Creating Painterly Photographs in Adobe PhotoshopInstructions

In this tutorial I take you through the steps to replicate a painting (like I did with the Pears Soap painting shown above) and give your photograph a painterly feel.

Starting with the background, I painted with a soft brush over the background curtains and the bath to give the base a flatter finish. This will allow for the texture to pick up more once we place it over later in the process.

In order to make the jug and clothing look similar to the original painting, I needed to convert the top to red (from pink) using the colour overlay mode - also demonstrated in detail in this tutorial: Changing Colour in Adobe Photoshop

First I created a blank layer above the masked out jug. I clipped it to the jug layer. I then used the colour picker to choose red, and painted over the pink shirt.

Be careful to avoid painting red on the jug itself.

To remove the patterns on the top, I simply painted with a soft brush, picking the surrounding colour (alt) and painting over the top. This again allows for the texture to work better over the top. Painting in this way decreases the detail.

I painted (darker tones) in the shadow areas using a soft but solid brush (no blending mode here)

I now add a 'Matt Blur" to the image. This is achieved in two steps.

First create a 'Stamp Visible Layer' A copy. You can do this with - SHIFT - ALT/OPT - COMMAND/CTRL - E or by selecting all - copy merged - paste.On the new layer apply a Gaussian Blur (Filter,  Blur, Gaussian Blur) at about 5 pixels.

Change this layer to SOFT LIGHT blending mode. Reduce the Opacity (for this I reduced to 80%)

To add the MATT create a Levels Adjustment layer above the previous layer. Go to the Second Slider (that affects the whites and the blacks) and bring both ends in to a similar level to the picture (Output 23 - 225). Change this levels adjustment layer to 80% also.

Group the Stamp Visible layer and the Levels Adjustment Layer together (call it Matt Blur) and reduce the opacity to around 50%Create another 'STAMP VISIBLE' Layer - or copy - above, ready for painting directly onto using a brush and the smudge tool.

1.2.3.

If you don't have the 'NATURAL BRUSHES' already loaded, follow the instructions to load them now.

Click on your brush iconClick on the settings iconScroll down to 'Natural Brushes'

Append the natural brushes to your brush library

Choose one of the brushes that look like they are made up of many dots. (As above) ensuring that the SMUDGE TOOL is selected (not the brush tool).Begin smudging with the brush, extend hair, brush along the contours of clothing and materials.

When complete, add a layer mask and mask back the areas that you applied too much smudge to. You may want to dial this layer down to around 80%.The next step is to add a texture (from the texture pack) over the top. I added this one.

Change the blending mode to SOFT LIGHT 

You will then want to mask out the skin and detailed areas, so the texture is only showing on the objects, backgrounds and flat areas.

Repeat this process with another texture if desired.Add the included Warm Painterly Colour LUT (details on how to load LUTS can be found in this tutorial and in more detail here)Create another STAMP VISIBLE layer after this process

The final step is to add an OIL PAINT texture using the included 'OIL PAINT FILTER' in the latest version of Photoshop. You will find this under Filter - Stylize - Oil Paint

Adjust the settings as desired (I usually make the scale quite small)

Reduce the Oil Paint layer to around 50%

Your finished piece will now look like a painting.