If you are considering the switch from Photoshop to Affinity Photo, you might wonder how it will affect your photo editing workflow. And how will just a tiny loss in features (for a big drop in price) affect your options for photo editing? Keep on reading to find out how your workflow will change, what you will miss and what Continue Reading
The post Should You Switch from Photoshop to Affinity Photo? appeared first on Photodoto.
In days of yore, back when DSLR cameras were SLR, a roll of film was inserted in the back of your camera to give you 24 or 36 exposures. A double exposure was created in-camera by taking two different photos on the same frame of film.
The Double Exposure Effect created in Adobe Photoshop using Blend Modes, Layer Masks and of course two or more images.
When I did shoot with an SLR camera, I managed to achieve this effect more by accident than intent. In order to take another shot, you had to manually wind onto the next exposure!
With the onset of digital, this technique is very easy to replicate in Adobe Photoshop. If you don’t have Photoshop, get GIMP, it’s free to download and use. If you do a search on YouTube, there are plenty of tutorials on making double exposure effects to choose from. The more popular tutorials seem to use images of a portrait and a landscape.
However, you can use any images you want as this is quite a stylistic technique.
In essence, all you need are two images.
One of these images will have to be cut out using a layer mask so that the other image can be clipped to it.
Then it’s a case of using the blending modes, reducing the opacity, and other color effects to produce the desired result. Depending on what images that you use, experiment with the different blending options to see which effect you like the best.
In this article, I will show you a step-by-step tutorial on how to create your very own double exposure effect using Photoshop. The hardest part will be selecting the two images that you want for the composition.
For my first image, I’ll be using this photo of the Hook Lighthouse. I took this shot a couple of years ago while on holidays along the hook peninsula in Wexford, Ireland.
Hook Lighthouse on the Hook Peninsula in Wexford in South of Ireland.
However, I didn’t get to snap any seagulls. This is exactly what I wanted for my second image, a close up side shot of a seagull.
I found one on Pixabay. If you don’t have images ready to hand. You can go to sites such as Pixabay or Unsplash. These two sites alone have excellent quality images to choose from and you can download any image for free (note: please read the usage terms for the Creative Commons license and be sure to follow them).
Seagull image from Pixabay.com
So, first I needed to make a selection of the seagull. The Quick Selection Tool did a good job and I finished it off by using the Refine Mask. I was able to save this out on its own layer with a layer mask.
Using the Quick Selection Tool and Refine Mask in Photoshop to isolate the subject from the background.
I decided to add a blue background in keeping with the nautical theme but also the seagull is predominately white, so he stands out more.
I added a blue background after I isolated the seagull from the original background.
I brought the lighthouse image in as a Smart Object above the seagull layer and resized it. Next, I dragged the seagull layer mask to the lighthouse layer (which copies and applies it to the second layer) and changed the Blend Mode to Vivid Light. Finally, I then reduced the opacity to 68%.
I used the Blend Mode – Vivid Light which produced some funky colors on the beak of the seagull. But I liked the effect it created on the lighthouse image in comparison to the other Blend Mode options.
The Layers Panel in Photoshop and how the double effect in Photoshop is achieved.
At this stage, the colors on the seagull went a little too funky, especially around the eye and its beak.
So, I added a Hue & Saturation Adjustment Layer, checked the colorize tick box, and dragged the Hue slider to 183 and increased the Saturation to 10.
I added a Hue & Saturation Adjustment Layer to get rid of the funky colors that the Vivid Light Blend Mode created around the beak of the seagull.
The lighthouse rocks were still a little too sharp, but I didn’t want to reduce the opacity of the overall image any further. So I duplicated the seagull layer and dragged it to the top of the layer stack. I chose a big soft brush and I dabbed a couple of times on the layer mask around the rocks and the lighthouse to give it more of an opaque/ghostly look.
A GIF animation illustrating the different stages in creating a double exposure effect.
I had hoped to put a video together to accompany this article. But honestly, Adobe Creative Cloud have done a great job with a video on their YouTube channel, in illustrating this technique in under 45 seconds!
Now it’s your turn, let’s see what you can do. Why not give this technique a go? Please post your questions, comments and results in the section below.
Disclaimer: the author was not sponsored by Adobe, Pixabay or Unsplash. Words and opinions are those of the author only.
The post How to Create a Double Exposure Effect Using Photoshop by Sarah Hipwell appeared first on Digital Photography School.
Youtube user Eye Stocker makes a lot of useful Photoshop tutorials and we found this one in particular to be valuable. Even if you are not well-versed in the program, this double exposure tutorial is easy enough for anyone to follow along. And for those already comfortable with PS, it’s still full of useful tips and advice.
After all, one of the beautiful things about this Adobe staple is there are a near infinite number of ways too accomplish a task. And it’s always nice to watch someone else achieve an outcome in a completely different way than you might.
To get started, all you will need to make a cool double exposure is two images that pair well, a copy of Photoshop and a desire to learn. There’s also written steps, which some might find easier to follow.
Articles: Digital Photography Review (dpreview.com)
If you shoot RAW, in general, you will be editing those files in Adobe Camera Raw (ACR), Lightroom or some other RAW editor. This may be all the post editing that you require. However, if you are like me, I finish my editing in Photoshop. Why? Because I use layers and they play an essential part of my workflow.
Layers are definitely where the real magic in Photoshop happens. They were introduced way back in version 3.0. I am a long-time user of Photoshop, so using layers in my workflow is second nature.
In Photoshop, there are many types of layers. You can add text to your image using a Type Layer. You can duplicate any type of layer. By using a Layer Style, you can add a drop shadow or other effects to your photo. For example, you may want to color correct a portrait image by using a Curves Adjustment Layer.
In this article, I’ll give a brief overview of how layers work and go on to explain why I use the following go-to in my workflow:
Let’s go over to the Layers Panel and I’ll walk you through how layers work. Here is an example of a simple vector image of a mountain range with a sunset. There are six layers stacked on top of one another, that make up the final image. By clicking on the eye icon, you can turn the visibility of each layer off and on.
Different layer types in Photoshop
Six layers stacked on top of each other to form a picture in Photoshop
However, in Photoshop, you can do a lot more with layers. You can delete a layer by clicking on it and dragging it to the little trash can at the bottom of the panel. You can also duplicate a layer by dragging it down to the icon beside the trash can, which creates a copy of that layer. A layer can be moved by clicking on it and dragging it up or down the stack. You can reduce the opacity of a layer, thereby allowing some or all of the image layer underneath to show through, depending on how much you reduce the opacity.
Duplicate and delete layers in the Layers Panel using the tools circled in red.
Without a doubt, when Adjustment Layers were introduced into Photoshop 4.0 it meant that users could unleash the magic of Photoshop by editing non-destructively. Prior to this, you had to duplicate the image first to preserve the original, as edits were permanently made to the layer. Adjustment Laters are key in any photographer’s workflow.
As a precautionary note, Adjustments under Image in the Options Bar is not the same as creating an Adjustment Layer via Layer>New Adjustment Layer. The former will apply edits directly to the layer that you are working on, where as an Adjustment Layer adds a layer above the working one. These edits can be redone or discarded without altering the pixels of your original image.
Applying edits through Image>Adjustments will affect the image permanently.
Working non-destructively by adding a New Adjustment Layer via the Layer tab in the Options Bar.
As with the Layers Panel, the Adjustment Layers has its very own panel too. The icons represent the 16 different layer adjustments available in Photoshop. Some are used more than others. Adjustment layers apply the correction to all the layers below them, without affecting any of the layers above.
Adjustment Layers has its own panel with 16 icons representing the different options.
Once I do my initial edits in ACR, I’ll finish off my post-processing in Photoshop using Adjustment layers. I like to use Levels, Curves and Selective Color & LUTs to add the necessary contrast and color corrections. As each Adjustment Layer is used and stacked on top of each other, it is essential to reduce the opacity of each layer.
How Adjustments Layers can add color correction and bring out the details in the image in a non-destructive way
Different Adjustment Layers such as Levels, Curves and Selective Color were used on this image.
What about areas of your image that don’t require the same amount of editing as other parts?
When adding an Adjustment Layer in Photoshop, it applies the adjustment to the whole image. But, sometimes you need to make adjustments to only one area or separate parts of an image. This is where Layer Masks come in handy. When you add a new Adjustment Layer, it automatically adds a white Layer Mask (white reveals and black conceals).
For example, in the image of the waterfall, it was necessary for me to mask the water with each adjustment layer, otherwise, the highlights would have been blown out.
The water in the image on the left has not had masks applied when global edits were added using Adjustment Layers. Masks were used on the water in the image on the right to preserve the highlights.
In the following image of this landscape in the Dublin mountains, the day was quite overcast. I wasn’t happy with the sky, so I decided to try a different one. By using the Layer masks, I was able to mask out the original sky. I used the Pen Tool for this but you can use the Brush or the Quick Selection Tool and then fill the area with black.
Layer mask applied to hide the original sky and reveal the new sky from the layer beneath.
The new sky image underneath was put under this layer so that it showed through the mask, similar to a cut-out. I then added more Adjustment Layers to color correct the image so that the new sky looked seamless.
An animated gif to demonstrate the Adjustment Layers to color correct the image and by adding a layer mask to reveal a different sky to the original overcast one.
Adobe really defines Smart Objects in a neat nutshell. Smart Objects preserve an image’s source content with all its original characteristics, enabling you to perform nondestructive editing to the layer.
So for photographers, this is fantastic news. Now, when you apply edits to a layer that is a Smart Object, you can transform, scale, rotate, warp, apply filters or layer masks. The quality of the image will not be degraded even though it is a raster image!
An image layer converted to a Smart Object
So how do you convert an image to a Smart Object? It is simple, right click on the layer and select Convert to a Smart Object. You will see a small icon on the thumbnail image that tells you that the layer is now a Smart Object.
Right click on the layer to reveal a drop-down menu and select Convert to a Smart Object.
If you edit your images in Camera Raw, you can then export the image into Photoshop as a Smart Object. Hold the Shift key and the Open Image button turns to Open Object. This means that at a later date, you can return to Camera Raw to re-edit by double clicking on the layer thumbnail.
How to set the default in Camera Raw for images to be exported to Photoshop as Smart Objects.
Alternatively, when you have the Camera Raw dialog box open, at the bottom there is what looks like a link on a website. This link actually takes you to the Camera Raw Workflow Options. You can check the box Open in Photoshop as Smart Objects to set that as the default in ACR.
Click the check box in the Camera Raw Workflow Options dialog box to ensure images are exported out as Smart Objects.
Layers can play an important role in your post-production.
The main take away from using Layers in Photoshop is that the whole process is working non-destructively.
Now it’s your turn, do you use layers in your post-production process? What are your favorite techniques for using layers? Please share your comments below.
The post 3 Good Reasons to Use Layers in Photoshop by Sarah Hipwell appeared first on Digital Photography School.
Bokeh overlays are an excellent way to add a trendy stylized look to your portraits. You can purchase overlays, but I would instead suggest making your own. It’s easy, fun, and best of all, it’s free!
In this video, I take you through the process of making and applying a bokeh overlay to a portrait using Photoshop. You will also learn to how to color tone your image to create a stylized look.
You can create bokeh overlays from almost any photo that is not too bright, and which has good contrast. The photos themselves do not have to be great photos at all; they can even have boring subjects and be totally out of focus.
To demonstrate the power of this technique, we will work with two bad cell phone pictures; a photo of a hamburger and a photo of a street.
It’s a good idea to look through your phone and experiment with the photos that you already have.
To create a bokeh overlay, place the image into your working document by going to File > Place Embedded. Once the image is in the Layers panel, right-click on it and select Convert to Smart Object. This will make it so that any filter that you apply is non-destructive and you can edit it later if you need to.
To blur the image, and get the bokeh effect, go to Filter > Blur Gallery > Field Blur.
Start by dragging the Blur slider to the right to make the image blurrier. In most cases, you’re going to want to keep the bokeh small, so don’t take the blur slider past 200px.
You can then fine-tune the effect by adjusting the Light Bokeh, and the black and white points in the Light Range. You can introduce more colors to your bokeh effect by dragging the Bokeh Color slider to the right.
Here are my results:
Once you have made your bokeh overlays, you can apply them to any image by using layer Blending Modes.
For this type of effect, the Screen Blending Mode will be the best to use in most cases. But you can try any of the Blending Modes in the Lighten Category to see if they can give you a result that works better for your image. If you’re not familiar with Blending Modes and how they work, then check out this comprehensive look at Blending Modes where I explain each one in detail.
The Screen Blending Mode allows you to keep the bright pixels of an image and hide the dark ones. In this case, the bokeh is bright, so it will stay, and it will hide the darker background.
Some overlays will not be perfect matches for your photos. Sometimes the bokeh may cover up important parts of the portrait, such as the eyes or even the entire face. Create a layer mask and paint on the mask with black to hide those problematic areas.
When you paint with black on a layer mask, you hide pixels. To reveal them again paint on the mask with white. Painting with different levels of gray will give you different levels of transparency.
The bokeh overlay may not give you the best results by simply changing the Blending Mode to Screen. In many cases, you will have to modify the luminosity of the layer to change how the bokeh blends. Remember, the Screen Blending Mode reveals bright pixels and hides dark pixels.
By using a Levels or Curves Adjustment Layer, you can control the brightness of the layer which will control how much of the bokeh is revealed. When using an Adjustment Layer add a Clipping Mask to make sure that the changes only affect the bokeh layer. To clip an Adjustment Layer to the layer blow it, you can press Command/Control+Option+G.
To finalize the stylized effect, you can color tone your image by using a Selective Color Adjustment Layer.
Under the Colors dropdown menu select Blacks and slide the Cyan slider to the right, and move the Yellow slider to the left to subtract yellow. Doing so will add a blue tint to the shadows, and it will give your image a retro feel.
You can watch a video of the whole process below:
Here is the before and after comparison of the image.
Before
After
There it is, a quick and easy way to make and apply your own bokeh overlays. Try it and please share your images in the comments below.
The post How to Make and Apply a Bokeh Overlay Using Photoshop by Jesus Ramirez appeared first on Digital Photography School.
If you’re new to photography, you’re likely wondering how to post-process or edit your photos. There is a wide selection of photo editing software to choose from, but the two that you probably hear debated the most are Adobe Photoshop versus Lightroom. So what are the main differences and which program is best for beginners and for you? Read on for a basic overview!
While going through this article, please keep three points in mind:
Get both Photoshop and Lightroom here and receive 20% off the Creative Cloud Photography membership now for dPS readers.
What the photo editing layout typically looks like in Photoshop.
Photoshop is a name that has become synonymous with photo editing. Today, thanks to its extensive functionality, Photoshop is used by not only photographers, but also by graphic designers, web designers, architects, and publishers.
Photoshop is also a pixel-based image editor, giving you ultimate control of every single pixel that makes up your digital photograph. This means you have limitless options when it comes to manipulating your photos. Want to stitch your friend’s head to a frog’s body or swap out gray skies for sunny skies? These are instances when you would turn to Photoshop.
If you take a look at the main Photoshop interface for the first time, you’re likely to feel overwhelmed. There is a seemingly endless array of tools and options to choose from, and it’s hard to know where to start. This is because Photoshop contains features not only for photographers but also for designers and those of other creative skillsets. So when it comes to easily finding the photo editing tools you need, this is where Lightroom typically excels, especially for those new to photo editing.
Lightroom takes many of Photoshop’s features that are specific to photographers and puts them in an easy-to-find panel. Previous versions of Lightroom lacked extensive editing tools, but today, Lightroom contains many of the main image manipulation tools you need to process your photos.
Another benefit to using Lightroom is that it is also a fantastic image management software. You can use it to import, organize, manage, and edit your photos. In essence, Lightroom is your all-in-one photo management and editing tool. On the other hand, if you want to manage and organize your images with Photoshop, you must use the accompanying software called Adobe Bridge (which automatically comes with Photoshop).
What you’ll typically see in Lightroom after you import some photos.
Not long ago, you had to purchase Photoshop or Lightroom individually, and it was truly a challenge to figure out which was a more worthwhile investment. Today, you now get access to both programs if you purchase a subscription to Adobe Creative Cloud. For around $ 10 a month, you can purchase the Photography Creative Cloud package, which gives you access to both Lightroom and Photoshop (with Bridge). If you need other Adobe software such as Illustrator, InDesign or Premiere Pro, you can upgrade to the $ 50 per month Creative Cloud subscription.
However, the average photographer will be just fine with the simple plan that includes Lightroom and Photoshop. So from a financial perspective, it’s a no-brainer to get both photo editing programs. But in practice, here are some rules of thumb when deciding whether to use Lightroom or Photoshop.
Most beginning photographers will probably prefer the layout of Lightroom. It presents all of your main editing tools in an easy-to-find column, and it is pretty intuitive to figure out. In Photoshop, you have to do a little more customization to set up your workstation exactly how you want; this leads to more flexibility, meaning you can further customize what tools you choose to appear. However, this can be confusing for beginning photographers.
For comparison: Lightroom automatically presents your basic photo editing tools in a column.
On the other hand, you have to customize which photo editing tools appear in your Photoshop work area.
If you have a bunch of photos that you want to batch process, it is much easier to do in Lightroom using presets and its smooth workflow. Batch processing can still be done in Photoshop using Actions, but Lightroom is arguably more straightforward.
When it comes to workflow, Lightroom is arguably much better than Photoshop. Using Lightroom, you can easily create image collections, keyword images, share images directly to social media, batch process, and more.
In Lightroom, you can both organize your photo library and edit photos.
If you want to organize or manage your photo library with Photoshop, you must use another program called Adobe Bridge.
This is the easy answer since Lightroom will truly meet the photo editing needs of most beginning photographers. With that said, there are a few instances in particular when Photoshop will outperform Lightroom.
While the latest versions of Lightroom do include some basic retouching tools for patching and removing blemishes, you can do much more in Photoshop. Want to make a person look thinner, whiten teeth, and remove small objects? While you can do this in Lightroom, Photoshop’s retouching tools are much more powerful. It might take some extra time to figure out where these tools are within Photoshop and how to use them, but you’ll be able to enhance your photos much more than in Lightroom.
Do you want to combine the elements of multiple images into a single one? This is termed as compositing, and you will want to use Photoshop to combine and further manipulate images.
If you are a beginning photographer looking for a relatively intuitive photo editing software, Lightroom is generally best, to begin with. You can always add Photoshop to the mix later, if and when you’re in need of advanced photo manipulation techniques.
What do you think? In the Photoshop Versus Lightroom debate, which is best for beginners? Why? Let us know in the comments below.
The post Photoshop Versus Lightroom: Which is Best for Beginners? by Suzi Pratt appeared first on Digital Photography School.
Adobe Senior Creative Director Russell Brown recently posted this neat demo showing a technique for matching colors in Photoshop without touching a hue or saturation slider. His method uses adjustments in grayscale to individual color channels, comparing a swatch of the color he’s attempting to change directly to the color he’s trying to match. See how he does it in the video above.
Articles: Digital Photography Review (dpreview.com)
In this article, we’ll look at an image I reprocessed after my initial edit. I’ll also share with you some tips on how to use Photoshop to remove objects from your scene that are unwanted and add some punch to your image.
Have you ever created an image, processed it, shared it with the world, and then decided it wasn’t quite finished? I have! In fact, I do it more often than I’d like to admit. A while back, I created a video tutorial for On1 Software showing how I used that software to process an image I took at Queen’s Bath on the island of Kauai. I was super excited to share the image because it was an incredible sunset, at an incredible location, shot during some incredible conditions, with a completely random and unscripted local in the scene to top it all off. Here’s a look at the image after processing it and creating the initial video.
After watching the video and looking at the final image, I decided I wasn’t 100% satisfied with the edit. I’ve used On1 Software for nearly a decade now, and still use it in my everyday workflow. It wasn’t any fault of On1, I just felt the image could be taken up another notch so decided to take it over into Photoshop to give it another go. I decided the image needed two adjustments…
After a few minutes in Photoshop, I came up with this final (really this time!) result.
After working extensively in Photoshop over the past decade, I’ve developed a few tricks along the way. I’m not sure how mainstream some of them are, so I like to share them in hopes that they’ll help you as well. One of those tricks is how I remove objects that are up against other objects(as opposed to being out in the open). To do this, I use a combination of the Quick Selection Tool, Masking, and the Clone Stamp. Adding contrast and punch to the image is a bit more basic in this case, but still advanced if you aren’t super familiar with masking and brush techniques.
Here’s the video where I walk through the process step-by-step.
Let me know what you think and if you have any questions please put them in the comments section below.
Get James’ video course POST II where he walks through his entire workflow in Lightroom, Photoshop, and more from start to finish with 10 of his favorite portfolio images. Be sure to use coupon code DPS25 at checkout for an exclusive DPS discount!
The post How to Remove Objects and Add Punch to Your Images with Photoshop by James Brandon appeared first on Digital Photography School.
Give your photos an edge! This tutorial will show you how to make your own frames and borders using Photoshop.
Picture frames have been around for most of art history. This hasn’t change in our digital age. Whether you print your photo or leave it digital, adding an edge to it will always help its presentation. Here are three creative frames and borders that are easy to make in Photoshop.
Back in the analogue-photography era, it was very common to leave a white edge around your photo so that the passé-partout wouldn’t cover any part of your image. If the photograph was an artwork, the blank part in the bottom would be bigger than the rest so that you could put your signature there.
Nowadays, a classic and elegant presentation can still be achieved with Photoshop following this idea. Of course you can get also much more creative! Let’s start with the basics:
If you want to print your photo and have it framed in a traditional way, follow these easy steps:
Photo with white border and signature applied using this method.
This basic idea of the white frame can be elaborated a little more in order to create a composition with a very elegant result. This is perfect for minimalistic or classic photographs.
TIP: To select a color from your photo, choose “Other” in the color menu of the Canvas Size window. A new window will open with all the colors for you to choose from. At that point, passing your mouse through the image, the pointer becomes an eyedropper. Then you just have to click on the color you want and Photoshop figures out the rest!
While frames consist of one or more solid rectangles, borders are much more complex. A border can even be an image in itself. Therefore you are not constrained to a specific shape which gives you a wider variety of options. Here is one example:
First, choose an image of a skyline; it can be an urban or nature scene. In this case, I am using a photograph of trees in a pond. Open it in Photoshop.
Next, go to the top menu; Image >> Adjustments >> Threshold and set it to a very high number so that you end up with an image that is basically black and white (no gray tones).
Select your image (CTRL/CMD + A) and copy it (CTRL/CMD + C). Then paste it in a new blank canvas (CTRL/CMD + V).
Go to the top menu; Edit >> Free Transform and squeeze your image over to one of the edges.
Duplicate the layer by going to the top menu; Layer >> Duplicate Layer. Do this three times so that you will have four layers.
Select each layer and place them on each side (use Transform to rotate and resize each one) creating a rectangular border. You can choose a different blending mode for each layer so that they don’t look so uniform. You can do this from a drop-down menu on the Layers panel. You can also go to the top menu and choose; Layer >> Layer Style >> Blending Options if you want more control over the blending mode.
Now you have a very original border to use with any image you want! Remember that the borders not only complement the image but also show your creativity and personality.
If you don’t know how to apply borders to your images don’t worry, it’s very easy. Check out the appendix below to learn how.
Now I will place an image inside the border to show you how it’s done. I think a grunge border goes well with urban scenes, but that is up to you.
Open the border file.
Go to the top menu and choose; File >> Place >> and select your photo. This will paste the photo you want in the file of your border already resized. You will have to do the final size adjustments manually though by dragging the edges (hold down the Shift key if you’re using the Transform tool to maintain your image aspect ratio).
Change the blending mode of the layer so that it looks integrated. In this case, I used the Darken Mode. Try different ones until you are satisfied. Remember you can you can do this from a drop-down menu on the Layers panel. You can also go to the top menu and choose; Layer >> Layer Style >> Blending Options if you want more control.
That’s it! Try using the same border on different images to create a specific style to a photo collection you can hang on your wall.
Graffitti author unknown, found on the streets of Milan, 2017.
Borders and frames are great for displaying photos in a digital photo-frame but also for printing. You will save a lot of money and have some one of a kind décor in your home. The possibilities of frames and borders are limitless so explore, create, and have fun.
The post How to Make Your Own Frames and Borders Using Photoshop by Ana Mireles appeared first on Digital Photography School.
The ability to combine images together is a very useful skill for photographers. Although most want to get the image right directly in the camera, there are instances where merging images together prove useful (and necessary). As well as this, the image we have in our mind may not always be physically possible to produce during the shoot, and merging multiple photographs together can bring that vision to life!
There are many different ways to merge images together. Of the hundreds of approaches to this task, the best one is the method that works for you. This tutorial will showcase my personal, manual preference of merging images. There are ways to automate image merging in software, but it is better to know the manual method before doing so (as they say, learn the hard way to be able to use the easy way!). The manual method also offers significantly more control.
I can think of many instances in which a photo shoot could be better enhanced by combining different images together. When merging from the same location, the benefit is that, presumably, the lighting and shooting settings are the same (or similar). As well as this, the location being the same makes for an easier merge. If you are merging images from a different location, try to pair elements that can blend in well together! Burning edges can be a great way to blending images together.
Begin by planning what elements of the individual photographs you will want to combine together (see two images below).
Source image #1.
Source image #2.
Secondly, take the lasso tool in Photoshop and draw around the object, model, or animal you want to add to your base image. You can also utilize the selection tool or quick selection tool to do this. In this particular image, because the colors and tones are all very similar to one another, I found the lasso tool to be a much faster way of selecting the part of the image I need. Other photo editing software will likely have very similar tools.
Note: You cannot do this kind of work inside Lightroom. A program that utilizes layers is needed, and that is a function which Lightroom does not offer.
Image with a selection made around the part to copy to the other image.
Next, paste the image into the spot it belongs in the other image. I like to lower the opacity when placing so that I can see exactly where the subject should be positioned. You can then raise the opacity back up.
Pasted area at lowered opacity to aid in placement.
Fourthly, to blend the image into its rightful place, I utilize layer masks and the brush tool. The benefit to these two tools used in unison is that if you accidentally erase a part of the layer that you want to keep, you can always undo your mistake. Likewise, if you find later that you would like a certain part of the first layer to show, you can do that without issue.
All you need to do is select the top layer, click “add layer mask”, and then select the brush tool. When utilizing the brush tool, the black color will act as an eraser and remove the top layer, while the white color will bring the top layer back. Make sure that the brush is very soft, as that helps blend. Change to a harder edged brush for straight edges.
Note: Make sure you paint on the mask not on the actual layer!
Paint on the layer mask to blend the two images smoothly.
Keep blending until the image looks to be a natural part of the frame.
The final blended image – two combined into one.
Repeat the steps as many time as necessary.
Adding a new background is quite possibly the most common use of the image merging skill. Whether you shoot your subject in a studio or just a snap out in nature, changing the background can add an entirely different feel to the photograph.
The same steps apply to this type of merging as with the aforementioned. If you’re working with hair or fur, a tip is to try to pick backgrounds whose light and dark areas match with the original background, as that allows you to not have to work around those very fine details (and can leave them untouched). In the photo example here, the new background elements were matched to the dark parts of the photograph, which allowed me to not have to select the fine fur details (see the ear and snout fur).
Original image.
Edited image with a new background.
Animals are notorious for not sitting still, blinking, looking away at an inopportune moment, or otherwise being uncooperative for photographs. A very common practice in animal photography is to swap the heads out.
Similarly to the aforementioned merging methods, follow all of the same steps. Make sure you pay attention to how the fur flows, and use that to your advantage when blending! In the photo example case here, the wolf’s neck and head were placed onto the body of the base image. After some basic additional retouching (cloning out the leash and lightening the eyes), I got the finished result.
Original image.
Second source image for left wolf’s head.
Final image of the two combined.
Like animal photography, sometimes it is necessary to take a head from one image and put it on the body of another. Occasionally, you will like the model’s pose but not her facial expression, or like the model’s expression but not her pose. The key is to make sure you align the neck correctly, or else your model will look disfigured.
Image #1 – I used her face from this shot.
Image #2 – combined with her body from this shot.
To make this final image.
For a more detailed look at head swapping check out: How to do a Head Swap using Photoshop
There is a good overview of how to merge and combine images in Photoshop. If you didn’t know that the final images in the article had been altered could you tell they weren’t shot that way?
What other applications can you think of to use this technique? Please share your ideas in the comments below.
The post How to Merge and Combine Images in Photoshop by Anabel DFlux appeared first on Digital Photography School.
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