Photoshop Mini Tutorials
You will need to know your way round Photoshop to make sense of these. Be ready to experiment too.
This page is updated sometimes & most recent stuff is at the top.
Colour to Black & white conversion
A good way with plenty of scope to vary the shades... Above the original image simply place 3 Hue/Saturation adjustment layers. The top one turn the saturation down to -100 for full grayscale. The bottom one should be in color mode and you can vary both the hue and saturation to get the effect you want. A middle layer set to overlay is optional and increases the contrast. Play with all 3 sliders if needs be. You will probably want to turn dow the opacity on this one. (full tutorial)
Making Contrasty Grey Sky from a blue sky pic
Change image mode to CMYK. Duplicate layer, add a layer mask. With layer mask selected use Image>Apply Image with settings: merged, yellow, normal, 100%. Change back to RGB mode (don't flatten). Change the blending mode to Multiply. Duplicate the background layer and set the hue (Ctrl + U) to -180. Merge the top layer down. Set the hue (Ctrl + U) to -180 again. Add a layer mask and use this to paint back in the blue bits which are not sky. Adjust brightness to suit. (full tut)
Grunge Effect
Start with default colour (press D) and Filter>Render>Clouds layer. Add a new layer and use grungy brushes in black and white. Set the layer to overlay or soft light and reduce the opacity (perhaps around 20%). Merge the layers (Ctrl+Shft+E) then use levels to take out too much contrast by bring the two black and white bottom sliders in a bit. Colourize (Ctrl + U) the layer as desired and add around 2% noise. Text etc. can be added in soft light mode, 30% opacity.
The text here had the Stylize>Wind filter added to it here.
ETHEREAL EFFECT
Give photo a good gaussian blur (7 or more). Then choose fade (Ctrl + Shft + F) and choose screen mode and keep 100%. Blur a second time and this time fade to soft light.
LIQUID SULPHUR
Put several lens flares on a black background then go Filter>Sketch>Chrome. Colourise to finish.
TECHNO DOTS
Create a new channel and fill with a white shape. Blur it then go to Filter>Pixelate>>Color Halftone. Control click on your channel to select it and fill with a colour in your picture.
QUICK LINE ART EFFECT
First duplicate your layer (press Ctrl + J) then invert then new layer (Ctrl + I). Change that layer’s blend mode to color dodge (alt + shft + D).
ADVANCED GRAIN TUTORIAL
You can just use the noise filter but there are much better techniques for adding grain to a photo. First create a new layer and fill with 50% grey (shft + backspace). Switch this overlay mode (alt + shft + O). Then add some noise to this layer.
For printed, higher res pics try increasing the grain size by transforming the layer size from 110% to 200% (Ctrl + T). Try this by first changing the method photoshop uses to increase size from bicubic to nearest neighbour (Ctrl + K). Then use noise>dust & scratches or median to soften the effect.
Based on stuff from the excellent Photoshop Wow book.
ALTERNATIVE GRAIN & TEXTURES
One of the best ways to get great textures with a grainy feel is to take a section of an image and then to enlarge it considerably then boost its contrast with levels. Desaturate then use blending modes like overlay and hardlight so the layers underneath show through.
Taken from Computer Arts mag.
FASHION STYLE 2
Another technique to get a washed out pic but with sharp colour in places is: a) make a b&w copy of your image. Then increase contrast with levels (as below) to that layer. Then bring the original colour layer above the b&w layer and change the blend mode to one in the overlay group (overlay, hard light etc). Added graininess goes well with this.
MAKING A GRUNGE FONT OR SHAPE
First make some type with a bold font like Arial Black in black. Merge this to the white background and add some monochrome noise around (60 - 100%). Blur the image then get rid of noise using levels.
For extra grunge: Choose the stylise>diffuse filter set to darken only. Run it again this time set to normal. Next blur again then use levels to clear the mess. Can try other filters such as artistic>cutout instead of or with the diffuse filter.(The full article is here).
SEPIA TONE
To make a sepia photo first desaturate the picture (Ctrl + Shft + U). Duplicate the layer (Ctrl + J). and switch to overlay mode (Alt + Shft + O). Merge the layers (Ctrl + E) and increase the brightness and contrast Image>Adjustment>Brightness/contrast.
Add sepia tone by bringing up the Colour Balance dialogue box (Ctrl + B) and setting to -20 0, +20.
A quick, but less good, way is to simply add a solid colour layer in color mode. Choose a dark brown around #362D0C is good.
TAPERED EFFECT
This uses the hidden away ‘simulate pressure’ check box in the paths palette. First draw a path using either the pen or shape tool. Make sure it is set to path only by clicking the middle button at the LH side of the tool bar before drawing.
Select a paintbrush where the size is what you want maximum part your taper to be. Next, making sure you have the right layer selected, go to the paths palette. Hold down the alt key and click on the stroke path button (at the bottom, second from the L). You'll get a little dialogue box up. Make sure the paint brush tool is selected and the ‘simulate pressure’ checkbox is ticked. Click OK and you've got a tapered line the shape of your path.
If you don't want your taper to go really thin open up the brushes palette (RH side of the tool bar) and click on shape dynamics so you can adjust the minimum diameter of the brush. Whatever percentage you choose will be the smallest size of the brush.
Once you've made your brush mark you can go over it like I have done here with the dodge tool. Use a fuzzy sided, smaller brush for the effect shown. Go over several times with different sized brushes. (For black the dodge tool was set to shadows.)
The example below has been enhanced by adding a bevel and emboss layer style to give it a second highlight. I also added a drop shadow and colourised it (Ctrl + U).
DISEASED SKIN MESS
Duplicate the layer (Ctrl + J) then Filter>Sketch>Chrome (for this pic I used settings 4 and 7). Switch to overlay mode (Alt + Shft + O) and reduce the opacity to around 20% - 30%. Select the area you want to keep with the lasso tool then hit the layer mask button at the bottom of the layers palette.
To lessen the effect blur the chrome layer slightly (around 0.4 gaussian blur).
FELT TIP LOOK EFFECT
Draw a shape (or text or whatever) in a slightly lighter shade than the colour you want for the final effect. Duplicate the layer (Ctrl + J) and change the blend mode to multiply (Alt + Shft + M).
Move the the shape slightly so it still overlaps the first shape. Duplicate the layer and move it again repeating this around 4 times. Link all the layers together and clip them all to the bottom layer (Ctrl + G). Merge them (Ctrl + E) then use Image>adjustments>brightness/contrast to strengthen or fine tune the effect.
FASHION STYLE IMAGES
For half colour, half b&w images.... Levels (Ctrl + L) bringing in the top two sliders under the first major peaks on the histogram. (This is just a guide. Use your eye and judgement here for your image. A levels adjustment layer allows change later and flexibility.)
Add a hue/saturation layer and click colorize. For hue Use either 35 for brown or 200 for cool blue and take the saturation down to around 12.
Reduce the opacity of the adjustment layer to get the effect you want.
Emphasise the colour in certain places (eyes, lips etc.) by painting out the adjustment layer's mask with black or grey.
MAKE WEIRDY FONTS
Like this. Type some text in black, choosing your font with care. Rasterize then Gaussian Blur the text then merge down to a white layer below. Use levels bringing in the left and right sliders to get something like here. For completely unblurred text use larger font size then shrink down.
N.B. If you want to use a colour for your font do the same work in a new channel, Ctl + click the channel to make a selection then Alt + backspace to fill with the foreground colour. Or convert the selection to a path, fine tune or edit the path then fill.
LUNAR TEXTURE
Good textures can be made with the Sketch>Bas Relief filter. This one started with a b&w gradient, followed by Difference Clouds, Noise (around 11) then Bas Relief (11, 3, top-right).
Experiment with other filters before applying Bas Relief. Apply straight to a photo of a pattern. Use as a lighting effects channel.
This variation added Filter>Sketch>Chalk and Charcoal after the Difference Clouds filter. Then Filter>Stylize>Glowing Edges (1, 6, 3). Try adding the glowing edges twice then using the bas relief to get a really textured patten. Fade this to overlay using Ctrl + Shft + F.
LIGHTNING
Drag a b&w gradient vertically down the layer. Then Filter>Render>Differernce Clouds. Invert colours: Ctrl + I. Go to levels: Ctrl + L and move the middle triangle on the top slider all the way to the right.
Next for some colour use colour balance: Ctrl + B. Give different colours to shadows, midtones and highlights. Finally you might need to desaturate a bit (Ctrl + U). Create another lightning layer in screen mode above for forked lightning.
A COOL PATTERN
Filter>Stylize>Extrude, Filter>Blur>motion blur slightly (12 here), Filter>Distort>Twirl.
Duplicate layer, flip horizontal, change blend mode (dep on colour used, multiply used here with #6600ff), use contrast/brightness to enhance effect.
Natural change in shading comes from the Extrude filter.
Alternative dark Giger finish: Filter>Stylize>Glowing Edges 2, 15, 13
INTERSECTING BLACK & WHITE
To make the layer that is black when the base colour is white and white when the base colour is black: Make the top layer white and put it in exclusion or difference mode.
MAKE A TECHNO PATTERN
Filter>Render>Clouds then Filter>Pixilate>Mosaic (around 15). Radial Blur (zoom 20) then Stylize>Emboss (height 10 amount 170). Filter>Brush Strokes>Accented Edges (settings around 2 40 and 5). Stylize>Find Edges Then invert (Ctrl I).
That’s good but you can Radial Blur again (60) and use levels to brighten and add contrast. Colourize too!
MAKING CRACKED METAL
Paint the cracks in black varying the thickness. Switch to Soft Light. Duplicate the layer and invert to make white. Offset by 1px down and right. Duplicate the black layer for deeper cracks.
SMOOTHING THE JAGGIES
OK you just used transform to make an oblong gradient into a triangle. To smooth the jagged edges select, contract selection by 2px, feather radius 1, invert selection and delete. This is way blurry so just make about 5 copies then merge ’em.
MAKING A MOTION BLUR
The Computer Arts way to make a motion blur: Duplicate the object layer and motion blur the lower copy. Blend the two by selecting the top (unblurred) copy and adding a layer mask. Next motion blurring the mask. Finally move the top layer so the blurred copy extends just one way.
LOAD LUMINANCE OF A LAYER
ie. Make a selection based on luminance: Ctrl Alt Shft ~
This is a cool shortcut with lots of possible uses. Try this for a more subtle effect when colourizing a photo. After selecting add fill layer in color, overlay, normal mode etc. (Try reversing the luminance mask - click on the layer mask thumb and press Ctrl I.)
Quick 3D TYPE
Type text in colour of the shadow/3d bit.- select move tool
- Hold down Alt and use the arrow keys 1px up, let go of Alt then 1px L (or R) (Holding the Alt key generates a new layer everytime) Repeat until deep enough - bout 10 times.
- change top layer colour and maybe add an inner stroke too.
MAKE A BARCODE
Make a 1px horizontal selection to a white layer. Zoom in, add noise, then transform dragging up or down. Use threshold to make black and white. Chooose good bit, delete the rest.