You might find it helpful to apply a masking on your photo to choose which areas you want to change and leave untouched before you apply any of these special effects. You can create a soft fade between the areas with effects added and those without. This is called masking and can be done in a variety of ways. One method is called the 'quick mask mode'. This is quick and easy to do and results are typically acceptable.
Quick masking: Locate the button called 'edit in quick mask mode' in Adobe Photoshop. It is located near the bottom of the main tool bar and appears as a circle in a rectangle. There's also a short-cut key: Q. Once in quick mask mode, you can select and deselect areas by painting them with white and black respectively, using the standard brush tool. Zoom to 100 or 200 % for best precision. A soft-edged brush can be used to avoid hard edges. When done, exit the masking mode and go to 'Select - Feather' and set the feather radius somewhere in the range of 5-10 pixels. A nice feature is that you can set the opacity to anywhere between 0 and 100%, allowing you to apply the effect stronger or weaker in one part of the image than another.
Layer masking: Somewhat more complicated, you can add a layer mask. This permits you to apply any effect gradually from any point in your photo. Follow these steps in Photoshop:
1. Select 'Windows - Layers'.
2. Right click on your layer and pick 'Duplicate layer'.
3. Click on the little icon in the bottom of the layer box called 'Add layer mask'.
4. Select the 'Gradient tool' on the main tool box.
5. Select a gradient style from the top 'Options' bar (linear, radial etc.).
6. Click on your image on the point you don't want to change, dragging the mouse away to the point where you want the full effect to take place. The effect will be applied gradually more and more along this line you've now created.
7. Last, return to your original background layer and apply any effect you want. This will apply the effect in a soft, gradual way. Use opacity to turn the effect down to less than full strength if you want.
Lens-like effects: You can apply 'Gaussian blur' using the layer masking outlined above which will make the selected areas appear soft-focused, as if you had used a large-aperture lens. With 'Curves' you can make your corners darker than the center, duplicating the lens effect called vignetting. Technically, vignetting is considered a lens dysfunction, but subjectively it can add an extra feeling to your photo, creating a sort of frame that will have a 'sucking' effect, drawing more attention into the center of your photo. You can also just lower the contrast and/or color-saturation around your main subject, helping to separate it from the background clutter. Be creative with the many options offered!
Soft glow effect: Great for creating a 'romantic' look for portraits. Follow these steps:
1. Duplicate layer.
2. Apply 'Gaussian blur' to the new (top) layer. Make it blurry, but leave a little detail.
3. Play around with the blend modes and opacity till you get what you want:
'Darken' or 'Multiply' blends darkens image details while also softening features and adding a halo. Good for soft, expressive shadows.
'Lighten' or 'Screen' blends lightens the image instead. Good for adding high key or highlight glows.
'Soft Light' and 'Overlay' adds contrast and saturation. Especially useful for landscapes and still life photos.
Black-and-whitish: Creates a metallic black-and-whitish look, great for for documentary work and subdued portraits, and is achieved by setting the contrast high (curves) and color saturation low.
Color grading: You know how some movies have a 'special look', golden brown, sick yellow-greenish, cool blue etc.? You can get the same effect in your photos if you want. The simple way is to go to 'Image - Adjustments - Hue/Saturation', click 'Colorize' and use the slide bars to select your preferred grading. If you are going for a well-defined color, it's better to use the 'Edit - Fill' function. Simply select the color you want and set the 'Blending mode' to 'Color'. Either way, it's good first to duplicate your layer before you start. This will allow you to preserve some of the original colors by turning the color grading down. Use the 'Opacity' slider in the layer box to do this. If you want a duo-tone image, simply make 2 duplicate layers and give them different color gradings. Mix them together, again with the 'Opacity' slider and the different 'Layer blending mode' options in the layer box.
One example: To give your image a warm golden-brown color tone, first make two duplicate layers. Use 'Edit - Fill' to make the first one brown (#963A12) and the second one yellow (#EDC715). Set opacity to 30 and 60% respectively and select the 'Multiply' blending mode for the top (yellow) layer. Tweak it in place to get it exactly like you want. Also try adding a soft glow, as described above.
Micro contrast: This is a really neat trick to enhance your contrast and draw out texture details in your photos. You can even use it when your overall contrast is already maxed out, using all tonal ranges from pure black to pure white. The procedure is similar to the normal 'Unsharpen Mask', but with some special settings. Go to 'Filter - Sharpen - Unsharpen Mask' and set the 'Amount' to around 20-30%, the 'Radius' to 50-100 pixels and zero on the 'Threshold'. You will get a subtle contrast enhancement that, for some pictures at least, works really well.
Using any of the above mentioned effects can improve your photos and make them really eye-catching. However, learning when to use them and when not to use them is just as important as learning how to use them. When to use special effects in your photos is a matter of personal taste and judgment. Use it, but don't overdo it. Often, less is more.
Quick masking: Locate the button called 'edit in quick mask mode' in Adobe Photoshop. It is located near the bottom of the main tool bar and appears as a circle in a rectangle. There's also a short-cut key: Q. Once in quick mask mode, you can select and deselect areas by painting them with white and black respectively, using the standard brush tool. Zoom to 100 or 200 % for best precision. A soft-edged brush can be used to avoid hard edges. When done, exit the masking mode and go to 'Select - Feather' and set the feather radius somewhere in the range of 5-10 pixels. A nice feature is that you can set the opacity to anywhere between 0 and 100%, allowing you to apply the effect stronger or weaker in one part of the image than another.
Layer masking: Somewhat more complicated, you can add a layer mask. This permits you to apply any effect gradually from any point in your photo. Follow these steps in Photoshop:
1. Select 'Windows - Layers'.
2. Right click on your layer and pick 'Duplicate layer'.
3. Click on the little icon in the bottom of the layer box called 'Add layer mask'.
4. Select the 'Gradient tool' on the main tool box.
5. Select a gradient style from the top 'Options' bar (linear, radial etc.).
6. Click on your image on the point you don't want to change, dragging the mouse away to the point where you want the full effect to take place. The effect will be applied gradually more and more along this line you've now created.
7. Last, return to your original background layer and apply any effect you want. This will apply the effect in a soft, gradual way. Use opacity to turn the effect down to less than full strength if you want.
Lens-like effects: You can apply 'Gaussian blur' using the layer masking outlined above which will make the selected areas appear soft-focused, as if you had used a large-aperture lens. With 'Curves' you can make your corners darker than the center, duplicating the lens effect called vignetting. Technically, vignetting is considered a lens dysfunction, but subjectively it can add an extra feeling to your photo, creating a sort of frame that will have a 'sucking' effect, drawing more attention into the center of your photo. You can also just lower the contrast and/or color-saturation around your main subject, helping to separate it from the background clutter. Be creative with the many options offered!
Soft glow effect: Great for creating a 'romantic' look for portraits. Follow these steps:
1. Duplicate layer.
2. Apply 'Gaussian blur' to the new (top) layer. Make it blurry, but leave a little detail.
3. Play around with the blend modes and opacity till you get what you want:
'Darken' or 'Multiply' blends darkens image details while also softening features and adding a halo. Good for soft, expressive shadows.
'Lighten' or 'Screen' blends lightens the image instead. Good for adding high key or highlight glows.
'Soft Light' and 'Overlay' adds contrast and saturation. Especially useful for landscapes and still life photos.
Black-and-whitish: Creates a metallic black-and-whitish look, great for for documentary work and subdued portraits, and is achieved by setting the contrast high (curves) and color saturation low.
Color grading: You know how some movies have a 'special look', golden brown, sick yellow-greenish, cool blue etc.? You can get the same effect in your photos if you want. The simple way is to go to 'Image - Adjustments - Hue/Saturation', click 'Colorize' and use the slide bars to select your preferred grading. If you are going for a well-defined color, it's better to use the 'Edit - Fill' function. Simply select the color you want and set the 'Blending mode' to 'Color'. Either way, it's good first to duplicate your layer before you start. This will allow you to preserve some of the original colors by turning the color grading down. Use the 'Opacity' slider in the layer box to do this. If you want a duo-tone image, simply make 2 duplicate layers and give them different color gradings. Mix them together, again with the 'Opacity' slider and the different 'Layer blending mode' options in the layer box.
One example: To give your image a warm golden-brown color tone, first make two duplicate layers. Use 'Edit - Fill' to make the first one brown (#963A12) and the second one yellow (#EDC715). Set opacity to 30 and 60% respectively and select the 'Multiply' blending mode for the top (yellow) layer. Tweak it in place to get it exactly like you want. Also try adding a soft glow, as described above.
Micro contrast: This is a really neat trick to enhance your contrast and draw out texture details in your photos. You can even use it when your overall contrast is already maxed out, using all tonal ranges from pure black to pure white. The procedure is similar to the normal 'Unsharpen Mask', but with some special settings. Go to 'Filter - Sharpen - Unsharpen Mask' and set the 'Amount' to around 20-30%, the 'Radius' to 50-100 pixels and zero on the 'Threshold'. You will get a subtle contrast enhancement that, for some pictures at least, works really well.
Using any of the above mentioned effects can improve your photos and make them really eye-catching. However, learning when to use them and when not to use them is just as important as learning how to use them. When to use special effects in your photos is a matter of personal taste and judgment. Use it, but don't overdo it. Often, less is more.
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