, I look at NASA

imagery for inspiration,” says Luong. “They have

tons of high-resolution photos that are free to

the public. You can also take stills from sci-fi

movies. Use them to build out some of the

planets using reference, as well as painting it to

enhance the texture, and then spherise that into

a planet shape using Photoshop.”

“Be aware of where the light from your sun is,

and the scale of the planet’s elements,” adds

Matney. “Adding clouds, oceans, mountains or

craters at the right size can set your overall scale

and tell your brain how big the thing is.”

For Corvino, it’s all about creating a sense of

depth in your image. “Place your camera inside a

nebula, where space is not just emptiness. Here,

gases and other elements create atmospheric

effects, some indirect illumination and significant

transition in values.

SKYLINE EXTENSION DAVID LUONG REVEALS HOW TO USE THE VANISHING POINT TOOL TO CLONE TEXTURES WITHIN YOUR DMP

01 AREA TO EXTENDHere, I wanted to fill in

the top, unconstructed parts of

the middle buildings in the

original plate using a similar

texture from the bottom of the

buildings. This is a perfect case of

using the Vanishing Point tool in

Photoshop to clone textures.

02 THE VANISHING POINTTo use this tool , you will

need to go to File Menu>

Filter>Vanishing Point. On the far

left-hand side there’s an icon with a

+ sign and a grid next to it. That’s the

Create Plane tool. Use it to draw out

your perspective lines of the area

you want to clone the texture from

and follow the guides.

03 START CLONE PAINTINGFrom here, you can extend

the guide to the length of the areas

that you want to clone and start to

clone paint upwards. Hit OK once

you’re done and you’ll have a nicely

cloned painted patch in the right

perspective. You can use this

technique to help add photos of other

buildings to your scene.

THE FINAL FRONTIERDAVID LUONG, FRANCESCO CORVINO AND TIM MATNEY TALK US

© The Aaron Sims Company


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http://starno.net




DIGITAL PAINTING


DIGITAL PAINTING

Lopez is a profesional matte painter and art director working at Epics FX Studios in Mexico City. He now has two European movies under his belt, plus several TV shows.

EDUARDO LOPEZ MUSTAROS

OUR EXPERT

On the disc you will fi nd a screencapture video of the entire design process from start to fi nish, plus all of the stock images and the original PSD fi le. The brushes used in the tutorial are also included.

SOURCE FILES


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PAINT A FANTASY SNOWSCAPE

PAINT A FANTASY SNOWSCAPECREATE A DIGITAL MATTE PAINTING OF A FROZEN BAY

IN A STRIKING FANTASY ENVIRONMENT



Let us transport you to the furthest, coldest places with this fantastic matte painting tutorial, which

shows you how to create a digital illustration of a frozen bay in a surreal landscape. Manipulate

images over a base render to build up your scene using painting techniques, and then use a graphics

tablet to paint in the detail on the ice. You will use masks and adjustment layers extensively to blend

the different images and achieve photoreal, dramatic results. Different elements will create a foreground

presence, which you can then use as a composition tool to build up and add to the base image. You will also

learn to detail your piece and refine your painted sections to minute detail.

We recommend that you watch the video on the free disc beforehand to catch the action and details as

they happen and get a better understanding of what is being done, to clear out any doubts you might have

before starting. On the disc you’ll also find stock images, brushes and the original PSD file. You need a

strong knowledge of Photoshop in order to complete this tutorial to the standard seen here, but don’t be

afraid to try out the techniques whatever your level.


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DIGITAL PAINTING

04 BLENDING MODESThe use of blending modes, in this case the

Overlay mode, allows you to paint in simple layer

highlights or shadows as needed, taking you one

step further to merging the different pieces with the

base plate. Simply sample colour from the highlights

in the plate and apply them where needed, to

increase the brightness of a surface and make the

light direction more apparent in the selected region.

This is also a non-destructive process that can be

fine-tuned or reduced in opacity as needed.

01 BUILD UP THE FOREGROUNDFirst find all the images needed for the

scene – we’ve taken care of this for you by

supplying them on the disc. These include the

mountain JPEGs and ‘bay.jpg’. Extract the sections

you need and start placing them roughly on the

base image provided to find a good composition.

Make sure the different sections are placed in a

realistic manner and you don’t have weird

mountainsides going nowhere.

03 LAYER MASKSA brilliant tool at your disposal is the use

of layer masks to quickly cut out sections and

make them sit on the image, to give you a sense of

the look and composition quickly. However, as

these masks are non-destructive, you can edit and

refine them as much as you need without worrying

about having to go back and extract the same

image again, or about little mistakes in the

extraction process. Instead, be creative and use the

masks without fear of messing anything up.

02 ADJUSTMENT AND BLENDINGA very important step that you need to

start doing right away is to blend the images to the

environment, both through colour and shading. This

allows you to get a good feel of how the different

sections are sitting on your image and which areas

could do with filling in. This also helps to avoid any

distracting inconsistencies. Once you have adjusted

each section at least roughly to the plate, it’s much

easier to go ahead and find a good composition and

keep the creativity flowing.

BASE IMAGE TO RENDER

Step 14: Create reflections

WORK IN PROGRESS

Step 5: Screen the lights

Step 1: Extract images

A brilliant tool at your disposal is the use of

the layer masks to quickly cut out sections


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07 EXTEND THE TOWNNow you want to extend the town beyond what you have already placed, so do this with the help of

the Clone tool and a small brush. You can also use the Clone tool to choose interesting, varied sections of the

lights and eliminate those that are not very interesting; just be sure to set your Clone tool to Current Layer in

the top settings bar. Then clone all around the bay to extend the town out from the main area and into the

surrounding land.

08 LIGHT LEVELSYou should now have your city dispersed

around the edges of the bay. At this point you can

adjust the light levels of the town by using a Levels

layer clipped to the main lights. Adjust the Levels to

increase the contrast and bring out the highlights,

yet at the same time increase the blacks. As you

have this layer in Screen mode, it means that the

blacks are hidden even further and the bright lights

get boosted even more, consistently giving a better

look for your town.

06 SCREEN AND MASKSet the layer mode for your lights to

Screen so that all the black is quickly discarded, and

then create another layer mask to get rid of what

you don’t need, effectively placing your lights across

the bay. Make sure there are no lights where it

would seem unlikely for a structure to be built, such

as on steep hillsides. Mask away until you have all

the light following the coast and placed on the land

for the base of your town.

05 TOWN LIGHTSOnce you have the base of your landscape laid out, you will now use an image of a night city scene to

quickly build up the appearance of a town on your bay. Copy the image ‘night_town.jpg’ from the disc into

your Photoshop document and then scale it down. You will need to rotate it a bit so that it matches the angle

of the surface below. Also make sure that the size of the town corresponds to the image’s perspective.

QUICK TIPA non-destructive workflow allows you to create your artwork freely without having to worry if the next step will be a problem further down the line. It also means that you can decide later if you need to adjust or readjust any aspect of your image, rather than having to make decisions on the spot. With non-destructive editing, creativity and experimentation are always welcome.


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DIGITAL PAINTING

10 ICE BASEYou can now start painting the base for the

ice covering the bay. Create a new layer and sample

a light blue-white from the image ‘snow.jpg’ on the

disc, then start painting in the base structure for

what you envision to be the ice covering the bay,

painting in the smaller sections that break off as the

ice sits further into the water. There is no need to

worry about the small details just yet.

09 LIGHT HUETo fine-tune the city’s lights even further, you can now apply yet another adjustment layer. This time

go with the Hue/Saturation adjustment, and reduce the Saturation slightly to get rid of the orange and red

excess. You can then use a small amount of blue tint to make the lights appear somewhat colder in order to

match the rest of your scene, yet once again keeping control of the non-destructive workflow. This means

that you can go back and adjust the lights at any time.

12 ADD TEXTUREUse the ice image on the disc to add extra

texture to the frozen bay. Copy ‘ice.jpg’ onto a new

layer and scale and distort it into place and

perspective over the ice. You can duplicate or clone

it several times to cover the entire bay, and use a

dirtier texture for the shaded areas. Then just clip it

over the ice layer and reduce the Opacity to about

68%. After that you can spend a bit of time refining

all of the other layer masks and making sure the

edges are clean.

11 INCREASED ICE DETAILOnce you have the base, you can go in with an increasingly smaller brush to start adding detail,

getting rid of all the obvious paint strokes, refining the shapes and making them more solid as you go. You

can also start sampling darker shades to add shadow over the ice, taking into consideration where the light is

coming from. Add another level of detail to the ice surface by refining what the base has provided for you,

eliminating the rough strokes or following them if needed.

QUICK TIPSolid colour layers in different overlay modes are a great way to add drama and contrast to a scene, giving you the freedom to mask and reduce the opacity as needed, and even combine them to get interesting results. Don’t hesitate to experiment with them.


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13 MOUNTAIN HIGHLIGHT AND BOATYou will now use the technique you used

earlier to paint some highlights onto the

background mountain. Make sure they are in

keeping with the direction of the scene’s light

source and do them on a layer in Overlay mode.

Then extract the image of the boat from ‘boat.jpg’ to

add a bit of action to the middle of the bay, and

again use a couple of adjustment layers to shade it

and adjust the tone to match the image.

15 FINAL LOOKTo finish the matte painting off, add several colour and toning layers on top to add more drama into

your image. Cool off the shadows and increase the warmth from the sun so you have a nice contrast of

colours and shades to frame your scene. On each layer, use a soft brush and masks so the effect is applied

only where you need it. Be sure to take a look at your PSD file and study each layer setting.

14 MOUNTAIN REFLECTIONYou now need to duplicate all the layers for the background mountains and then flatten those layers

to use them as a reflection in the water. Once you have done this, flip it upside down and place it as a mirror

image below the mountain range; then when it is in position, once again use a mask to get rid of everything

that is not over the water. Reduce the opacity of the layer, and adjust the Color Balance so it has a colder hue.


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DIGITAL PAINTING


DIGITAL PAINTING


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CREATE A CYBORG

DEVELOP AN INSPIRING IMAGE USING LITTLE MORE THAN A SINGLE PHOTOGRAPH, PHOTOMANIPULATION AND DIGITAL PAINTING TECHNIQUES

CREATE A CYBORG C yborg effects are increasingly popular, but

don’t always have to be utterly frustrating.

Photoshop makes this type of project far

more accessible by coupling photo editing

tools and digital painting equipment under one roof.

Mastering Photoshop brushes offers us a head

start in all instances. Our goal is to create the

ultimate female cyborg, which is achieved by using a

single standard brush, a drawing table, core digital

painting and photomanipulation techniques. You are

supplied with specific Brush Preset settings which

will help us to create the shapes and detail needed.

We also explore ways to layer our image, utilise a

host of blending modes and composite external

assets to create special effects. Experience of

painting digitally, or at least a strong enthusiasm to

learn, is recommended to get the most out of this

tutorial. The inspiration for this artwork comes from

several contemporary sources, including the Mass

Effect videogame series and the iconic movie Blade

Runner, whose visual language shaped a timeless

idea of science fiction.

A video tutorial that goes into further detail about

painting techniques is supplied on the disc.

03 CROP OUR IMAGEBefore proceeding, get

the best out of the composition

through cropping. When pressing

C in Photoshop CS6, the default

view in the context menu of the

cropping tool is Rule-of-thirds,

but this must change to the

Golden Spiral. You will notice the

spiral that appears when the

image is moved in cropping

mode. Then place the model’s

nose in the centre of the golden

point as seen in the screenshot.

01 CUT OUT OUR MODELFirst, remove the background. Use the

Polygon Lasso tool to make a rough selection

around the model. It’s not necessary to refine this, as

the silhouette of the model will change throughout

our process and hair will be painted later. Fill the

background layer with a grey colour (#45434e).

02 PAINT NEW SKINCreate a new layer. Centralise the model,

then define the missing side of her back using the

Polygon Lasso tool. Choose a large round brush set

at 70% Opacity. Pick existing skin colours with the

Eyedropper tool, then paint in rough blocks of colour

to define an area to match the existing skin closely.

PREPARING OUR MODELRECONSTRUCT THE ORIGINAL STOCK USING PHOTOSHOP BRUSHES

Step 19: Introduce detail

HOW TO CREATE A MACHINE

WORK IN PROGRESS

Step 7: Blueprint sketch

Step 1: Extract the model

Oliver Wetter is a German digital artist. He has a background in construction equipment and makes a living as a freelance illustrator and lecturer in digital painting.

OLIVER WETTERwww.fantasio.info

OUR EXPERT

Supplied on this issue’s disc you will find a low-resolution mechanical sketch to work from, as well as a video documenting our entire conceptual development.

SOURCE FILES


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http://www.fantasio.info




DIGITAL PAINTING

04 BRUSH SETTINGSActivate the Brush Presets panel and

choose a hard mechanical round brush with a 13px

size. Also, set Roundness at 56%, Spacing at 20%

and Hardness at 65%. Activate Shape Dynamics,

setting Size Jitter control to Pen pressure. Activate

Shape dynamics, setting Angle Jitter to Initial

direction. Make sure both Noise and Smoothing are

checked. Set brush Opacity at 85%. Save this brush

as a preset. Practise with these brush settings and

your tablet device before proceeding.

07 BACK TO OUR ORIGINALUse the Move tool to drag our 72dpi sketch layer back into our original 300dpi image version. Adjust

the size of our pasted layer to fit the model, using the Transformation tool (T). Since you’re going to paint

details in there, interpolation is welcome. Set the mood for the following paint work by using the Color Lookup

feature in Photoshop CS6, which can be found in the Adjustments panel. Choose RedBlueYellow from the

Device Link menu to replicate the effect used in this tutorial.

08 MOOD LIGHTINGSince there is no photograph with a

different lighting setup to choose from, only make

limited changes. To relight the scene, create a new

layer and set its blending mode to Overlay. Then,

with the use of a drawing tablet, paint on this new

layer using the round brush that was created in

Step 4, at 50% Hardness and Size set between 50px

and 150px. Set brush Opacity at 90%. Pick the

#598ab7 colour from the TOYO 94 Color Finder

swatch that accompanies your Photoshop copy of

the installation.

05 THUMBNAIL VIEWClean the edges of the previously cut out

model with a soft Eraser tool, between 2px and 10px

in size. When finished, select Image>Duplicate,

Layers>Flatten, then change image DPI from 300 to

72 (Image>Image Size). The newly sized image acts

as a thumbnail sketch. Working at this size allows

you to decide many things, including whether the

stock photograph is worth purchasing. Basically, if

the initial ‘sketch’ looks promising in a smaller

version, chances are it will in full resolution.

06 BLUEPRINT SKETCHIf it is hard to draw mechanical parts at this

new size, cheat by using the draft supplied on the

disc. If you take on the challenge to draw a design by

yourselves, use a round black brush set to

approximately 80% Opacity to draw elements on a

new layer. Transparency creates welcome

overlapping of edges and allows the underground

colour to shine through. The latter is important, as it

allows us to pick up a variety of tonal values and

build an authentic design.

QUICK TIPExperiment with different shapes in our design process on new layers. However, creating the latter by hitting Ctrl/Cmd+Shift+Alt+N is an ungainly keystroke. When using a Wacom tablet, we can assign this shortcut to one button only, which saves a lot of time.


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CREATE A CYBORG

Before

After

THE RIGHT SELECTIONOn edges where the hair crosses the skin,

loosely use the Polygon Lasso tool to select

this area. Painting to this selection makes

sure we don’t overly paint unwanted parts of

a layer. Press Ctrl/Cmd+Shift+I to invert the

selection and paint to the edges, adding

shadow without painting over the hair.

ADDRESS OUR OUTLINEThis model invites us to play with the hair

outline. If this is done correctly, it gives the

viewer an easy shape to follow. Take a look

at the red marked outline for reference.

Although this is just a secondary

composition element, it’s useful to search

for such opportunities in existing imagery

and bring it to our attention.

MASTER OUR SCATTER BRUSHWork with a standard round brush, between 3px and 10px.

Pick existing hair colours with the Eyedropper tool. Make

sure there is a realistic look after the first pass by setting our

round brush to around 83% Scattering at a size of 6px, and

painting over the existing hair. Additionally, draw in some

random strands – black again rather than grey.

PAINT HAIR09


CREATE A CYBORG


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DIGITAL PAINTING

CREATE MECHANICAL PARTSBUILD A SYNTHETIC LOOK USING LAYERING EFFECTS

10 KEEN OBSERVATIONBeing tech-savvy is not a necessity, but

having a good understanding of all things technical

can be really useful when following the previous

steps. In the video recording on the CD, discover

how to paint the mechanical parts in real-time. The

design process from the thumbnail stage in Step 6

will now be worked into with greater detail, using an

80% black brush on a new layer. This is the most

time-consuming application, but one that decides

the image’s believability.

11 BUILD UP DETAILStill shaping the underlying mechanical

parts, there are accurate values to work with in the

Sketch layer. Add darker tones to create shadow and

brighter values for highlights using the HUD Color

Picker (Opt+Shift right click/Cmd+Alt). Study

construction equipment to help fashion looks. Books

and movies as a reference are also allowed. Start by

using big bold shapes, working towards smaller

ones, it will be much easier to show what’s under the

surface. Imagination is encouraged.

12 CONSTRUCT WITH LAYERSThe spine is the trickiest part. While it’s

painted exactly the way the other design elements

are – using a standard round brush – one applied

pattern can be repeated. Select one finished section

using the Lasso tool, copy and paste this, and place it

below the source. Click Edit>Transform>Warp to

transform it. Pick up existing colours with the

Eyedropper tool and paint with them, creating

variations into the copied part. Shape edges with the

Eraser tool, making sure they don’t look too similar.

13 FIX THE EYE AREAThe eyes are the most important part of

any portrait, so make sure they are worth looking

at. Do this by adding a new layer and painting dark

values with an 80% Opacity black brush. From there

paint the eyelid darker to create a smoky effect.

While we’re in this area, we can also paint over

some distracting strands of hair. It appears as if her

right eyebrow is missing, but fix this with a small

round brush too.

14 CREATE SYNTHETIC EYESThe pupil deserves special attention as our

model lacks direct eye contact. Draw the pupil again

using a small round brush, 4px in size. Use the

Stamp tool to clone texture from the left eye into the

right one, including the specular highlight. Now

duplicate the iris and pupil areas with a Lasso tool

selection. Copy and paste through all the layers. With

a bright blue-white colour, paint texture to make the

eyes appear brighter.

QUICK TIPSince this tutorial is done using a standard brush, it’s highly recommended that you familiarise yourself with the brush settings dialog (F5) for the scattering of hair and skin. Another great helper is the HUD-color Picker, which allows you to choose colours on the fly.

PRACTICE MAKES PERFECTIt isn’t possible to lay down a concrete sketch to fill out. The challenge is that everything has to be painted from imagination, from rough shapes seen in a blurry sketch. Daily drawing practice will help to get better at this. There are some great schools, such as Feng Zhu, which specialises in the training of concept and industrial design (www.fengzhudesign.com/school.htm).

Besides mastering the technique, it’s vital to train your imagination daily. Foster a habit of spotting images in the clouds and trees. A great site to help challenge our imagination is Alchemy (www.al.chemy.org).


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http://www.fengzhudesign.com/school.htm

http://www.al.chemy.org




CREATE A CYBORG

15 BOKEH EFFECT Turn off the visibility of all layers related to

the model. Select the existing background layer and

pick the colour TOYO 0469 from the TOYO 94 Color

Finder Swatch. Set brush Opacity to 80%, Flow to

40% and blending mode to Color Dodge. The

roundness of the brush should be set back to 100%.

Now add some random spots with the mouse,

ranging from 500px to 2900px size. On some

occasions it needs two or more clicks to show the

effect. This pseudo-bokeh effect should stay in the

background – less is more.

16 IMPROVE OUR BACKGROUNDFor the synthetic, edgy-looking background

of the final version, use a stock image downloaded

for free from Media-Militia (www.mediamilitia.

com/3d-renders). Place the 4.PNG file exactly like it

is in the screenshot. Rotate it 90 degrees clockwise

to match the scene. Set this new layer’s blending

mode to Linear Dodge and set Fill to 80% to achieve

the same effect seen in the supplied screenshot. The

background with the pseudo-bokeh effect should

eventually sit with 100% visibility underneath this

stock image layer.

17 REVIEW THE PIXELSViewing the actual pixels up close will

show a number of visual discrepancies. These are

acceptable in a small, web-sized version of the

image, but will not work in a high-res version. We

discovered differences in the back, which had been

roughly painted in Step 2. We solved this issue by

creating a new layer, setting our brush to

Scattering at 1000%, then changed Size to 3px. By

picking up colours from the back with the

Eyedropper tool, it’s possible to apply a bumpy

skin texture by hand.

18 BOOST LIGHTFor the LED lights, we add a new layer

and paint with colour TOYO 0687 from the TOYO

Color Finder swatch. Using a round brush, we

depict spots that work as additional light sources.

To add values and glow, duplicate the finished

painted layer, apply a Gaussian blur set to 2.8px,

and apply a Color Dodge blending mode to the

resulting layer. Add another pass of Gaussian blur,

this time set at 8.5px, and a Screen blending mode

to a duplicate of the previous layer.

20 FINAL TOUCHESRepositioning the model, add rim light to

the shoulder, play with colour adjustments and

clean up the image. Use the Clone Stamp tool and

our round brush to do this. Add strands of hair on

top when adding room to the composition with the

CS6 Crop tool. Change the colouring of the technical

parts to a greyer, colder tone. Do this with

Image>Adjustments>Replace Color options, by

picking up the midtone of the brownish area and

changing Saturation to around -15%.

19 SIDE EFFECTSCreate a lens-flare effect in one of our LEDs on the spine by using the 29.PNG from this Media Militia

pack (www.mediamilitia.com/custom-lens-flares-pack-50-free-high-resolution-transparent-images). Set

this introduced layer’s blending mode to Screen, Opacity at 85% and Fill at 75%. Position the centre of the lens

flare over the LED light. Improve synthetic looks by changing the tone of our composition with a Blue Photo

Filter set to 45%. For contrast, we add a Gradient Map set with a Platinum style from the Photographic Toning

collection in Photoshop CS6. Set this adjustment layer’s blending mode to Soft Light and Fill at 50%.

QUICK TIPWhen revisiting a finished piece, it proves useful to have Layer Groups just for effects such as Photo Filters. Switch the visibility of these groups off when working on underlying layers, which helps to structure our work. If we work on top of these effects, our work becomes useless if we decide to change the colouring of our underlying layers.


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http://www.mediamilitia.com/3d-renders

http://www.mediamilitia.com/3d-renders

http://www.mediamilitia.com/custom-lens-flares-pack-50-free-high-resolution-transparent-images




DIGITAL PAINTING

It’s wise to make sure you have everything defined clearly

before moving on. A little spontaneity will prove handy, but not as handy as a solid base


DIGITAL PAINTING


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PRODUCE FANTASY LIGHTING

02 A CLEAR COURSE OF ACTIONBegin tightening up your line work and

organise the shadows and lights. Eliminate

scribbled brush strokes, as a good, solid direction

early on will dictate the difficulty of a piece. It’s also

wise to make sure you have everything defined

clearly before moving on. A little spontaneity will

prove handy, but not as handy as a solid base.

01 START YOUR SKETCHBegin sketching the figure very

loosely inside Photoshop on a new

layer. This is so that you can visualise

the proportions and composition you

need. A three-quarter view of an owl

moving towards the viewer has been

chosen here. This example is the best

design from a set of thumbnails, as it

made sure all of the needs of the piece

were met early on.

03 SEPARATE THE SKETCHYou’ll want to make sure that your bird is on a

separate layer without any loose or extra strokes. Check

for such artefacts by creating a layer beneath the sketch

layer and fill it with a pink colour. This reveals any stray

white and grey brush strokes in and around the sketch. If

there are any in your image, you will need to erase these.

F antasy paintings are very popular, with many digital artists plying a profitable trade from a range of

different styles. With the right skill set and techniques, you too can create concepts for multiple parties

within the entertainment industry. This tutorial aims to give you a head start.

You’ll begin with the sketch phase, drawing out some rough ideas in Photoshop, then you’ll discover

essential ways to add colour, detail and cohesive lighting to your images. Special effects will breathe further life

into these designs, mainly through the use of dramatic lighting effects that enhance atmosphere.

Of course, this is all made possible using Photoshop tools and options. Custom brushes have been supplied so

that you can make the marks seen in this tutorial. You’ll also discover ways to layer these new brushes, using the

power of Photoshop’s blending modes to produce exciting lighting effects.

Brushes are used to paint texture and detail, with Lock Layer and clipping mask controls letting you shape your

final design exactly as you want it. Ways to introduce tonality and colour temperature, again enhancing

atmosphere, are also taught. By the end of it all, you’ll be able to tackle your very own distinctive fantasy paintings.

LEARN ESSENTIAL BRUSH TECHNIQUES TO CREATE DRAMATIC LIGHTING AND VIBRANT COLOUR


GETTING STARTEDSKETCH WITHIN PHOTOSHOP

FROM SKETCH TO RENDER

Step 18: Create lighting

WORK IN PROGRESS

Step 17: Add background

Step 1: Rough sketch

Currently living in Chicago, concept artist Marco Nelor spends his time listening to music, drawing and painting. For updates on his process, tips and tricks, be sure to follow him on Twitter.

MARCO NELORmarconelor.tumblr.com

OUR EXPERT

On the CD, you will find all the brushes needed to replicate the effects learnt in this tutorial. Simply upload the advanced photoshop.abr file by double-clicking it.

SOURCE FILES


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http://marconelor.tumblr.com




DIGITAL PAINTING

08 PAINT FEATHERSIt’s time to start painting feathers. To do

this, select the brush labelled ‘700’, which closely

resembles the hackle you can find in owls. Take

care to not add strokes too wildly. Instead, apply in

a uniform manner, tracing the existing contour in

your owl’s form. This means you’ll create a more

authentic appearance. Studying a real-world

reference to get the right look isn’t cheating.

06 CREATE ATMOSPHEREIt was decided that the head would read

better if it were in front of the far wing, so you need

to add a little bit of atmosphere. Using the Marquee

tool once again, select an area outlining the owl’s

face and a portion of the wing behind it. Select a

rounded brush with soft edges and begin stroking in

the lighting from the top down, as your light will

likely be a top-down lighting.

04 ADD TEXTUREEarly on in a painting, it’s good to add a little texture to certain areas. Later, these earlier signs of

texture may show through and help to pick out subtle shapes, giving the painting a bit more life. Upload the

advanced photoshop.abr and select the brush labelled ‘20’. Paint texture near the light areas of the talon. Be

careful to not to paint too brightly this early on, however, as increasing the contrast too soon will make areas

seem overly bright or blown out later.

07 FORM SHADOWGetting comfortable with the Selection

tool? Good, as you’re about to practise that same

technique here by carefully selecting the legs of your

owl. Now press Cmd/Ctrl+Opt/Alt+I to invert your

selection. This effectively lets you paint behind the

selected area. Use another soft brush in order to

paint in some shadow behind the legs. Again, take

care not to paint your marks too dark.

05 COPY AND PASTEA useful trick when creating similar

features like the talons is to use a copy and paste.

Since the shapes will be painted over later, you

won’t run the risk of each talon looking too similar.

Select a talon with the Marquee tool (L), then press

and hold the Cmd/Ctrl key as you drag the selected

area to another location. Doing this creates a

duplicate of the selected item.

QUICK TIPThe secret to applying textured brushes successfully is to build up gradual details using consistent strokes. Keep your textures and textured brushes from getting too messy, as they may begin to lay down too much texture and overpower the entire effect.


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09 ADD BLACKSUp until this point, the image will be rather

grey. But this is fine, as it has allowed you to make

sure that the focal point is yet to be decided.

Usually, you’ll want your focal point to be your

subject’s face. So it’s here that you’ll apply your first

solid black to create the owl’s eyes. Use a Selection

tool to draw out a good shape for these, then fill

your selection with a solid black. This makes the

eyes the darkest point, and point of focus.

12 RENDER FEATHERSIt’s a good idea to layer your painted feathers. Start with smaller feathers near the top of the wing

and paint three rows. Begin with the bottom row, painting in loose feathers. Add a layer on top and paint

values that create the shadow from the feathers that will be above that. Then paint those feathers in on a

new layer above your shadow layer. Working backwards in this way makes the feathers appear to be

casting shadows.

10 HIDE SELECTIONSYou’ll have made a few of these by now

and they can be distracting. With an area of your

painting selected, in this case the eyes, press Cmd/

Ctrl+H to hide your selection. Sometimes doing so

will help you see what you’re doing more clearly.

With your selections hidden, you can begin detailing

the eyes, which is done using a soft grey brush on

the outer area and a sharper white brush for the

reflective highlights.

11 BUILD FEATHER TEXTURESContinue painting your bird and refining

your form and shapes. Uniformly paint the wings,

slowly building colour until you create solid-looking

results. Do this on a new layer (Cmd/Ctrl+Opt/

Alt+Shift+N). The smoother you keep your forms

now, the cleaner your painting will be later. It’s not

until the very end, when bringing all your painting

marks together, that you start to fashion feathers

with your strokes.

13 PAINT LONG FEATHERSNow that you’re done with the smaller

feathers, you need to paint a larger one. First, create

a new layer (Cmd/Ctrl+Opt/Alt+N), then use the

Marquee tool (L) to create a long, feather-like

rectangular shape. Use a soft round brush to paint

one side dark and another side a bright grey,

manually creating a gradual gradient. This gives the

illusion of a single feather, which is longer and

thicker than the rest you’ve just added.

DETAILED BLUEPRINTLAY THE FOUNDATION FOR FOCAL POINTS, TEXTURE AND FORM

Begin detailing the eyes, which is done using a soft

grey brush on the outer area and a sharper white brush for the reflective highlights


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DIGITAL PAINTING

RENDER YOUR LOOKCREATE DRAMATIC LIGHTING, CONTOUR AND DETAIL IN YOUR IMAGE

14 COPY AND PASTE FEATHERSUsing what you’ve learnt about the

Marquee tool and the duplicate technique, you now

implement a combination of the two. Remember

the long gradient feather you just painted in the last

step? Well, now you’re going to copy and paste this

into a new layer and slightly enlarge it. Place it so it

overlaps the original large feather layer. Continue to

copy, paste and place a few dozen times until you

have a long row of feathers.

15 BREAK UP REPETITION Build upon the last steps by repeating their

processes, painting and placing feathers in the owl’s

opposite wing. Make sure you follow the right

direction for an authentic look. To break up the

monotony of some of these feathers, erase parts of

the edges in some of your layers. Also elongate

some of them slightly and skew the shape of others

a bit. This allows you to create the beginnings of a

very interesting wing pattern for your owl.

16 UNIFORM LIGHTINGNow that you’ve created your feathers, you

will need to add larger shadows. First, merge down

your owl layers, then make sure that this new layer

is locked by clicking on the Lock icon located at the

top of the layers tab. Now, apply a large, dark grey,

soft round brush and lightly add some shadow to the

rounded parts of the top of the wing. This makes

sure your wings are being lit by the same light

source as the rest of the image.

18 SECONDARY LIGHTSince the plan is to have your main light

source closer to the viewer, a secondary light

source can be established – in this case, the moon.

On a separate layer, draw a circular selection with

the Elliptical Marquee tool. Set this layer’s blending

mode to Color Dodge and paint in the moon with a

few large strokes, using a neutral grey colour. This

gives the moon its glow effect. Also use the same

brush around the moon to give it a halo effect.

17 START THE BACKGROUNDSince your owl is on its own layer, you can

create a layer beneath and begin the background.

This image will eventually reveal a bright scene with

sparks and cinder flying from a fire. However, to

make these effects workable, you need a dark,

muted background full of dark purples, dark browns

and dark reds. While it seems dark now, adding your

effects later will help keep the focus on your owl,

rather than spreading the focus around haphazardly.

QUICK TIPWhen painting to a Color Dodge blending mode layer, using a grey colour will create a very natural and even glow. Painting with a saturated colour gives a glow similar to that colour.

MASTERING SPARKSYou’ll see that spark effects were added to the final image. You can recreate this effect by using several layers and a very easy technique. Create a new layer, set its blending mode to Color Dodge and scatter in some simple sparks with an orange-coloured brush. Now duplicate this layer. Duplicating a Color Dodge layer into itself will make the sparks glow even brighter than before. Now you must copy, paste and place your sparks around the image by selecting the Move tool, holding Opt/Alt and dragging them to other locations. Create depth of field effects, making some seem close up, others further away.


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24 FINAL DETAILSIn the same way as you’ve done in

previous steps, create another layer and lock it to

the armour layer. Set the new layer’s blending mode

to Color Dodge and choose a saturated orange

colour. Paint this on the side of the armour that you

feel should receive the most light, with the brightest

parts nearest the crease. This gives you a balanced

exposure, and good shadow and light separation.

Repeat the same process for the trimming. Use the

Hair brush (brush 125) to zoom in and add more

detail to the face, working your way outward from

the focal point and detailing as you go.

21 BRING IT BACKSince the layer below this new light layer

is a dark brown colour, it’s possible to bring back

shadows – just erase areas from the Color Dodge

light layer above. Create dramatic shadows in the

feathers by using the Marquee tool to make

selections like in the example shown, then delete

from these. This method is much better than

painting with more black because the darkest

colour has been established at this point.

23 ADD ARMOURNow that the hard part is over, you can

begin to make some armour that fits with your

image lighting. Use a solid colour that outlines the

entire shape of the armour on a new layer, then

lock it. This allows you to paint evenly over the

entire shape, rather than painting each piece

individually. Doing the latter has a higher chance of

throwing off the balance of the armour. Do the

same for the armour’s trimming.

20 REFLECTIVE LIGHTINGUsing the same method outlined in the

last step, create another layer, except this time set

its blending mode to Color Dodge. Link the layer

again. Even though it appears to be linked to the

last layer, they’re both actually linked to the owl

layer. Use this layer to add both blue rims of light in

the edges of the wings and yellow lighting that

emulates reflection from the fire. You can also

erase lighting and reapply until you’re satisfied.

22 BACK AND FORTHAt this point in your painting, it’s important

that you start to flesh out your colouring and

continue to tweak your image lighting. You could

also add more subtle hints of colour, perhaps some

purple or pink hues. Always remember that if you

want to add more lighting, then you do this

specifically to your Color Dodge blending mode

layer. You can take this away by simply erasing it to

show the layer beneath.

19 CLIP LAYERSBack with your owl and it’s time to add a

little colour. At this stage, it’s best to keep everything

simple – and in this case dark. Create another layer

above the owl layer and link the two by hovering

your mouse between the layers while holding Cmd/

Ctrl. Click and it links the layers. This will ensure that

anything painted on this layer will only affect the

layer below it, which will be your owl layer and not

the background.

QUICK TIPNow that your major elements are completed, go over everything you’ve done and detail your brush strokes and lighting. Keep taking a step back to check your progress. This will ultimately help push the piece to final completion.


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DIGITAL PAINTING

CHARACTER DESIGN AND ILLUSTRATIONDEVELOP A CHARACTER CONCEPT AND BRING IT TO LIFE USING

PHOTOSHOP’S DIGITAL PAINT TOOLS AND TECHNIQUES

This tutorial will teach you how to create an

illustration suitable for a children’s

storybook. You will be guided through the

entire process, from the very first tiny

thumbnail sketches, all the way to the final image.

Learn how to handle composition, colour schemes,

overall readability, effective shortcuts, and other tips

and tricks. The main focus will lie in creating an

illustration that tells a tale.

The painting was made for a spread based on a

short story and was commissioned by a Swedish

youth magazine. Painting animals and creating

story-driven art that’s geared towards a younger

audience can be a lot of fun. Being able to paint cute,

expressive and appealing illustrations that really

reach out to the viewer has always been an

important goal for many artists.

If you have a Wacom tablet, we definitely

recommend using it from start to finish for more

control. The image was also partly painted using

some basic brushes, but we did use a few custom

brushes from a free brush set created by the talented

artist Shaddy Safadi. You can download his brushes

at www.shaddyconceptart.com/download.


DIGITAL PAINTING

Andrea is a concept artist and illustrator living and working in Sweden, who specialises in character and story-driven art. She works mainly with games, film, storybooks and editorial illustration.

ANDREA FEMERSTRANDnoukah.com

OUR EXPERT


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http://www.shaddyconceptart.com/download

http://noukah.com




CHARACTER DESIGN AND ILLUSTATION




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DIGITAL PAINTING

04 REFINE THE CHARACTERSNow you will need to create another document to implement your final design. Feel free to make it even

larger this time and fill the background with a light-grey tone. Select the character sketch with the Lasso tool from

the rough sketch, copy the selection and paste it into your new document. After that, scale the characters so that

they fill out the whole canvas and lower the opacity of the layer, then create another empty one and start refining

the sketch further. To do this, use a brush with hard edges, and with the opacity settings activated.

03 CREATE A ROUGH SKETCHPick the thumbnails that are closest to

your idea and start arranging them on your canvas.

Lower the opacity of that layer and create a new

one on top of it. Keep sketching until the entire

image works, and keep experimenting. It’s great to

constantly ask yourself questions such as: What’s

the purpose with the image? How does the story

go? Which moment works best for this illustration?

What style should it have? Who’s the audience?

Does the composition direct the viewer properly?02 THE VERY FIRST THUMBNAILSStart by putting down a bunch of

thumbnails. Keep them small and pick a medium-

sized brush that you feel comfortable with. This is

the ‘sandbox’ phase, and any idea is allowed. Focus

on experimenting with pose, composition and

proportions. The position of the little thumbnails is

not that important, just make sure that you get every

idea out of your system. Stay very loose and feel free

to play around a lot before settling with your idea.

01 CREATE A NEW CANVASFirst, you’ll need a brand new canvas, by

going to File>New and create a canvas that is

210mm x 148mm, and at 300dpi. It’s better to keep

the canvas small at first so that you can pay

attention to the whole image. Fill the background

layer with a light-grey tone. It’s often better to work

on a darker canvas, since it’s more comfortable for

your eyes. Then create a new empty layer on top

– that’s the layer you’re going to sketch on next.

It’s often better to work on a darker canvas, since

it’s more comfortable for your eyes

BRINGING IDEAS TO LIFE

Step 19: Final polish

WORK IN PROGRESS

Step 8: Block in colour

Step 3: Rough sketch


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08 BLOCK IN THE BASE COLOURSAfter settling on a nice colour scheme, it’s time to block everything in. This will make things so much

easier when starting to paint the illustration. The base layers can be created using the Pen tool. Start by

drawing the main shape to create a new path, then make that path a selection and fill it with a basic colour.

Proceed by creating basic shapes for the different background elements, the wolf and the girl. Lock the

transparency of each layer when done.

09 CREATE CLIPPING MASKSThis stage really is a true time-saver, and

it’s one of my favourite Photoshop shortcuts. Start

by creating new layers on top of each ‘blocked’ layer,

then press Opt/Alt and hover the cursor in-between

the two layers. The lower layer will become the

parent of the upper one, and it will then stay within

that shape, no matter how messy you paint. It also

means that you only need to block in the main parts

once. You can then focus on the fun part – the

painting itself!

07 COLOUR TESTBefore getting too serious with the

illustration, it’s a good idea to quickly flatten the

greyscale sketch and create and save a new version

that will serve as a colour palette later on. On the

new document, create a new empty layer and set

the layer blending mode to Color. Now you can start

painting some colours in without affecting the

tones. This one will work well with lots of greens as

the dominating hue, with a slight touch of brown,

yellow and red.

06 TRY IT OUT IN GREYSCALEIt’s time to play around a bit with the

values. Block everything in with flat tones just to

find some suitable values that will work well with

the composition and mood. Paint on a new empty

layer that’s created underneath the sketch layer. A

nice rule to go by is that if things work well in

greyscale, then it will definitely work out in colour

as well later on. In general, it’s also nice to have

several possibilities to choose from before you

start to colour a new piece.

05 LOWER THE OPACITYWhen the characters are more refined

and you feel happy with them, copy the layer and

add it to the previous sketch document. Remove

the rough version of the characters and merge the

sketch layers together. The sketch should only

work as a vague guideline for the painting itself, so

lower the Opacity to about 30% and lock that layer.

Most of the other layers (except some adjustment

layers that affect the entire image) created for this

painting will stay underneath the line drawing.

QUICK TIPThis shortcut that can be created through Actions is very handy when painting digitally in Photoshop. Simply create an Action that flips your canvas horizontally when pressing a specific key, perhaps F2. Flipping your canvas often makes you look at the painting with fresh eyes, and you can immediately see and fix any proportions or compositions that may be a bit off.


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DIGITAL PAINTING

15 THIRD PAINTING PASSThe image is now ready for some slight

detailing and early polishing. Play around with

different textured brushes to get that traditional,

painterly feel. Safadi’s custom brushes will suit

perfectly for this phase. Vary the opacity of the

brushes to gain full control while you paint. Create

new empty layers on top of the parenting layers if

you feel unsure and want to redo, or remove

unnecessary changes as you paint.

14 ADD SOME LIGHTIt’s a bit dark here, isn’t it? To solve this,

create new layers for the background and the

characters, then connect them to the layers

underneath as clipping masks. Set the layer mode

to Color Dodge and pick an orange midtone to paint

with. Use a hard brush without any Opacity settings

and paint in highlights, ensuring they are in keeping

with the direction of the light. Let those layers stay

rough for now, as long as it looks good overall.

12 FLIP YOUR CANVAS REGULARLYGo to Image>Image Rotation>Flip Horizontally on a regular basis to check the proportions, balance

and composition. When you flip the canvas, you’ll see immediately if the nose looks off, or if the position of the

eyes is awkward. It’s a lot easier to spot mistakes. The great news is that you get to make the changes in

time. If the image is working in both angles, then it’s probably balanced.

001Decide on the direction of your light source and paint highlights accordingly. Feel free to stay a bit loose

004Start with slightly rendering the form of the characters and tree trunk, keeping the direction of the light in mind

003Take a step back and think about which parts of the characters need some extra work, like the fur and eyes

002Now that the image has been flipped, you can check that the composition is still well balanced

001 002 003 004

10 When all the base colours are added to the

painting and you’re all set, it’s helpful to create a

Hue/Saturation adjustment layer. Keep it on top of

the entire painting and adjust it so that the painting

gets completely desaturated. You can then turn this

layer on and off to keep checking the values when

painting. Is the painting readable in greyscale at this

stage? Good! Then it’s ready to get painted for real.

11 TIME TO PAINT!Keep blocking in base colours with a large

brush. The basic brushes will work perfectly at this

stage. Use big, bold strokes in the beginning and

switch between hard-edge and soft-edge brushes,

keeping the Opacity at 20-50%. Stay loose and

always work on the entire painting. To get a better

overview, open the document in two separate

windows using Window>Arrange>New window.

13 SECOND PAINTING PASSKeep fleshing out the illustration, working

on the entire painting and correcting smaller

mistakes that you encountered when mirroring the

image. Keep comparing the image in the smaller

window as you proceed and make sure that it looks

good and readable when it’s smaller as well.

Although it’s tempting, don’t dive into the smaller

details just yet; just keep painting with a slightly

lower opacity and render the forms.

QUICK TIPIt’s always a good idea to keep your light sources on a separate layer to your base image. This way, you can turn those layers off when you need to, and you can then focus entirely on rendering form and putting down those basic values in your painting.


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19 FINAL TOUCHESFinally, you can add the smallest and finest details to the painting. These include the whiskers, hair

and sparkles in the eyes. Evaluate the entire painting by flipping the canvas horizontally as in Step 12, turning

the Hue/Saturation adjustment layer on to check values once again, and last but not least, make sure that it

reveals your story. You can also flatten the entire painting at this stage, so you don’t have to handle all the

different layers anymore.

20 PREPARE FOR DELIVERYSince this was made for a magazine, it’s

good to make sure that all the settings and modes

are correct. To start with, check that the image is

scaled or cropped properly. Most publishers handle

their images in CMYK, so make sure that it’s

converted. You can also sharpen the image a bit. Go

to Filter>Sharpen>Unsharp Mask. Play with the

settings and make sure that the image looks nice

and crisp, and then you’re done! Hope you found this

tutorial helpful. Good luck!

18 FURTHER DETAILINGKeep adding in smaller details where they

are needed. Paint them all in while keeping a careful

eye on the entire illustration. Remember: less is

more. Another good thing to keep in mind is to

spend some extra time on characters’ eyes and

faces in general. These features are one of the first

things that the viewer looks at, so it’s important that

the eyes and expressions read well and show clear

emotions. Getting this part right definitely helps to

tell a story.

17 REFINE THE FURYou can see that the wolf’s fur needs some

more details. Keep painting with a medium-sized

brush and render the forms a little bit more. After

that, pick a brush that feels more like a traditional

brush that slightly imitates hair or fur. Having photo

references is always a huge benefit; so don’t be

afraid to search for some nice photos that clearly

show what a wolf’s fur really looks like. References

will always be important, even if you paint in a rather

cartoon-like style.

16 Turn on the Hue/Saturation adjustment

layer that you placed at the very top and check the

values. Is the illustration still readable? This part is

really crucial, and as mentioned earlier – if it’s

working in greyscale, then it will most likely work in

colour as well. So it’s a very good habit to just

double-check your illustration on a regular basis

while working with colours. We can’t encourage this

part enough. Is it still working? If it still reads well,

then it’s fine.

Having photo references is always a huge benefit,

even if you paint in a rather cartoon-like style


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DIGITAL PAINTINGDIGITAL PAINTING


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PAINT A STEAMPUNK�INSPIRED PORTRAIT

01 VISUALISE YOUR IMAGEBefore starting, visualise what you want to

accomplish. In this case, the goal is to paint a

Steampunk piece which integrates portraiture with

mechanical elements. It’s meant to be a dark,

atmospheric image with lush colours to invoke

mystery and interest. Remember to download the

resources before you start.

02 GATHER REFERENCEPaintings should be unrecognisable from

reference unless the material belongs to you, so

take liberties in deviating from online sources. The

easiest way to obtain reference is to take photos

yourself, but be sure that all of your images have

the same light source or be prepared to paint them

differently to how they appear.

T he following tutorial is for those who wish to learn the basics of digital painting and discover tips and

tricks to add texture, luminescence and mystery to illustrations with simple Photoshop methods.

Learn to sketch non-existent objects using basic perspective and visualise lighting so that you

can add any element to your painting regardless of reference. Discover the difference between form

shadow and cast shadow and how to effectively render both. Once you understand how light interacts with

your subject matter, the possibilities are limitless.

Learn how to pick compelling colours to establish mood, to paint different materials such as cloth, metal,

and skin, including how to apply textures and patterns realistically using filters. Finally, discover the secret to

creating glow effects and glares using various layer blending modes. From start to finish, you will learn how

to employ Photoshop effectively to create a compelling painting.

BACK TO BASICSDECIDE THE AIM OF THE PIECE AND CHOOSE YOUR REFERENCE

03 START A NEW DOCUMENTBegin by creating a new document (Cmd/

Ctrl+N). Set the image dimensions to 4800px by

6400px at 300ppi. Decide between RGB or CMYK for

your colour mode (RGB can achieve richer colours

while CMYK is useful for printing). Fill it with a warm

green tone in the middle-range of value (not too light

and not too dark).

USE LIGHT, SHADOW, COLOUR AND TEXTURE TO CREATE A CAPTIVATING PORTRAIT BASED ON A STEAMPUNK CONCEPT


Once you understand how light interacts with your

subject matter, the possibilities are limitless

Ashley Walters is an illustrator with a love of all things fantasy and sci-fi. She spends her spare time being a mum to three kids and watching Doctor Who.

ASHLEY WALTERSwww.ashleywalters.net

OUR EXPERT

Included on the disc, you will find the Photoshop file of the illustration as well as corresponding texture and pattern files to help you replicate the steps listed in the tutorial.

SOURCE FILES

FROM START TO FINISH

Step 13: Add effects

WORK IN PROGRESS

Step 9: Paint the image

Step 4: Sketch the outline


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http://www.ashleywalters.net




DIGITAL PAINTING

08 CREATE THE BACKGROUNDCreate the illusion of a light source just off

canvas using a hard round brush in a pale yellow

hue. Sweep the brush downward to emulate the

glowing effect of light on a wall. Picking a dark

green, sweep the same brush along the edges of

the canvas to push the corners into darkness.

Blend the colours with a soft round brush as

necessary. Note that the light will be brighter and

the change between values will be more drastic

near the top where the light is closest to the wall.

06 UNDERSTANDING LIGHTForm shadow (or core shadow) creates

the illusion of form and gives objects depth. It

occurs when light fails to completely wrap around

the form of something and is a gradual transition

from light to shadow, with softer edges (like the

cheekbone, which at first catches the light and then

curves downward into shadow). Cast shadow

occurs when something (like the nose, for

example), blocks the light, throwing areas below

into darkness. It tends to have sharper edges.

04 SKETCH THE OUTLINECreate a new layer named ‘Sketch’ (Layer>New>Layer). When sketching, think about the focal point

to keep the eye moving within the image. Use your reference as a rough guide as you freehand the sketch in a

dark burgundy colour. Keep in mind perspective as you draw objects without reference, like the dragon and

goggles. It helps to sometimes draw boxes in perspective with the rest of the piece and then chisel away at

the objects inside to create angular shapes before finally rounding off the details.

07 VISUALISE WHERE LIGHT FALLSWhen creating an object without reference,

it is vital to be able to picture in your mind where the

shadow would fall if you could see it. Sometimes it

helps to picture the subject matter as if it were

made up of several small geometric polygons. Look

at each surface plane and ask yourself if the angle

would catch the light or not, then translate that into

your painting. Don’t forget to add in cast shadows of

made-up elements to ground the work and give it a

cohesive feel.

05 PICK COLOURSColour defines the mood of a piece. The

key to having lush colours is finding a balance

between rich and dull. Too bright and your image

looks contrived and over-the-top. Too dull and your

image looks washed out. Lighter colours should be

less saturated and darker colours more saturated.

On a new layer, pick a basic flesh colour, scribble

and repeat, increasing the saturation as you go

darker. To help the image pop, add subtle oranges

and warm pinks for the eyes and cheeks. Pale cyan

works as a highlight colour to contrast against

warm shadows.

QUICK TIPPaint separate elements on their own layers so that you can lock the transparency and paint each one without going over the edges. To do this, choose the corresponding layer in the Layers palette and click the checkered square icon at the top next to the word ‘Lock’.


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DOWN TO DETAILAPPLY PAINT, ADD TEXTURE AND CREATE ATMOSPHERIC EFFECTS

13 ADD ATMOSPHERIC EFFECTSThe last step is to add subtle atmospheric

effects. Create a glare on the highlight of the

goggles using a soft round brush in a pale yellow

colour on low opacity. For the blur on the dragon

wings, copy the wings onto a new layer underneath

and use the Motion Blur filter. Set the angle to 40

degrees and the distance to 200px. Use a smoke

brush for the dragon steam. To make it glow, on a

new layer use a soft green brush set to Hard Light.

12 ADD TEXTURE AND PATTERNTexture and pattern add realism to your

work when done correctly. To create the illusion of

wallpaper, paste a damask pattern on a new layer

and set the layer Blend Mode to Overlay from the

drop-down menu on the Layers palette. Reduce the

opacity of the layer so that the pattern is not

overbearing but still present. You don’t want your

image to be too busy or distract viewers from the

figure in the foreground.

09 START PAINTINGOn a layer beneath the sketch, paint the

skin using a default round brush. Keep your Opacity

and Flow at 100%, and rely on the sensitivity of your

tablet to blend the colours. Make a clear delineation

between light and shadow. As you continue to refine,

add the transitions between the two values using a

soft brush when needed. Use your highlights

sparingly for the greatest effect. Merge your Sketch

layer and your painting layer and gently paint out the

sketch until all the lines are gone.

10 SHINY VERSUS DULLWhen painting matte surfaces like the

cotton vest, do not paint highlights. Only two values

are needed for these – mid-tone and shadow – with

gradual transitions between the two on occasion.

When painting reflective surfaces like silk or brass,

however, exaggerate the drastic change in value by

using sharp specular highlights in areas where the

light would logically fall and by using contrasting

strokes. Remember to incorporate surrounding

colours, as metal is highly reflective.

11 PAINTING SKIN AND HAIRWhen painting skin, find a balance between

matte and shiny. The skin will have sharper and

brighter highlights if the face is wet (like around the

eyes) or where oils of the skin reflect light (like on

the nose and inner tear duct). If you haven’t already,

add these highlights to create luminescence. When

painting hair, start by putting in the darkest values

first, and then add the midtones using a chunky

round brush. Gradually reduce the size of the brush

until you are painting individual strands.

TRAIN YOUR TABLET SKILLS AND SPEED PAINT

If you’re new to digital painting, this tutorial can be challenging. Our tip is to try speed-painting exercises to get better each day. There are great videos and schools out there to learn that particular skill. We recommend Advanced Photoshop contributor Feng Zhu’s website at www.fengzhudesign.com. Also www.schoolism.com from Bobby Chiu. There are also a lot of free tutorials on YouTube regarding this method, so it’s definitely worth a look. In the end there is no shortcut for making the tablet do what you want it to. No stock images or filters will unleash that potential.


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http://www.fengzhudesign.com

http://www.schoolism.com



Photo editing


Improve ordinary photos with a variety of Photoshop techniques, from retouching to colour adjustments and compositing

100 Photo-editing techniques

Learn about the disciplines used

by top professionals in their

photo-editing projects

108 Retouching in Photoshop CC Get to grips with CC’s host of

image-enhancement features

114 Stylise architectural images Discover techniques used to edit

photos of buildings in a

commercial environment

120 Expert automotive retouching Edit vehicle images and add

excitement to RAW photos

126 Cra� atmospheric landscapes Combine daylight and night-time

photography in this stunning

fantasy-style tutorial

126PAGE

Photoshop has forever changed the way we view photography


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108PAGE

120PAGE

114PAGE


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PHOTO EDITING

© Aitor Santome

© Katie Nattrass

© Photography rights © JD Sports fashion plc ltd

© Plankton Group

PHOTO EDITING


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PHOTO�EDITING TECHNIQUES

TOP INDUSTRY EXPERTS OFFER THEIR VIEWS ON ADVANCED PHOTO�EDITING DISCIPLINES

Tom Fairfax – @mrtomfairfaxwww.tomfairfax.co.uk

Jordan Lloyd – @dynamichromehttp://dynamichrome.com/

Katie Nattrass – @katienattrasshttp://katienattrass.com/

Jonny Allen – @NeoscapeInc www.neoscape.com

Plankton Groupwww.planktongroup.com

CONTRIBUTORS

Photoshop has forever changed the way

we view photography. Whether you

consider retouched images false

advertising, or beautifully manipulated

photos a work of art, few could deny the impact

that Photoshop has had on our culture.

Monica Chamorro (www.monicachamorro.

com) is a high-end beauty retoucher who has

worked for the likes of Vogue, Dior and Marie

Claire. “For me, retouching people is all about

enhancing their natural beauty and bringing the

skin and colours as close to perfection as

possible without looking fake,” she tells us. “It’s

very important to do all of this in a non-

destructive way, always making sure you can

undo or modify anything you’ve done.”

“The Healing Brush is a great tool to remove

blemishes, as it gives you more control with the

texture,” she continues. “Curves and masks

along with the Brush to dodge and burn are

important, and the Clone Stamp is also good

when working on tasks like filling in hair. When

using the Brush or Clone Stamp, it’s important

to adjust the Size and Hardness to match what

you’re trying to replicate so that it blends in

well. Liquify is also useful, but needs to be used

in moderation. I would recommend always

saving the Liquify mesh so that you can redo or

modify it if needed.”

Freelance retoucher Katie Nattrass (www.

katienattrass.com), meanwhile, suggests: “If

you know where the final artwork will be getting

sent, contact the printer and check what print

profile they use. It’s worth your time to learn

about colour profiling and ink density. I always

create a simple document in InDesign and drop

my final JPEGs in with the Ink Density panel

open and set to 280% (300% is the usual ink

density for all printers). This way I can make

sure my blacks are not too dense.”

PROFESSIONAL RETOUCHING

© Plankton Group

Monica Chamorrowww.monicachamorro.com



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http://www.monicachamorro.com


http://www.katienattrass.com

http://www.katienattrass.com





PHOTO EDITING

When it comes to photo editing, two of the most

important elements are lighting and colour. “Most of

the time we will respect and maybe enhance the

original lighting, unless the photographer specifically

wants us to change it, or it is very obvious that there

is an unwanted shadow or flash reflection,” says

Chamorro of the lighting process. “If we’re adding

volumes or elements onto the image, we need to

make sure that they follow the original light. I usually

start with a RAW file, so I can already correct

exposure or colour balance there.

“However, if the image has not been lit properly,

sometimes we will have image areas that will be

very bright or very dark (or both), to the point that the

photo loses detail in those areas. In that case, I

develop the image with different exposures, so I will

have all the texture and details in those areas if I

need them later. Alternatively, if the light correction

required is very subtle, we could also use adjustment

brushes just to correct those areas in the RAW

converter of our choice.”

Graphic designer Tom Fairfax (www.tomfairfax.

co.uk) also believes that when it comes to working

with faces in particular, light manipulation should be

kept to a minimum. “Exaggerating or enhancing

lighting characteristics, such as exposure and so

forth, is of course fine and dandy, but trying to adjust

primary lighting directions will usually lead to

problems,” he says. “Light defines form, and human

beings are wonderfully predisposed to be ultra-

sensitive to the tiniest changes in others’ faces.

“If you’re retouching an image in its own setting or

creating one, work with the lighting you have. If you

start doing more, photorealistic compromise will

almost certainly creep in. If you’re compositing from

different sources, make sure the images you

combine share the same or very similar lighting

directions. Inanimate objects are thankfully far more

forgiving. You might confidently flatten and relight a

tin of beans, but doing the same to someone’s face is

a completely different proposition.”

When it comes to colour grading, Chamorro sees

it as a way of bringing an extra element of emotion

to an image. “A simple way of doing this would be

adding some tones into the shadows, midtones and

highlights,” she says. “There are many ways in

Photoshop to achieve that; one of them would be

using the Selective Color adjustment layer where

you select the blacks and bring the yellows down just

a little bit if you want a faint blue in the shadows.”

Fairfax believes that colours should remain

natural throughout the process, with intense colour

grading only playing a part in the process at the end.

“Don’t use colour grading as a crutch or a shortcut

when compositing images. I choose the primary

elements in my pictures and bring the colours of all

the other elements to match their natural tones and

saturation,” he explains. “Only when everything has

been brought together do I start thinking about the

tones of the final image overall. It’s tempting to think

that because you might end up with an image that

has a distinct and narrow palette, it’s easier to do

colour grading as you go, but I firmly believe that

sticking to what’s natural until the last moment

leaves you far more options and protects tonal

nuances that are all too easy to loose. Retaining the

freedom to take the colour in any direction follows

the same logic that has us using masks, adjustment

layers and Smart Objects. Working yourself into a

corner is never good.”

Plankton Group: Sometimes we are asked to

place a rendered building onto a photograph. In

this case, RAW photography is very useful.

When opening with Camera Raw, we try to

take out as much contrast as possible from the

original photo. We bring the highlights down,

take the shadows up and take out some

saturation from the colours that we don’t want

to stand out. This flat look allows us to apply

contrast selectively where needed.

Katie Nattrass: I always work with RAW

images. If a client or photographer can’t supply

me with them, I will add a disclaimer in there

and then. The benefits of working with RAW

images are that you have more shoot

information to use; details in the highlights and

shadows can be utilised and pushed forth from

the RAW shot. Many top photographers will

shoot feathers using programs like Capture

and Phocus. I have both of these, so when I

have images supplied as file libraries, it means

I have all the information from the shoot.

Jordan Lloyd: Something I came up with

when colourising photos that is really handy is

using RAW to compensate for different film

stocks and how they affect colours in the

original monochrome plate. In order to do this,

you would need to add colour to the image

first, before doing last minute global luminance

channel corrections in RAW. So, the second to

last step of my process is to open up the

flattened colourised image in RAW, and head

over to the HSL/Greyscale option. I will then

make the channel corrections using the

Luminance sliders.

© Aitor Santome Images © Katie Nattrass

© Katie Nattrass COLOUR GRADING AND LIGHTINGOUR PANEL OF EXPERT ARTISTS DISCUSS THE BEST APPROACHES TO COLOUR GRADING AND LIGHTING WHEN WORKING WITH PHOTOGRAPHY

WORKING IN RAWOUR INDUSTRY PANEL DISCUSS THEIR TOP TIPS FOR WORKING IN RAW

PHOTO EDITING


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http://www.tomfairfax.co.uk

http://www.tomfairfax.co.uk





■ 1 The render: For this conceptual project, the client wanted to show the volume of the building in the nearest surrounding. We were only told that it would be a glass office tower. We had creative freedom when choosing the mood of the image.

■ 4 Colour grading: We wanted to achieve a dark, warm and dramatic look. To achieve the overall colour, we used a Hue/Saturation layer in Colorize mode on Overlay blend mode. We also used some Curves layers to add contrast and a glow layer on Screen blend mode.

■ 2 Cleaning up: Since almost all of the surrounding buildings were originally covered with giant ad posters, we had to re-create almost all of them in a clean version. Some of the textures were taken from the original photo and stamped in using Photoshop.

■ 3 Matching textures: Once the mood of the image was decided upon, we started to simulate the sunlight on all the textured buildings using warm, yellowish colours with the Color Dodge blend mode.

All images © Plankton Group

COMPOSITING TIPSPLANKTON SHOWCASES ITS WORKFLOW FOR COMPOSITING A CONCEPT TOWER INTO A PHOTO



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PHOTO EDITING

PHOTO COLOURISATIONEXPERT JORDAN LLOYD ON INJECTING LIFE

One element of photo editing that has received a

larger degree of attention as of late is that of

restoration and colourisation – the process of

taking historical black and white photos and

returning them to the vibrant hues that they would

have displayed at the time.

Jordan Lloyd is something of an expert in the

field, rising to prominence on the subreddit

ColorizedHistory and offering his talents via high

fidelity restoration service Dynamichrome (www.

dynamichrome.com). “The most basic common

process for a good result involves layering a

number of Solid Color layers using the Color blend

mode. A face, for example, may contain as many

as 14 separate colour fills or more. Using a layer

mask and a soft brush, you simply paint in the

areas you want to have colour. The reason why

Color blend mode is used is so that the luminosity

(the black and white information) isn’t affected by

the application of colour. The difference between

an average and an excellent colourised piece is

determined by the number of layers you use to

build depth.

“I start from the bottom layer – an underlying

red layer set at 15% Opacity – and keep adding

from there: the main skin tone, hair, eyes, rouging,

blood vessels, fat, veins carrying deoxygenated

blood and so on. If it doesn’t look right, I can

double-click on the Solid Color Fill and simply pick

a different colour. I tend to do solid skin layers at

50-57% Opacity (Brush Opacity 100%) then bring it

right down to 5% Brush Opacity when doing the

rouging and blood vessels. The goal is a realistic

finish, not Pennywise the Dancing Clown.”

When it comes to colour grading, Lloyd

considers the process an aesthetic choice once

you’ve moved beyond adjusting temperature for

white balance. “Colour grading can be used

effectively to emulate old colour film stock, like

Kodachrome K12, for example,” he tells us. “At this

point I’m going to plug the master Dan Margulis.

His understanding of the Lab Color mode is

extraordinary. When I’m working on colour

grading, I do a merged copy of the entire image,

then bring that it into Lab Color space.

“A simple way to add stunning saturation to

your image, which gives you a lot more control and

less aberrations than the Hue/Saturation slider in

RGB, is to steepen the A and B channels in a

Curves adjustment layer. Take the flattened Lab

saturated version back into your original RGB

document, and then blend it in using something

like an Apply Image on Darken (50%). The whole

thing gives you a realistic saturation boost to which

you can apply any colour grades you wish.”

“I’m a huge fan of the Spot Healing brush and

Clone Stamp as my main tools, along with a

lot of patience. Depending on the image,

sometimes I’ll deploy a Content Aware Fill,

but really the idea is to restore physical

damage like scratches or burns, rather than

replace whole areas.

“When there is a large plate to process, I

also find it helpful to divide the image into

squares. For this, I set Photoshop’s Crop tool

to Grid view and use the crop grid to then set

out where I’m putting my guidelines. I then

cancel the Crop tool and tackle one square at

a time. It’s a great way of helping you break

down an image into chunks.”

© Plankton Group

All other images © Jordan Lloyd

RESTORATION TOOLS JORDAN LLOYD DISCUSSES THE BEST TOOLS FOR RESTORING DAMAGED PHOTOGRAPHS


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http://www.dynamichrome.com





The Great Depression:

Old Gold Country Store,

1939: Lloyd often finds

that obtaining good

colour references is the

hardest part of the

process. Here he tried to

find originals of every

single sign, where

possible, from auction

sites, collectibles, and in

one case a specialist soda

pop retailer.

Civil Rights Movement:

The March, Washington,

1963: Lloyd believes that

large outdoor crowd

shots often present the

most difficult challenges

for any colouriser.

■ Skin base layers : This restored image has two base layers: a red Solid Fill layer is set at 15%, painted in using a layer mask applied with a soft brush at 100% Opacity, followed by a main flesh layer at 70%. Set the layer blend mode to Color.

■ Blend with the atmosphere : Colour physics plays a role in achieving a realistic result, so be sure to blend in things like the sky and lighting. Global changes can be achieved in post-processing or by opening the image in RAW.

BASIC COLOURISINGLLOYD GIVES HIS TIPS ON BUILDING LAYERS TO OFFER THE ILLUSION OF REALITY


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PHOTO EDITING

The Plankton Group (www.planktongroup.com) is a

visualisation firm based in Poland, with a great deal

of experience when it comes to editing images of

architecture. “The main goal is very simple: to make

the building look good,” says the company. “We

always try to work in a non-destructive manner,

using a lot of adjustment layers with various

blending modes. There is a serious amount of

experimentation involved in the process. The first

result that we achieve usually isn’t the best. If that

happens, we take a snapshot and try again. When

reviewing snapshots, we try to compare different

parts of the image, which is a great way of deciding

on the final outcome.”

When working with architectural imagery, Jonny

Allen of creative studio Neoscape (www.neoscape.

com) operates using a very similar workflow to that

described by the Plankton Group. “When lighting

architectural imagery, I usually approach lighting

with the Curves adjustment layer and use masks,”

he explains. “I then punch the lighting where it’s

needed, or tone it down. One of my favourite

techniques is to use Curves with gradients on large,

flat surfaces to make them more dynamic. This

allows me to add more depth to otherwise flat parts

of the image, while also guiding the viewer’s eye

towards the focal points.”

When it comes to colour grading and creating a

sensation of mood, Color Balance and Gradient Map

adjustment layers come in most useful for Allen. “I

believe one of the most underrated tools for colour

grading is the Gradient Map adjustment layer used

with different blending modes (usually Soft Light or

Overlay). Curves is another of the most vital and

versatile tools. Once you wrap your head around

using the individual RGB controls, then start using

blend modes with it, you can really work at the speed

of thought.”

For Plankton, the team tries not to separate colour

grading too greatly from the lighting process. “Colour

grading is in our opinion the most important part of

editing an image, and usually the most fun. There are

endless options, so we don’t usually decide on the

colour grade straight away. First, we consider the

mood that we want to achieve. Cold and warm tones

evoke different feelings. We prefer cold, dark moods,

so usually there is some discussion required when a

client is looking for something sunnier and happier.”

Architectural photo editing often also involves the

composition of CG elements into a real-life scene – a

complicated task made much easier if you take

things one step at a time, according to Allen. “I

generally like to get the values correct first, then

move onto colour,” he tells us. “I do this by adding a

Hue/Saturation adjustment layer with 0 Saturation

to the top and use Curves/Levels on the CG subject

to make sure they fit the value of the image. If you

want to get hardcore about the colour correction, you

can drop a grey layer on top and set it to Luminosity,

and all you will get is the colour of the image. From

there you can adjust as needed with individual RGB

control in a Curves adjustment layer. It gets pretty

easy with experience.”

For Plankton, the first and most important factor

in CG compositing is lighting. “We look at things such

as highlights, shadows and the colour of lights. It is

crucial that we match the CG lighting as closely as

possible to the photo we’re compositing the object

into. The more time we spend in the 3D environment,

the less time we spend figuring out how to

composite the CG image into a photo background.

The process takes time, but it’s worth being patient.

Of course, there are some things that you can only

do in post-production, such as matching the noise

and grain of the original image, softening the edges

and applying the final colour grade.”

© Tom Fairfax© Aitor Santome

© Plankton Group

© Neoscape

© Neoscape

EDITING ARCHITECTURAL IMAGERYVISUALISATION FIRMS NEOSCAPE AND PLANKTON DISCUSS THEIR APPROACHES TO ARCHITECTURAL IMAGE EDITING AND COMPOSITING CG


PHOTO EDITING


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http://www.planktongroup.com

http://www.neoscape.com

http://www.neoscape.com





“The real secret to seamless compositing is to use the right sources.

The sources have to share the same or very similar light sources of

course, but also be of a suitable quality. I believe that generally

speaking, the more you have to work on an element to integrate it, the

lower in quality the achievable result gets.

“The greatest position to be in is to be able to produce your own

sources and control the lighting conditions, but failing that, it’s well

worth being open-minded with a creative approach to sources. For

example: if I want a WWI British soldier’s helmet lying upside down on

the floor – maybe I can’t find a helmet lit that way. However, a food

colander is a similar shape and material, and usually photographed the

way up I need. It’s no bother to heal out a few holes and manipulate

more of a rim – almost certainly less effort than completely reworking

the lighting on an actual helmet in a satisfactory way.”

■ 2 Increase reflectivity:

One of the problems with fake

translucency materials is that

they detract from the

reflection layer. Vegetation is

naturally very reflective, so we

need to add that back in. Here,

I’ve taken the reflection and

specular render passes and

screened them on top of the

grass, painting the mask with

large strokes to really punch it

into the foreground.

■ 3 Enhance the lighting:

As vegetation is translucent,

when light hits it, it tends to be

very bright in photos. Punch

the lighting hard, but keep it in

a pleasing value and colour

range. For this image, I used a

mask so only the vegetation

was affected and set the Raw

Total Lighting pass to 100%

Soft Light. I also desaturated

the pass entirely so that the

colour did not get blown out.

■ 4 Adjust colour:

One of my favourite methods

of adjusting natural colour is

to use the Gradient Map

adjustment layer with blend

modes like Soft Light, Overlay

and Linear Dodge. Here, I’ve

taken the stock Purple to

Orange gradient and set it to

15% Linear Dodge on the

vegetation. This adds warmth

to the highlights and subtle

warmth to the dark areas.

© Tom Fairfax

■ 1 Set up your CG grass:

Buildings look so much more

appealing when they are

surrounded by lush, green

grass. To add your own, start

by finding yourself some

decent-looking 3D grass.

Make sure you have a nice,

translucent-feeling material.

Then apply some interesting

variation to the grass, and add

extra things to it like clovers

and weeds.

All images © Plankton Group

©Neoscape

COMPOSITING TIPS GRAPHIC DESIGNER TOM FAIRFAX OFFERS HIS TIPS FOR COMPOSITING IMAGERY AND SELECTING SOURCES THAT WORK

ENHANCING 3D VEGETATION JONNY ALLEN OF NEOSCAPE REVEALS HOW TO GIVE CG VEGETATION A PHOTOGRAPHIC LOOK


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START IMAGE

PHOTO EDITING


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SMARTER IMAGE EDITING IN PHOTOSHOP CC

02 WHITE BALANCEThe model is decently lit against the solid

white backdrop, but there is still some room for

improvement. There’s a slightly warm colour cast to

the photo that can be removed using the White

Balance Tool. It’s a grey-filled eyedropper found in

the top tool bar. Use it to sample a mid-grey area of

her dress.

01 CAMERA RAW 8.0 Photoshop CC is paired

with Adobe Camera Raw 8.0,

which boasts several useful new

features. Begin by opening the

supplied disc file DSC_5385.NEF.

This is a RAW file that cannot be

opened directly in Photoshop.

Opening it will launch Camera

RAW 8.0 instead.

03 COLOUR CORRECTION Use the sliders in the Basic tab of the RAW

interface to adjust colour and exposure, making

these look how you want them to in the image.

Alleviate shadow areas by adjusting the Shadows

and the Blacks sliders, then increasing the Clarity

and the Vibrance settings, which helps to enhance

the image’s tone and detail.

Step 7: Smart Sharpen

LEARN HOW TO USE THE NEW FEATURES IN PHOTOSHOP CC TO EDIT PORTRAIT AND FASHION PHOTOS

RETOUCHING IN PHOTOSHOP CC

Along with enhanced performance gains,

Adobe’s latest version of Photoshop

presents several exciting new options to

users in every field. These range from

groundbreaking technology, like the new Camera

Shake Reduction filter, to subtle improvements,

such as the now-accessible brush rotation widget.

This tutorial will focus on a handful that will be of

particular interest to photographers and retouchers.

Working from a starting portrait, we will put into

action some of the latest features found in Adobe

Camera Raw 8.0, including the new Spot Removal

brush capabilities. Moving into Photoshop CC, the

tutorial will highlight a few major improvements

and use them to further fix the image. The Smart

Sharpen filter and the Preserve Details option are

also explored, demonstrating how these are

combined to perfect photo enlargement.

In addition to the updated tools, the tutorial will

touch on a long-awaited feature for working with

paths and rounded rectangles. Follow these steps

to see what Photoshop CC really has in store.



Our friendly neighbourhood graphic geek is an Adobe Certified Expert and has over 15 years of experience in Graphic Design. Nelson is a frequent contributor to Advanced Photoshop magazine.

KIRK NELSONwww.thepixelpro.com

OUR EXPERT

The portrait used and edited in this Photoshop CC-based tutorial is available on the disc. Experiment with this file while using Photoshop CC’s latest tool sets.

SOURCE FILES

PHOTOSHOP CC

Step 12: Radial filter

WORK IN PROGRESS

Step 4: Spot Removal


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04 NEW SPOT REMOVAL TOOLThe Spot Removal tool is a well-loved feature from previous versions of Camera RAW. The

significant change in ACR 8.0 and Photoshop CC is that you no longer need to apply it through circular areas.

Now you can stroke over areas, creating irregular shapes that are then healed by the program as it finds

similar pixels to merge with the selected area. This is done non-destructively, as source and target pins can

be moved and readjusted to define fixes. The new Visualize Spots slider uses a black-and-white translation to

assist in finding irregularities in the image that are candidates for healing.

05 SPOT REMOVAL OPACITYThe Spot Removal tool increases its usefulness by providing an Opacity slider to fade the healing

effect into the original pixels. Use the Spot Healing Brush to outline the pronounced tendon in the model’s

neck. The default operation of the tool completely replaces the area with smooth skin. A more natural

correction isn’t to remove the tendon entirely, but to make it less pronounced. By decreasing the Opacity slider

to a value of around 55, we can still apply and show through some original pixels, but blend it in with the

smooth skin.

06 BACKGROUND CLEANUPClick Open Image to apply the Camera

RAW adjustments and send the file to Photoshop

CC. Notice the area near her waist where there’s

visible damage to the background material. Select

a small portion of the damaged area using one of

the Marquee tools, then use Edit>Fill>Content

Aware Fill to remove the imperfections. If the

Content Aware Fill pulls pixel information from the

dress instead of the background, use the Spot

Healing brush tool or a tighter selection.

PHOTO EDITING


You can stroke over areas, creating irregular

shapes that are healed by the program

QUICK TIPThe new Spot Removal tool in Camera RAW 8.0 is a great way to deal with dust spots from the camera lens. Brush strokes and settings are saved as part of the Develop Settings. Use Adobe Bridge to apply those settings to multiple photos all at once.


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PRESERVE DETAILS

One of the long-standing rules with

photomanipulation is to avoid resampling

upwards. If an image is enlarged too much, the

pixel information breaks down and detail is lost.

Photoshop CC reduces this restriction with a

new Preserve Details option when resampling.

Go to Image>Image Size, check the Resample

box and choose Preserve Details from the

drop-down menu.

SNUB NOSE

Sharpen the model’s nose by switching

to the Pucker Tool, and apply in a similar

way to the eyes. Set the brush size

slightly larger than the tip of her nose, at

a value of around 150. Gently click until it

shrinks slightly. Be sure to use single,

controlled clicks, otherwise it’s easy to

get carried away. EYE POPPING

A very common beauty retouching

technique is to increase eye size and

shape. To do this, select the Bloat tool

and increase the brush size to completely

cover the whites of the eyes. Carefully

click directly on the pupil, making the

eyes wider.

PHOTOSHOP CC INTEGRATES CS6’S

FULLER FIGURE

Switch back to the Bloat Tool and reduce the brush size to

around 70. Then give the lower lip area a bit more volume with

just a few clicks, but be careful not to distort the teeth. Increase

the brush size to around 450 and add some fullness to other

body areas.



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MORE FLEXIBLE WORKFLOWPHOTOSHOP CC’S SUPPORT FOR SMART FILTERS ALLOWS GREATER FLEXIBILITY AND CREATIVITY WHEN RETOUCHING

09 SMART SKIN SMOOTHINGDouble-click the Smart Object to edit

contents. Notice that these are in their pre-Liquify

form. Duplicate the image layer and invert, pressing

Ctrl/Cmd+I. Set this new layer’s blending mode to

Vivid Light. Select Filter>Other>High Pass and set a

radius of 2. Then go to Filter>Blur>Gaussian Blur

and use a radius of 5. The result should be a

smooth skin layer. Hold Opt/Alt and add an inverted

layer mask. Use a white soft brush at 40% Opacity

to apply the softening effect to the skin alone.

10 COLOUR BOOSTUse a Vibrance Adjustment layer, with

Vibrance set to +36 to boost the colour of the dress.

Then add a Hue/Saturation adjustment layer set to

Colorize. Set Hue at 229, Saturation at 26, and

Lightness at +7, enhancing the eye colour. Apply a

layer mask to target the effect to the irises. Use

another Hue/Saturation Colorize adjustment layer to

add tint to the lips, setting Hue at 0, Saturation at 34

and Lightness at -17. Change the layer blending

mode to Soft Light, reducing Opacity to 59%.

11 SMARTER BLUR GALLERYOne of the most celebrated features from

CS6, the Blur Gallery, just got even better in

Photoshop CC. Now it can be applied as a Smart

Object. The actual menu item is shuffled slightly,

but can be found under Filter>Blur>Iris Blur. Rotate

the on-screen widget to match the angle of the

model’s head, then position the focal point directly

over her face. Be sure the falloff markers sit well

outside of her head so that her face isn’t blurred. Set

blur Amount to 15px.


PHOTO EDITING

08 CS6 CC UPDATE FEATURESAdobe has integrated a handful of features that were previously only available to Creative Cloud

subscribers into Photoshop CC. Among them is Smart Object support for filters, which before was restricted

to standard layers. The new Blur Gallery filters are included, as well as the Liquify filter. A favourite of pro

retouchers everywhere, this is now available non-destructively as a Smart Filter. Convert the layer to a Smart

Object with the Image>Smart Object menu before adding these.

07 SMART SHARPENAnother welcome improvement in

Photoshop CC is the revamped Smart Sharpen

filter. This now does an extremely impressive job of

recovering details from fuzzy images. One of the

best new aspects of this filter is the way the

Amount can be boosted to extreme levels without

the image suffering from edge halos, as in previous

versions. For the image here, set the Amount to

266%, Radius to 1.5px and the Reduce Noise slider

to 81% to get the necessary detail.


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13 NEW SHAPE CONTROLSDraw out a frame using the Rounded

Rectangular Tool. Set the Fill to white and the

Opacity to 58%. Open the Properties Panel and use

the icons along the bottom to set the shape to

Subtract. Enter 216 into one of the corner

definitions, and all the corners should adjust

accordingly. Transform the shape to the size you

want for the frame, and the corners will retain their

curve settings. To control the corners separately,

unlock the central chain link first.

12 BACK TO CAMERA RAWCamera RAW can also be applied as a

Smart Filter. Go to Filter>Camera RAW Filter and

launch the application. Select the new Radial Filter

from the tool bar, which is the last icon in the menu.

Drag out an ellipse and pull the exposure setting

down to -1.35, and reduce the saturation to -6 and

the clarity to -35. This new Radial Filter tool lets you

specify a type of custom vignette to direct focal

points in the image.



Be prepared to warm up your tablet, fasten your

seat belts and get the creative juices flowing

USE COLOR RANGEThis option comes in handy when isolating areas of colour. In simple cases, we can just use the Magic Wand to select solid colours, but when working with paint images like those in this tutorial, or ones with existing lighting, Color Range becomes a must. Make the most of the black-and-white preview to see what you’ve selected and use the plus and minus droppers to specify detailed areas. Once you’ve clicked OK, you can easily remove parts of the selection by holding down Opt/Alt or Shi� and then applying the Lasso to add or remove active areas and match selected edges.


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PHOTO EDITING

A rchitectural retouching is an art of precision, and you will need to blow the socks off a client if you want

to meet their expectations. For this tutorial, we’ve imagined a client who is trying to sell apartments in

a high-rise block of flats.

They want a dynamic evening shot, showcasing their building, emphasising a central location and

‘selling the dream’ through our retouched image. We begin perfecting our image by opening it in Camera RAW

and bringing out all the hidden detail, and then move into Photoshop, where the hard graft really begins. We’ll

clone, heal, colour correct, colour balance, create masks, correct lens distortion and use almost every tool in

between in order to achieve an inspirational image.

The Vanishing Point filter will become integral to our compositing process, and breathe new life into a tool

that normally gets overlooked and forgotten. We’ll also discover how channel calculations can help create great

mask selections. Filters, however, can only do so much, and there are no quick fixes for professional effects.

Patience, hard work and copious amounts of cloning are the key to commercial-looking architecture.

FIND OUT HOW TO EDIT IMAGES OF BUILDINGS USING COMMERCIAL TECHNIQUES IN RAW AND PHOTOSHOP

STYLISE ARCHITECTURAL IMAGES

01 WORKING IN RAWOpen ‘Original.CR2’ from your resources in

Camera RAW. Increase Contrast to 18, Shadows to

61, Clarity to 32 and Vibrance to 24. Save this image

as a PSD file. Next, create exposure emphasising

the orange glow of the building’s lights, saving as

another PSD file. Finally, increase the contrast of the

street’s lights and save as a third PSD.

02 CREATE A ROAD MAPOpen the three PSD files and layer them

above one another in Photoshop. Duplicate your

base image and place it at the top, renaming it

‘Roadmap’. With the Brush tool and a bright colour,

mark everything that needs to change; sections to

get rid of, areas to enhance and elements to include.

This will be our constant reference.

03 COMPOSITING THE CONVERSIONSOpt/Alt-click the ‘Add layer mask’ icon,

adding an inverted layer mask to each layer above

your base image. On your building lights layer, paint

to the layer mask over balconies and windows. This

lets glow effects show. On the street lights layer,

apply a soft brush and the drop layer’s Opacity until

you like the result. Flatten your image.

BUILD BASE EFFECTSESTABLISH EXPOSURE IN RAW AND PERSPECTIVE IN PHOTOSHOP

FROM DULL TO INSPIRATIONAL

Step 13: Refine the mask

WORK IN PROGRESS

Step 4: Lens correction

Step 1: RAW conversion

Nicholas Edmonds has worked in the industry as a retoucher for over five years. He first started out working in fashion before he moved on to creative projects and subsequently, architecture.

NICHOLAS EDMONDSwww.nickedmonds.com

OUR EXPERT

On the disc you will find all the images that were used to create the effects seen here. These include the start image, skyline stock and a light effects image.

SOURCE FILES


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http://www.nickedmonds.com





START IMAGE



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PHOTO EDITING

04 LENS CORRECTIONDue to the size of the building and the angle

at which the shot was taken, it looks wider at the

base than it does at the top. Let’s rectify this

perspective by selecting Filter>Lens Correction. You

can amend by eye, but be aware that if you get this

wrong now then cloning later will become very

complicated. Use the grid feature to highlight

distortion instead. We want the upright edges of the

building to be parallel with the grid lines, so increase

Vertical Perspective to 29 and click OK.

07 CLONED PERSPECTIVEIn the Vanishing Point filter, activate the Stamp tool by hitting S. Now we need to remove the

marketing banners at the top of the building. Choose a sampling point by holding down Opt/Alt and then

clicking just a few balconies down, at a corresponding position somewhere just below the banners. Once

you’ve hit that sweet spot, you can start cloning up. You will find that the top balcony cannot be cloned

because it is different to the rest of them, so stop there.

05 ADD THE VANISHING POINTThe Vanishing Point tool is an architectural

retoucher’s best friend. It lets you clone in

perspective. Select Filter>Vanishing Point, zoom in to

the top of the building and press C to select the

Create Plane tool. Click on a pointed edge of a

balcony, then move down a few balconies and click

to create a straight line. Follow the line of the balcony

along to where it begins and click again. Move up to

the balcony you started with and find a corresponding

place to click and complete the plane.

06 EXTEND PERSPECTIVE PLANENow that we have our perspective plane,

we must extend it downwards, covering the whole

right side of the building. Refine the points by

zooming in and adjusting their positions, mapping

the building’s edges. Press C then click and drag the

middle control point on the left of the perspective

plane, creating a new perspective plane for the

building’s left-hand side. Let go and refine the control

points. Extend this perspective plane like the other

one, so the entire building is covered in a 3D plane.

08 TURNING ON THE LIGHTSStill inside the Vanishing Point filter, we

need to turn on all of the lights in the building.

Choose a sample point (Opt/Alt-click) and clone the

lights in; try to find an illuminated window of the

same style and as close as possible to your cloning

location, as this will improve results. Keep the brush

size relatively small and be precise when applying.

Once all of your cloning is complete, click Done. Add

a layer mask to your cloned layer and paint out what

you don’t want to keep.


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09 CLONE SOME MOREThe balcony doors disrupt perspective noticeably. They are too flat, so activate Vanishing Point and

create a new perspective plane for them. Replace all the lights that are switched off with ones that are turned

on, using Vanishing Point filter cloning and by copying and pasting balconies with the lights on over the top of

those with the lights off.

VANISHING POINTUse a perspective plane to clone light balconies over

dark ones in the Vanishing Point filter, then a white

brush on an inverted layer mask to show them.

CUT OUT AND DISTORTThe Lasso tool can help you cut out well-lit

balconies. Copy and paste over a balcony with no

light and then apply Edit>Transform>Distort to fit it.

FLIP AND MASKYou can even copy and flip balconies, if you really

need to. Following that, add an inverted layer mask

and then just paint in only what you need.

DETAILED CLONING WORK CLOSE UP AND APPLY THOROUGH TECHNIQUES



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PHOTO EDITING

10 CLEAN THE PILLARSAs you can see, the balcony pillars are

covered in some kind of see-through material, which

we don’t want. Use the Pen tool to draw around a

clean pillar. Open your Path palette and Ctrl/right-

click your path to create a selection. Now hit Select>

Modify>Feather and add a 0.5 pixel radius. Copy and

paste the selected pillar, placing it over a textured

pillar, and use Free Transform to map the shape of

the covered pillar. Repeat this technique for every

pillar and then merge all of these layers together.

11 CLONE UNDER THE PILLARSCreate a new layer underneath the pillars

layer. We need to clone out the remaining see-

through material from the rest of the balcony. Having

the pillars on a separate layer above means we don’t

have to be as precise with our cloning. Sample an

area close to where you are cloning, preserving the

tonality. Follow the lines of the existing structure. Be

careful when cloning not to create repeating patterns,

as these are tell-tale signs of poor retouching. Merge

all layers to the top of your stack.

12 PREPARING FOR A NEW SKYWe are going to use channel calculations

to help us create a great mask of our sky. This

allows us to blend channels together using blend

modes. Select Image>Calculations and then set

Source 1 and Source 2 to the blue channel; this one

has the highest contrast between the sky and the

foreground. Set Result to New Channel and click

OK. Press Cmd/Ctrl+L to activate and adjust Levels,

and then exaggerate this contrast further by moving

the black and white sliders towards the middle.

13 IMPROVE THE MASKPaint in black over all the

foreground areas that were not

blackened during the Levels and

channel calculations. Select the Magic

Wand tool and click anywhere in the

black area. Press Cmd/Ctrl+Shift+I to

invert the selection then paint the sky

white. Use the Pen tool to draw around

balcony windows that are currently

white. Make a selection from your

paths, like we did in step 10, and paint

to it with a 50% black brush. Press

Cmd/Ctrl+D to deselect and then press

Cmd/Ctrl+I to invert the channel mask.

Be careful when you are cloning not

to create repeating patterns, as these are

tell-tale signs of poor retouching


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14 ADD A NEW SKYCmd/Ctrl-click the Alpha 1 channel to load

your mask selection. Click on your image in the

Layers palette and add a layer mask. Import the

supplied ‘Sunset1.psd’ and place this beneath your

masked layer. Resize it and move it behind the

building, then use a Curves layer to darken the image

slightly, changing its Opacity to 65%. Import the

supplied ‘Sunset 2.psd’, place it above this layer and

move the sunset behind the building. Change this

layer’s blend mode to Hard Light.

17 EMBELLISHMENTSMerge all layers to the top (Cmd/Ctrl +Opt/

Alt+Shift+E). Using the techniques you’ve learned,

remove anything that catches your eye and distracts

from the scene. We removed and cleaned walls,

cloned out cracks in tarmac, cloned in paving and

cloned out road signs. This is where your image

starts to shine. We also added embellishments, like

a lit-up street lamp. We applied Motion Blur to blur

out pedestrians and used a soft yellow brush set to

Hard Light to add a flare above the trees.

18 SHARPEN FOR OUTPUTMerge all your layers to the top as in step

17. Duplicate this layer twice, leaving you with three

layers. Choose the middle layer and select Filter>

Gaussian Blur, setting a value of 5. Click OK, activate

the top layer and select Image>Apply Image. From

the Layer drop-down options, set your middle layer.

Under blending, choose Subtract. Set Scale at 2,

Offset at 128 and then click OK. Finally, delete the

middle blurred layer then change the blend mode of

the top layer to Linear Light, setting Opacity to 35%.

15 COLOUR CORRECTIONAdd a Color Balance adjustment layer and

clip this to the foreground layer. Set Tone to

Highlights, then set Red at 0, Green at -13 and Blue

at -25. For Midtones, Red: 29, Green: 0, Blue: -26.

Shadows are last with Red: -12, Green: -8, Blue: -2.

Make a new layer above and using a bright yellow

brush (colour pick from the sunset), paint where the

sky meets the foreground. Select Filter>Blur>

Gaussian Blur and set it to 80. Change the blend

mode to Soft Light and drop Opacity to 30%.

16 SIMULATE TRAFFICOpen ‘BlurredCarLights.psd’ and draw

around the red strobe lights. Copy and paste these

into our image. Press Cmd/Ctrl+T then select the

Warp tool. Use the controls to adjust the lights so

that they follow the curve of the road. Use Levels to

enhance highlights and shadows, tweaking the

options sliders until you get the right look. We set the

Shadow slider at 60 and Highlight at 197. Change this

layer’s blend mode to Screen. Add a mask and paint

with black, leaving only the light streaks on the road.

CREATING LENS FLARE We can make a convincing lens flare of ‘Sunset2.psd’. Import and place it so the sun is just above the trees and over the building to the right of the high-rise. Apply Motion Blur with Distance: 250 and Angle: 0, and then Gaussian Blur with a value of 20. Change this layer’s blend mode to Hard Light to see the effect take place. Add an inverted layer mask (Opt/Alt-click on ‘New layer mask’) and paint in the effect above and to the side of the trees, leaking over the side of the high-rise.

SPECIAL EFFECTSADD NEW LIGHT SOURCES AND A SKYLINE TO ADD BEAUTY


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PHOTO EDITING

ENHANCE A COMMERCIAL PHOTO USING CREATIVE AND TECHNICAL TIPS FROM A PROFESSIONAL

EXPERT AUTOMOTIVE RETOUCHINGW hen retouching you’ll find yourself in a

much better place if you have

multiple files to pull from, especially

when each and every one combines

into one final image. Everything from camera angle

and height to the direction of the light needs to be

consistent if we’re to achieve realistic results in

our retouching.

Unfortunately this isn’t the case most of the time.

Whether there are constraints while shooting, or the

retouching of a specific image turns out to be an

afterthought, we can find ourselves at the mercy of

one lonely file. This means we could be left with

having to make a whole lot of something from a

whole lot of nothing.

Here we’ll be exploring the creative and technical

possibilities of retouching a photograph of a vehicle,

starting from a single RAW base file, then wielding

Photoshop to finalise the results.

From the foreground to the background we’ll go

over everything you need to complete the retouch,

including the processing of the RAW file, digitally

painting the cars and creating a dust-kicking

burnout effect. All this will be completed in

Photoshop without any additional applications or

plug-ins.

START WITH THE BASICS BREAK DOWN THE IMAGE INTO MULTIPLE SECTIONS TO GIVE YOURSELF THE UTMOST CONTROL

01 PROCESS THE RAW FILEStart with a RAW file or files that offer the

most flexibility for retouching. Utilising the Dynamic

Range option is key, because if you’re stuck with

only one file you can process it multiple times for

various elements. It’s fortunate we have soft, even

lighting in this image, so we only need to process

once to get a good starting file.

03 ADDITION BY SUBTRACTIONThe saying ‘work before play’ holds a lot of

weight here. In general it’s a good idea to start off by

doing the bulk of any retouching before moving into

the creative work. This is where we’d want to

complete any obvious work with the Clone Stamp or

Healing Brush tools, which usually means the

removal of all distracting artefacts.

02 BREAK DOWN THE IMAGEIt’s always best to divide your elements,

then package each in a Group folder. Make a

selection of the elements in each folder then apply

a layer mask to the folder itself. This enables you to

include effects but isolate them to individual areas.

Here a good starting point for us is the background,

the Dodge Viper and the Mercedes SLS.

Scott is a commercial and editorial photographer born, raised and living in Los Angeles, California. His client list includes Lexus, Scion, Toyota, Harley Davidson, Vitamin Water, Automobile Magazine, Playboy and RIDES Magazine.

SCOTT DUKESwww.dukesphotography.com

OUR EXPERT

RETOUCHING FROM RAW FILE TO SHARP RESULT

Step 13: Burnout smoke

WORK IN PROGRESS

Step 7: New background

Step 1: Open your shot


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EXPERT AUTOMOTIVE RETOUCHING

START IMAGE



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PHOTO EDITING

04 SET THE TONE With the layer masks in place and the bulk of the work on the pixels done, we

can move to the fun stuff. Starting with overall adjustments, we create a Global folder

to keep everything in place. To avoid committing to anything, it’s best to work in a

non-destructive manner by using adjustment layers. By applying Selective Color, for

example, we can increase the contrast in the sky by adding blacks to cyans and blues

but removing them from whites.

07 REPLACE THE SKY As we started off with only one RAW file, this is where having a library of random images, such as

skies, comes in handy. Picking a specific sky image will minimise any distractions, as well as alleviate the

tension from the horizon line cutting through the roof of the SLS. This new sky works great, as the direction of

the light is close enough and the mountains nicely frame the cars. We can integrate the skyline by applying to

a layer mask manually. Plant the back plate farther into the distance by applying a slight Motion Blur filter to it.

05 EMPHASISE THE SUBJECTTo pull more texture and contrast out of the road, we can use a

Channel Mixer adjustment layer – with Monochrome checked and a Blue

Channel – set to either an Overlay or Soft Light blending mode. To add a

quick vignette, make a heavily feathered selection where the vignette will

be and apply a Levels adjustment layer to control the effect. While

enhancing the feel of the road surface, we can also help direct more

attention to our subjects.

06 ADD LAYER MASKSAs we’re breaking down the image more

and more, we’ll come across situations where

certain tools work better than others. As we

isolate the rest of the background from the road

surface, the Polygonal Lasso tool works best. As

there isn’t a clear-cut line in the pixels, we can

quickly add a feathered selection along the outside

of the road then apply the mask. This can be

controlled manually using soft-edged black and

white brushes.


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09 TIE UP THE LOOSE ENDS Starting with the background enables us to set the stage first, then clean things up as we move

forward. Not much work is needed for the Mercedes SLS at this point, so with a few global and specific

adjustment layers we’re able to fine-tune the overall tonality of the vehicle to match the rest of the image.

10 APPLY WINDOW REFLECTIONSWith the basic retouching finished, we can

now sit back and survey the creative potential of the

image. At a quick glance the windows of both

vehicles could use a little more detail. Use the Pen

tool to apply precise selections of the windows, then

create duplicate layers for each so as not to affect the

pixels below. Cmd/Ctrl-click the layer thumbnail,

make a selection of your copy layer and apply the

Gradient tool to this window layer. Set a white-to-

transparent Gradient Style at 60% Opacity to achieve

a reflective effect.

08 APPLY SELECTIVE COLORWith the background set for now, we can

move our focus towards the cars. As the Dodge

Viper has three dominant colours in its paint, the

Selective Color tool can provide great control when

we start to dial in the colour and tonality. The CMYK

sliders for every tone enable us to adjust contrast,

saturation, hue, colour balance and more in the

whites, blacks and reds of the car.

START WITH THE BASICS USE FOCUSED EFFECTS TO ACHIEVE A DYNAMIC RESULT

001Completing colour and tonal work with the background first helps direct us where to go with the vehicles

002Using various Selection tools for layer masking, we are able to independently work on elements of the image

003We’ll create various realistic-looking lighting and motion effects to enhance the overall dynamics of the image

001 002 003

QUICK TIPUse adjustment layers such as Levels, Curves and Hue/Saturation, as they offer endless flexibility. Everything is non-committal and non-destructive to pixels. As with any other layer, these can be toggled on and off as needed and can be set to any desired blending mode.


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PHOTO EDITING

BOOST THE ENVIRONMENTAL LIGHTING USE LARGE BRUSHSTROKES AND THE FREE TRANSFORM TOOL

14 BLEED THE LIGHTNow that we’ve created the dusty smoke

trail coming from the vehicles, we can add some

more light play towards the front of the image to

bring balance. Revisiting the background folder,

create a new layer at the top of the Group layer stack

to ensure your light will only affect the background

elements. Using a large soft-edged brush, apply a

single white brushstroke. We can adjust the light

flare as needed with the Free Transform tool.

11 ADD HEADLIGHT REFLECTIONSMake a feathered selection of the headlights and add a Hue/Saturation

layer. Activate the Colorize option, set Saturation at 40 and Lightness at 20. The

Hue settings depend on the vehicle. From here you can double-click the layer to

open the Layer Styles options. Applying both Outer and Inner Glow, we can create

the desired radiance with the slider options. To create the flare, apply with a

star-shaped brush and apply a slight Blur filter to soften the edges.

12 THE DIGITAL PAINT BOOTHAs the SLS’s paint is a silver we can easily change it. First we need to

create a new selection with the paint isolated. Use the correct Group mask to

make your selection and edit out anything that isn’t going to change colour –

namely the windscreen and lights. Add a layer and fill it with the new colour, in

this case a sample of the factory red. Change this layer’s blending mode to

Color and apply any adjustments needed to alter the settings.

13 REPLICATE BURNOUT DUSTLooking to add a bit more action to the image, we can create

the effect of burnout dust in a few quick steps. This is where our second

additional file comes into play. With a photo of smoke against a black

background, drag the file into the correct position and change the

blending mode to Screen to leave only the smoke. Apply a mask to the

layer and manually brush out any unnecessary smoke to achieve the

desired look.

QUICK TIPWhen using layer masks, look at the surrounding pixels to help decide which tools to use. The precision of the Pen tool is great for clipping things out such as a car, while a large soft-edged brush or heavily feathered selection is perfect for creating vignettes.


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15 LIGHT THE VEHICLE EDGESWith the light flare added, we now have to create the bleeding-light

effect on both the vehicles to tie things together. We’ll create two new layers for

painting in each car group, again ensuring we only affect specific layers. Using a

soft-edged white brush, we’ll apply along the edges of both vehicles to create the

effect. We can transform and warp the paint, then tweak the opacity or change

the blending mode to either Overlay or Soft Light for increased contrast.

16 ADD LENS FLARESLens flaring will often occur when light bleeds into a lens directly from a

light source. With the added light flare in the upper-right of the image, we can

easily use the Lens Flare filter to add this effect. Making a Group at the top of

everything, add a new layer filled with 50% grey (Shift+F5) and change the

blending mode to Overlay. This gives us an invisible layer that we can apply the

Lens Filter to without altering any pixels below.

18 SHARPEN THE RESULTTo finish we want to sharpen the flattened and cropped image before saving. In addition to the

Unsharp Mask filter, we can run a High Pass filter. Duplicate the final flattened layer and go to

Filter>Other>High Pass. The Radius used is relative to the file size, or simply the desired effect. Change this

layer’s blending mode to either Soft Light, Hard Light, or Vivid Light. All three slightly vary, so test them out

to see which suits best. We can also reduce the opacity of the layer to soften the image if necessary.

17 MAKE GLOBAL ADJUSTMENTSNow we’ve come full circle and will once

again complete a round of global adjustments. As

we’re looking to finish the entire image, ensure

these are made on top of all the other layers and

groups. We can use Selective Color to complete the

bulk of the work. Add contrast in the sky by

applying black to the blues and cyans. Removing

black from white is a good method for pulling out

textures, such as the road surface or clouds.


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PHOTO EDITING


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CREATE A DREAMY LANDSCAPE USING A SELECTION OF HIGH�RES IMAGES AND CUSTOM BRUSHES

CRAFT ATMOSPHERIC LANDSCAPES

In this tutorial we are going to learn to seamlessly

combine night-time photography with day-time

photography in order to create a dream-like

fantasy photo. We will be using Photoshop’s

powerful techniques and tool presets, such as layer

masks and styles, custom brushes and adjustments.

Using layers and masks will enable us to work in

a non-destructive manner, in turn giving us flexibility

and more ways to edit the image without losing the

original data. We also will create a brush preset from

the base image to help match the elements together,

and use one of Photoshop CS6’s new adjustment

layers – Color Lookup – to edit the overall contrast,

lightness and different colours with a simple step.

Finally, we will use the rule of thirds to help us.

These are guidelines proposing that an image

should be imagined as being divided into nine equal

parts by two equally-spaced horizontal lines and two

equally-spaced vertical lines – like in noughts and

crosses – and that important compositional

elements should be placed along these lines or their

intersections. This technique creates more tension,

energy and interest in a composition than simply

centring the subject in the image.

CREATE A SIMPLE BACKGROUND ADD ADJUSTMENT LAYERS TO BEGIN CLEANING THE BACKGROUND IMAGE

01 CLEAN THE BACKGROUND Open ‘background.jpg’ and duplicate it.

Add a Curves adjustment to darken the image, then

add a Hue/Saturation layer and set Saturation to 0.

Use the Patch tool on the duplicate to remove

grass. Add another layer and use the Clone Stamp,

set to Current & Below with 20% Opacity and a big

soft brush, to smooth the Patch’s transitions.

02 REMOVE THE PIERHide the Curves and Hue/Saturation layers.

Create a Stamp Visible layer by hitting Cmd/Ctrl+

Opt/Alt+Shift+E. Use Cmd/Ctrl+T to Free Transform

the layer and flip it horizontally. Add an inverted

mask by Opt/Alt-clicking the ‘Add layer mask’ icon.

Brush with soft white to reveal the background until

we have a smooth transition and the pier is hidden.

03 EXTRACT ELEMENTSSelect the background and

then use the Rectangular Marquee to

select the person and their reflection.

Hit Cmd/Ctrl+J to copy that to a new

layer and move it into a new group.

Now select and cut the reflection, then

use Cmd/Ctrl+Shift+V to paste as a

new layer. Create a path in the Paths

menu and, with the Pen tool, draw a

path around the person.

BUILDING THE DREAM

Step 18: Final adjustments

WORK IN PROGRESS

Step 8: Brush clouds

Step 1: Remove distractions

Mikko Lagerstedt is a fine art photographer hailing from Finland. He makes it his artistic mission to create atmospheric photography, and he continues to refine his artwork in Photoshop.

MIKKO LAGERSTEDTmikkolagerstedt.com

OUR EXPERT

If you load up the free CD then you will find all of the images necessary to follow this tutorial as well as some custom brushes created by Mikko Lagerstedt.

SOURCE FILES



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128

04 MASKSelect the path then Ctrl/right-click on it. Choose Make Selection, setting Feather Radius to 0,2

pixels. Add a mask to the person layer and invert it with Cmd/Ctrl+I. Select the reflection layer and add a layer

mask to it. Start masking the reflection using a medium-sized standard black brush, with a Hardness of 60%,

to hide the reflection. Once it’s completely hidden, hit Cmd/Ctrl+I to invert the mask and your reflection should

now be visible. Use Free Transform to straighten the reflection and set the blend mode to Multiply.

07 IMPORT NIGHT SKYOpen ‘stars.jpg’ and place it into the

Background group. Add another group, named Sky.

Create a new layer above the Stars layer and add a

clipping mask by Opt/Alt-clicking between them.

Use the Brush tool with Size: 540 px and Hardness:

0%, and sample a colour from the bottom of the

Stars image – paint with 10% Opacity until the

brightest stars are slightly visible in the bottom half

of the Stars layer. Add a Curves layer with Input: 43

and Output: 117, and a clipping mask attached.

05 NEW DOCUMENTPut the background layers together into a

new group by using the shortcut Cmd/Ctrl+G. Set

the group’s name to Background. Now group the

person and their reflection together too and name

that one Person. Save the file as ‘water.psd’. Create

a new document by hitting Cmd/Ctrl+N and name it

Dream. Apply Width: 235 mm and Height: 302 mm,

with Resolution: 72. Set the Color Profile to Adobe

RGB and Background Contents to Transparent, and

then click OK to open the new canvas.

08 ADD CLOUDSCreate a new layer. Grab the Brush and

select one of the cloud/fog presets, giving it a

relatively large size. Start brushing by first sampling

the background fog layer with Opt/Alt. Brush with a

Flow of 20% and resample the colours to create

variation within the layer. Brush until you have

covered the point where the Stars layer and the

Background image collide. Use a layer mask to

mask out if you have gone too far, and also to

smooth the transition from the fog into the sky.

06 PLACING THE ELEMENTSSelect the Water file by tabbing with Cmd/

Ctrl+Tab, then Ctrl/right-click on the Background

group and select Duplicate Group. Set the

Destination to Dream and click OK. Repeat the step

with the Person group. We can now finally close the

Water file. Now select the Crop tool with View: Rule

of Thirds and create guides according to the lines,

then press the Escape key. Select both of the

groups and reposition them so that the person and

the reflection are near the lower third.


QUICK TIPBy using one of the provided cloud/fog brush presets, or one of your own, with Opacity: 100% and Flow: 25% you can mask out certain areas to create more variations in the transition layer, and when you’re smoothing the edges use a big soft brush with 10% Opacity and 100% Flow.

PHOTO EDITING


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129

12 DETAIL ADJUSTMENTSSelect the boat reflection layer and give it a layer mask. Use a 50% Soft small-sized brush and paint

in black onto the layer mask where the reflection is. Invert the mask with Cmd/Ctrl+I. Now select the Water

brush that we just created. Brush with 40% black around the sides of the reflection layer to hide some of the

boat’s reflection with ripples. Double-click the layer to open the Layer Style dialog. Adjust Underlying Layer

from white to 204/255 by holding Opt/Alt and sliding the right-hand pointer to the left.

10 MAKE A CUSTOM BRUSHOn the background layer, select part of the

pier’s reflection with the Polygonal Lasso. Copy it to

the clipboard and make another document, naming

it Water, then paste the reflection into it. Hit Cmd/

Ctrl+L to bring up a Levels adjustment and apply

Input Levels: 91, 042 and 177. Duplicate the layer

and flip it horizontally, then use a big soft Eraser to

remove and smooth the left side of the new layer.

Flatten the image and remove the colours with

Cmd/Ctrl+Shift+U. Go to Edit>Define Brush Preset

and name it Water.

11 ADDING THE BOATOpen the boat picture and import it to a

new group. Name the group Boat. Resize the

picture, lower the Opacity to 62% and use Free

Transform to match its size with the underlying

person. Copy the reflection to another layer by

selecting it with a Lasso then using Cmd/Ctrl+X and

Cmd/Ctrl+Shift+V. Now select the boat layer –

create a new path around it and make a selection

with the setting Feather Radius: 0,2 pixels. Add a

layer mask to the layer and hit Cmd/Ctrl+I to invert.

09 CLOUD TRANSITION ADJUSTMENTSImport the cloud image and place it in the middle of the frame. Add a layer mask to it and start

masking out with the cloud/fog brush preset. Use 100% Opacity and 25% Flow to start revealing the

background with black, using the X key to switch between black and white to reveal and mask out.

001Double-click on the cloud layer from inside the Layer palette to open up the Layer Style dialog

002Select Inner Glow, then set Opacity to 64%, Color to #ECFCFF, Elements Size to 111 px and Quality Range to 44%

003Create a duplicate layer with Cmd/Ctrl+J. Disable the Layer Style and smooth the transition with a big soft black brush

TRANSITION EFFECTSUSE LAYER STYLES TO HELP CREATE LIGHT EFFECTS

001002 003



Add a Color Lookup adjustment layer to

balance the lightness of the image


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130

14 COLOUR CORRECTIONSCreate a new group above all the others

and name it Reflection & Colour. Add a new Curves

adjustment layer and name it Colour. Select the

Blue channel from the drop-down menu. Adjust the

curve upwards slightly and then move to the Green

channel and pull the middle down slightly, then do

the same with the Red channel. Go back to RGB

mode and pull the midtones down. Now use the

Gradient tool with a grey colour on the mask so as

to not affect the night sky too much.

15 REFLECTIONCreate a Stamp Visible layer with Cmd/Ctrl+Opt/Alt+Shift+E, then hit Cmd/Ctrl+T to Free Transform.

Flip it vertically and move it down so that the edge of the cloud is hitting the bottom of the image. Add an

inverted mask by Opt/Alt-clicking on the ‘Add layer’ icon. Set the blend mode to Multiply and the Opacity to

86%. Reveal the mask from the bottom. Double-click the layer and, in the Blend If options, hold down Opt/Alt

and drag the Underlying Layers’ black pointer right to 0/85.

FINAL ADJUSTMENTSCREATE COLOUR CORRECTIONS WITH CURVES ADJUSTMENT LAYERS


QUICK TIPWhen using the Blend adjustments in the Layer Style dialog, you can easily choose to either show or not show whether the underlying layer is darker or lighter. This is a quick and easy way to hide any unnecessary elements, shadows or lights in your image.

13 BALANCING LIGHTIn the Background group,

above the Sky and Water groups,

add a Color Lookup adjustment

layer to balance the lightness of the

image. Select the FoggyNight.3DL

preset from the 3DLUT menu and

then set Layer Opacity to 64%. Use

the Gradient tool on the layer mask

with a grey colour to adjust the

visibility of the effect. After that,

select the person layer in the Person

group and add a Curves adjustment

to darken it, using a clipping mask to

restrict the effect to just that layer.

Make the same adjustments to the

reflection layer.

PHOTO EDITING


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17 ADD FOGCreate a group called Final Adjustments

and then make another new layer. Start by using

your cloud/fog brush to select light areas of the

clouds and then brush on top of the clouds, birds

and person. Set the layer’s Opacity to 30% and bring

up the Layer Style dialog. Under the Blend If

section, drag the Underlying Layer’s white pointer

to 111/255 using the Opt/Alt key. Now create

a Hue/Saturation layer. Set the Saturation to 15

and then brush with a mask in the cloud part of

the image.

18 FINAL ADJUSTMENTSAdd a Hue/Saturation layer with Saturation:

12. Hold Opt/Alt and drag the first layer mask onto

the second, then invert. Create a Levels adjustment,

set to 8,0,97,253. Lighten the image with a Curves

layer, pulling the Blue highlights up. Add another

Curves layer to lighten the image and invert the

mask to reveal dark parts of the clouds. Add a new

blank layer by holding Opt/Alt, set it to Overlay at

60% Opacity and check the Fill with Overlay box.

Apply Filter>Noise>Add Noise with Amount: 1,8%

and set to Gaussian, monochromatic to finish.

16 ADD BIRDSOpen the birds image and import it to a

new group called Birds, setting the blend mode to

Multiply. Use Cmd/Ctrl+T to control the angle and

size of the flock. Duplicate the layer with Cmd/

Ctrl+J and, again, hit Cmd/Ctrl+T to Free Transform.

Flip the flock vertically then Ctrl/right-click the

transform box and select Warp. Warp the bottom

bird up slightly and hit Return. Now add a layer

mask and use the Water brush to hide some of the

reflected birds, setting the layer’s Opacity to 59%.



FINAL ADJUSTMENTS FORPHOTOMANIPULATION

When you’re using layers and blur effects in manipulations, it’s important to add noise/grain at the final stages of the piece. Adjusting as necessary according to the base images’ grain and detail, create a new layer filled with 50% grey then set it to Overlay and apply the Add Noise filter. Set the amount in a preview mode, so you can see how much is really needed to match all the elements. This helps you to blend the blurred elements together with the base image to make it look much more authentic.

Add a Color Lookup adjustment layer to

balance the lightness of the image


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Incorporate typography into your Photoshop projects

Typography134 20 type secrets

Discover a host of inspiring type

projects and the secrets behind

their creation

142 Design illustrative type Learn to build your own typeface

using stock imagery

146 Design 3D Type Combine multiple tools and

software to produce exciting

3D type

152 Create stylish vintage type

Replicate retro type styles using

Photoshop and Illustrator

156 3D type projects Create a futuristic cityscape by

merging urban photo textures

and typography


146PAGE

Typography is a fundamental part of day-to-day life. It’s everywhere we look


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142PAGE

152PAGE


156PAGE


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WE BRING YOU AN INSPIRING COLLECTION OF TYPE PROJECTS ALONG WITH INSIDE INFO AND PRACTICAL TIPS FROM THE ARTISTS WHO CREATED THEM

JORDAN METCALF www.jordan-metcalf.com

To create a toolkit for Boston

Magazine, artist Jordan Metcalf

decided to go for a clean bespoke

type that he refined and completed

in Photoshop.

1. VINTAGE SHADOWS

■ The brief I was tasked with

building a visually striking

typographic treatment that would

work across a contents page, DPS

and various sub-section headers of

the magazine.

■ The inspiration The style is a

play on vintage signage that pays

tribute to the rich history of the city.

It was important that this wouldn’t

be specific to one place in Boston

or preferential to any particular

sub-section of the feature.

■ Custom type All the type was

completely drawn from scratch

and no fonts were used.

■ Creating shadows The

shadows cast by the lettering were

all done in vector with a

combination of a few techniques.

■ Getting grainy Photoshop was

used for the final grain and

highlight effects on the type.

■ Gradient Map I used a Gradient

Map adjustment layer in

Photoshop to get the subtle muted

colours consistent throughout the

entire toolkit.

© Jordan Metcalf


TYPOGRAPHY

TYPE SECRETS20


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TODD FOOSHEE www.toddfooshee.com

With a bold font from the Avant

Garde family as a base, Todd

Fooshee set about building up a graphic type by

adding hundreds of very small birds to his project.

“The font is clean, easily readable and has a really

thick, sturdy look to it [that’s perfect for rebuilding]

the forms with birds. I did some adjusting to the

kerning and from there began to place birds all

around the letters. [I kept] balance in mind, but really

just placed them at random to build the words. In

terms of the specific tools for this project, I used a

pen and paper, a scanner and some basic features

inside Photoshop. Without the Invert adjustment I

would have probably had to go a different route… The

layer groups were what really helped me out the

most, just to stay organised and keep things in

order… After I finished the letters, it came down to

building a background texture, which I did by

combining a few images using different blending

modes then erasing [areas] and using some texture

brushes. I applied some of the bristle brushes with

my Wacom tablet to add the slight vignetting around

the top edges and then toned it down a bit with some

blending modes. There is also a lot of copy-and-

pasting work at the heart of this piece.”

2. BUILDING LETTERS

HERE DESIGN www.heredesign.co.uk

The multi-disciplinary team at Here Design decided

to let their type do the talking when creating the

packaging for the Hairy Bikers crisps brand. Coming

up with a concept to sell snacks on behalf of two

unorthodox TV chefs was a unique challenge. The

team started by developing copy lines for each

unusual flavour and sensation, as director Caz

Hildebrand explains: “Once we started looking at

using just type, it quickly became obvious that this

would work well and help the packs stand out

against the competition. We were inspired by the sort

of graphic style associated with packaging that has

to travel, like cardboard boxes containing fragile

items reading ‘This Way Up’ or food packaging date

stamps that read ‘Best Before’ and so on.

The colours were derived from the flavours, for

example the Keralan King Prawns pack is pink both

for the colour of the prawns and the Indian feel. The

logo for the Hairy Bikers combines a spanner, a

pepper pot and a fork inside a wheel to evoke both

the motorbikes and the cooking of the duo. Each

pack has relevant language for the flavour as well as

Si and Dave’s seal of approval and signatures. We

used Photoshop to create the impression… of old

letterpress-printed type that’s a bit battered and care-

worn… We mixed some of the Effects Gallery styles

with scanned textures we found to create a unique

set of textures to be used with the type.”

3. COMMERCIAL PACKAGING

MARCELO SCHULTZ www.behance.net/marceloschultz

When he was commissioned to create a T-shirt

design for Nike that would fuse trainers with a

slogan, Marcelo Schultz immediately reached

for the textures.

4. LEATHER AND TREAD

■ Create a mask to apply the texture you're

using. Select the type that you would like to

apply the texture to by holding Cmd/Ctrl and

clicking over the tiny image of the shape on the

Layers panel. Keeping the selection active,

create a layer folder and select Add Layer Mask,

located at the bottom of the Layers panel.

■ Next place the texture inside the mask, which

should fit to the exact shape. Inside that mask

you can add some shadows and create a 3D

depth effect, as you can see marked in green, to

achieve the final effect.

■ This image uses different textures, such as

leather and tread. Textures can improve and

lend a realistic effect to your artwork, as long as

they are of a good quality.

© Todd Fooshee

© Here Design


20 TYPE SECRETS


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http://www.heredesign.co.uk

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NIK AINLEY www.shinybinary.com

Drinks giant Diageo enlisted Nik

Ainley to give a typographic

treatment to promote a line of cocktail drinks. “They

wanted something with plenty of abstract and

photographic items related to each drink and centred

around 3D typography. The final design went through

many iterations, almost 40 for the first image I seem

to remember. The smooth flow from the pump to the

glass was an important part of the concept and

helped to give each illustration a shape. The first

elements to frame each piece were the pumps and

drinks, which came from specially taken photos.

After this I discussed with the art director what sort

of typography would work. From experience I knew

that a fairly simple font was needed, as when you

extrude a font you introduce a lot of new surfaces

that can confuse the eye. In the middle of complex

illustrations like these you need to keep things as

legible as possible. Using a simple chunky font

minimises the confusing effect, so that’s what I went for. The 3D letters were then built in 3ds Max and

positioned. An excellent 3D artist and friend, Marcelo Jr, was involved heavily in this part of the process. Even

after the 3D elements were brought into Photoshop, the piece consisted of many layers that enabled me to

continue tweaking it as I went. From there it was a case of creating all the other aspects that consisted of

stock photos, images captured for the project, decorative 3D elements and sections built in Photoshop. I

brought all of these together with a heavy dose of retouching and editing.”

7. FLOWING EFFECTS

ANTHONY GIACOMINO www.agiaco.net

Anthony Giacomino teamed up with Richard

Roberts (www.richardroberts.com) to create an

other-worldly type project for the Intrinsic

Nature art collective. Bold 3D lettering takes

centre-stage, enhanced by light effects and

futuristic elements, as the team explains: “For

this piece we started with a base in CINEMA 4D

to make the 3D type, lighting and also an

assortment of geometric shapes. After

importing this into Photoshop, we added more

atmosphere and light emitting from the top, in

addition to some light effects.

“The piece needed some more colour, so we

sampled pinks and oranges to complement the

cool blue and navy tones. For the final details we

added a few other points of interest, such as the

figure on the right and some foreground shapes

to add depth and dimension. We utilised

blending modes such as Screen and Overlay

when playing with stocks and other elements to

create some unique effects.”

5. 3D TYPE

© Anthony Giacomino and Richard Roberts

MARCUS BYRNE www.behance.net/mobdesignMarcus Byrne created this striking lighting typography for Cricket Australia/George

Patterson Y&R in Melbourne. The illuminated fluorescent design includes detailed light

effects and bright colours and was reproduced in all hues across the colour palette. The type was used in

extensive applications across the range of marketing materials for T20 cricket. Here you can see some of the

stages in Byrne’s process.

6. ILLIUMINATE IT

© Nik Ainley


TYPOGRAPHY


WorldMags.net

http://www.shinybinary.com

http://www.agiaco.net

http://www.richardroberts.com

http://www.behance.net/mobdesign



LUKE LUCASwww.lukelucas.com

The team at Esquire magazine required an innovative

and stylish headline treatment for a grooming

section of the publication. Here Luke Lucas runs

through how he approached this task.

8. GRAPHICAL HAIR

EUGENE LVOVSKYwww.eugenelvovsky.com

If you’ve ever thought that standard type options are incredibly boring – and if you’re

reading this I bet you have – try looking at them through Eugene Lvovsky’s eyes.

Instead of seeing letters, he sees shapes, and has used this approach to create his

series of ‘Type Is’ posters. You can see the full series here www.eugenelvovsky.com/

typeis. “The inspiration for the series is the immense beauty of typographic forms.

Simply spotting a beautiful descender on a typographic character could easily grow

into the question, ‘Can I make this into a flower?’ I take this step further by creating a

visually pleasing

relationship between every

single character, respecting

and being true to its unique

shape. Everything is

thoughtfully interconnected,

every character, every

shoulder, stem and serif.

There are no letters

accidentally placed together

in my images and the

accessibility of Photoshop

helps enormously when

working on made-to-order

prints. Everything from a

Gradient Map to Hue/

Saturation adjustment

layers save time when I’m

perfecting a bespoke colour

combination for a client.”

9. USE A NEW PERSPECTIVEANDRÉ BEATOwww.andrebeato.com

André Beato created a playful type for easyJet, merging bold letters

with different elements. “The brief behind this project was to create a

main type header for an article called ‘The Next Big Thing’. The idea was

to play (bastardise, overlap or italicise) with the header title text,

combining the four stories related to the article, namely Northern

Lights, Cycle like the Pros, Ice Climbing and Sleep-Inducing Machines. I

started the illustration process in the vector program FreeHand MX and

tried to find the best

way to combine the

text block – I used

the magazine

house font called

Benton – then drew

the elements to

adapt and join them

with the text. I

always try to create

something legible

but appealing at the

same time. The

process concluded

in Photoshop,

where I added all

the little details like

shadows, glows,

brush-star effects

and colour

adjustments.”

10. PLAY WITH TYPE

■ Initial brief I was asked to create a type

illustration and some hairy graphical elements.

■ Base text The client wanted to evolve the

illustration from their standard condensed sans

serif, into something that was more dynamic and

relative to the theme.

■ Creating hair I next built up all the hair elements

using very fine strokes drawn with the Pen Path tool

in Illustrator.

■ Making hair brushes I created several hair

brushes and applied them to paths in the shapes that

I felt would work the best on the different letters. I

then made some slight distortions using the Mesh

Warp tool.

■ Copy layers I added in some hair highlight layers

using fine paths. I then copied both the base hair and

highlights into Photoshop in separate layers.

■ Add highlights I hid and made a selection of the

highlight layers and brushed them within the

selected shape on a separate layer. This brought

more variation to overall design.

© Luke Lucas

© Eugene Lvovsky


20 TYPE SECRETS

© A

ndre

Bea

to, R

yan

McC

abe


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http://www.lukelucas.com

http://www.eugenelvovsky.com

http://www.andrebeato.com



LINZIE HUNTER www.linziehunter.co.uk

Skinny Cow and JWT New York were in need of a fresh interpretation of

their campaign copy, so they got illustrator Linzie Hunter to apply her

unique style. “Sometimes I’ll create my lettering on paper, while other

times I play about with colours and styles directly in Photoshop. For this

series of ads I worked fully in Photoshop using a Wacom tablet and pen.

I concentrated on creating lettering that looked and felt hand-rendered

and more in-keeping with my personal style. I like to mix and match

typefaces with upper- and lower-case characters, as I feel this lends

energy to my work and I prefer everything to not feel too neat or perfect.

Sometimes it’s obvious which words need greater emphasis, but for me

it’s usually just more of a hunch when it comes to developing or picking

lettering styles… I used a variety of custom brushes in order to achieve

a more painterly or hand-rendered effect and also used my own

textures, either scanned, photographed or hand-drawn. I also tend to

have a lot of layers set to Multiply or Overlay in order to create textural

effects and backgrounds. Sometimes with these hand-lettering

assignments, the arrangement of words and letters just don’t fit the

space you’ve got in the way you’d like.”

12. DIGITAL HAND LETTERING

© Linda Zacks

All images © Lizzie Hunter/JWT New York

LINDA ZACKS www.extra-oomph.com

Linda Zacks usually originates her elements with

real-world media, but here shares her tips on how to

marry these perfectly in Photoshop. “RPA in Santa

Monica asked me to create an artful interpretation of

the Newport Beach Film Festival name. This

typographic collage was born from a stack of city

shots taken while zooming around at night… I went

through heaps of photos, picking out awesome

shapes and colours. In Photoshop I had a zillion

windows open simultaneously and pasted stuff into

a giant master file with a billion layers. Slowly but

surely the letters came to life from several bits and

pieces of photos as I sized, resized and transformed

them. I also added some watercolour textures over

the top that I had scanned in one rainy day. Nothing

originated in Photoshop, but I used it as a virtual

gluestick. For this project I used lots of layer

functions as well as Multiply, Screen and Overlay

blending modes. To finish I punched up the colour to

add the last burst of zing.”

11. REAL�WORLD ELEMENTS


TYPOGRAPHY


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http://www.linziehunter.co.uk

http://www.extra-oomph.com



STEVE GOODIN www.behance.net/demen1

Steve Goodin gave a funky yet classy edge to this

piece of marketing material for a Reno electronic

music event. “The initial idea stemmed from the title

of the event. I was given creative control over the

theme and style of the poster so I really wanted to

set the tone and the vibe based on that title. This

poster was created using some 3D type elements as

well as some other stock photography and

illustrated graphics. For example, the lightbulb

images and vintage flowery wallpaper pattern came

from a deviantART member.”

14. VINTAGE 3D

© Luke Lucas

LUKE LUCASwww.lukelucas.com

Freelance creative Luke Lucas

was asked to design this sweet

and savoury graphic for the dining section of The

New York Times, using Poplar as a secondary

typeface. “This illustration began with defining

the main glass shape and the stylised wine

pouring inside it in loose vector shapes. The

main type was then created using Vector

Paths in Illustrator, while the secondary

type was set in the Poplar typeface and

distorted to fit using the Mesh Warp

tool. In terms of the creative process,

the wine shapes were brought into

Photoshop as separate objects and

colour, highlights and shadows were

applied to enhance the depth of tone.

The main type was then filled with

colour and the shadow details within

the letters were masked and brushed

to define overlapping elements. The

warped secondary type objects were

overlayed using layer effects, then it

came to building the glass. The

background of the image was to be

white, so in order to define highlights

on a white background I first

needed to add a slight grey tint

to the whole glass shape.

This was placed on the

bottom layer so as not to tint

the actual wine itself. Next I

brushed in the highlights and

shadows in separate layers

above the wine and type

shape layers. Some faint

reflection shapes were also masked and brushed in.

Once the main type and glass objects were rendered

to a fairly polished level I placed all of the wine and

type elements into a layer group. To finish, I

duplicated and applied masks to the groups,

separating the objects between those inside and

those outside the glass.”

13. POPLAR IN A GLASS

■ Main ideaThe brief was to incorporate various

flavours and descriptors associated

with wine in an artistic way.

■ Two typefacesLucas mixed two typefaces, placing one

centre-stage as Sweet and Savoury and

the other to spell out associated words in

the glass.

■ Refracted effectBy separating and shifting

elements in the glass, Lucas

could imitate a slightly refracted

distortion to create a realistic finish.

■ Highlights and ShadowsPainted highlights and shadows gave

definition to the type and the wine

background, adding depth and interest.

All images © Steve Goodin


20 TYPE SECRETS


WorldMags.net

http://www.behance.net/demen1

http://www.lukelucas.com



JOEY CAMACHO www.joeycamacho.com

Inspired by a period of his life when he wanted to slow down and appreciate the simpler

things, Joey Camacho created a typographic poster series to echo his ideas. “My process

with this project, as with all my typographic work, started with word-pairing or putting

together the concept for a series of images. I used Burgues Script for this as it has

thousands of glyphs and alternative characters. Balancing out the words and using the

flourishes sparingly was important. Some people don’t spend the time required to

understand the entire font, which I think is really important. When I get the images into

Photoshop I use the Alpha channels and layer masks to tweak the colours, enhance the

lighting and give them a tactile feel. The textured background is made up of quite a few

different layers, reduced in opacity and overlaid. This often gives more depth than just one

texture layer. I use custom dust and scratch brushes, while also using the Dual Brush

feature to add some randomness and inconsistencies to the final result. I spend quite a bit

of time dodging and burning the reflections and shadows, which helps make them pop. I

also often use Color Balance and Curves adjustments to finesse the final product.”

17. EXPERIMENT WITH TONES

JURI ZAECH www.juri-zaech.com

Starting with an initially rough sketch, Juri Zaech gave these quirky

personalised bicycles all their touching character using

Photoshop’s toolset.

15. FROM HAND�DRAWN TO 3D SI SCOTT www.siscottstudio.com

Working to a brief for Nike, full-time artist, designer and creative consultant Si Scott built a

unique typography-lead image. The design fuses the kit of a well-known football team with

the words its fans sing at matches. “The brief was to make the footballers from famous

chants that the Paris Saint-Germain fans sing at their beloved team’s games. The piece

was used as three-storey-high banners on the side of the Nike store in Paris for the launch

of that season’s kit,” he says. The result

shows the famous kit, complete with Nike

swoosh, worn by a man built purely from

type. To create the image, Scott fused his

well-known style of hand-crafted work with

his Photoshop expertise. “The image was

drawn by hand in separate parts, scanned

into Photoshop and pieced together in the

program. The Magic Wand tool was used as

a selection tool to get rid of the negative

space. It was also helpful to remove marks

left on the paper from the drawing process,

which can’t be seen by the naked eye. From

there a mask layer was added to the type so

the colour could be added.”

16. TYPE FOR TALL BUILDINGS

■The ‘Write a Bike’ series started with my own wish to create a

personalised bicycle, so using the name of the owner seemed a

logical and interesting way to demonstrate this. The process

started with sketching up a rough shape of the bike and the name,

to see how tight the letters needed to be spaced to maintain a

somewhat natural proportion.

■ I drew the bike in Illustrator, starting with the basic elements and

the lettering of the chosen name. It took a lot of adjustments to get

to the even structure of the bike’s frame. Once all the vector work

was finished, I took the different elements to Photoshop to render

the 3D effect.

■ I mainly used simple Bevel and Emboss layer effects. It was

important to pay attention to the details like the colour of the

shades and obviously the amount of embossing. The reflection

elements needed to be blurred, have their opacity reduced and

other partial adjustments. The background, shadows, reflections

and textures were all finishing touches. © Joey Camacho

© Nike/ Simon Scott


TYPOGRAPHY


WorldMags.net

http://www.joeycamacho.com

http://www.juri-zaech.com

http://www.siscottstudio.com



CHARLES WILLIAMSwww.madeup.orgThe Church of London commissioned different artists to depict

various Olympic athletes for the cover of the Metro newspaper

during the games. The brief specified that only the portrait had to

be recognisable and include the athletes’ names. Charles Williams depicted Louis

Smith with a combination of hard-edged and soft flowing shapes, in reference to the

strength and graceful movement required of gymnasts. “Once I’d put together a rough

layout I started building the vector design in Illustrator, then added detail in Photoshop.

I based the type on the shapes I used to build the portrait – flowing organic shapes –

then gave it a bit of a circus feel, as this sat well with the gymnast figures above. I built

the type in Illustrator then added depth and a soft 3D feel in Photoshop using Bevel

and Emboss. To get this effect I set the Bevel and Emboss adjustment’s Highlight

Mode to Overlay and created individual layers for each letter’s bevel. This prevented

the bevels from bleeding into one another and distorting.”

19. TWIST VECTORS

BEN DOWNARD www.cargocollective.com/downard

Ben Downard created a concrete type graphic to raise awareness of the events in Haiti. He

worked across CINEMA 4D, Illustrator and of course Photoshop to add texture and bring

together the final effect. The result is a solid graphic that portrays the destruction. “For the

aesthetic of the project I wanted something stark, sterile and in a duo tone to illustrate the

idea of devastation and its impact on a clean environment. For the concrete effect I used

two photographs: a macro shot of basic concrete for the texture and a macro shot of dry,

cracked, muddy earth. From that point on I applied with masks and lighting effects used as

layer styles. This achieved a painterly and illustrative effect for the remnants of a building

left standing after the earthquake.”

18. REPLICATE CRACKED CONCRETE

STEFAN CHINOFwww.behance.net/chin2off

Inspired by horror films and a love of candy, Stefan Chinof turned the

Helvetica typeface into a fun take on a terrifying texture. “I was inspired

by a poster for a horror movie that had a very organic, bloody and sort of

raw-meat-looking texture! Since I’m a big comedy junkie and not at all

a horror fan, I thought of how I could make this effect a bit more fun and

juicy. Helvetica isn’t a font that’s usually seen in such an abstraction, so

it was an interesting challenge on top of using the negative space

around the font. Using negative space always has great power but is

rarely used in this way. The tools I applied the most for this project were

the blending options as well as the Bevel and Emboss adjustment.

Shapes were quite useful too and a great addition, but drawing the idea

out to start was the base of it all.”

20. RETHINK HELVETICA

© Stefan Chinof

© Ben Downard

© Charles Williams


20 TYPE SECRETS


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http://www.madeup.org

http://www.cargocollective.com/downard

http://www.behance.net/chin2off




TYPOGRAPHY

DESIGN ILLUSTRATIVE TYPEDISCOVER HOW TO BUILD YOUR OWN TYPEFACE USING STOCK IMAGERY AND PHOTOSHOP COLOUR ADJUSTMENTS

B oth illustrative and collage type are a

growing trend among digital artists,

combating the saturation of 3D styles and

breathing life back into a stale genre. As

collage type is experimental, it provides a lure of

invention that sparks the imagination.

A solid sense of composition goes a long way

when producing a successful image like this,

enabling you to understand how one element

relates to others around it. As always patience is a

virtue, as it can take a long time to construct the

forms of all the various elements and ordering

them. By being meticulous you can appreciate the

joy of this style; all you need to do is play with your

elements and keep working until they strike you.

A bucket-load of stock imagery that corresponds

to your theme is essential. Arm yourself with as

many examples as possible that display numerous

positions, perspectives and orientations. These are

needed to match and signify your font shapes.

As always, Photoshop ties your designs

together, with colour adjustments letting you

control the vibrancy of your elements and Levels

paving the way to balanced lighting. Gradients can

boost colour and custom brushes will bring your

mixed-media and collage looks to life.

01 JUSTIFY YOUR TYPEStart by creating a font sheet in Photoshop.

Apply as many styles as possible, considering the

correlation between these and your theme, which in

this case is tourist photography. A blocky typeface is

suited to such mechanical and structured forms, so

we’ve chosen Chaparral Pro as our base.

03 SPLIT UP VARIED BACKGROUNDSSadly, separating your elements from the

existing background won’t always be easy. For

less-routine backdrops, apply Selections using the

Pen Path tool, then perfect selection edges using the

Refine Edge object and apply a layer mask to isolate

your option. Layer masks will come in handy when

editing later in the workflow.

02 SEPARATE SOLID BACKGROUNDSA large chunk of your time will be taken up

cutting out image elements from existing backdrops.

For a solid-colour background, simply apply the

Magic Wand at a Tolerance of 25, add a layer mask

and invert this before saving. Automate this

technique by saving it as an Action.

BUILD YOUR COLLAGE TYPE

Step 12: Apply brushes

WORK IN PROGRESS

Step 8: Amend colours

Step 5: Place your elements

Adam is an enthusiast ready to pit his design skills against any style. Here he shows you how to tackle type made from photo stock.

ADAM SMITHwww.advancedphotoshop.co.uk

OUR EXPERT

Numerous JPEG stock images have been supplied, which you can use to experiment with your own styles. Also supplied are sets of mixed-media brushes, which will help you to create the exact looks in this tutorial.

SOURCE FILES


WorldMags.net

http://www.advancedphotoshop.co.uk




DESIGN ILLUSTRATIVE TYPE




WorldMags.net




TYPOGRAPHY

04 DRAG, DROP AND CONVERT ELEMENTS

With all images removed from their

backgrounds, it’s time to drag and

drop them into your main image,

which also ensures your layer

masks stay attached. Convert all

your newly imported image layers

to Smart Objects, de-scale and

arrange them away from your type.

By making these Smart Objects you

will be able to alter the image size

without causing distortion and keep

options open when compositing.

Placing away from your text lets

you easily organise things.

07 EDIT THE LIGHTINGThis can be a painstaking procedure, but

it’s essential to maintain uniformity in your

elements. You may find that some of them actually

have a similar level of exposure, but some may

seem darker or lighter. Target where these images

are, then apply Levels to correct the exposure. Also

use your new adjustment layer’s layer mask to

target lighting with a paintbrush. Make sure that

your Levels adjustment layer only affects the layer

in question by clipping this layer to it.

05 MAKE CAREFUL PLACEMENTNow you can start to create the building

blocks for your letterforms using your Smart

Objects. It’s important that you scrutinise the

placement of your elements, so they initiate and

accentuate the shapes of your fonts. For example,

we’ve used the image of an arm holding a camera

to mimic the curvature of our letter S. We admit to

using the Transform>Warp tool to fit our element to

the typeface, which we get away with as we’re

using an organic image (a human arm).

08 ALTER THE COLOURChanging tones in the

scene isn’t always a concern, but

random splashes of colour from

various objects can really help

your final effect. However, there is

nothing wrong with boosting the

vibrancy of existing colours. While

this technique is relatively easy, it

will still require focus. Apply a

Hue/Saturation adjustment layer

and set appropriate values in your

Saturation and Brightness sliders

for the relevant colour options.

You can also use your attached

layer mask and a low-opacity

black soft brush to work original

colours back in where you feel

they are needed.

06 BUILD UP LETTERFORMSDon’t be afraid to edit the images. That’s

why we have applied layer masks so you can work

out elements at any time. For example, try using an

angled camera lens to again re-create the curve in

your letter S. Continue to look for elements that will

fit a specific space in the letter, pay attention to the

layering and shapes of the images and also notice

the relation of their different sizes. As we have more

letters to create, we’ve increased the size of our

stock to combat any repetition.

QUICK TIPWant to get rid of product branding, logos and type? This is easy using Content-Aware Fill. Simply pick the affected area, press Shift+F5 and select this option, which will fill in the selected area with surrounding tones. More often than not this creates a seamless fill.


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09 THE IMAGE SO FARAs we have used a lot of camera and lens stock, the image has been saturated with dark tones,

affecting the splashes of colour, which now seem minimal. We’ve combated this by increasing the vibrancy of

our image and applying gradient shapes.

10 ADD GRADIENT SHAPESWe’ve introduced more colours to our

image with the use of gradient shapes. They have

been added using the Elliptical Shape tool, applied

specifically to the camera lenses. This is a lot easier

with the new CS6 Shape tool Fill options. You can

layer your shapes, combining Screen, Overlay and

Vivid Light to affect detail. Make sure you do this

inside your Smart Objects, which will automatically

update effects in all duplicate layers and enable you

to resize non-destructively.

13 MAKE A BACKGROUNDWe’ve completed our effect by creating

more painted layers throughout our layer stacks.

We’ve painted to a Screen blending mode layer

using a 50% grey soft brush. Make sure you clip

these new paint layers to stop noticeable

overlapping. We’ve also complemented our

background by scattering photo elements then

applying Gaussian Blur to simulate a depth-of-field

effect. Finally we’ve merged all our layers,

sharpened and applied Add Noise at 2%.

11 DODGE AND BURN CONTOURIf you plan to resize your elements, dodge

and burn them separately by opening each Smart

Object and then Opt/Alt-clicking the Create New

Layer icon. In the New Layer dialog box we’ve set

Mode to Overlay and activated the Fill with the

Overlay-neutral colour option. This will create a

50% greyscale image that you can paint with

low-opacity brushes. White will add highlights and

black will create shadow. Add this to the top of your

layer stack if you aren’t resizing any letter layers.

12 MORE GRADIENTSBring better depth by adding black-to-

transparent gradients to our image elements that

fall behind others. Opacity, scale and positioning will

vary and we’ve also emphasised our collage effect

using mixed-media textures. You can do this by

loading ‘brushfx-paint-splatters-set-1’ brush set

supplied and applying black ink splats to a new layer

set behind all the image elements. Use different

styles, sizes and Brush Tip>Angles to vary effects,

matching the direction and edges of your layers.

ADDING SOME FLAREThe smallest details can really improve the whole feel of your collage type. Here we’ve added a bit of surrealism by including camera flashes. These have been created by making a black square and applying a Filter>Render>105mm Prime Lens Flare. Pull your light streaks using the Smudge tool and set a Screen blending mode to layer the effect.Larger details are also important, as your backdrop must be suitable and it must enable your type to jump off the page. Sometimes a solid white or black will suffice. We’ve experimented with this expressive style and alternatively applied a landscape photo that has then been heavily blurred. This creates a so� yet vibrant backdrop that lets your detailed type shine.

001We increased the vibrancy of the red, blue, yellow, green and magenta tones in our image by targeting them with the useful Hue/Saturation adjustment option

002We’ve used CS6 Vector Shape with Gradient Fill settings to create gradient lenses in our cameras. These have been modified using various blending modes

003We will improve the contours of our photo elements by applying dodging and burning techniques. This clearly defines form and will improve your texturing later on

001

002

003

ENHANCE YOUR PIECEWIELD PHOTOSHOP ADJUSTMENT OPTIONS TO ENHANCE TONALITY AND LIGHTING


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COMBINE CINEMA 4D, PHOTOSHOP AND ILLUSTRATOR TO CREATE 3D GOLD TYPOGRAPHY

DESIGN 3D TYPE

I n Greek mythology there’s a king called Midas

who, as the story goes, had the power to

turn anything that he touched into pure

gold. Inspired by that tale, we will turn

a simple vector line into a 3D,

minimalistic gold typography using

Illustrator, CINEMA 4D (C4D) and

Photoshop. Over the next few steps

you will learn how different tools

and software can come together

to produce a richly designed

artwork with killer execution.

The project will take, at

most, four or five hours to

create, including render

time. You will be spending that

time perfecting the curves in

Illustrator, as well as getting the

perfect lighting and shaders in

CINEMA 4D.

To complete the tutorial you will

need to use the V-Ray plug-in and the

GreyScaleGorilla HDRI Light Kit in

CINEMA 4D (http://tinyurl.com/

GorillaPlug). These are not strictly

necessary, but are recommended for

getting the best results. Once we’ve rendered

the objects in C4D we’ll move to Photoshop for

post work. You’ll learn how to adjust lights and

shadows by applying different adjustment layers

and filters. After completing this tutorial you will

have all the skills for creating 3D typography using

your own handwriting.

TYPOGRAPHY

Moe is a 20-year-old, self-taught freelance digital artist and designer from Yangon, Myanmar. He is currently studying in New York at Parsons The New School for Design.

MOE PIKE SOEwww.thebeaststudio.com

OUR EXPERT

On the disc you will find the material shader, PSD file and wallpapers that were used in this tutorial.

SOURCE FILES


WorldMags.net

http://tinyurl.com/GorillaPlug

http://tinyurl.com/GorillaPlug

http://www.thebeaststudio.com



01 SET UP YOUR DOCUMENT Create a new document in Illustrator at the

size of 7 x 7 inches. Select the Pencil tool (N) and

make sure that the Stroke Size is 1pt. It’s very

important to write in cursive, because when we have

to transfer the vector into C4D, we will use the

overlapping of the strokes to create more depth.

02 ADD YOUR WRITINGDon’t fill up the canvas, just keep writing in

order to actually see how the letters flow to form

into cursive. It’s also important to remember to keep

the lines connected as one stroke, because if there

is more than one path, the stroke won’t be

connected and it won’t be smooth in C4D.

03 SMOOTH LINESAfter writing ‘gold’ many times in cursive,

pick the smoothest one and delete the rest. Now

switch to the Smooth tool (Opt/Alt) and stroke

around the writing to make it perfectly clean. Smooth

performs similarly to Smudge or the Liquify tool, but

in Illustrator it’s used to change the curves of a path.

DESIGN 3D TYPE

BEGIN WITH ILLUSTRATORPREPARE VECTORS BEFORE TURNING THEM INTO GOLD


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04 FINISH IN ILLUSTRATORIt’s almost impossible to get the

smoothest curve with one stroke of the Smooth

tool, so keep brushing along the path to get the

best you can. Once you’re satisfied, you’ll have to

export the path to C4D. Exporting the file in

Illustrator is an important step because if you save

the Illustrator file in the wrong format, you won’t be

able to import the strokes into C4D. Name the file

‘Gold.ai’ and save it in the Illustrator 3 format.

07 2D WRITING INTO 3DAs we have discussed before, we have to

move the path along the Z-axis too. Think of your

handwriting as a pipeline. It has a start point, where

water flows from, then curves and loops like a

rollercoaster and then, finally, there is an end point

where the pipeline thins out. So, if you take a look

at your handwriting from the Perspective view, it

should have smooth loops and curves just like an

everyday rollercoaster.

08 INSERT NURBS AND A CIRCLEBefore moving to the next stage, take a look at your writing and check to make sure that you now

have the smoothest path possible. If you’re happy, create a new Sweep NURBS and drop the path onto that

NURBS. You won’t notice any change because at this point the NURBS doesn’t have an object that it can rely

on to make it into a pipe. In this case it’s a circle, so get the circle and drop it onto the NURBS again.

05 STEP INTO CINEMA 4DOpen your Gold.ai file in C4D and see if the

lines need smoothing. If so, you can modify them in

C4D using Point Mode. Select the point that needs

fixing and use it like the Anchor tool in Illustrator

and Photoshop. Fix the curve by moving the two

sides of the point and ensure that your path doesn’t

include any small dots. If you see any dots lying

around the path, delete them. After cleaning up the

path, you can move to turning the path into 3D.

06 WORK IN POINT MODERemember that when you’re in C4D

you’re working in three dimensions, which means

that there’s an extra variable to consider. You will

see in the following screenshots that the stroke isn’t

flat, but more like a piece of string, because it has

depth. This can be achieved by using Point Mode to

move the points on the Z-axis in order to create

another dimension for the word. We’ll explain this

further in the later steps.

TYPOGRAPHY


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10 V RAY SHADERWe’ll now enter different values to produce

the material, so create a new Advanced V-Ray

Material. Make sure you check the boxes for

Luminosity and Specular Layer 1 and 2. We’ll be

using these three layers in the shader to get the

gold material. The eponymous Luminosity layer is

used to add the brightness of the material. Set the

Color to white with an Amount of 5%. For the

Transparency, set the Color to white and the

Amount to 100%.

11 SET UP SPECULAR LAYERSThe next layers to edit are the Specular

layers 1&2. Select Specular Layer 1 and set its

Color to a light yellow at: R:255, G:228 and B:172.

Set the Brightness to 100% and the Texture Mode

to Fresnel, with the Gradient Shader of R:214, G:219

and B:179 to R:216, G:179, B:136. Set Reflection

Glossiness to 0.5, Anisotropy to -0.5, Glossiness

Subdivision to 18 and Trace Depth to 10. For

Specular 2 guidance see the screenshot above.

12 ADJUST THE LIGHTINGHere we’ll be using GreyScaleGorilla HDRI

Light Kit. Use the overhead soft box, but instead of

just placing the light over the word, place one light

on top and two on the sides. Set the top and left soft

boxes to have higher brightness settings. This will

make the light source enter from the left when

rendered. You can also add a floor with a generic

light-grey material. Select the NURBS and move the

text just above the floor to produce shadow.

13 BEGIN RENDERINGEnsure you drop the material shader onto

the Sweep NURBS. We’re going to render using

VRayBridge with Global Illumination. No settings are

changed in GI, but the result should be your writing in

3D with the gold material and a little noise texture.

You can add more objects to make the piece more

interesting, but remember to drop the shader on top

of the objects to keep the artwork uniform. When

happy, render at 2,560 x 1,600px in TIFF format.

09 GET THE SMOOTHEST GOLDWorking in 3D is just like using your hands to sculpt. You have to consider the material, the lighting

on the model and most importantly the additional Z-axis. You’ll also have to look at the writing as a pipe that

has a defined beginning and end.

DEVELOP YOUR 3D APPLY MATERIALS TO TAKE YOUR CREATION TO THE NEXT DIMENSION

001Select the circle and set Radius to 5cm. The goal is to get the smoothest pipe without overlapping other parts

002Select NURBS and set End Scale to 62%. Use Fillet Cap for the start, set Radius to 5cm and use Cap for the end

003If there are sharp corners or distortion to be fixed, hide the NURBS and circle then edit the path in Point Mode

001 002 003

DESIGN 3D TYPE

Remember that when you’re in C4D you’re

working in three dimensions, which means that there’s an extra variable


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14 MOVE TO PHOTOSHOPNow it’s time to boot up Photoshop. Create

a new document at a size of 3,500 x 2,800px, fill the

Background with a light grey and File>Place your

rendered image into your canvas. Create a Quick

Mask, then cut out the letter and its shadow. Make

a new layer underneath the text and paint with a

large white soft brush in at the side of the light

source in order to create gradient behind the text.

16 TWEAK THE SHADOWSThis method is different from using just one adjustment layer and we’ll specifically select dark

areas and enhance them. Use the Eyedropper to select the darkest area, go to Select>Color Range, then

select all the shadows. Ensure you have selected the 3D type layer and then hit Cmd/Ctrl+J to create a new

layer from it. Use Levels to lower the brightness and tweak the opacity to get the best balance.

15 ADJUST THE EXPOSURECurrently the lighting on the word is dull, so you can improve this by painting in light using blend

modes. Grab a soft brush set to a light grey and paint over the word, using Overlay as the blend mode. Also

reduce the Opacity of the brush to 50% and create a clipping mask over the word’s layer. This is a quick way to

brighten certain areas of an artwork without using any adjustment layers. The word has now been brightened

up, but we’ll also need to make the shadows darker.

QUICK TIP When retouching a photo or an object, pay more attention to the shadows and highlights. By simply adjusting the light and shadows of an object, you can make it more dynamic. Also use adjustment layers to quickly edit the artwork’s brightness, saturation and colours.

TYPOGRAPHY

POST�PRODUCTION POLISH UP YOUR RESULTS AND PERFECT YOUR RENDER


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17 ADJUSTMENT LAYERSWe’ll now use adjustment layers to enhance the colour and contrast of

the image as a whole. Add a new Vibrance adjustment layer, then set the Vibrance

value to 97 and Saturation to -6. There are many different shades of gold, but we’ll

lean more towards a white than a regular gold. Feel free to increase the

saturation to get a more yellow finish and add a Levels layer to modify the light

and shadows.

18 FINAL EDITSCreate a new layer at the top, select Image> Apply Image, then select

OK to flatten the image into one layer. Another way to do this is to create a new

layer and hit Cmd/Ctrl+Opt/Alt+Shift+E. Select the merged layer and apply

Filter>Sharpen>Smart-sharpen, setting the value to 190%. If you want a more

pronounced effect, create another merged layer and apply the Oil Paint filter with

Shine at 0% and Smart Sharpen on. Add some text and symbols for the finishing

touch and you’ve turned a vector line into golden 3D handwriting.

DESIGN 3D TYPE

QUICK TIP The Smooth tool is handy when you need to smoothen the corners and curves of a path. It’s quicker than using the Anchor Point and Pen tools, but the outcomes can be very random. To get a perfect curve you might have to apply it more than once.

GOLDEN RESULT We have turned a simple vector line from Illustrator into a full-3D golden type render using three different programs. Combining different so�ware to create artwork gives you more freedom and it opens up the doors to make works that can’t be finished in one application. With the knowledge gained from the different applications, you will have many more options and techniques, as well as ways to approach your work.

Working in 3D is like using your hands to sculpt. You

have to consider the material, the lighting and most importantly the

additional Z-axis


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TYPOGRAPHY


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USING BOTH PHOTOSHOP AND ILLUSTRATOR, WE SHOW YOU HOW TO REPLICATE EFFECTIVE RETRO TYPOGRAPHY

CREATE STYLISH VINTAGE TYPET ypography is a fundamental part of

day-to-day life. It’s everywhere we look, but

so much of today’s typography lacks any

creative flair.

Typography in the past, particularly in signs,

tended to be more visually pleasing. Inspired by

hand-painted enamel signs and old typographic

posters, here we’ll show you how to replicate classic

vintage typography.

A lot of time will be spent creating the type in

Illustrator. This is where we’ll add detail to the type

using options, such as the Offset Path, blends and

the Pen tool. In Photoshop we’ll apply texture using

various blending modes and use brush techniques

to mimic cracks and creases. We’ll also explore

tweaking hue and saturation, as well as Curves

layers, to enhance tones. Some textures and details

in Photoshop will complete the piece.

03 ADDING TEXTURENow apply some texture. Open up a dark grunge texture in Photoshop and invert it by going to

Image>Adjustments>Invert. Once this is done, drag the JPEG into your document and set the blending mode

to Overlay. To make the grunge texture more intense, go to Image>Adjustments>Levels and increase the

black to darken the texture.

02 BORDER AND GRADIENTWe want to give this piece a border, so

create a new layer, fill it with a solid colour and then

drag each edge in by 10mm. Next apply a Gradient

Overlay within the Layer Style dialog, selecting the

Foreground to Background gradient. Set the Style as

Radial, the Angle at 60 degrees and the Scale at

150%, making sure the Reverse box is ticked. Put

the Opacity of this layer to 25%.

01 PICK A DOCUMENT SIZEFirst you will need to decide on the size of

your document. Take into account whether the

finished image will be printed or solely used on the

web. In this case it will be printed, so we’ll open a

new 235 x 303mm portrait document in Photoshop,

making sure it has a white background.

LOGS MATTHEWSwww.logsmatthews.co.uk

OUR EXPERT

Logs Matthews is a 23-year-old, self-taught, freelance graphic designer from the north-west of England. Here he shows you how to create stylish vintage typography using both Photoshop and Illustrator.

FROM SIMPLE TYPE TO DYNAMIC RESULTS

WORK IN PROGRESS

Step 3: Apply texture

Step 4: Make the type

Step 14: Add final details

BEGIN APPLYING TEXTUREBUILD UP MATERIAL EFFECTS IN PHOTOSHOP BEFORE ADDING TEXT

CREATE STYLISH VINTAGE TYPE


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http://www.logsmatthews.co.uk



09 MOVE BACK TO PHOTOSHOPNow the type is done, copy and paste it

into your Photoshop document as a Smart Object.

This enables you to make changes to the type if

necessary, without opening the original Illustrator

file. Just double-click the Smart Object thumbnail on

the type layer to open it in Illustrator. When changes

have been made, hit Save and it will automatically

amend the type in Photoshop.

08 INTRODUCE DEPTH TO SANS SERIF TEXT

Copy and paste the word ‘work’ into a new layer and

place it underneath your original layer. Position the

word down and right to use as a guide. Back with

the original layer, use the Pen tool to draw in the 3D

shapes. Apply a gold gradient, copy and paste these,

fill them red, then send them to the back to add even

more depth. Do this once more and fill them with

grey to replicate a shadow.

06 DETAIL THE SANS SERIF TEXTNow grab the Line Segment tool to draw a

line above and below the sans serif words, giving

them a 1pt Stroke. Set these lines to a beige tone

(#C2B59B). To multiply the lines, double-click the

Blend tool and a Blend Options box will appear.

Select Specified Steps from the dropdown menu

and type the number of steps you would like. Click

the end point of the top line and then the parallel

point of the bottom line to multiply the lines evenly.

10 GIVE THE TYPE TEXTURENow we need to copy the grunge layer and

place it above the type layer. Set the blending mode

to Multiply and the Opacity to 60%. We only want

this texture layer to affect the type, so hit Cmd/

Ctrl+Opt/Alt+G to clip the texture into the type layer.

By adding a mask to this layer, and using a small

soft brush with an Opacity of 60%, you can roughly

mask out some of the areas where there is too

much texture.

07 CLIPPING THE LINESNow send the lines to the

back. Copy and paste the inner text, give

it a beige Stroke of 1pt and put it to one

side. Select the inner text you grouped

in Step 5 and go to Object> Compound

Path>Make. With the inner text still

selected, hold Shift, select the lines,

then go to Object> Clipping Mask>Make.

Doing this will clip the lines into the

inner text. Now drag the beige outlined

text that you put aside over the clipped

lines, then fill the black letters with a

dark-red tone that’s suitable.

05 OFFSET THE SANS SERIF TEXTIn preparation for detailing the sans serif

text, we need to offset it. Begin with the word ‘work’

and go to Object>Path>Offset Path, then set the

Offset to 2mm. Once you’ve offset the path, reselect

the word and go to Object>Ungroup. While holding

the Shift key down, select the inner parts of the

word and go to Object>Group. The inner parts of the

sans serif words will be used as a clipping mask for

some of the line details.

04 INPUT THE TEXTIn Illustrator, open a new 235 x 303mm

portrait document and lay out the phrase ‘work hard

and be nice to people’. We’re aiming to produce a

vintage typography feel by applying a bold sans serif

font to the words ‘work’ and ‘nice’, as well as a bold

serif font to the words ‘and be’. Now apply a Script

font to the words ‘hard’ and ‘to people’, for a softer

contrasting effect between the texts. Outline all of

the text by going to Type>Create Outlines.

APPLY SOME MORE DEPTH GIVE A 3D LOOK TO YOUR TEXT USING THE PEN TOOL

We’re aiming to produce a vintage typography

feel by applying a bold sans serif font to the words ‘work’ and ‘nice’

QUICK TIPTry to add layers as you create your type. You can do this by using the Offset Path tool multiple times, giving your type very thin borders. Once you have a few borders, apply gold gradients to some and fill others with white. This will help embellish your type further.

TYPOGRAPHY


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14 FINISHING TOUCHNow that the image is complete, we want to

add one final effect to bring it all together. Save a

copy of your PSD, flatten it, then go to Filter>Noise>

Add Noise. Use an Amount of 10% to give your

image a subtle grain texture, making your piece

look less digital and more vintage.

11 ADJUST YOUR TONESTo enhance the colours we’ll need to add a new Hue/Saturation layer above the type layer,

increasing the Saturation to make the colours more vibrant. If there’s a specific colour that you want to

target, you can select it from the Hue/Saturation dropdown. Also, add a new Curves layer above the type

layer, setting the Output at 125 and the Input at 137, to make the colours even richer.

13 DRAW IN CRACKSAdding cracks is a great way to age an

image. This technique is easier with a graphics

tablet and pen but can still be achieved with a

mouse. First insert a new layer, select a hard round

brush – with the Size set at around 6px and the

Opacity at 100% – and start drawing in some cracks.

Once you’re happy, go to Layer>Smart

Object>Create Smart Object. Set the layer’s blending

mode to Multiply and set the Opacity to 20%.

12 MASK EDGES AND DODGE/BURNTo re-create faded edges, start by adding a

layer mask to the gradient layer. Using a 400px soft

brush with 60% Opacity, begin masking out small

areas towards the edges. Now target individual

areas of the grunge layer, use the Burn tool with the

Range set to Midtones, brush Size set at 300px and

the Opacity set at 45%, then begin to darken them.

On the other hand, if any areas need lightening, use

the Dodge tool with the same brush settings.

ADD THE FINAL TOUCHES USE HUE/SATURATION AND CURVES LAYERS

SMALL DETAILSAdding small details can take a lot of time, but they really add quality to a piece of work. Starting with the banner, make a thin triangle shape and place it horizontally at one end of the main rectangle. Copy and paste this underneath and use the same

blending technique as used in Step 6. The number of steps will vary on the size of your banner. Repeat this on the other side of the rectangle and the inside of the banner. Once positioned, set the blending mode to Multiply and set the Opacity at 25%.

QUICK TIPAdding noise is great for making a piece of work look less digitally made. When adding noise to a piece of work, make sure you decide whether the piece warrants it. Sometimes adding noise can make what was a bright glossy image look dull and washed out.

Adding cracks is a great way to age an image. It’s

easier with a tablet and pen but can be achieved with a mouse

CREATE STYLISH VINTAGE TYPE


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TYPOGRAPHY

Andy is an architect exploring the unexpected results created from the interface between architecture and graphic design. His work is often extravagant but never insincere. The tangibility of the work he does in architecture serves to fuel his appetite for unadulterated escapism in his graphic design work.

ANDY HAUwww.andyhau.com

OUR EXPERT


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http://www.andyhau.com



LEARN HOW TO MERGE URBANISM AND TYPOGRAPHY TO CAPTURE THE EUPHORIA OF BEING IN A CITY

3D TYPE PROJECTSI

f it looks like a duck, walks like a duck and quacks like a duck – the chances

are it’s probably a duck. But one of the many things you learn in architecture is

to avoid designing duck buildings, or buildings that look like the object they

relate to. For example, if your client were a drinks manufacturer, a giant

bottle-shaped building would be pretty lame. Andy Lau’s research explores the

synergy between architecture and graphic design and the points where they blur,

for example in electrographic architecture where built surfaces become

subservient to the advertising billboards they display. If buildings can become

billboards for words, couldn’t words become pieces of architecture? An even

more interesting path would be to consider whether these building blocks of

graphic design could be manipulated again to form electrographic architecture.

With cyberspace fast becoming the new reality and e-commerce the new

architecture, could we reach a point where marketing is so critical that even the

words themselves are used for advertising space? This is the inspiration for this

image and the context for its abstract motifs. Using photo textures, we aimed to

dynamically illustrate how such a future cityscape might look.

3D TYPE PROJECTS


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01 LAYING THE FOUNDATIONSBegin by finding a font in Illustrator with

qualities that will lend themselves to becoming the

physical form of a building. We tend to use sans serif

fonts such as Helvetica, useful because of its bulk

and clean lines. For the letters formed from

windows, use a font such as BDBrick or draw

squares to form the shape of the letter. Kern the

letters tightly to form the illusion of a dense and

bustling city.

04 STRUCTURAL ENGINEERINGAlthough the image is abstract, there need to be tokens of realism that people will associate with buildings to

make the image convincing. Using the Line tool, create columns where you think the buildings may need support, but be

sure not to go overboard. There needs to be an element of joy and wonderment – we are designers after all, not engineers.

Heaven forfend.

03 FAÇADESOpen a new file in Photoshop and drag the

3D lettering into it. Using their outlines as a template,

overlay photo textures of real architectural materials

such as concrete and metal, and cut out the shapes

using the Pen tool. Using the 3D lettering as an

indicator, highlight areas of the photo texture using

the Polygonal Lasso tool and turn down the

Brightness levels (Image>Adjustment>Brightness/

Contrast) to create a sense of three-dimensionality.

02 ARCHITECTURAL ANATOMYFill some of the letters with a solid colour.

These will become your expanses of solid façade

for advertisement. Keep the other letters as

outlines, which will form areas of active frontage

for variety. Highlight all the letters and group them

together (Object>Group). Using the Extrude & Bevel

tool in Illustrator (Effect>3D> Extrude & Bevel) set

the parameters for the shading and extrude depth.

Set the perspective angle according to your design.

TYPOGRAPHY


HARNESS VISUAL POWER

Step 16: Complete the artwork

WORK IN PROGRESS

Step 7: Create advertising

Step 1: Begin the layout


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07 ADVERTISINGIn Illustrator, create a swarm of neon signs

in every garish colour you can think of. You can base

them on real logos or come up with your own. Drag

the neon signs that you have created from Illustrator

into Photoshop one by one and place them onto the

façade of the buildings. Try to retain the legibility of

the text as you are layering the neon signs.

06 LUMINARIESOne of the most important aspects of

creating a successful cityscape is realistic lighting.

Draw long, rectangular, white boxes with the

Rectangular Marquee tool and locate the positions

for the lighting to be placed. Double-click on the layer

you are working on and apply a light yellow Outer

Glow layer style.

05 INTERIOR DESIGNUsing the Rectangular Marquee tool, draw rectangles approximately the same thickness as the

walls and fill them in with a dark colour to create the floor slabs. Now draw dark, rectangular shapes in

varying sizes and shades of grey to denote furniture and doors inside the buildings and apply a Gaussian Blur

(Filter>Blur>Gaussian Blur) to keep the objects ambiguous. Committing to too much detail will confuse the

image, especially when you start adding the advertisements.

08 GLAZINGGlazing is notoriously difficult to emulate in

Photoshop. The easiest way to deal with it, especially

in a night-time image, is to draw everything behind

the window and create a light grey fill over the areas

of glazing, use the Bevel and Emboss layer style and

set the blending mode to Multiply. Play with the

opacity settings to achieve the desired effect.

09 ENVIRONMENTWe’ve chosen to create a night-time scene

for various reasons. First, the darkness will make

the neon signs and the lighting shine more brightly

and will capture the sense of rapture of being in the

city. Second, and more importantly, night-time

scenes are more forgiving, providing a veil of

darkness for edges to disappear and fade into

the background.

3D TYPE PROJECTS


QUICK TIPThough cutting out and manipulating photo textures sounds like a Herculean task, especially when you could bypass the whole ordeal and model it in 3D, trust us, it really is a lot faster and less infuriating to do it this way. And anyway, there’s something incredibly reassuring about mindless repetitive labour.

Night-time scenes are more forgiving, providing

a veil of darkness for edges to disappear into the background


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11 TOWER CRANEPlace the crane in the water in front of the

buildings to create a sense of perspective and

depth. Select the crane’s layer and make a copy of

it. Flip the layer vertically (Edit>Transform>Flip

Vertical) and apply a Motion Blur (Filter>Blur>

Motion Blur). Do not set the distance of the blur too

high. Turn down the opacity until the blurred object

looks like a reflection of the second tower crane.

12 BILLBOARDDraw a rectangle, fill it in using a dark colour and start designing

your billboard. Play with the perspective to create depth by using the

Transform option (Edit>Transform>Perspective). Even though the words on

the billboard will form part of a greater sentence in the composition, try to

make them relate to the product that it is promoting.

13 AIRSHIPPlace the airship at a height that is above the billboard so that the eye is

immediately drawn to the first word in the sentence. Horizontally, the position of the

airship should relate to the billboard so that the eye picks up the next words. Using

the Warp tool (Edit>Transform>Warp), curve the text to align with the surface of the

airship for naturalism.

TYPOGRAPHY


10 SITE CONTEXTCreate the cityscape behind your buildings by piecing together elements from various cities. Keep

the silhouettes dark and ethereal by turning down the opacity; they are only there for context and should not

compete with the buildings in front for the viewer’s attention.

Keep the silhouettes dark and ethereal by

turning down the opacity; they should not compete for the

viewer’s attention


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16 PRACTICAL COMPLETIONFinish the artwork by adding a few more images of trees to the

background and adjust the lighting and shading so that the whole image

looks balanced as a composition. Zoom out, sit back and enjoy the view.

15 LIGHT POLLUTIONTo intensify the atmosphere, exaggerate the light pollution behind the buildings.

Draw a long, elliptical shape with the Elliptical Marquee tool and adjust the Feather to a

high setting. Fill this shape in white and apply an orange Outer Glow layer style. Separate

the layer style (Layer>Layer Styles>Create Layer) and delete the bottom half of the glow.

14 ADD THE BOATSLocate the boats in a darker area of water. This will help with the illusion that they are sitting in the

water. Delete the bottom section of the boats with the Rectangular Marquee tool, having adjusted the Feather

to a low setting. Choose a font that looks like it has been handmade with a paintbrush or something similar,

and flip the text vertically. Make a copy of the boats and the text and flip them vertically. Apply a Motion Blur

onto the boat layer and give the text layer a small Gaussian Blur. Lower the opacity on both.

3D TYPE PROJECTS


QUICK TIPOne of the reasons that computer-generated images end up looking sterile is that the computer works out perspectives mathematically and the eye just does not view in perfect perspectives. Next time, even if theoretically the perspective is wrong, if it looks right visually then stick with it.

The eye just does not view in perfect perspectives. Even if

the perspective is wrong theoretically, if it looks right visually then stick with it


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Graphics


172PAGE

Add impact and depth to your work with creative, dynamic graphics built using a host of advanced Photoshop techniques

Working cross-platform can create some of the most interesting

and unique results

164 15 ways to master infographics

Get top advice on creating

infographics from leading

industry experts

172 Master portrait illustration

Combine Photoshop and

Illustrator to create an exciting

and colourful portrait

178 Blend graphics and type

Design a typographic illustration

with elements and shapes

182 Master polygons Use geometric shapes to

produce creative portraits

188 Metro-style websites

Get to grips with Metro web

design layout styles


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182PAGE

188PAGE

178PAGE


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PROFESSIONAL DESIGNERS SHARE THEIR TOP TIPS FOR CREATING INFORMATIVE AND VISUALLY APPEALING GRAPHICS THAT WORK HARD TO REPRESENT THE GIVEN DATA

SABRINA SMELKO www.sabrinasmelko.com

Sabrina Smelko, illustrator and

designer, shares her top tips for

planning an infographic: “The first step to creating a

great infographic is gathering information – be that

from a client or not. You need to ask: What’s the

mood of the infographic? What are the dimensions

of the piece? What is the style? What medium is it

being created for? But most importantly, you need

the statistics. They are the bones that all great

infographics are based on. The right kind of stats are

also important: the more direct, the better. Any time

you can use concrete numbers or percentages, the

more hard-hitting the graphics.”

HOW TO PLAN AN INFOGRAPHIC

© S

abrin

a Sm

elko

, cre

ated

for B

right

Alm

ond

01 CLIENT REQUIREMENTSI met with the great people at Bright

Almond over dinner. We chatted about their needs

and I gathered as much information about the

project as possible. At this stage, they also supplied

me with their brand guidelines that specified the

colours and fonts I had to use, so I could think about

a look and style to execute in.

02 EXPERIMENTATIONAs Bright Almond spent some time fishing

for statistics, I started playing with styles, shapes and

the overall look of pieces in Illustrator before diving

into anything too specific. After this, I was supplied

with a long list of statistics from which I could pick

and choose the best nuggets of information.

03 PUTTING IT ALL TOGETHEROnce I established a look, I laid out the

boxes of soon-to-be text and graphics using a grid to

ensure the infographic would be visually balanced.

By this point, I had established a look and a layout,

gained knowledge of the dimensions, purpose and

usage of the infographic and was supplied with

colours and fonts, so it was a matter of filling in the

blanks. The only task left to do was to translate the

statistics into icons and illustrations in a visually

pleasing and educational way.

JONATHAN QUINTIN www.dribbble.com/STUDIOJQ

Jonathan Quintin, founder

and creative director of

STUDIOJQ, created this screen printed wedding

invitation infographic to celebrate the lives of a

couple getting married. He says that you need to

consider how people will view your infographics:

“It’s extremely important to consider all media

types and where the viewer will see your

infographics. When the big rave for infographics

started, most designed for a standard web

format, but these days you need to consider

animated elements and better ways to tell a

story. This helps to deliver [the data] in a much

more visual and interesting way.”

INFOGRAPHICS IN A DIGITAL AGE

© S

TUDI

OJQ


GRAPHICS

15 WAYS TO MASTER INFOGRAPHICS


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http://www.sabrinasmelko.com

http://www.dribbble.com/STUDIOJQ



ANTON EGOROV www.behance.net/egorov

Anton Egorov is a freelance CG

artist who has worked for clients

including Toyota, Japan Tobacco International and

Saatchi & Saatchi LA. He created this infographic on

the area and population of Central Asia and Mongolia

for a client. He explains how to create a theme with

data: “Usually, after collecting the information, it’s just

a bunch of facts, some pages of text and a couple of

fearful tables into the bargain. From this junk, we

should carefully extract nice and pretty data that we

want show to our viewer. Ideally, you can describe

your purpose with one word. But usually it’s several

ones. In my case, it’s something + something +

entertainment. Despite that, I still respect fully

utilitarian infographics.”

BUILD INFOGRAPHICS WITH A THEME

© Anton Egorov Client: Japan Tobacco International. Agency: re:point - Kazakhstan

■ Add details

Some of the small details were

drawn with my tablet pen

■ Smoke effects

The black-and-white photo of the

smoke was used in Screen mode

■ Further details

Other details are simple, free 3D

models rendered in grey and

coloured with Photoshop

■ Landmarks

For famous sights, I made plain

3D models and textured them in

Photoshop using photos

■ Add textures

I mixed some textures and photos in

masked groups and used them in

Multiply mode above the 3D shot



■ 3D beginnings

At first, I rendered a simple 3D model of the pie using a plain

grey material, so I didn’t worry about perspective and shadows


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http://www.behance.net/egorov



ALEXIS CUDDYRE www.alexiscuddyre.com Graphic designer Alexis Cuddyre

has worked on data visualisation

projects for a range of clients through her current

employer, Digit. She tells us: “If the aim of your

infographic is to tell a story, it’s very important that you

don’t just include absolutely every single data point

that you’ve captured. It is the responsibility of the

team, not just the designer, to make sure the

visualisation has a carefully curated point of view. On

the other hand, there are really beautiful infographics,

especially in the interactive world, where the point of

the piece is less about explaining a single story and

more about encouraging the user to explore and

play with the data.” She collaborated with two other

designers to produce this ‘Notorious James Bond’

piece, which was entered into the Information is

Beautiful awards run by David McCandless, a

London-based author, writer and designer. The full

interactive piece is available to view at

http://notoriousbond.info.

USE INFOGRAPHICS TO TELL A STORY

© Alexis Cuddyre, Christina Winkless and David Paul Rosser

© M

aria

nne

Tayl

or


GRAPHICS

■ Focal design

Each actor was labelled ‘Notorious for…’, which

influenced the design of the hero image

■ Project focus

This image is a single screen from an interactive

infographic called Notorious James Bond,

created by Alexis Cuddyre, Christina Winkless

(www.christinawinkless.com) and David Paul

Rosser (www.davidpaulrosser.co.uk)

■ Create balance

We included the same amount of supporting

data on the right-hand side as a secondary way

of comparing across all the actors

■ Pick an angle

This was based on data released by Information is Beautiful. We looked at the data

and decided our story was going to be on what each actor was notorious for, be it the

highest number of kills, or the number of times the actor was presumed dead

■ Add context

Last, we added a third level of data along the left-hand side in the

format of a timeline, where all the movies were listed with their

respective ratings in order to provide additional context


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http://www.alexiscuddyre.com

http://notoriousbond.info

http://www.christinawinkless.com

http://www.davidpaulrosser.co.uk



JAYMIE MCAMMONDwww.jaymiemcammond.com

Designer, illustrator

and letterer Jaymie

McAmmond has

worked for a huge number of well-

known clients. This amazing infographic

artwork was created as a site-specific

mural for Starbucks, Toronto, and the

actual mural stands at 10 x 20ft. It was

created using mixed media tools

including pencil, paper, chalk, charcoal,

Illustrator and Photoshop.

“When designing this type of mural, I

begin with sketches to determine

content, hierarchy of information,

composition and typography. During this

phase, I also draw any spot illustrations I

want to include. Although it might be

quicker to draw these digitally, I find I get

more control and accuracy on paper.

Next, I redraw the illustrations and

assemble the final composition in

Illustrator. Lastly, I add texture and depth

in Photoshop.

Since Photoshop brushes don’t work

at this scale, all of my textures are hand

crafted, scanned and imported as

separate layers. Although the industry

standard for printing murals is

100-150dpi at full scale, I work at 250dpi

to retain maximum detail in my textures.

At the end of a project, my files can be

upwards of 20GB per image before

flattening – a speedy processor and extra

RAM can really help with this.”

One key element of McAmmond’s

work is the typography: “Not all

infographics need typography to be

successful. There are lots of beautiful

infographics out there that have no

typography at all. However, I always get

really excited working with type.

Choosing the right typefaces is like

choosing the right cast for a film. The

information is like a script and the

typography are the actors that give it

meaning and bring it to life.”

CREATE MIXED MEDIA INFOGRAPHICS

© Jaymie McAmmond



ANNY TRUONGwww.behance.net/anniitron

Anny Truong, a graphic designer for April Gold Bags,

is one of a growing number of designers who have

applied infographics to their CV as a unique way of

presenting information about themselves. Truong advises to keep things

simple: “Infographics are meant to present complex information quickly

and clearly. The last thing you want is to confuse the viewer with

something that was meant to be simple. Keep it clean, concise and

visually appealing. A little bit of humour or personality doesn’t hurt either.”

CREATE AN INFOGRAPHIC CV

© A

nny

Truo

ng

LAWRENCE WHITELEYwww.wond.co.uk

Lawrence Whiteley is a designer and director at

Wond. He explains that creating an infographic that

is easy to understand in a glance is “not as crucial

as designing something people feel is worthy of a glance. A captivating

design whets the appetite for soaking up the information. If you give the

viewer curiosity then you have a hook, opening us up to learn.” In order

to achieve this, he advises: “A hierarchy of design helping the viewer to

navigate and a nice amount of breathing room are a solid foundation, but

it would be nothing without a seductive colour palette and some graphic

flair. Overcrowding will put people off.”


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http://www.jaymiemcammond.com

http://www.behance.net/anniitron

http://www.wond.co.uk



INFOGR8www.infogr8.com

infogr8 designed this quirky

infographic based on a survey

by online contact lens retailer GetLenses. The

agency was tasked with creating a visual story

reflecting the frustrating problems glasses wearers

suffered in 2013. The design proves that infographics

can be fun: “The data doesn’t have to always be

serious, but it must be accurate in order to hold

integrity. Each project has different objectives,

audiences and formats to consider. The way we

approach the data needs to reflect that each time,

with open, fresh and innovative thinking.”

The company has some essential advice when it

comes to introducing humour: “It’s crucial that the

data never gets lost in the design, regardless of the

angle you’re taking. Without being able to grasp the

subject at hand straight away or at least have a

basic understanding of it, you’ve just created an

attractive piece of graphic design. However, with this

specific infographic we were given a bit more

freedom by the client and therefore decided to go

with a more playful, humorous direction that fitted

the target audience and the message we were

trying to convey.”

INJECT HUMOUR INTO INFOGRAPHICS

© Produced by infogr8, illustrated by infogr8’s Stavros Siamptanis


GRAPHICS

RANDY KRUMwww.infonewt.comRandy Krum is a well-known

name in the world of

infographics, as the man behind the website

www.coolinfographics.com, a collection of the best

infographics around. He is also the president of

InfoNewt, an infographic design and visual

consulting company. He explains why infographics

are so appealing:

“The science behind why infographics work is

very compelling. The Picture Superiority Effect states

that audiences are likely to remember 65 per cent of

the content presented if the text is combined with

visuals to assist in conveying the message.

Compare that number to only ten per cent

remembered by audiences from text alone, and

it’s clear that this is a huge advantage to anyone

that uses information design to tell a story in

an infographic.”

Krum offers an explanation as to how a designer

should approach data if they are looking to create an

infographic for the very first time: “Design

infographics should be used to to communicate a

story really well. Most readers will only look at one

for five to ten seconds, and not at the whole thing. An

infographic designer needs to focus on

communicating the main message of the design in

that very short window of opportunity in order to

successfully reach most of the audience. Don’t

include extra data just because it’s available, as that

will confuse and clutter the design and reduce

its effect.”

DON’T FORGET THE DATA

© 2010 InfoNewt, LLC, Design by Randy Krum


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http://www.infogr8.com

http://www.infonewt.com

http://www.coolinfographics.com



GARY CORR www.garycorr.co.uk

One difficult thing to achieve

with infographics is balancing

lots of information in one artwork. This is something

that Gary Corr has achieved in his CV project. The

majority of the work is based on typography, so it

was important to get all the elements weighted

correctly for it to work. “Typography played a huge

part in my CV. This was like a sort of cover letter for

me, but using nice typography. I also made it into a

nice piece of visual art. I wanted to create something

that was bold and stood out, creating a memorable

style that communicates quite strongly. A fair bit of

planning was involved: first, you need to decide

which information is going into the CV. As well as the

usual CV info, I wanted to include some lighthearted

facts that would paint a picture of my personality.

Also, I spent time researching others that had been

already done. I wanted to create an original layout

that I hadn’t seen before which would stand out. I

used an unusual shape and fold to achieve this.”

STAND OUT FROM THE CROWD

© Gary Corr 2013

Gary’s infographic CV has an original layout that folds down small so that it is easy to carry around for networking purposes

Thinking outside of the box will make Corr stand out from the many other CVs received by design agencies every day – a definite edge as a recent graduate

KIM GLAZEBROOK www.kimberleyglazebrook.co.uk

Kim Glazebrook is a graphic

and web designer, and she

created this infographic for NHS 5 Boroughs to

help young people deal with depression. When

working for clients like the NHS, it is important to

make sure that your facts are correct when

creating your design: “With an infographic, and

especially this one, it is vitally important to check

the data is correct, as providing incorrect advice

could be very harmful.”

ALWAYS CHECK YOUR FACTS

© Kimberley Glazebrook and NHS 5 Boroughs Partnership

© Gary Corr 2013




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http://www.kimberleyglazebrook.co.uk



MAKE YOUR INFOGRAPHIC EASY TO SHAREJOHN PRING www.designbysoap.co.uk

John Pring is the

director of Inbound

Marketing and Content

Creation at Designbysoap. He explains the

importance of making an infographic easy

to share so that it has the widest reach:

“Ensure the page you publish the

infographic on has social media sharing

buttons, making it easy for the reader to

share the content. You can include any

number of social platforms for a user to

engage with, but I would certainly

recommend including Twitter, Facebook,

Pinterest, StumbleUpon and Google+.

Include a HTML embed code with your

infographic, to allow people to copy and

paste the code to embed the infographic on

their own site. An added benefit of this is

that you can include a credit link back to

your own site in the embed code, sending

in more traffic.

In order to encourage sharing, you need

to think about three main elements; the

data, the design and the subsequent

promotion of the artwork.

The data is integral to the success of

your infographic, as it is the angle from

which you decide to approach the

information. The data should be at least

one of three things: informative,

educational or entertaining. Similarly, the

story is hugely important – much like a

journalist does, it’s better to approach and

visualise the data with a story in mind.

The design is a crucial part of

encouraging sharing – you can have the

most interesting data in the world and a

great angle to approach, but if the design is

poor then you’ll struggle to effectively

promote the infographic and will be unlikely

to see much engagement in the way of

social media sharing.

Lastly, the way in which you promote

and spread your infographic will

dramatically affect how it’s shared across

social media platforms. Publishing an

infographic on your site and submitting it to

a few infographic submission sites will

likely result in only a handful of social

shares, whereas approaching an influencer

such as Mashable and getting your design

published on their site will almost certainly

give you hundreds (if not thousands) of

social shares.”

© Official Charts Company and Designbysoap Ltd, 2013

MICHELLE HYEMIN LEE www.milee.co

Michelle Hyemin Lee created

One Beverage, an infographic that visualises the

process of making a drink using an espresso

machine. Information is delivered in a circular graph

to resemble both a cup and a clock, and is based on

Starbucks Coffee Company’s Masterna espresso.

An important part in the creation of this graphic was

a relevant and simple colour palette: “When

designing One Beverage, I selected colours in a

subtle range of browns and warm greys to visually

suggest the topic and contribute in efficiently

organising and delivering the information. Subtle

and neutral colours are chosen not only to visualise,

but also help the viewer to easily read and

understand the information. I believe that choosing

a relevant and effective colour palette is one of the

most crucial tasks when designing an information

graphic, because it is a dominant communication

tool. It can effectively suggest the content at glance.

An irrelevant or eyesore colour palette can repel the

viewer from reading the information.”

PICK THE RIGHT COLOUR PALETTE


GRAPHICS

© Michelle Hyemin Lee


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http://www.milee.co



An earlier prototype for laying out the cyclists and the labels. In the end, I had much less space than I thought, so had to simplify these a lot more to fit in

PAUL BUTT www.sectiondesign.co.uk

Paul Butt is a freelance

designer and has worked with

clients including the BBC, Wired, Which?, GQ, the

Financial Times and Ubuntu. When creating an

infographic, he explains that: “For me, information

has the central priority, with graphic design playing

the supporting role in presenting it. I try to approach

projects with a rational process and everything has

to have a reason for being on the page. With that

said, there are often little design tweaks and

flourishes that can be quite subtle, yet can really

add character to a piece. However, they should not

obscure the main point of the graphic.”

Butt has a set procedure for ensuring that the

information doesn’t get lost in the design: “I try to

work to a defined grid where I’ll lay out a wire

frame of the information, and then work out how to

go about the aesthetics. Always question what you

are doing and think how other people might

interpret the work. Getting other people’s opinions

can be very valuable, as the design should be as

accessible as possible.”

PRIORITISE THE INFORMATION



TIFFANY FARRANT�GONZALEZ www.tiffanyfarrant.co.uk

Freelance information designer Tiffany

Farrant-Gonzalez has a lot of experience when

it comes to working with data. Having worked for companies

including Google and American Express, she says: “The Open Data

movement has recently seen both countries and large organisations

release previously hidden data out into the world. This now means

that there is a fantastic array of sources out there to visualise: from

the economy and healthcare to the extinction rate and

environmental data. The Guardian Datablog (www.guardian.co.uk/

news/datablog) keeps an A-Z list of open data sources and Andy

Kirk, who runs www.visualisingdata.com, has also compiled a

fantastic list of open data sources as well as services that work with

or curate social, map-based, weather and travel data.”

FIND GOOD DATA TO ILLUSTRATE

© Tiffany Farrant-Gonzalez

© Section Design


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http://www.sectiondesign.co.uk

http://www.tiffanyfarrant.co.uk

http://www.guardian.co.uk/news/datablog

http://www.guardian.co.uk/news/datablog

http://www.visualisingdata.com




GRAPHICS


GRAPHICS


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MASTER PORTRAIT ILLUSTRATION


BLACK AND WHITE TO DYNAMIC COLOUR

WORK IN PROGRESS

Step 4: Draw in Illustrator

Step 13: Gradient effects

Step 16: Finish colouring

CREATE THIS COLOURFUL AND DYNAMIC PORTRAIT BY TEAMING UP PHOTOSHOP WITH ILLUSTRATOR

MASTER PORTRAIT ILLUSTRATIONW orking cross-platform can often

create some of the most interesting

and unique results. Combining

programs means you can get the

best from each of them, mixing and matching tools

and techniques to create some really unusual

mixed-media styles. This tutorial will show you how

to create a bright and colourful portrait image,

working from a photograph to first create a sketch

in Illustrator, and then moving onto Photoshop to

add splashes of colour.

Before you start, have fun sketching lots of

different portraits on paper. It’s important to

understand shading and colour, and which details

have the biggest impact on your portrait. As you

progress, you will see that the eyes are often the

trickiest part to get right, yet they are also the most

important aspect of a portrait. Study plenty of photo

stock to ensure that you master their shape and

shading, for a more engaging and convincing

design. Don’t be put out if this takes you some time,

though, as you’ll learn from each mistake.

BRAM VANHAERENbramvanhaeren.com

OUR EXPERT

Bram Vanhaeren is a digital artist from Belgium. He’s been developing his style since his first Pen tool experiments in Illustrator about eight years ago. His work ranges from simple illustrations and typography to mixed-media artwork.

ILLUSTRATE THE PORTRAITSKETCH THE PORTRAIT SHADE BY SHADE

02 FIND YOUR PHOTOGRAPHUse a photo as a base for your illustration.

To spot a good picture from the rest, you need to

check a few important details. First, you must make

sure that the size is okay; the bigger, the better. It’s

also important that there is enough contrast, as this

helps a lot when you are sketching the image.

01 CREATE A NEW DOCUMENT

Start up Illustrator and create a

new A3 document with Color

Mode set to CMYK. If you prefer

using different settings or sizes,

feel free to do so. Here you will

need a portrait orientation. Make

sure you don’t change the raster

effects and keep it at 300dpi.

03 LAYER ORGANISATIONIf there is something that will always help

you in the future working as a designer, it’s a nice

and clean layer organisation habit. Start your

document by naming your layers. In this tutorial you

will only need a few, depending on how many

colours you wish to use.

SOURCE FILESDownload the start image from blog.advancedphotoshop.co.uk/tutorial-files/ under Issue 115.


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http://blog.advancedphotoshop.co.uk/tutorial-files/under

http://blog.advancedphotoshop.co.uk/tutorial-files/under




GRAPHICS

06 CONTINUE THE PROCESSWhen you are shading your portrait, you will see how important it is to

start with the darkest colours first and then the lighter colours in the layers

below. Make sure you look at the whole image, to keep your focus and not get

lost in one single detail. After a few hours of drawing portraits, you will pick up

your own ways to recognise and handle different shapes on a face; for example,

how you like to draw a mouth or an eyebrow.

05 DRAW WITH WAVESAfter you have finished the most important details in black, continue drawing with a dark grey.

Select ‘Only web colors’ in your Fill(x) menu to work with the six shades of grey. Now you can draw in the

darker areas and build your portrait. To create paths, we like to draw with a ‘wave’ technique, where we try to

draw in waves and curves. This way we can create some experimental colour paths – perfect for lips and

shadow from the hair and chin.

04 START WITH BLACKTo create this portrait, always start with

the darkest colour to draw the most important

elements of your portrait (these are the eyes, nose,

hair etc). It’s important to use your fresh energy in

the beginning to make sure that these features are

just perfect! Use your Wacom or mouse with the

Pencil tool if you have some experience of drawing

in Illustrator, or use the Pen tool and create your

paths point-by-point if you are a beginner.

07 MAKE IT DIRTYYou should now be almost finished with your black and white

illustration. The next step is to add a dirty paint effect to your portrait. Create a

new layer on top and call it ‘Dirt’. Then imagine you have a dirty, rough brush in

your hands and wipe black and white paint over the portrait, in particular

coming from the highlights. Take the Pencil tool and draw your dirty paint

strokes and place them around so they still fit and add value to your portrait.

QUICK TIPThere is no tutorial that can teach you how to draw. It’s essential for you to sketch on a daily basis to get better at it. Challenge yourself and try something new every day. You will train your eye to recognise shapes very quickly and learn how to build your illustrations.


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08 ADD SOME LINEWORKBefore you are completely finished in

Illustrator, create a new layer group called

‘Linework’ and take the Paintbrush tool (B) with

Stroke on. Set the Stroke up with a Size of 0.25pt

(depending on your image size), a Brush

Definition of 3pt Oval and a Uniform variable

brush width profile with Opacity of 100%. Now

draw lines to emphasise the curves of your

portrait and add flow to your model’s face. It’s

also a perfect tool to add details and outlines.

09 OPEN PHOTOSHOPTime to start working in Photoshop. Copy all the paths from your Illustrator document by pressing

Cmd/Ctrl+C. Open a new A3-sized document in Photoshop and place your illustration. Photoshop will then

ask you how you want to paste it. Pick Smart Object to allow easy updates to your drawing later.

001 DETAILSDraw all the important details in black and make sure it’s perfect so that people easily recognise your model

002 DIRTY PAINT EFFECTCreate dirty brush strokes on the face in black or white to add a gritty and realistic paint effect

003 OUTLINESThanks to the useful Brush tool, you can add more details to your portrait with simple curly lines

001

002

003

FINAL ADJUSTMENTSUSE LAYER MASKS, ADJUSTMENT LAYERS AND FILTERS TO COMPLETE YOUR ILLUSTRATION

11 CREATE YOUR OWN GRADIENT BRUSHYou will now create different coloured gradient brushes. Use a soft

round brush with Opacity of 70% and Flow of 100% and start by brushing one

circle of 2500px in a pinky-red colour. Then create another at 2000px with dark

orange, 1500px with orange and 1000px with yellow. Then transform your

brushes with the Warp tool (Edit> Transform>Warp tool and pull around) and

set the blending mode to Screen to place it over the portrait.

10 ADD HAZEFor the next step, you need to search for high-resolution images of

dark clouds with lots of details in them. Once you have found some, paste them

into your Photoshop document, desaturate your layer (Cmd/Ctrl+U) and adjust

the brightness using Curves (Image>Adjustments>Curves or Cmd/Ctrl+M) until

you have a high-contrast black and white image. Now change the layer’s blend

mode to Multiply and place it over the shoulders and hair to add a foggy feeling

to your portrait.


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GRAPHICS

14 IT’S IN THE DETAILSYour image is almost complete, but before you finish, search for images that will create textures to

add to your portrait. For example, in this tutorial we used a waving American flag with the red stripes and

white stars to add details that matter to the model, in order to create a story behind the artwork. Then blend

the texture with the illustration by changing the contrast (Image>Adjustments>Curves) and change the

blending mode to Screen again to place it in the darker areas.

15 CHANGING THE OVERALL COLOURCreate a new layer on top of your whole

document and fill the layer with color #2a59ef, for

example, then change the blending mode to

Difference and the Opacity to 10-15%. You will find

that you discover a fantastic colouring effect with this

single step. You can also duplicate this layer and

change the colour for another effect. When you do

this, place white lines on top of this layer to

emphasise specific details in your portrait – for

example, below the eyes.

13 CONTINUE TO ADD ENERGYBy placing the correct warped brushes, you will experience a special effect where it feels as though

your portrait has gained some energy. This result can come from the movement your brushes suggest and

the colour. In this tutorial, you should try and stick with warm colours and pull your round soft brushes to one

specific side with the Warp tool. This will give the impression that your model has stopped in time, but her

surroundings are still moving.

12 WARP YOUR BRUSHESYou can warp the gradient brushes around

specific parts of your portrait; for example, around

the shape of your model’s hairline or neckline. Play

around and see what looks best. Make sure you try

and adjust the colours as well with the Hue/

Saturation option (Image>Adjustments>Hue/

Saturation) after you have brushed your own

gradients. This way you can come up with unique

colourways you would never have imagined before.


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16 ADD A GRAINYou may have noticed that recently a lot of digital art has a cool grainy effect in the colour shading.

Ever wondered how this is done? Well, it’s easy. Search for ‘grain texture’ in Google with the search option on

large images and you will find a high-resolution grain texture image (grey and white dots like on an old TV).

Paste this image on top of your work and change the blending mode to Overlay and the Opacity to 30-50%.

This works just fine with the dirt brushes you created earlier.

18 FINISHING AND SAVINGSince you are working on a high DPI with the purpose to print this artwork, it’s important to change

some things before you share your work on the internet. First you have to change the image size (Image>Image

Size). Change the Resolution from 300dpi to 72di and resample the image to Bicubic Smoother (best for

reduction). Normal quality will be just fine since you worked on a high-resolution image. Now you can sit back

and enjoy your portrait.

17 MOVING IN TIMEEarlier in this tutorial we explained how to

add energy and movement to your portrait, to give

the impression that the model is in a dynamic

environment. To create a very obvious feeling of

movement, you can add an extra group of layers

with white lines on top of all your layers in a specific

direction to create this really awesome movement

effect. It’s an easy step that has a very big impact on

your portrait.

To create a very obvious feeling of movement, you

can add an extra group of layers with white lines on top

QUICK TIPMake sure you keep all your files organised. It will help yourself and the other people who may need to use your files later. It will also speed up your work time by far and helps you focus on other important things. Try and make it a positive working habit as quickly as possible.

FINALISE YOUR PREVIEWWhen you are finalising your high-resolution images for a web preview, it is possible that you will lose some sharpness in your

artwork. To solve this annoying problem, you can use Filter>Sharpen>Unsharp Mask a�er you have changed your image size to 72dpi. Then change the Amount to 30%, Radius to 0.3px and Threshold to 0 levels. This simple technique will sharpen your preview in one second.


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GRAPHICS


GRAPHICS


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BLEND GRAPHICS AND TYPE


01 PICK A COLOUR PALETTECreate a new document and select the

colour palette you will use. Be creative with a

limited number. The colour palette helps you to

visualise your project as a whole. The colours here

are #0b58a8, #001451, #de9e22 and #f0d2a0.

02 CHOOSE THE FONT AND TEXTAdd a new text layer (T) and choose a font

in a large size. ‘Impact’ was chosen in this case, but

you are free choose your own. Type ‘Be Creative’

and align the text in the centre. This is the main

element and the illustration’s focal point.

LEARN HOW TO MAKE A TYPOGRAPHIC ILLUSTRATION WITH IMPACT USING THE POWER OF PHOTOSHOP

BLEND GRAPHICS AND TYPET hey say a picture says a thousand words,

so imagine the possibilities in conveying a

message if you were to combine the two. In

this tutorial, you will learn how to blend

elements and shapes to create an energetic and

dynamic typographic illustration. During the

implementation process, you will use many

different techniques in Photoshop to balance

elements and vary their proportions and shadows,

and learn how to give volume to the shapes you

draw with the Pen tool.

Using a digital tablet to follow this tutorial can be

very useful, as the opportunity to play with the

pressure of the pen works wonders when building

quality into your final image. You will also see that

the composition and balance of illustration is not

only about knowing which elements to include, it is

also knowing when to remove them. Finally, you

will learn that colours play a vital role in to obtaining

a composition with a consistent atmosphere. This

tutorial requires a sense of subtlety, but you are free

to create anything you wish.

DAVID DELINwww.28162.com

OUR EXPERT

David Delin, aka 28162, is an image maker based in Nantes, France. His clients include BNP Paribas and New Scientist magazine.

SOURCE FILESYou will find a selection of resources provided by the artist on the disc, which you can use to recreate this tutorial and in your own projects.

SETTING THE TONECHOOSE A FONT AND COLOUR PALETTE THAT WILL HELP CONVEY YOUR MESSAGE

03 ADD A GRADIENTDuplicate your text and go to

Layer>Pixelate>Text. Double-click it and choose

Overlay gradient. Add a Radial gradient from colour

#c16205 to colour #d89543. You are free to choose

other colours – the purpose here is to be creative.

05 MAKE A FLORAL SHAPEUsing the petal image, you can now create a floral shape.

Duplicate the layer five times and position them so that it forms a rosette.

Create a circle with the Elliptical Marquee tool, fill it with a grey Radial

gradient and place it at the centre of your petals. The use of horizontal and

vertical symmetry will help to balance your image. Go to Edit>Transform>

Vertical Symmetry Axis.

04 CREATE A PETALImport the ‘Petal’ file into the document.

Using the eyedropper tool (I), select colour #0157ac,

hit Cmd/Ctrl+U, click Reset and push the Saturation

to 45. Add a new layer, change it to Multiply mode,

and with a soft edged brush and Opacity set to 35%,

paint the shadows of your form. Repeat on another

layer and paint the highlights to add volume.

Keep in mind your main objective, which is to make the text the focal

point. Place large elements in the background and smaller ones in the foreground


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GRAPHICS

07 DRAW A CIRCLE AND DETAILSWith the Pen tool (P), create a circle.

Double-click on your layer and add an Inner

Shadow. Now draw a pattern. Ctrl/right-click on the

background and add a focused shadow (Layer>

Layer Style>Drop Shadow). Set the Opacity to 40%,

Distance to 0px, Weight to 10px and Height to 80px.

08 CREATE AN ABSTRACT FORMYou will now create the last main form of

your illustration. Add a new layer

(Layer>New>Layer) and name it ‘Abstract form’.

Take the Pen tool and draw a shape similar to the

one above. Repeat the process that was outlined

Step 4 to give volume to the shape. A Wacom tablet

is often useful for doing this.

11 INSERT PATTERNSAdd a new layer and create a rectangle by

using the Pen tool. Double-click the layer or click fx

in the Layers panel and select Pattern Overlay.

Select an existing pattern or use one from your own

library. While adding organic geometric elements to

an illustration can be a good idea in terms of

balance, keep in mind your main objective, which is

to make the text the focal point of your composition.

Place large elements in the background and

smaller ones in the foreground. so that the

message isn’t obscured.

09 BUILD THE COMPOSITIONThe next step is to import the file named

‘Sphere grid’ into your document. Now that the

main elements are at your disposal, you can begin

the most exciting part of the tutorial: the

composition. Take the time to find the right balance.

10 ADD CURVED SHAPESGive dynamic movement to the artwork by

adding some curves. Draw them with the Pen tool.

If you want to be really accurate then this is the time

to use a digital tablet, as it will allow you to play

with the pen pressure. Fill them with a grey colour.

Build flowing shapes and give them volume for

realism – see Step 4 for an example. Arrange the

shapes so they intertwine with the text.

12 PAINT IN SHADOWSNow that you have your shape elements,

it’s time to add a little more realism. When you

overlay forms, the credibility of these is achieved

through shadows. Use them to create a 3D effect of

depth. Paint them using a soft brush set to 40%

Opacity with your layers in Product mode. Obviously

there are other means to add shadows, like using

drop shadows, but painting your own offers a more

personal touch.

There are always points that can be improved

such as masking imperfections or removing elements

TRAIN YOUR TABLET SKILLS AND SPEED PAINTIf you’re new to digital painting, this tutorial can be challenging. Our tip is to try speed-painting exercises to get better each day. There are great videos and schools out there to learn that particular skill. We recommend Advanced Photoshop contributor Feng Zhu’s website at www.fengzhudesign.

com. Also www.schoolism.com from Bobby Chiu. There are also a lot of free tutorials on YouTube regarding this method, so it’s definitely worth a look. In the end there is no shortcut for making the tablet do what you want it to. No stock images or filters will unleash that potential.

06 ADD A FLOWEROpen the ‘Flower’ file provided

on the source disc and copy and paste

the image into your scene. Apply an

Invert adjustment (Cmd/Ctrl+I) to create

a negative version of it. Put it to the side,

as you will use it later in the process.

For a more personal look, this flower

was created from a photograph, with

shadows and light painted on with a

digital tablet. Feel free to do the same.


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http://www.schoolism.com



BLEND GRAPHICS AND TYPE


13 PASTE IN THE BIRDSBring some life into your composition by

adding an extra element. Download a bird image

from morguefile.com/archive/display/843318

and import it into your document. Duplicate the

image once or twice, and place your birds in

dynamic ways by varying their size (Edition>Free

transform or Cmd/Ctrl+T). Playing with the

variation in size allows you to provide a depth of

field, to create the illusion of a foreground,

midground and background.

14 CREATE DECORATIVE CHIPSIn order to bring even more energy and

vitality to your illustration, you can add a few chips

with features brushes. To do this, draw some

random shapes and turn them into brushes

(Edit>Define Custom Shape). Hit F5 to open the

Form panel and play with the settings of the

dynamic forms, and those of Diffuse. Do not go too

far, even if this kind of effect is fun to use. It can

quickly give a rough look to your composition if you

add too much. Instead, be subtle.

15 ADD A LAYER MASKThere are always points that can be

improved during the creation process such as

masking imperfections or removing any unwanted

elements, because you think they are useless.

Layer masks are ideal for this as they allow any

changes to be non-permanent. Add one to your

document and remove some unwanted areas of

your artwork. Layer masks have an important role

in the integration and credibility of an illustration, so

do not hesitate to spend a little time applying them.

16 MORE DEPTHNow it’s time to add more depth to your

scene. Duplicate the flower used in Step 6 and

choose a neutral colour like grey. This increases

the depth between your foreground, the second

plane and the background. Go to Layer>Smart

Objects>Convert to Smart Object. Increase its size

(Cmd/Ctrl+T) and set the layer to Overlay mode.

Duplicate this layer, arrange it differently and play

with the opacity.

18 STRENGTHEN THE COMPOSITIONTo finish, select all your layers, duplicate

them and then merge them . Apply a High Pass

filter (Filter>Other>High Pass) with a radius of

1.2px. Set the layer mode to Overlay. Attenuate the

effect of the background using a layer mask.

Perform these final touches, zooming to 100%.

Your picture is now complete, but of course you are

free to go even further and add more forms and

elements if you feel it is necessary.

17 APPLY ADJUSTMENT LAYERSNow give the composition a balanced

chromatic scale. Add a layer of brightness and

contrast adjustment to bring out some elements

(Layer>New Adjustment Layer>Brightness/

Contrast) and a Curves adjustment layer

(Layer>New Adjustment Layer>Curves ). This is

almost essential, as it offers so much more

flexibility in colour correction and contrast.

Experiment with the settings until you are happy.

SETTING THE TONECHOOSE A FONT AND COLOUR PALETTE THAT WILL HELP CONVEY YOUR MESSAGE


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GRAPHICS

LEARN HOW TO PRODUCE CREATIVE PORTRAITS USING GEOMETRIC SHAPES AND PHOTOSHOP’S COLOUR ADJUSTMENTS

MASTER POLYGONST he popularity of isometric shapes in digital

art can be explained in many ways. This

style is retro, shiny and there’s a lot of play

involved when creating. There are plenty of

great examples online to get inspired by – www.

polygonheroes.com and the works of our artist

Ryan Barber (www.behance.net/rbarber), for

example. In this tutorial we’ll show you how to work

from a model photo, combining both Photoshop and

Illustrator to create exciting shape styles.

We’ll begin by using Illustrator’s Pen tool, and

show you how to trace a grid of carefully mapped

triangles on top of a photo. A more interesting

isometric illustration will have a map of triangles

that’s not evenly distributed. Therefore, we will be

adding and subtracting anchor points, and using the

Direct Selection tool to adjust triangle corners, in

order to distribute our shapes.

We’ll be using the Eyedropper tool, gradients and

swatches too, showing how these are all used to fill

and affect colour. After the initial vector drawing is

complete we’ll then take our design into

Photoshop. Here we’ll explore how to make overall

colour changes to our rendered design, using

Gradient Overlay, Levels and other color

adjustments to achieve a fantastic final image.

BUILD A BLUEPRINTUSE ILLUSTRATOR’S SHAPE AND SELECTION TOOLS TO BUILD A SHAPE GRID

03 PEN TOOL COLOURNow that your image is

locked activate the Pen tool. Make

the Fill colour transparent and set

the Stroke colour to something

that will be easily visible when

laid on top of the image. In this

case, a bright magenta.

01 PREPARATIONThe first phase involves tracing a series of

triangles on top of a photograph, in Adobe

Illustrator. Create a new file at 6.66 inches x 10

inches. Hit File>Place and find a start image. In this

case we have used a Dreamstime model

(#18986388). Once the file has been placed into

Illustrator, lock the image.

02 LOCKING YOUR IMAGEYou can lock the image in one of two

ways: either lock the layer in the Layers palette or

highlight the image and then press Cmd/Ctrl+2. All

your work will be laid directly on top of this image.

Once you are done with the illustration, you won’t

need the base image any longer.

Ryan is an LA-based illustrator and graphic designer. Connecting with subjects on an emotional level is important to his work.

RYAN BARBERwww.behance.net/rbarber

OUR EXPERT

You’ll fi nd all the images you need on the disc provided.

SOURCE FILES

FROM ILLUSTRATOR TO PHOTOSHOP

Step 19: Add adjustments

WORK IN PROGRESS

Step 11: Colour the shapes

Step 5: Begin the grid


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http://www.polygonheroes.com

http://www.behance.net/rbarber

http://www.behance.net/rbarber



MASTER POLYGONS


MASTER POLYGONS


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GRAPHICS

04 PEN TOOL WEIGHTThe next step is to set the weight of our

Pen tool’s stroke. We don’t need this to be too thick

as our marks will only work as guides. In the troke

palette, set a thickness of 0.02 inches – this will

keep the illustration thin enough for us to still be

able to see most of the photograph underneath. If

your view of the photograph’s details is obstructed

then it will be more difficult to map the grid.

07 SECOND TRIANGLEActivate the Direct Selection tool by pressing the A key. Our selection tool’s cursor will change in

colour from black to white. Click on the top triangle’s uppermost anchor point. Drag that anchor point down

and slightly to the right, as you can see in our example. The second triangle will now only share one common

side with the first triangle. We’ll keep on repeating this process of copying, pasting and dragging one anchor

point at a time until the photograph is covered with triangles.

08 N TRIANGLESCopy the second triangle with Cmd/Ctrl+C

and paste it on top of itself with Cmd/Ctrl+F. Apply

the Direct Selection tool to this third triangle’s top

anchor point and then drag it down as shown. The

third triangle should now only share one side with

the second triangle. We’re starting to get the hang

of this sort of application.

05 FIRST TRIANGLELet’s map out a series of adjacent

triangles on top of the base photo. No other shapes

should be used, and each triangle should roughly

cover one solid area of colour. Squint when you’re

looking at the start image – this helps you to

separate out the areas of colour. Draw the first

triangle by clicking at the top of the hair then

completing a triangle covering that section of hair.

06 COPY AND PASTESelect the first triangle and then copy it by

pressing Cmd/Ctrl+C. Paste it on top of itself by

pressing Cmd/Ctrl+F. We want this new triangle to

be adjacent to the first triangle. In other words, it will

share only one side with it. It’s important to generate

new triangles by copying them directly from the

ones that have been created before; if we don’t, our

grid will have holes and cracks between the shapes.

QUICK TIP The more detailed the grid becomes, the more the viewer will want to look at it. Decide which areas of the image you want them to focus on. These areas should have smaller, more detailed triangles. To create apparent contrast, add some areas that are more basic.


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MASTER POLYGONS


Really focus on varying the sizes and shapes of

the triangles. Varying locations will make the image unique

10 CONTINUE THE GRIDIt’s easy to just make all triangles the same

size because it speeds up the process. However,

resist the temptation. Really focus on varying the

sizes and shapes of the triangles. The more we vary

the locations of our shapes, the more unique our

illustration becomes. The reference images in the

screenshot, for example, show two circular shapes;

one is much more interesting than the other. So with

that in mind, continue mapping out your grid.

11 SOLID COLOURYou’ve got your grid – now it’s polygon time.

Grab the Eyedropper and sample a dark skin tone

from beneath the triangle we’ll colour first. Add it to

the Swatches palette and the New Swatch window

will appear. If you’re planning to print an illustration

set this to CMYK mode. If you’re using an illustration

online set this to RGB mode. Apply Direct Selection

to the triangle and click on the new swatch.

12 GRADIENT SWATCHPress I to activate the Eyedropper. In the

reference image, the red triangle has a light tan

colour and fades to a darker brown. Sample the tan

area to update the Fill colour. Drag to the Swatches

palette, then repeat for the brown. Drag both

swatches into your Gradient palette, delete the black

and white swatches, then adjust the gradient slider

so the tan and brown colours are at opposite ends.

13 APPLYING A GRADIENTFrom the upper-left corner of the Gradient

palette, drag the Gradient swatch to the Swatches

Palette. Click on a triangle and then the new swatch.

To specify the location and direction of the gradient,

select the triangle, hit G and click where you want the

gradient to begin, then drag the cursor to the end

point. Repeat in different locations, adjusting the

gradient slider, until it represents the photo’s colours.

09 WORK WITH ANCHOR POINTSMost triangles will share one common side with another triangle, but some triangles will only share

a portion of another triangle’s side. We’ll use the Add and Subtract Anchor Point tools to make precise edits to

the length of one of our triangle’s sides. This will provide much more flexibility in how we lay our grid out.

FILL IN COLOUR USE ILLUSTRATOR’S TONAL OPTIONS TO CREATE SOLID SHAPES

001We copied and pasted our initial triangle on top of itself, creating the second one. This is the triangle we want to edit

002Select the right corner of the second triangle. Drag it to the left, to shorten the side, then use the Add Anchor Point tool

003Select the second triangle. Activate the Subtract Anchor Point tool and click the far-right anchor point to remove it

003 002 001


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GRAPHICS

QUICK TIPMapping out all the triangles perfectly in one go is almost impossible. You’ll need to adjust areas so that all the triangles butt up against each other cleanly. Select all shapes and fill them with 100% black. Remember which shapes need adjusting, undo the black fill and then adjust accordingly.

WORKING IN PHOTOSHOP FIND OUT HOW TO APPLY DETAILED ADJUSTMENT SETTINGS TO CREATE STYLISH EFFECTS

14 ADJACENT COLOURAs we fill our grid shapes with colours and gradients, we need to ensure we can clearly distinguish

all of our triangles. If any start to merge together then the image will begin to appear flat and lack that third

dimension. Colour hues, colour values or gradient angles may need to be adjusted. Refer to the base photo

for reference and remember; you should always be able to distinguish the edge of every side of every triangle.

15 BEGIN WORK IN PHOTOSHOPIt’s time to add some colour adjustments

and lighting effects in Photoshop. Hit Select All then

Copy. Open Photoshop and create a new document.

Photoshop will set up the file to fit the dimensions.

Once again, if you want to get this printed then set

your workspace to Image>Mode>CMYK. If you want

this illustration to be used online, select Image>Mode

and the choose the RGB colour mode instead. Apply

Paste as Pixels and press OK.

16 BRING HAIR INTO PHOTOSHOPWe’re going to change the model’s hair so it

includes vibrant purple tones. In Illustrator, lock the

photograph by selecting it and pressing Cmd/Ctrl+2.

Select all of the shapes that form the hair, except the

buzzed area around her ears. Individually select each

triangle with the regular selection tool; hold down

Shift and click on each desired triangle, continuing to

add to the selection. Once you have the hair, hit Cmd/

Ctrl+C. Switch over to Photoshop and then paste.

17 RENAME LAYERSBack in Photoshop, we now have two

separate layers. The complete illustration should be

on the bottom layer and the layer with just the hair

should be set at the top of the stack. Change the hair

layer’s name from Layer 2 to Hair by double-clicking

directly on the layer’s name; a white box will appear

around it. Type in Hair and then press the Return key.

It’s always good practice to keep all layers intuitively

labeled, no matter how few layers a file may contain.

18 LAYER STYLESNow that we have an editable hair layer, we

can make colour changes to it. Double-click just to

the right of the Hair layer’s name; the Layer Style

dialog will appear. In the left-hand column of options

there are a lots of different Layer Styles. Select

Gradient Overlay. Photoshop will default the gradient

style to black and white, which will be previewed for

us. If you don’t see the applied gradient overlay, tick

the Preview checkbox under the New Style button.


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MASTER POLYGONS


19 APPLY COLOR BURNSet this Gradient Overlay’s blend mode to

Color Burn. This blend mode creates an interesting

effect by looking at the colour channel information

and then darkening the base colour, which it does by

increasing the contrast between the base and blend

colours. The next thing for us to do is click on the

gradient slider to activate the Gradient Editor. Here

we will specify which swatches will use.

20 COLOUR STOPSThe first thing to do is to click on the small

black swatch at the bottom-left of the gradient slider.

This will activate the colour stop at the bottom-left of

the gradient, which you’ll find under the Stops

section at the very bottom of the window. Ours is a

black stop colour, as seen in the upper of the two

windows shown below; click on it to activate the

Select Stop Color dialog, which defaults to red.

21 LONG HAIR BECOMES PURPLEClick and select an area of purple in the

Select Color Stop colour swatch. Notice how the

woman’s hair now looks slightly purple. Click OK

twice to continue. We don’t want the purple to stand

out too much – it will look more realistic to dial the

opacity back a little bit. In the Layer Style dialog set

Opacity to 70%, Style to Linear, Angle to -100˚, Scale

to 75% and check the Align with Layer tickbox.

22 ADJUST BUZZED HAIR’S COLOURThe polygons are beginning to pop now. Next we’ll make the model’s buzzed hair a darker purple. In

Illustrator, copy these areas then paste into Photoshop. Now we apply our new Gradient Overlay to this. Set

the Gradient Overlay’s blend mode to Color Burn. Set Opacity to 85%, Angle to 140˚, Scale to 115%, and then

set the stop colour’s RGB values to R:83, G:0, B:136.

24 ADD LEVELSTo finish, head to the bottom of the Layers

palette and click the Create New Fill or Adjustment

Layer icon, then select Levels. Holding down the Alt

key, click in-between the Ring Levels layer and the

Ring layer. Any edits you make in the Adjustments

palette will now be applied to the layer below it.

Change the first Output Level value to 45, as shown.

23 ADJUST THE RING’S COLOURWe’re going to make the ring a baby blue

colour. Go to Illustrator then copy and paste the ring

into Photoshop. Set the Gradient Overlay’s blend

mode to Overlay, then set Opacity to 100%, Angle to

119˚ and Scale to 150%. In the Gradient Editor, set

the left-hand swatch’s RGB values to R:168, G:209,

B:255 and the right-hand one to R:58, G:146, B:255.

QUICK TIPExperiment further with blend modes by applying a relatively low contrast photograph on top of your illustration. Press Cmd/Ctrl+U to adjust Hue/Saturation and activate Colorize. In the Layers palette, select the drop-down menu to play with different blend modes. The results are fun and will make your image even more unique.


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METRO�STYLE WEBSITES


When implementing this style, it’s better to focus on

processing details rather than creating complex components

CREATIVE AND TECHNICAL ADVICE ON HOW TO PRODUCE STYLISH GRID�BASED WEB DESIGN

METRO�STYLE WEBSITESO ne of the more popular web design trends is

the Metro style, along with its design

language created by Microsoft. This interface

allows you to make innovative layouts,

associated with mobile device functionality.

All concepts begin in Photoshop. It’s become

standard practice for coders to receive web designs as

PSD files, eliminating any need for file conversion.

Permitting a wide range of effects, plug-ins and Smart

Objects, graphic designers can follow an entire design

process using Photoshop alone.

Here we will go through the basic steps and show

you the important things for modern web design. When

implementing this style, it’s better to focus on

processing details rather than creating very complex

components. You must address the user, who needs to

be able to navigate our design in an intuitive fashion.

Linking simplicity with imagination makes for a

good Metro design. Don’t be afraid to experiment, but

always look at your design in an objective way –

evaluate aspects that create additional problems in the

programming or actual usage of the site.

VIKTOR CHOVANECwww.entiri.com

OUR EXPERT

Chovanec is a freelance designer who specialises in web design. He is the co-owner of creative studio Entiri.com, which has gained popularity by designing contemporary website templates.

MAP TO METRO

WORK IN PROGRESS

Step 2: Fashion your grid

Step 4: Scheme colours

Step 11: Add functionality

01 GRID SYSTEMWe need to select an appropriate grid to

work from. The Internet offers many grid

generators, which can be set up to create our

own examples. For this work we used a 1200px

grid, including 12 columns set to a width of 91px

each; the width size for all the columns equals

1180px. This is for higher resolutions and

bootstrap technology.

02 WIREFRAMINGGraphic designers are often tasked with

creating a wireframe design for a client first. Here we

work with basic HTML elements (shapes). This gives us

the chance to make amendments, whether from our

own judgment or due to a client’s reaction. This way,

we’re not risking time-consuming edits with the final

design, which is a big gamble.

03 BACKGROUNDSWe have divided our design into three basic

areas, each with a different background. For our page

header we start with a gradient area containing blurred

Ellipse shapes of different sizes and shades of grey. These

were applied with Gaussian Blur. We enhance this blurred

area further by adding several more shape layers and

introducing Motion Blur.


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http://Entiri.com




GRAPHICS

QUICK TIPIt’s easy to swap elements between projects by using Smart Object layers. These can easily be imported when you hold Ctrl and then click on the layer. You can choose from several options, including Edit Contents, Export Contents and Replace Contents, which helps us to perform these operations rapidly.

04 COLOUR SCHEMEColour management is an integral part of

this workflow when you begin to add your tiles.

Using certain types evoke certain moods. This is

particularly true for a simple-looking design with an

emphasis on detail. Try to pick colours that balance;

don’t over-do it with bright and vibrant looks, as

these should be used only to highlight something

important. Add your colours to the Swatches palette

and save them separately, so they’re at hand for

every project and we can load them in later.

07 ADD ICONSThe right choice of icon is almost as important as the correct choice of font. It’s good if the designer

has developed his or her own examples for easy commercial use. You can create them using the Pen and

Shape tools. In CS6, these are vector objects that retain their quality even when you’re resizing and zooming

in on them. Always draw icons at an appropriate size that makes them easily visible. Try to set the icon’s

colours in sufficient contrast to the background colour that they are placed on.

08 SMART OBJECTSSmart Object layers are very

advantageous. In our design, we work with these in

two ways. First, to interpret the size and dimension

of our images, as we transform bitmaps freely.

Second, we also group our elements into Smart

Objects so that we can quickly import designs into

other projects (PSD files). When you open these

grouped Smart Objects (by double-clicking) you’ll

find nested layers – in our case images, which we

can then edit or add too.

05 CONTENT STRUCTUREMetro requires a structured layout, and

we group elements to avoid less interesting areas.

It’s important, though, to size tiles appropriately to

avoid the possibility of obscuring content after

clicking. We can find a similar caveat with mobile

apps, where the emphasis is on motion and

user-friendly navigation. This all requires careful

tuning so that the content fits with the overall tone

of the site. Try to draw out the significant and

visible navigation aids so that users always know

where they are within the website.

06 TYPOGRAPHYOriginal web design requires a unique font.

We must keep in mind that what looks fine in one

browser might not look fine in another. Some sites

are almost based on beautiful typography, so it

should be chosen from trusted sites. Developers

from Google offer Google web fonts, and these are

guaranteed to work correctly in all major browsers.

It’s especially important with Metro styles to choose

a font that is easy to read because we’ll be applying

it to active tiles that should be easily definable.


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METRO�STYLE WEBSITES


10 ELEMENT STATESOur functionality is made dynamic by

creating a number of possible states which can

appear once the site goes live, such as the active

tiles we’ve previously mentioned. We created two

different Smart Objects, one representing an active

state and the other an inactive state. This screenshot

shows a before and after, demonstrating the

dynamic effects you’ll get once we go live with the

site. The red tile on the left will be our active state,

for when a mouse hovers above it. The three grey

tiles represent the inactive state.

11 CONTENT OPTIONSThe image above shows all of the options

that may occur on the website. We have chosen to

use a laptop element to display thumbnails of our

other web projects. There are other, easier ways to

creatively display your projects. It’s often enough to

apply a soft drop shadow or put something into an

alternate shape, such as a circle. Don’t forget about

the grid when inserting similar elements, and set

the size of the elements according to their columns.

12 EDIT PICTURESThe appearance of photos is important in

the overall tone of the design. Of course, their looks

may be subjective according to your colour scheme.

The tools you use are also up to you, but we find

colour adjustments work best. We applied Color

Balance to our photos, setting Shadows to 5, -10, 6,

Midtones to -19, 5, -9 and Highlights to -20, -5, -14,

with Preserve luminosity active. For quick

brightness adjustments, use Brightness/Contrast or

Levels adjustments.

13 FINAL PRODUCTAfter completing our design we need to re-

check our files and tune them. This is so the next

person to work with our project can understand and

manipulate it clearly. Don’t underestimate this

stage, as the state of your PSD file determines the

quality of your work. If you use more than the

default patterns, brushes and other Photoshop

components, provide people with your final set. In

PSD files, always try to have most of the layers

active to allow future editing.

09 INTERESTING BACKGROUNDAdd a new layer and use the Brush tool to create several circles of varying sizes, between 2px

and 12px. Deploy them irregularly over the entire background. Set the layer’s colour to white by heading to

Layer Style>Color Overlay, leaving the blend mode set to Normal. Now apply the Motion Blur filter and set

the parameters as shown in the screenshot below.

PREPARE FUNCTIONALITY GEAR UP TO PUBLISH YOUR FINAL LAYOUT

001 002 003

001Alternate blurring of elements to create depth, adding more blur to distant objects and less blur to closer ones

002Add noise (Filter>Noise>Add Noise) in small amounts to areas containing gradients for smoother colour transitions

003Don’t be afraid to experiment with multiple layers. Work with the layer styles and use Photoshop filters


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Advanced Photoshop can help you!Professional techniquesOver 35 pages of tutorials by Photoshop experts in every issue, with project files on the free CD

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Professional Photoshop tipsIndustry experts explain how to take full advantage of Photoshop’s best features

Create stunning graphicsCombine type and images, make stylish portraits and build exciting illustrations

Edit like a proEnhance photos with cutting-edge retouching, colour grading, and compositing methods

Transform imagesDiscover photomanipulation tools and create dynamic, surreal and exciting scenes

Master typography Learn striking typography tips and build illustrative, 3D and vintage-style text

Paint in PhotoshopUse brushes and blending techniques to render dream worlds and futuristic eff ects

VOLUME 8

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Create great images using top tips and advanced

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advanced photoshop vol.18 - legend

Documents

expert photoshop skills

digital painting

advanced composites

publishing ltdisbn

digital artist

planetary road

rodborough road

fantasy snowscape76