Table of contents for No. 168 in Photoshop Creative

The Pen Tool is definitely one of the most useful features in Photoshop. It’s a tool that offers users incredible precision, and that makes it perfect for selecting objects and sketching out shapes. Ultimately though, it’s designed for drawing, and the Pen Tool has actually changed the way we think about digital illustration. Our feature this issue introduces you to this formidable weapon of Photoshop, and how you can wield it in any project. We’re also especially proud of our tutorials this issue. Learn to sketch from photos, make stunning, detailed photocompositions, create isometric art and even incorporate Lightroom into your wildlife photo edits. Also, make sure to check out our expert reviews, insightful interviews and beautiful galleries. We hope you enjoy the issue! Free step-by-step tutorials online photoshopcreative.co.uk Join…

There’s nothing more inspiring than surfing the internet and seeing what other artists are creating, and we encourage you to do so. Here are some of our favourite pictures that caught our attention recently, from some of the world’s most exciting artists and designers. Muhammed Sajid www.behance.net/muhammedsajid I used Photoshop for this, to create a kind of bristle effect and shading for the illustrations. First I created all the layers and then masked every layer; I gave some depth by using the round soft edge brush with the Dissolve blend mode. Viewed over 9,000 times online, this is part of a project called Home. Muhammed’s clear eye for detail, shape and space is what makes his pieces so well realised, and this is a particular highlight of his work. Mirko…

Sketching your idea 01 You can begin your illustration by sketching your own ideas using the Pen Tool in Illustrator or importing a sketch created in Photoshop. Alternatively you can scan your drawing using a scanner. Ink your lines 02 On a new layer and using the Pen Tool with a dark colour, trace the lines to keep in your drawing. Then you can discard the sketch layer and keep only the clean new inked layer, before you add some colour. Bring the colour 03 Using the Paintbrush Tool on a new layer placed behind the inked lines, add some colour. If you wish to edit the shape created with the brush, you can do so by double-clicking on the path layer using the Direct Selection Tool (A) and then…

The Puppet Warp Tool enables you to manipulate and warp a shape quickly and easily. First, you need to cut out the image and place into a new layer. Go to Edit> Puppet Warp. In Options, you can control the Density, expand the meshes and define the Pin Depth. The control pins enable you to stretch the area where the pin is placed or can be used to lock down that portion of the image. Drag them to stretch or hold down Opt/ Alt and click to rotate the pins. To intertwine the image, drag the pins so they are almost overlapping each other, then go to Options and click on the Pin Depth buttons to place the pins under or above the other pins.…

Build up filters Do you love combining filters in the quest to create the ultimate effect combo? If so, Filter Gallery is for you! [CS/ CC: before applying filters, ensure the target layer is a Smart Object.] When ready, go to Filter> Filter Gallery. Pick and configure the initial filter. To apply another filter, click the New Effect Layer button. Keep adding and playing around with filters. You can rearrange the order by clicking and dragging, and you can remove the selected filter with the trash icon below.…

“I spend most of my free time experimenting with new concepts, techniques and expanding my skills, and this artwork was a personal piece to examine my double-exposure skills,” explains Mohamad Kaaki. “The work was inspired by a song called Let the River In, which is about our relationship with Mother Earth.” As a self-taught graphic designer and illustrator, Mohamad is used to thinking outside the box to discover new ideas, and this image came about from connecting inspiration from a song, with the idea of a movie about it. “I’ve been a fan of minimal design lately,” he says, “since it forces us to deliver a powerful message with the least elements possible, unlike other styles. But as you can see in my artwork, I only used two main strong…

Alter colours for variety Can’t get the colours quite right? By clicking on each light-trail layer and going to Image> Adjustments> Hue/ Saturation, you can use the Hue slider to reapply colour. Just slide Hue to the left or right to cycle through colours. Also, reduce the Lightness slider and boost Saturation to create variations that will help mix up the light trails and balance colour and mood throughout the image. If you have any layer styles attached to the layer, be sure to remove those first.…

Since its debut years ago, the Liquify filter has been a powerful tool in the photo editor’s toolbox. With that power came much responsibility, as the options in Liquify could easily transform your ‘serious’ photos into ridiculous mockeries if you didn’t apply restraint when wielding such tools as Bloat, Pucker and Forward Warp. The Face-Aware options added to CC’s Liquify filter are truly magical. For most portraits, they do a fantastic job of enabling you to tweak the nose, eyes, mouth and overall shape of faces in your photo. The settings’ ranges mostly protect you from exaggerations that stretch your subjects into extreme caricature territory, and the ability to continually tweak the settings – Liquify is applied as a Smart Filter to Smart Objects – helps you with fine-tuning in…

NATURAL BRUSHES “I like a more traditional look to my art so I tend to favour brushes that have texture in them, like bristle or comb-shaped brushes. I also prefer to use brushes that behave more like stamps rather than ones that give brush strokes.” RACHEL’S BACKGROUND “I have a degree in Graphic Design (Illustration Major) from Curtin University in Perth, Australia. I’ve been drawing since I was little, and since graduating I’ve worked in the Australian indie game industry.” FUTURE PROJECTS “I’m working with a writer to illustrate some childrens’ picture books about cats and their lives. We are hoping to help spread awareness about cat-related problems such as the stray cat population, declawing and inherited diseases in cats caused by irresponsible breeding.” It’s not just possible to spend…

Usually when I write tutorials, I have a clear idea of what I’m doing, but I’d never created anything like this before. So I read back through a lot of tutorials from my Photoshop Creative colleagues Rodrigo Marinelli and Daniel Sinoca on this project, and it was great to explore more of their work. Rodrigo and Daniel are both masters of blending, and I’ve learned so much from them on how to work with water in Photoshop; it’s key to use the right images, cut them out with precision, and always harness the power of adjustment layers. As Techniques Editor on Photoshop Creative, I’ve learned all kinds of quick tips to help with even the most impressive-looking pictures.…

Selective Color edits Selective Color intro 01 Selective Color enables you to cross-blend all of your individual colour channels with a variety of sliders to enhance the look and feel of your image. Selective Color channels 02 You can edit your image using nine colour channels (Reds, Yellows, Greens, Cyans, Blues, Magentas, Whites, Neutrals, and Blacks), where you can individually adjust Cyan, Magenta, Yellow, and Black. Tonal range 03 Selective Color in black and white can also adjust tonal range – boosting colours with Whites selected affects the whitest areas, while you can affect the darkest areas by selecting Blacks. Isolate tones 04 Selective Color enables you to grab individual colours and tones without the need to create complex masks. Create simple layer masks to isolate colour bleeding into other…

Neon is brilliant: it’s big, bright and colourful, it’s clear to see either on a screen or in real life, and you can be really creative with it. It’s a style that’s really easy to create in 3D software, but equally, you can strip it right back and create effective neon posters in 2D. That’s exactly what we’re going to do with this project. Layer styles give you the capability to make something that’s only 2D look fleshed out and three-dimensional, which is easy to do with bevels and drop shadows. We’re going to experiment with light, glows around the shapes that we create and harmonise the composition with Brightness/Contrast, and that should give a little more realism to the finished piece. Feel free to do your own thing with…

Pick a stencil 01 Go to Window> Stencil. Pick a stencil or upload your own PNG. Place, resize and rotate using icons in the orange box. Tilt your canvas 02 Go to Window> Tilt. Set tilt direction by dragging the thin line around the circle. Adjust the angle by pulling the thick line from the centre. Pick a brush 03 Go to the Tools panel and pick the Brush tool. In the Properties panel, set Load and Wetness to the maximum setting. Paint 04 Toggle the Show Wet icon (H) to view areas that are wet and will respond to tilting, blowing etc. Use the Water tool to wet areas. Watch paint dry 05 Watch your paint react to the tilt effect. When you’re happy with the results, you can…

Charli Edwards Image of the issue This composite was one of a series I have been working on; the theme is a mix of elemental and opposites. This is one half of a set playing on opposites, so where this one features nature, lush vegetation, seduction and beauty, its sister piece will feature the exact opposite. Nirmalya Sengupta I turned this image to black and white using Channel Mixer, removed noise and retouched it. I then applied a paint effect using some splash brushes and added a gradient map, before I worked on the typography. Maurício Xavier This art was created using a mixture of 3D, digital painting and manipulation of images. I used many references from many horror films and science fiction films to get the result. Bandula Samarasekera…

“Mask out some of the light to give the effect of it radiating over in the distance” Sketch out surroundings 01 You don’t have to be skilled at drawing to devise a colour palette and sketch out mountains with the Pen. Create a dark to light gradient in the sky, add stars and duplicate these layers before flipping vertically, for a reflection. Create the lights 02 Grab a soft brush and on a new Screen layer, draw some lights in the sky. Cmd/ Ctrl-click on the mountain layers to select these, and mask out some of the light slightly to give the effect of it radiating over in the distance. Give it a subject 03 Create a new layer and in the foreground, draw a silhouette of a wolf; you…

Creating an underwater scene is a great way to acquire new skills and learn new techniques. So let’s dive into the deep to create a fantastical and smart creature using stock images and the tools available in Photoshop. In this tutorial, you will learn how to use filters, masks and adjustments to create a variety of effects from scratch. You will get to grips with several filters like Plastic Wrap, Noise and Field Blur to gain an understanding of how and where to apply them. You’ll also learn how to use layer masks to isolate elements in a scene and control the level of transparency of each layer. You will dive deeper still to learn how to use the Puppet Warp tool to reshape the images. Finally, you will apply…

Bubble brush Lens Flare 01 Create a new document at 800x800mm and fill it with black. Go to Filter> Render> Lens Flare. Set Density to 75% and choose the Lens Type: 50-300mm Zoom, then click OK. Polar Coordinates 02 Go to Filter>Distort>Polar Coordinate, pick Polar to Rectangular. Go to Edit> Transform> Flip Vertical, Filter> Distort> Polar Coordinate. Choose Rectangular to Polar, click OK. Channel layers 03 Select the bubble, then press Cmd/Ctrl+J. Create a new black layer underneath. Go to Windows> Channel and click on the Red channel, then click Load Channel as Selection from the bottom-left corner. Define Brush Preset 04 Create a new layer on top of the layer stack. Fill the selection with white. Hide the bubble layer, then merge all. Press Cmd/Ctrl+D, then invert (Cmd/ Ctrl+I).…

Sketch effect (CS/CC) You can create a sketch-to-photo effect on the lotus. Apply the Find Edges filter (Filter> Stylize> Find Edges) to the lotus Smart Object. It will be applied as a Smart Filter. Paint black in the filter mask with a soft brush (20-80% brush Opacity) to reduce the effect(s) on one side. Use a Hue/Saturation adjustment layer above to desaturate. Clip to lotus by Option/Alt-clicking between layers. Paint black (20-80% brush Opacity) in Hue/ Saturation layer’s mask to restore colour.…

If you say you can’t draw, we have a solution for you. Using a photo base, if you can trace the outline of an image, you can create a beautiful digital watercolour photo painting. In our case, we used Daisy the cat. Of all the real media you can emulate digitally, watercolour is one of the more challenging to recreate using Adobe Photoshop. In traditional watercolours, because of the liquid element, the colours are generally uneven and fluid. For traditional watercolour painters, controlling the movement of colours in the paint is one of the biggest challenges. Thankfully, digital brushes built in Photoshop make creating a digital watercolour easy. Using pen-pressure control on a digital stylus produces an uneven flow of colour that can emulate the watercolour effect. Add to that…

Pen Tool trails Draw a path 01 In Photoshop CS/CC, you can use the Pen Tool instead of brushes to create curved light trails. On a new layer, use the Pen to draw a curved path, Ctrl/ right-click and select Stroke Path. Stroke the path 02 In the Stroke Path window, select Brush from the Tool drop-down. Hit OK and Photoshop will use the current Foreground colour and Brush Diameter to apply a stroke to the path. Change brush settings 03 If you need to reassign a new colour to the trail, either edit your Brush settings, or the foreground colour, then reapply. Or add a Color Overlay layer style to the layer afterward. Distort light trail 04 With the light trail set in place, press Cmd/Ctrl+T and Ctrl/right-click to…

Create a reflection Duplicate the sky 01 On the night sky’s layer, press Cmd/ Ctrl+J to duplicate it, and then go to Edit> Free Transform> Flip Vertical to flip the layer. This is what will be used to make the reflection. Edit the mask 02 Set black as your Foreground colour and press Opt/ Alt+Backspace to fill the layer with black. The duplicated sky will be hidden behind this mask. Grab the Quick Selection Tool and click on the main background layer. Hide and select 03 Opt/Alt-click on the eye symbol of the background layer to hide all other layers. Use the Quick Selection Tool to select the water in the foreground, working around the lighthouse. Mask to reveal 04 Opt/Alt-click the eye symbol to reveal all layers. On the…

Mix the Liquify tools Start liquifying 01 Ensure your layer is a Smart Object. By doing so, Liquify will be applied as a non-destructive Smart Filter. Go to Filter> Liquify. The Liquify dialog box will now appear. Mix Liquify tools 02 The Face-Aware Liquify settings are at the right. Use them to alter the face in the image. You can also edit with the traditional Liquify tools on the left. Reduce edits 03 To tone down Face-Aware Liquify edits, simply dial back settings towards the defaults. For the old school tools, use the Reconstruct Tool to paint back the gooey changes. Re-liquify 04 When you’re done editing, click OK. Double-click the Liquify Smart Filter underneath the layer to refine or just have some silly, non-destructive fun to break up a…

Find the right images This tutorial is like a jigsaw, in that each image has to find its place. You can spend hours searching for the right images to fit, but there are key things to bear in mind. Clipping masks can help add different colours to stock images, meaning that they blend more seamlessly into the image. Clip adjustment layers like Curves and Brightness/Contrast to alter the tone of certain elements, and remember that the Transform options can help resize and fix perspective.…

Develop an eye for detail It can often be a challenge to decide when you have done enough. One of the biggest differences between amateur work and a piece done by a professional is when the effects are too much. Subtle is always best when it comes to retouching, but knowing when to stop is easier said than done. However, over time and with continuous practice, you can learn to develop an eye for this, which is why practicing your craft constantly should always be a major part of your career development.…

“ If you are a complete Lightroom novice then this book will definitely offer something for you ” Although Photoshop offers tools for photographers and artists, sometimes a program dedicated to photography is worth it. Lightroom is a great asset for photographers because not only does it offer tools for in-depth photo editing, but it also offers organisational and cataloguing facilities. How Do I Do That In Lightroom? offers tips and advice for Lightroom users. The book was written by Scott Kelby, who is the world’s number one bestselling author of photography technique books. The book itself is split into chapters that should enable you to find the answer to your Lightroom query in next to no time. The chapters include How to Get Your Images Into Lightroom; How to…

“I’m never completely happy with my work,” reveals Glyn Dewis. “This stems back to my days as a competitive bodybuilder when my mentor would say, ‘There’s always somebody bigger and stronger.’” Glyn’s career has moved from bodybuilding to building composites, retouching and photography, and it’s this drive to improve that’s seen him as a more and more recognisable name in his field. We asked him his secrets. How did you first discover Photoshop, Glyn? I was introduced to it by an uncle. I’d always had an interest in computers and I remember one day this particular uncle – the family photographer – was visiting my mum. He was sat at the kitchen table with his laptop open and called me over to show me this amazing piece of software. Of…

We challenged you... In issue 166, we challenged you to get creative with the set theme of History. You were allowed to create whatever you wanted, so long as it incorporated the theme somehow. Pamela Woerst History Books All of the pictures used for this image are from Unsplash. A mix of masks, blend modes and selection tools were used to create this picture. This issue’s challenge... Think you can do better? Prove it! Next issue, the theme is Adventure. We don’t mind how you work it into your image, just be as creative as you possibly can! Head to facebook.com/PhotoshopCreative/and simply hit the Challenge link. Closing date: 16/8/18. THE PRIZE… Skylum Luminar This issue, one lucky winner will receive Skylum Luminar as their prize! Luminar is a powerful photo-editing…

The Pen Tool is definitely one of the most useful features in Photoshop. It’s a tool that offers users incredible precision, and that makes it perfect for selecting objects and sketching out shapes. Ultimately though, it’s designed for drawing, and the Pen Tool has actually changed the way we think about digital illustration. Over the next few pages, we’re going to be asking some of our experts not just how they use the Pen to illustrate, but what they like to create. We’re going to discover all the secrets of what makes a top illustrator and how the Pen Tool can help you to create amazing digital artwork. Some of these projects will give you tips on how to use the Pen, but some of them just might give you…

CLIP BRUSHED LAYERS Create a new layer and Alt/ Opt-click to clip it to the Pen-drawn layer below. Draw with a soft brush to add a highlight or shine over your illustration. PICK COLOUR PALETTES Choosing just a few different colours to build an illustration with will help you achieve impact with your piece. It reduces the loudness and keeps your work striking. USE GRADIENT MAPS Create a piece in monochrome first, then insert a Gradient Map adjustment. This will colour your illustration for you, injecting colour in every tone of grey. STROKE YOUR PATHS Using the Stroke option in the Paths tab can be great for creating outlines. Set a brush first; choose a colour, and then stroke to create. SPACE YOUR BRUSHES Space your brush by about 200%…

Work with groups There is a blend mode called Pass Through only available when you create a layer group. With this mode, all the layers within the group behave like a regular layer stack, meaning adjustments, effects and masks affect all the layers outside the group. But if you change the mode to Normal, all the layers within the group will be limited to the group and won’t affect the outside layers. Now you can keep the layers organised and achieve different results depending on the blending mode you choose.…

In a world where digital image processing is everywhere, and just about anyone can make their photos slicker on their computers or mobile devices, a touch of sketching can really make your visuals stand out from the pack. But what if you’re not a veteran doodler? In this tutorial you’ll discover how to create a dual effect by having a sketch version of a photo appear next to the original. The ‘sketching’ will be forged with a combination of artistic filters and blend modes. While we would never say that filter-borne sketching is a true substitute for real drawings, when done well it can definitely evoke the proper spirit. When working on a photo-transformation, it can be easier in the long run to create multiple full versions of the image.…

Sketch effect (Elements) Duplicate lotus layer 01 With the lotus layer selected, jump a copy to a new layer above it by pressing Cmd/Ctrl+J. Ctrl/right-click on the duplicate layer, choose Simplify Layer. Apply Find Edges 02 With the duplicate lotus layer selected, go to Filter> Stylize> Find Edges. You’ll instantly get a nice sketch/outline effect. At the moment, it retains some colour. Desaturate 03 You may very well like the coloured outline effect. If you want more of a black-and-white effect, press Cmd/Ctrl+U and slide Saturation leftward. Sketch-to-photo 04 Click the Add Layer Mask button above layers. With a soft-edged brush, paint black in the mask (20-80% brush Opacity) to gradually reduce, revealing the image below.…

Remove blur afterward If you find the light trails are becoming too blurry, or you’ve applied the Gaussian Blur too heavily, you can rescue and resharpen the line without having to make it again. Just go into the Unsharp Mask filter (Filter> Sharpen> Unsharp Mask) and increase Amount to 160% with Radius between 5-10px. The Unsharp Mask filter will gradually reduce the blurriness of the light trails and help make them appear crisper and cleaner. Bear in mind, not all light trails need to be blurry for this effect to work.…

“This idea came to me while watching movie trailers,” says Fabio Paiva. “It was something that just stuck with me, I never realised that it would inspire me to create a piece of artwork like this.” The final piece Fabio created is a fairly simple fan-art composition that he put together to show off his skills for a graphic design course. Although the image included a hefty amount of compositing, cutting out and masking, it ended up being the blending techniques that were really key, with adjustments and the Camera Raw filter providing the finishing touches. “I find that Camera Raw is a good tool for producing a nice environment,” reveals Fabio. “The blending techniques were really key, with the Camera Raw filter providing the finishing touches” The finished result…

Change the colour Fill with colour 01 Pick a colour that you’d like to fill the background with and on a new layer, fill and set to Color. Duplicate and set to Multiply to darken slightly. Select and mask 02 Go back through your Layers palette, Cmd/Ctrl-clicking on layer masks to select objects, before masking them out of your Color layer. Bring the clouds back 03 Copy the cloud layers to the top of the layer stack and mask accordingly; that’s the easiest way to keep them white! Realistic touches 04 Clip a watery colour to the Color layer. Mask this so that it looks like the water is being reflected on the surface of the red.…

On arbitrary adjustments Every adjustment you make in Photoshop must have a solid justification – you don’t use the white brush to paint back in around trees and add fog for no reason. In this case, brightening areas, darkening fur, adding clouds and defining fog all contribute to the overall emotion that you want to convey. Tone creates depth and drama, colour helps humans identify with feelings evoked by your photo. As such, you should learn to manipulate strong and muted colours to your advantage.…

KEEP THE INSIDE IN STAGE I used a graphics tablet and Corel’s Particleshop Plugin. The effects were refined with masks. Finally, I added a Camera Raw Filter layer to lower exposure. DOORWAYS This is a composition from lots of my photographs of an alternative model, Tinkerbella. When you look at a good composition, you should not be able to pick out the stages of creation. Caroline’s Tip Keep a hunger for knowledge; there is so much to learn and so many techniques that can alter the feel of your work. Keep learning and experimenting.…