The Making of "Eyes of Love"

I selected our image post today to be part of our Technique Tuesday segment mostly because the original did not look much like the final resulting image. But, I really love the finished portrait. Give the short video a look for the whole story and techniques used. Enjoy! --David


http://digitalprotalk.blogspot.com/2007/11/making-of-eyes-of-love.html

The Burn and Dodge Photoshop Cha-Cha

Thank you to ColleenP who commented on my recent post "The Burn and Dodge Photoshop Cha-Cha." This post was actually part of last month's newsletter. In the tutorial, I discussed three ways to burn and dodge - the tutorial was actually less boring than it sounds. Anyway, Colleen has enlightened me with an even quicker way than my techniques.
Here is her suggestion - A quicker way to do method 3 is hold the Alt key and click new layer in the layers palette, which brings up the dialog box, change mode to soft light and check the box to fill with 50% gray. Hit the above link to see the tutorial, and give Collen's suggestion a try. Thanks, Coleen for the tip

http://digitalprotalk.blogspot.com/2007/10/burn-dodge-cha-cha.html

http://www.colleenphoto.blogspot.com/

Cabo Colors #5

Alright, gang, you asked for it. Readers seemed to enjoy "Cabo Colors #5", yesterday's daily post image. I had a request for the "before" image. I'll do better than that - here is a quick tutorial that covers the basic steps and most of the tweaking. (This is sort of a mini Technique Tuesday) Enjoy! --David

http://digitalprotalk.blogspot.com/2007/11/quick-before-and-after-cabo-colors-5.html

FACE MAKEOVER

You have to check out this tutorial over at Photoshop Gurus site. This tutorial takes facial retouching to an extreme level. The result is almost beyond the Hollywood "Before - After" images we have seen in the past. You might think "over retouched" but, check it out, some great techniques demonstrated. Here is the

http://www.photoshopgurus.com/tutorials/t027.html

How To Make Digital Photos Look Like Lomo Photography

Getting Started - Creating a Vignette

The first thing you want to do is create the classic vignette that the Lomos are well known for and I achieve this by doing a freehand lasso of a circle around the photo. It doesn't need to be perfect and to prevent hard edges, I set the feather to 80-90px before creating the circle.

Once you have set the feather (shown above) and have drawn the circle, you must invert the selection. You can do this one of two ways. #1 Shift-Ctrl-I (Shift-cmd-I on the mac) or #2 Go to the menu Select>Inverse.

Now to achieve the vignette, I add a Levels layer. Note: I still have the invert selected.
This will add a masked out layer on top of your original layer. I then adjust the levels by moving the center arrow to the right. This will darken the edges, giving me a vignette. The amount is up to you and in this case I went from 1.00 to 0.50 on the center number highlighted in the image below.

On to making the photo look Lomo
Another key to a Lomo picture is the color contrast and saturation. This occurs because people with real Lomos use color slide film and cross-process the film in C41 chemicals.
For those that don't know what cross-processing is, its when you develop film in a chemical other then what it was made for. Standard 35mm film is usually processed in C41 chemicals and Color Slide film is usually processed in E6 chemicals. Interesting results happen when you mix and match.
Typically, Lomo owners will take color slide film (E6) and have it processed as standard 35mm film (C41). This results in over saturation of colors and at times some freaky results. All of which make Lomo as special as they are.
To get a digital photo to look Lomo, we need to fake the cross-processing effect (E6 film in C41 chemicals).
At this point I usually flatten the image using shift-ctrl-e (shift-cmd-e on the mac) or go to the menu and Layer>Merge Layers.

First, I add a curves layer and create a slanted S.
Then I create a new layer on top of the other two layers. I select the paint bucket and pick the color black and fill the new layer with solid black.
Then I change the blending mode and set it to Hue and reduce the opacity to 40%.

Sharpening and Saving
This has gotten us very close to be finished. Again, I flatten the photo by using shift-ctrl-e (shift-cmd-e on the mac) or go to the menu and Layer>Merge Layers.
Before saving the photo as a JPG, you need to sharpen the photo. I use the unsharp mask and Lab mode/lightness technique. The purpose of this step is that it adds more contrast and darkens some of the areas as well. Now you can use whatever sharpening technique you want, but the following method prevents the color halos that come with certain sharpening techniques.
Go to Image>Mode>Lab Color. If you hadn't flattened the image yet, it will ask you if want to flatten, please do so.
Then select your channel window and click on the lightness channel. The 3 other channels should deselect.

Then go to the menu, select Filter>Sharpen>Unsharp Mask.

I like sharpness, so I set the Amount to 50%, Radius to 50% and the Threshold to 0. Click Ok. This is completely up to you on the settings. Plus it will depend on the photo as well and use your best judgment/preference.
Go to Image>Mode> RGB Color. You do not have to reselect the unchecked channels, when converting back to RGB, the channels will automatically turn back on and the photo will go back to be in color.
Now you are done, save the file and share.
Final step, save as a Jpeg.

http://digital-photography-school.com/blog/how-to-make-digital-photos-look-like-lomo-photography/

The top 10 new things you can do with Photoshop CS3: 10 to 8

"Photoshopping" pictures has become a common term. But, with these 10 new features, that verb may just become even more common.

10. "Bridging" the gap
Photoshop CS3 also gives you Bridge, Adobe's photo organizing software, which lets you keep tabs on all your pics through labels, ratings, file type and other criteria. The cool thing is that all the images on your computer can be accessed and viewed at the same time, including one-on-one comparisons without opening them. From there, you can inspect even closer using the Loupe tool to magnify pixels in the image.
Bridge is a bit of a wild card because pros and serious amateurs will love it, while casual users might not care about it. But it's still deep enough to warrant a look, especially since you're getting it in the package anyway.

9. Vanishing Point 2
This one is probably better suited for people in advertising or other businesses because it allows you to see mock-ups of product packaging. Vanishing Point made its debut in CS2, but was limited in that it could only be applied at a 90-degree angle. In CS3, you can adjust the angle however you want, so that the image wraps around the box or package the way you need it to.
Casual users might not find much of a use for this, but consider how you might be able to see how decals would look on a flashy car or even how an indie band's debut album artwork would look on a CD jewel case.

8. Creating truly black and white images
There was the misconception that changing a photo from colour to grayscale was enough to make a black and white replica. That never was the truth. CS3 adds a Black and White Adjustment option that allows you to change the tones within the image based on their original colour values. So, if you had a lot of yellow in the image, you can manipulate the colour tone using the sliders in Black and White
It's possible that you've already done this with colour images, but you never had that option available once you were working with a grayscale photo. Now you can get a far more realistic black and white photo.

7. Printing made easier
Printing from Photoshop wasn't too difficult, but it could confuse the casual user, partly because there was no usable preview to go on. It's always nice to be able to see how the photo will lay out on the page you're printing it on, and it's about time they threw that in for CS3.
But, generally speaking, the Print dialog is a more seamless experience now because of the simple menu items and commands all offered in one window. You want to make some last-minute colour adjustments? No problem. Looking to see how a proof would look by knocking down the resolution or the size? Done.

6. Cloning and healing
The Clone Stamp and Healing Brush tools are pretty popular among both serious and casual Photoshop users, but there was room for improvement. You now get a palette when using the tools. This lets you view your handiwork in different opacities and blend modes as you go along.
To do this before required a lot of trial and error to get the best results because you would use the tool and then have to go back to make changes. The cycle could repeat itself over and over again, causing plenty of frustration along the way. That said, the new palette will take some getting used to because the photo is presented to you in two different opacities, which could lead to some confusion. Even then, try it out and get used to it because you'll grow to love it.

5. The Quick Selection tool
It's entirely possible that people who have tried their hand at Photoshop looked to cut themselves out of a photo- or maybe a forgotten ex-lover - at least once. To make it happen was tough, even with all the tools at your disposal. You could try erasing with fine brushes, or the wildly unpredictable magic wand tool. But the results would be sketchy at best, thus requiring more fine-tuning.
The Quick Selection tool works like the magic wand, only that it's smarter. Drag it over yourself (or the ex) and watch it wrap itself around your body. From there, it's a simple matter of cutting and pasting. You can even soften the edges of the cut by using the "Refine Edge" option found under the menu bar.

4. Smart Filters
The cool thing about this feature is that it allows you to experiment with filters on an image without destroying it in the process. Suppose you have a cutout from an image that you were able to extract using the Quick Selection tool. You've isolated the subject, but you go to the Tools menu and select Inverse to select the background. Your plan is to really blur the background so that the subject pops out even more in the photo. Before, the only way you could do that was by working on the image with separate layers, not to mention that the changes you would make would be difficult to undo.
Now, you can go to the Tools menu and select Convert for Smart Filters to turn the image into an object layer that you can mess with using any filter you want. You can add Blur or any other layers and adjust them at anytime without affecting your progress.

3. Bringing out the landmarks
There's something to be said about taking a photo of a landmark without you - or any other tourist - trying to look good in front of it for a photo op. There's a good chance that you've got those types of photos in your albums; the ones with eyesores like a passersby and other tourists posing in the distance.
Getting rid of all of them is easier than you think, so long as you've taken more than one shot of the landmark, that is. Take all the photos you have of, say, the Acropolis in Athens from the same angle, and choose Auto-Align in the Edit menu. All the images will be aligned perfectly. Then go to the Layers menu and "Convert to Smart Object". You then go to Smart Objects and select Medium, and like magic, the unwanted bystanders disappear.

2. Auto-Align Images
You've probably taken group photos where you had one person's eyes closed or someone who wasn't smiling. And you took the shot three or four times, but still couldn't get them to all smile at once. Now, you can solve that problem by literally erasing the unwanted expressions to bring out the smiles in everyone. The only problem is that when you stack these images together as layers, you'll notice that they're not perfectly aligned.
If you go to the Edit menu and apply Auto-Align, Photoshop will do the alignment for you. From there, apply a layer mask on the image at the top of the stack, use a black paintbrush, and wipe away all those distracted faces.

1. Auto-Blend Images
Panoramic images will be a totally new experience for you after trying this one out. Use Auto-Align to place the multiple images together. Then execute Auto-Blend under the Edit menu. With that one click, the software will blend the images together in precise detail based on the edges and placement of objects within the images. But more than that, it also adjusts the colours and lighting so that everything matches perfectly.
From there, it's a simple matter of cropping and you've got the masterpiece you were looking for. This was a procedure that used to take hours and hours, so to have it done in one or two clicks is a huge improvement in CS3.

http://www.pcworld.ca/news/column/420b93020a010408016cf4f9d5ac4e46/pg1.htm

Haltfones

http://forum.codecall.net/photoshop-tutorials/9720-working-halftones-genny.html

Tilt shifting miniature photography with Photoshop

http://www.darjanpanic.com/tutorials/tilt-shifting-miniature-photography-with-photoshop/

Photoshop Effects - Split Toning Black and White Photos

A nice thing about this technique, besides being easy, is that it allows us to create the split toning effect without harming a single pixel in our image!

Step 1: Add A Channel Mixer Adjustment LayerThe first thing we need to do with our split toning effect is convert our image into black and white. There's quite a few ways to convert a color photo to black and white in Photoshop, but one of the best ways is by using a Channel Mixer adjustment layer, which will allow us to create our own custom black and white version rather than allowing Photoshop to make all the decisions for us. Since we're using the adjustment layer version of the Channel Mixer, we can safely convert our image to black and white while leaving the original full color image intact. Click on the New Adjustment Layer icon at the bottom of the Layers palette and choose Channel Mixer from the list that appears:

Photoshop Effects: Click on the "New Adjustment Layer" icon and choose "Channel Mixer" from the list.

Step 2: Select The "Monochrome" OptionThis brings up Photoshop's Channel Mixer dialog box. In the bottom left corner of the dialog box is the Monochrome option. Click inside its checkbox to select this option. As soon as you select it, you'll see your image in the document window convert to black and white:

Photoshop Effects: Select the "Monochrome" option at the bottom of the Channel Mixer dialog box.

Step 3: Create A Custom Black And White Version Of The ImageIn the center of the Channel Mixer dialog box are three sliders, labeled "Red", "Green" and "Blue" from top to bottom. These sliders represent the red, green and blue color channels in the image. If you want to learn more about color channels in Photoshop, be sure to check out our RGB and Color Channels Explained tutorial in the Digital Photo Essentials section of the website, but basically, these three slider bars allow us to create a custom black and white version of our photo by mixing different amounts of the red, green and blue colors in the image to give us different results. Dragging the red slider towards the right, for example, causes any areas with red in them to appear lighter in the black and white version, while dragging the slider towards the left causes areas with red in them to appear darker. The same goes for the green and blue sliders. There are no "correct" settings for the sliders, since each image is unique and your idea of the "perfect" black and white version of the image will also be unique, so the best thing to do is to simply drag the sliders around while keeping an eye on your photo in the document window until you're happy with the results.
The only rule to be aware of with the sliders is that the total percentage of all three sliders should equal 100% when you're done. You'll see an input box above and to the right of each slider, with a number in the box that changes as you drag the slider. The number you see is the percentage of that color that's currently being applied to the black and white version. When you're done converting your image to black and white, the total of all three boxes should equal 100%. Anything less than 100% causes your image to appear darker than it should be, while going above 100% will lose detail in the highlights. Fortunately, you don't have to worry about doing the math. The Channel Mixer conveniently lists the current percent total directly below the sliders. For my image, I'm going to go with a mixture of 70% red, 20% green and 10% blue to create my black and white version, which gives me a total of 100%. Your values will most likely be different depending on the photo you're working with: Photoshop Effects: Drag the Red, Green and Blue sliders to create a custom black and white version of your photo, making sure the total of all three is 100% when you're done.Click OK when you're done to exit out of the Channel Mixer dialog box, and you'll now have your black and white version of the image. Here's what my photo looks like after converting it to black and white:

Photoshop Effects: The image after converting it to black and white with the Channel Mixer.Keep in mind that we haven't really converted the image to black and white. The original full color photo is still there, sitting safely on the Background layer in the Layers palette. Everything we've done to convert the photo to black and white is being handled by the Channel Mixer adjustment layer sitting above it in the Layers palette. If we were to delete the adjustment layer, our full color image would appear in the document window once again.

Step 4: Add A "Color Balance" Adjustment LayerNow that we've converted our photo to black and white, we're ready to add some color to the highlights and shadows. For that, we'll use another of Photoshop's adjustment layers. Click once again on the New Adjustment Layer icon at the bottom of the Layers palette and this time, choose Color Balance from the list:

Photoshop Effects: Add a Color Balance adjustment layer.

Step 5: Select "Highlights" And Choose A Tint ColorThis brings up Photoshop's Color Balance dialog box. The Color Balance adjustment works great for our split toning effect because it allows us to easily switch between the shadows and highlights in the image simply by choosing either the Shadows or Highlights option at the bottom of the dialog box. Once we've chosen the shadows or highlights, we can use the color sliders to select the color we want to use and it will be applied only to the shadows or highlights. Let's start with the highlights in the photo. Select Highlights at the bottom of the dialog box:

Photoshop Effects: Select the "Highlights" option in the Color Balance dialog box.With the highlights now selected, use the color sliders to dial in the color you want to tint the highlights with. The top slider will add red or cyan to the image depending on which direction you drag the slider. The further you drag the slider, the more intense the color will appear in the image. The middle slider will add green or magenta, again depending on which way you drag the slider. The bottom slider will add blue or yellow. It helps to know a little Color Theory 101 here if you need to mix colors together to create the one you want, but I'm going to keep things simple. I'm going to add a bit of yellow to my highlights by dragging the bottom slider towards the left until the third Color Levels input box at the top of the dialog box shows a value of -15:

Photoshop Effects: Dragging the bottom slider towards the left to add yellow to the highlights in the image.If I look at my photo in the document window now, I can see that the highlights have been tinted with a small amount of yellow:
Photoshop Effects: The highlights in the photo are now tinted with yellow.

Step 6: Select "Shadows" And Choose A Tint ColorWe've added a color to the highlights. Now let's add a different color to the shadows. Select the Shadows option at the bottom of the dialog box:

Photoshop Effects: Select the "Shadows" option at the bottom of the Color Balance dialog box.With the shadows now selected, we can dial in a different color to complete our split toning effect. Again, I'm going to keep things simple by adding some red to my shadows. I'll drag the top slider towards the right until the first Color Levels input box at the top of the dialog box shows a value of +35:

Photoshop Effects: Dragging the top slider towards the right to add red to the shadows in the image.Of course, the colors you choose for your shadows and highlights may be completely different from the ones I've chosen here. I just happen to like this particular effect, with yellow in the highlights and red in the shadows. Click OK when you're done to exit out of the Color Balance dialog box. If we look in our Layers palette, we can see that we now have three layers. The original, full color image is on the Background layer on the bottom, the Channel Mixer adjustment layer directly above it is what's giving us our black and white effect, and finally, the Color Balance adjustment layer at the top is adding our tints to the shadows and highlights:

Photoshop Effects: The Layers palette showing the two adjustment layers used to create the split toning effect.And with that, we're done! Here, after adding some red to my shadows, is my final split toning effect:

Photoshop Effects: The final split toning effect.And there we have it!

http://www.photoshopessentials.com/photo-effects/split-toning/