The Adobe Photoshop Manual 2021

LIGHT BEAM EFFECTS USING PHOTOSHOP LIKE A PRO

33 Click the Brush Tip Shape button and set the brush size to about 15- 34 If you aren’t happy with the way the particles scatter, you can always

25 pixels, then check the Spacing button and set it to about 125%. press Cmd + Z to back up and try it again. Finally, add a Hue/
Now you can begin to brush on the ‘particles’ layer, from the bottom of the Saturation adjustment layer, at the top of the stack, and boost the saturation
saucer down the beam of light, to create a scattering of particles. for the finishing touch to the alien abduction scene.

Light up your
Photoshop art

Another bright idea for lighting effects revealed.

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USING PHOTOSHOP LIKE A PRO COLLODION PORTRAITS

This tutorial AFTER
content is BEFORE
available for
download

Collodion
Portraits

Mimic an old wet plate photographic
process for unique portraits

When photography was in its infancy, the method by equipment and process using
which images were captured was complex, time- the old wet plate techniques. Some use
consuming and involved a lot of brittle materials and harsh a digital approach using Photoshop. Safe to say this is only
chemicals. That said, some early wet plate images are an approximation of the result you would get if you did it
amazing to behold even now. So great is the lasting impact for real but since not everyone has access to old bellows
of these early photographs that photographers today actively cameras, darkrooms, plates and chemicals, here is our
seek out ways to replicate the look. Some actually use the old version of the classic effect given a Photoshop twist.

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COLLODION PORTRAITS USING PHOTOSHOP LIKE A PRO

01 Let’s start off with a suitable head and shoulders portrait as typified 02 The first step is to sharpen the image. Go to Filter > Sharpen > Smart

by so many classic portraits done in this style. This example is Sharpen and set your Amount to about 200 per cent, Radius to 1px
a portrait of Courtney. It is 2667 pixels wide by 4000 pixels deep. The and click OK when you are ready to proceed.
settings are based on an image this size.

03 Press Cmd + J to create a duplicate layer of this image and name it 04 With the ‘blur’ layer active, Click on the Add Layer Mask button at the

‘blur’. With the new layer active, go to Filter > Blur > Lens Blur and bottom of the layers palette. A layer mask will be added to the blurred
make your Radius 60 and Noise 2. Click OK and the blur will be applied. portrait. We now want to combine both the blurred and sharp layers.

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USING PHOTOSHOP LIKE A PRO COLLODION PORTRAITS

05 Wet plate photographs are characterised by their very shallow depth 06 Go to your toolbar and select the Brush Tool. Make sure your

of field. Normally, just the eyes and some of the facial features are the foreground colour is set as black. You can press D to default the colours
only things in sharp focus. This is what we are trying to emulate. to black and white and press X to toggle which is the foreground colour.

07 Click the ‘blur’ layer mask thumbnail to make it active and use a large, 08 With each click of the brush, you will see more and more of the

soft, black brush with its Opacity set at 50 per cent and begin painting sharp layer below starting to show through. When you are done,
in the eyes, nose and mouth of Courtney’s face. you should have a shallow depth of field effect with just the eyes and the
face in focus.

09 You can make the top ‘blur’ image softer by putting an elliptical 10 Next, click on the Adjustment Layer button and select Channel Mixer

marquee (M) around the face, inverting the selection (Shift + Cmd from the dropdown menu. Make sure the new Adjustment Layer is at
+ I), feathering the selection by about 200 pixels and then using Gaussian the top of your layer stack. Click on it to make it active if it isn’t already.
Blur with a Radius of about 20-30 pixels.

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COLLODION PORTRAITS USING PHOTOSHOP LIKE A PRO

11 From the Channel Mixer Properties panel, make sure the Monochrome 12 This kind of portrait requires that the RGB sliders are adjusted in such

button is checked. Now you need to adjust the Red, Green and Blue a way to bring out texture in the skin. This image requires the sliders
sliders to alter the image and give it a more authentic wet plate look. be set at Red -24 per cent, Green -42 per cent, Blue +166 per cent and
Constant at +4 per cent.

13 Add a Levels Adjustment layer and adjust the Output Levels of Black 14 Now you can add a Photo Filter Adjustment Layer. Make the filter

to 10 and keep White at 255 to reduce overall contrast slightly, and colour Warming (85) or Sepia. Make the Density about 30 per cent
brighten the darkest parts of the image by a small amount. Mid-tone and and make sure the Preserve Luminosity button is checked. This gives the
Highlight sliders can be tweaked too. image quite an antique feel.

15 At the moment the image looks too new. We need to add some 16 For this example, you can go to File > Open (Cmd + O) and browse

effects to give it a distressed feel. The old wet plate process also had for the location of a couple of images that can add the authentic
an inherent amount of dust and scratches involved, which we can add next. distressed look. There are two examples here called ‘scratches’ and ‘streaks’.
Select them both and click Open.

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USING PHOTOSHOP LIKE A PRO COLLODION PORTRAITS

17 Start with the ‘scratches’ image. Press Cmd + A to select the 18 With the new ‘scratches’ layer active, go to the Blend Mode button

image and then press Cmd + C to copy it to your clipboard. Click and set this layer’s blend to Multiply. The ’scratches’ layer will now
back on your document and press Cmd + V to paste it on a new layer blend into the layers below giving a great antique feel to the image.
which you can call ‘scratches’.

19 Go to the ’streaks’ image and copy and paste this one into your 20 Finally, make the Opacity of both the ‘scratches’ and ’streaks’ layers

wet plate portrait document. This time, set the ’streaks’ layer Blend about 55 per cent. This will ensure they don’t dominate the image too
Mode to Darken. much but add to the overall effect of an old style wet plate image.

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COLLODION PORTRAITS USING PHOTOSHOP LIKE A PRO

21 If you feel it needs it, you can add another Levels Adjustment to

brighten the image. There is your final image. A classic photographic
process has been given a modern digital update.

Create eye-catching
portraits

A classic look achieved with digital techniques.

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USING PHOTOSHOP LIKE A PRO CARTOONIZE YOUR PHOTOS

This tutorial AFTER
content is BEFORE
available for
download

Cartoonize
Your Photos

Turn a photo into a panel from a
cartoon or graphic novel

It’s a popular trend at the moment to be able to turn a also a varied number of methods to
picture of yourself, a friend, or loved one into a cartoon achieve a cartoon style. We have a
that you can use as an avatar on social media sites tutorial that can cartoonize a portrait,
etc. There are plenty of tutorials out there that cover producing a result that has a graphic
all aspects of the process, however, some can be very novel feel to it, without the need for
involved and require digital painting and illustration a lot of illustrative technique. Here’s
skills in both Photoshop and Adobe Illustrator. There are how to do it.

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CARTOONIZE YOUR PHOTOS USING PHOTOSHOP LIKE A PRO

01 We have chosen an example portrait of a very surprised-looking husky 02 Our example image for this tutorial is 2154 pixels wide by 3000 pixels

dog staring directly at camera. The lighting in this shot is sufficiently deep and our settings to achieve the cartoon effect are based on this
bright and simple with plenty of contrast and texture and therefore should image size. Be aware, if you’re using a different size image, your settings will
convert well into our comic book style. need to account for this.

03 This technique is quite straightforward and only requires a couple of 04 Make sure that the ‘outline’ layer is currently active then go to the

new layers. Start by pressing Cmd + J to duplicate the background File menu and choose Filter > Filter Gallery. You are looking for the
layer and create a new version that sits above the original background. Call Artistic section in the right hand panel and in this subfolder is an effect
this new layer ‘outline’. called Poster Edges.

05 Click on the Poster Edges icon and set Edge Thickness to 10, Edge 06 Now we have to turn it into a more simplistic black outline image. To

Intensity to 10 and Posterization to 2. The image will update in real do this, go to Image > Adjustments > Threshold. The image will be
time to show you how it looks with those settings, it will now also have black converted into a bitmap comprised purely of black or white. Now it is starting
outlines. Click OK when ready. to look much more graphic.

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USING PHOTOSHOP LIKE A PRO CARTOONIZE YOUR PHOTOS

07 Push the Threshold Level slider to the left. As you do, more and more 08 If you wish, you can take a small white brush and paint out any area

of the image will be removed as it brightens to white, we opted for of black detail that you feel is too intrusive on your image. We painted
a Threshold Level setting of 70. Now our portrait is looking more like an ink out the background and some areas on the dog’s chest and head to further
outline drawing. simplify it.

09 At this stage of the process, you may notice that the outline of the 10 Settings are based on personal taste, but we settled with Stylization

subject is a little ragged from the bitmap conversion, that’s not a 5.0 and Cleanliness 3.0 while Shine needs to be 0.0, the other
problem, we can smooth it out by going to the File menu and choosing Filter settings can remain at default. As a result, the outlines are smoother, like
> Stylize > Oil Paint. brush or pen strokes. When you’re happy, click OK to apply the effect.

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CARTOONIZE YOUR PHOTOS USING PHOTOSHOP LIKE A PRO

11 Click ‘back’ on the Background layer and press Cmd + J again, to 12 Make sure that the ‘colour’ layer is active then go to the File menu and

create another duplicate that sits below the ‘outline’ layer then call this choose Filter > Filter Gallery once more before choosing the Poster
layer ‘colour’. For the moment, you can turn off the ‘outline’ layer’s visibility so Edges effect again. This time set Edge Thickness to 0, Edge Intensity to 0
we can work on the layer below. and Posterization to 1.

13 Now, the copy of the image on the ‘colour’ layer has had the number 14 Next, go to Image > Adjustments > Levels (Cmd + L) and pull the

of colours that are used in the photo reduced to give a more toonish Shadows Output Levels slider slightly to the right to reduce the
quality. We can enhance that still further in the next step. Click OK to apply contrast and lighten the image a little. Click OK to continue when you are
the Poster Edges effect. happy with the adjustments.

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USING PHOTOSHOP LIKE A PRO CARTOONIZE YOUR PHOTOS

15 Next, go to Image > Adjustments > Hue/Saturation (Cmd +U) and 16 Now we need to soften the colour image a little. Go to Filter > Stylize

push the Saturation slider right, to about +30 this will add a lot of > Oil Paint and this time make the Stylization 5.0, Cleanliness 7.0 and
vibrancy to the image while making the colours purer and brighter. Click OK set Shine at 0.0. This creates a brushed feel to the image while remaining
to apply the saturation. quite graphic. Click OK when ready.

17 Back in the layers palette, turn on the visibility of your ‘outline’ layer 18 The next step is purely optional, but if you want to you can adjust

and then set its blend Mode to Multiply. When you do, the black the brightness and contrast of the image a lot more to enhance the
outline blends with the colour image below, the white areas disappear and cartoon feel. Click on the Create New Adjustment Layer button and choose
your cartoon character appears. Levels from the menu.

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CARTOONIZE YOUR PHOTOS USING PHOTOSHOP LIKE A PRO

19 A new adjustment layer called ‘Levels 1’ will be added, make sure it 20 After just a few simple steps, your cartoon image is completed. Your

is at the top of the layer stack. If you pull the Shadows and Highlights photo has been transformed and you now have a character that is
sliders towards the centre of the histogram, you will add contrast and a little ready to take its place in a graphic novel, cartoon strip, or just as a simple
more punch to the image. toon avatar.

Cartoon capers in
Photoshop

A great idea for graphic portraits and toon characters.

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USING PHOTOSHOP LIKE A PRO CREATE AN UNDERWATER SCENE

Create an AFTER

Underwater

Scene BEFORE

How to construct an underwater This tutorial
scene from scratch with Photoshop content is
available for
download

Some lucky people are able to take a camera underwater from scratch and you don’t even have to
and capture the beauty of the seabed with all its life get your feet wet. This fun little tutorial
and colour. Most of us however, are not able to grab a will show you how to set up the basic
wetsuit, camera and pressure housing, before diving into environment into which you can add
crystal clear, blue seas to photograph what’s around us, your favourite marine life. To help you
we can only dream of what it must be like. Fortunately, on your way, we have included a few sea creatures
Photoshop give us the tools to create an underwater scene that you can use to populate your scene. Let’s dive in.

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CREATE AN UNDERWATER SCENE USING PHOTOSHOP LIKE A PRO

01 First, open Photoshop and go to File > New (Cmd + N) to create a 02 Click on your foreground colour in the toolbar and it will open the

new document. In our example, the scene will be 3000 pixels wide by Colour Picker. Select a nice light blue for your foreground, then click
4000 pixels high, but you can work with whatever size suits you. Next, you on the background colour in the toolbar and choose a strong, deep blue that
are going to need some ocean. contrasts well with the lighter colour.

03 Next, choose the Gradient Tool from the toolbar and click the Gradient 04 Left-click and hold your cursor at the top of the document then drag

Editor in the top left of your screen to open it. Confirm that you have downwards to the bottom of the page, a vertical line indicates the
the Foreground to Background option selected as your gradient colour type direction of the gradient. If you hold Shift, you can constrain the cursor to
and then click OK to continue. 45-degree increments, if you wish.

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USING PHOTOSHOP LIKE A PRO CREATE AN UNDERWATER SCENE

05 When you have the start and end point of the gradient ready, let go of 06 Hit the D key before you proceed to the next step. This will reset your

the Mouse button to create a gradient that runs from the foreground foreground and background colours to the defaults of black for the
colour to the background colour. This is your basic ocean and it should be foreground and white for the background. You will need this for the next step
light blue at the top and dark blue at the bottom. in the process.

07 Click on the Create New Layer button at the bottom of the layer 08 Make sure the ‘surface’ layer is active before you go to the next

palette. The new layer will appear in the layer stack where you can step. Go to your toolbar and select the Rectangular Marquee Tool
name it ‘surface’. We are going to use this layer to create the illusion of the (M), then click and drag to create a selection on the ‘surface’ layer that
water’s surface as seen from below. roughly covers the entire top half.

09 Keep the selection you just made active and go to Filter > Render > 10 In the top File menu, go to Filter > Filter Gallery then choose Plastic

Clouds. This will fill the selection with a random mottled cloud pattern Wrap from the Artistic range of filter pre-sets displayed in the right-
in black and white. This pattern can be used to mimic the texture of the hand panel. From here, make Highlight Strength 20, Detail 1 and Smoothness
water’s surface. 15, then click OK to apply the effect to the mottled texture.

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CREATE AN UNDERWATER SCENE USING PHOTOSHOP LIKE A PRO

11 Your mottled cloud pattern should now have a rippled highlight effect 12 If you right-click on the texture whilst the Free Transform tool is still

that can be used to emulate the water’s surface. Go to Edit > Free active, you can access a set of additional tools that allow you to
Transform (Cmd + T) and scale the texture so that it occupies approximately shape, alter, rotate and scale the texture. For this tutorial, choose Distort from
one quarter at the top of the document. the Context menu.

13 Take each of the top, corner control points in turn and drag them 14 Make sure that the ‘surface’ layer is still active and then go to the

outwards to add a perspective effect that will make the ripples look Blend Mode menu at the top of the layer palette. Click on it and
like they are receding into the distance. When you are happy with how it choose Linear Dodge (Add) as your blend from the menu. Then make the
looks, hit Enter to apply the distortion. layer’s Fill value about 35 per cent.

15 Press Cmd + D to clear any active selections then click on the Add 16 Go to the toolbar and select the Brush Tool (B), choose a large, soft

Layer Mask button, at the bottom of the layers palette, to add a layer black brush. Make sure the ‘surface’ layer mask is active (not the
mask to the ‘surface’ layer. We can use this mask to blend out the hard edge image) and paint with your black brush on the mask along the hard bottom
of the surface texture. edge of the surface texture to blend it out.

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USING PHOTOSHOP LIKE A PRO CREATE AN UNDERWATER SCENE

17 The ’surface’ layer texture you’ve made can also be used to create 18 Go to Edit > Transform > Flip Vertical, to flip the layer upside down.

the seabed. Press Cmd + J to duplicate the ‘surface’ layer and name Press V to activate your Move Tool or select it from the toolbar and
the resulting copy ‘seabed’. Make sure this is at the top of the layer stack and then drag the ‘seabed’ layer down to the bottom of the image. Feel free to
that it is the active layer. scale and stretch it until you’re happy with it.

19 Now, for the addition of some lighting: Create a new layer called ‘sun’ 20 Next, create another layer called ‘rays’. From the toolbar, select

and make sure it is the top layer. Set your foreground colour to white, the Rectangular Marquee Tool (M) and use it to click and drag a
press B to activate your Brush Tool and then use a large, soft white brush to selection area that covers the entire top half of the ‘rays’ layer, this is where
paint a bright glow on the water’s surface. we’re going to add some more light effects.

21 Go to Filter > Render > Clouds, then fill the selection with the random 22 Go to the File menu and choose Image > Adjustments > Threshold,

black and white cloud texture, as done previously in step 9. Next, we the texture will be reduced to black or white with no grey tones, now
can use a quick, simple little trick to create some convincing atmospheric adjust the Threshold Level slider until you have a roughly equal amount of
light rays. black and white areas.

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23 Press Cmd + D to clear any active selections, then go to the File menu 24 When you hit OK, the black and white mottled texture will be blurred.

and choose Filter > Blur > Radial Blur. Set the Amount to 100, the It will need to be blurred a number of times for the best effect, so
Blur Method to Zoom and Quality to Best, now click and drag the Blur Centre press Ctrl + Cmd + F (Cmd + F on older versions of Photoshop) to repeat the
to the top, central position. last action, now we have the basis of our light rays.

25 Set the ‘rays’ layer Blend Mode to Soft Light. Set the Fill value of your 26 So far so good, but it’s looking a bit empty down here, we need

‘rays’ layer to about 50 per cent to create the effect of sunlight filtering some aquatic life to make it look more convincing, so now go to File
down through the water. If you want, you can alter the scale and position of > Open and navigate to the images supplied for this tutorial. Select all three
the rays to suit. and click Open.

27 In the case of our example, go to ‘turtle 1.png’, press Cmd + A to 28 Repeat the process with the other two creatures, then arrange and

select all, then press Cmd + C to copy it. Go back to your underwater scale them until you are happy with them. At the moment, they look
scene and press Cmd + V to paste the copied creature into your document. too obviously pasted on top of the image, so we need to make them look a
Name this new layer ‘turtle 1’. more convincing part of the world that has been created.

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29 First, click and drag the ‘rays’ layer to the top of the layer stack so it 30 Another little trick to create a feeling of depth on a simple blue

is above the sea creatures. Now that they are above everything in the background such as this, is to click on the ’whale’ layer and make its
document, the light rays interact better with our aquatic friends as they slant Opacity about 30 per cent. Make the ‘dolphin’ layer Opacity about 50 per
across the surface of their bodies. cent. Watch out for the creature’s outlines overlapping.

31 Our foreground ‘dolphin 1’ can have a layer Opacity of about 70 32 Next, create a new layer called ‘bubbles’ at the top of the layer

per cent. This simple trick creates the feeling that the dolphins are stack; here we will add some bubble effects. You can obtain some
receding into the murky depths of the water and helps blend their colours into great free brushes to use at www.deviantart.com. Just search for ‘bubbles
the watery scene around them. brushes Photoshop’ and install them by clicking their ABR file.

33 Go to your toolbar and make sure your foreground colour is set to 34 From the Brush Settings fly-out palette, click on the Shape Dynamics

white then go to your Brush Tool and choose your bubble. Now, we option and make the Size Jitter value about 70 per cent. Click on
need to set the brush to randomly scatter bubbles for a more convincing, less Scattering next, then check the Both Axes button and make the Scatter
uniform effect. value 1000 per cent.

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35 Now click on Brush Tip Shape and make Size about 30px and 36 Finally, you can now add a scattering of bubbles to the ‘bubbles’

Spacing about 100 per cent. You will see a preview window that layer, simply set the ‘bubbles’ Blend Mode to Overlay and blend them
shows how your bubbles will be spaced when you use the brush in your in. If you add too many bubbles, you can always press Cmd + Z to undo your
scene. You can obviously tweak these settings to your own taste. brush strokes and with that, your scene is complete.

Your own
aquatic world

Photoshop gives you your very own deep blue sea.

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USING PHOTOSHOP LIKE A PRO COMPOSITING IMAGES

AFTER

BEFORE

Compositing
Images

The graphic professionals This tutorial
method that anyone can use content is
available for
download

Compositing is the combining of visual main elements of the image which is the grey/ sized or in this case, just a 150mm tall action
elements from separate sources into neutral background compositing technique. figure, grey screen compositing is the choice of
single images, often to create the illusion The beauty of shooting your main subject many graphics professionals and is easier to do
that all those elements are part of the same against a grey screen is that it gives them a than you think. To flesh the scene out, we have
scene. There are a number of ways to produce well defined edge that makes the process of a background and some additional graphics to
composite images. In this tutorial we will be blending them into another environment all the create what could easily be a movie poster for
looking at a fairly typical approach for the two easier. Whether your subject is normal human- the next big zombie apocalypse blockbuster.

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COMPOSITING IMAGES USING PHOTOSHOP LIKE A PRO

01 There are a number of elements to work with, but you need to start 02 The image is 3000 pixels wide x 4000 pixels high. Certain settings

with the two main parts first. Go to File > Open and navigate to the file and brushes used are based on an image that size but if working with
called ‘hero.jpg’. Click Open and the image of a baseball bat wielding hero images of a different size, you may need to alter your settings accordingly.
will be opened in Photoshop.

03 Next, go to File > Open again and navigate to the file called ‘street.jpg’ 04 Go back to the ‘hero’ document and then press Cmd + V. This will

and click Open. This image will open in its own document. Now we paste the street image you just copied into the document containing
need to combine the two images. Press Cmd + A to select all and then Cmd the image of the hero. You can convert the Background to a layer by clicking
+ C to copy the street image to the clipboard. the padlock icon on the right of the layer.

05 You now have two layers. You can name the recently pasted layer 06 Click on the ‘hero’ layer to make sure it is active and then go to the

‘street’ and the unlocked background of the man can be named toolbar and choose the Quick Selection Tool (W). This is where the
‘hero’. For the moment, turn off the visibility of the ‘street’ layer by clicking the grey background that the figure was photographed on will help you make an
small eye icon next to its thumbnail. accurate selection of him.

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07 Take your Quick Selection Tool and select a brush size of about 08 If the Quick Selection Tool selects too much, such as his left boot, you

25 from the tool options menu. Then click anywhere on the grey can go to the tool option menu at the top and click the Subtract From
background and drag the cursor around the outside edge of the man. Make Selection button. Carefully draw over his boot and that part of the selection
sure you also select the gap in his left arm. will be removed.

09 You can use the add or subtract selection options to make sure just 10 Keep the selection active and click on the ‘street’ layer visibility icon to

the background is now selected. Most areas should be fine but as turn it back on. You will see your selection, denoted by the marching
noted, the boots, and in this case, the tip of the baseball bat, need a little ants, overlaid on the street image. Now you need a mask.
attention to get the selection correct.

11 Go to the layer options panel and click on the Add Layer Mask button. 12 At the moment, the figure of the hero looks very obviously like a cut

When you do, a mask in the shape of the selection will be added to out. Click the ‘street’ layer and then choose Overlay from the Blend
the ‘street’ layer. Any white area of the mask reveals the street image, black Mode panel. Now both images blend much more smoothly, with light and
areas conceal it. shadow of the grey mixing with the street image.

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13 Go to the layer options panel again and choose Create A New 14 With the ‘fog’ layer active, go to the toolbar and choose the Brush

Layer. Name this new layer ‘fog’ and make sure it is at the top of the Tool (B). Set foreground colour to white and use a soft round brush
layer stack. This is a little visual technique to create some more separation of about 1200 pixels and paint white around the figure of the man. Blur the
between figure and background. brush marks by about 125 pixels.

15 Obviously the white brush marks have obscured the man but if you 16 You can adjust the Opacity of the ‘fog’ layer as you wish; we set it

right-click the ‘fog’ layer, you can select Create Clipping Mask from to about 50%, just enough to help separate the foreground figure’s
the menu. The ‘fog’ layer is clipped to the layer below and inherits the mask outline from the busy details of the street image. Now you can add the extra
properties you created, revealing the man. character elements.

17 Go to File > Open and navigate to where ‘zombie 1.png’ and ‘zombie 18 If you press Cmd + A to select all content and then press Cmd + C

2.png’ are kept. Highlight them both and click Open. Both of the files to copy all selected, you can then go back to your original document
will be opened in Photoshop in their documents. Go to ‘zombie 1.png’ first. and press Cmd + V to paste the first zombie into the document. It will appear
on a new layer which you can call ‘zombie 1’.

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19 Repeat the process with the second zombie image and name its layer 20 Hold Shift and left-click on each zombie’s layer to highlight them both.

‘zombie 2’. Both zombies are at the top of the layer stack and you can Now right-click on them and a context menu will appear. Choose
see that they appear to float in front of our main foreground character. Let’s Create Clipping Mask. You will see that both layers are now clipped in the
fix that next. same way the ‘fog’ layer was previously.

21 There is one more asset we can include to finish our scene off. Go to 22 Since the ‘bike’ layer appears in front of our character, there is no

File > Open again and open the ‘bike.png’ file. Just as you did with requirement to clip it like the zombies and the fog. Now that we have
the zombies, you can copy and paste this image into your main document at all our elements in place, they can each be moved within the scene as you
the top of the stack. Name the layer ‘bike’. see fit. We can also boost the drama a little.

23 Go to the layer options panel and click on the Create New Fill Or 24 With the ‘Levels 1’ adjustment layer active, go to its Properties and

Adjustment button. Choose Levels from the dropdown list. This will push the middle Midtone slider to the right. All the middle tones will be
add an adjustment layer to the top of the stack; use it to boost light and darkened but since this is affecting the whole image, you need to be a little
shadow in the image. more selective.

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25 Keep the adjustment layer active and go to the toolbar and choose 26 We painted around the three characters to keep them at their original

the Brush Tool (B). Set the Foreground Colour to black and use a large brightness but made sure that their surroundings are darker. If you Alt
soft round brush to paint black on the ‘Levels 1’ layer mask where you do not + left-click the mask, you can see the brush marks that conceal the effects of
want the darkening effects to be seen. the adjustments you’ve made.

27 If you press Shift + Alt + Cmd + E, you can create a new layer that is 28 Call this new layer ‘merged’. You can add some extra sharpness and

a merged version of all the layers you’ve created so far. Think of it as boost contrast quickly by going to Filter > Sharpen > Unsharp Mask.
a snapshot of the work done so far. Be aware that any layers that are turned Set the Amount to 30% and Radius to 30 Pixels. Threshold is 0 Levels.
off, will not be merged into the snapshot.

29 This boosts overall contrast and adds a level of sharpness, bringing 30 The ‘merged’ layer will open in Adobe Camera Raw (ACR). The latest

out detail in the image. Now you can think about the colour in your version of ACR now has some interesting new creative filters which
image. If you go to Filter > Camera Raw Filter (Shift + Cmd + A), you can play can be found under the Presets tab. You can preview each filter’s effect on
with some its new filter options. your image until you see something you like.

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USING PHOTOSHOP LIKE A PRO COMPOSITING IMAGES

31 We chose the Flat & Green preset under the Creative options as 32 ACR will hand the ‘merged’ layer back to Photoshop where you can

this suited the content of the image quite well. We also employed see it updated with the adjustments you’ve just made. You can add a
ACR’s own Basic adjustment options too, to add more contrast and colour new layer next and call it ‘flare’. Go to the Brush Tool and choose a soft white
saturation. Click OK when you’re happy with the changes. brush of about 300 pixels.

33 Paint over the headlights of the bike with the white brush. Then set 34 Go to Image > Adjustments > Hue/Saturation (Cmd + U) and in

the Blend Mode of the ‘flare’ layer to Linear Light. This is a favourite the panel that appears, check the Colorize button, set Hue to 20,
method of ours for adding a glowing effect to bright areas in an image. Saturation to 40 and Lightness to -22. Click OK to apply a yellow glow to
the headlights.
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COMPOSITING IMAGES USING PHOTOSHOP LIKE A PRO

35 Create another layer called ‘flare 2’ and make its Blend Mode Overlay. 36 We also added another Levels adjustment to darken the edges a little

Now paint with your white brush on top of the glow you just made to more using the same selective masking methods used in step 25.
enhance the light effect of the bike’s headlights. Your image is finished. Our hero is about to face off with the zombie hordes
and we have front row seats.

Create amazing
art today

Compositing is easier than you think, and great fun too.

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USING PHOTOSHOP LIKE A PRO DOUBLE EXPOSURE EFFECT

AFTER

Double BEFORE
Exposure
Effect

We pay a digital Photoshop This tutorial
homage to a classic technique content is
available for
download

Double or multiple exposure photography effect you were actually achieving until the be edited and
is another reference to the more negative was developed and a print was made adapted exactly to suit
traditional methods of image capture where in the darkroom. An alternative method was to our needs. For our example, we are going
a photographer would expose one frame of stack two negatives in the enlarger at printing to combine a graphic image of a man with
film more than once to achieve a surreal look stage. These days of course, we can explore a city skyline and a waterfall scene. Here’s
in the final image. A downside to this method the creative aspects of combining multiple how we go about creating our double
was that you could never be certain of what images on our computers with effects that can exposure image.

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DOUBLE EXPOSURE EFFECT USING PHOTOSHOP LIKE A PRO

01 Go to File > Open and navigate to the ‘figure.jpg’ file. Press Open and 02 A picture that has either a plain background that is easy to remove

the image will open in Photoshop. It is a graphic image of a man with your subject from, or has them against white is key to how this
a plain background. The image is 3000 pixels high by 2000 pixels wide. process works. In this case, our image should be quite easy to separate from
its background as it has a well defined edge.

03 Go to the toolbar and choose the Quick Selection Tool (W). In the 04 Click your cursor within the edge of the image and hold the mouse

tool option menu above, make sure that the Add To Selection option button. Carefully drag your cursor around the edge of the figure but
is checked and the brush size is about 35. This just ensures you begin the make sure you don’t stray outside. Keep the cursor within the outline of the
process of creating a new selection correctly. man. A selection will be created automatically.

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USING PHOTOSHOP LIKE A PRO DOUBLE EXPOSURE EFFECT

05 If you do find the selection jumps outside the edge of the figure, 06 Once you have your main figure selected, you can then choose Select

you can go to the tool option menu and change the selection mode And Mask from the top menu panel. This will allow you to refine and
to Subtract From Selection. Drag your cursor over areas that have strayed enhance any areas of the selection that were too detailed for the Quick
outside to remove them. Selection Tool to identify.

07 You can keep Select And Mask at its default settings, just use a 08 The selection you made will be updated and you will notice that the

small brush and pain over areas such as the hair. When you do, it will area around the hair is much more accurate than it was when you
attempt a more detailed and refined selection of those areas. When you are started. Now, right-click on the selection and choose Layer Via Copy from the
ready, click OK to proceed. dropdown menu that appears.

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09 This will create a new layer and will copy just the contents of your 10 In the layer options panel, click on the Create A New Layer button to

selection into it. The rest of the new layer will be transparent. Name make a new blank layer. Make sure this new layer sits between the
this new layer ‘figure’. This will be the base upon which you will build your ‘figure’ layer and your original ‘background’ layer. Name this new layer ‘white’.
multiple exposure technique.

11 Go to Edit > Fill (Shift + F5) to call up the Fill dialog box. Choose white 12 Next, go to File > Open once more and navigate to the image

as your fill colour and Blending Mode Normal. Keep Opacity at 100% called ‘waterfall’. Click Open and it will open in Photoshop as a new
and make sure that the Preserve Transparency button is not checked. Click document. Press Cmd + A to select all, then press Cmd + C to copy the
OK to proceed and fill the layer white. photo to the clipboard.

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13 Go back to your original document and press Cmd + V to paste the 14 Click on the ‘figure’ layer thumbnail to activate it and right-click with

image of the waterfall into your working document. A new layer will be your mouse to call up a context menu. Choose Select Pixels from
created when you do. Call the new layer ‘waterfall’ and make sure it is at the the list. A selection of the outline of the figure will be created, denoted by the
top of the layer stack above your figure. ‘marching ants’.

15 Click on the ‘waterfall’ layer to make it active once more. Then go to 16 Since you need to move the waterfall image around and scale it,

the layer options menu and click Add Layer Mask. A layer mask will you need to make sure the mask remains unaffected by these
be added to the ‘waterfall’ layer in the shape of the figure. The black areas of transformations. To do that, click on the small chain icon between the
the mask conceal part of the waterfall image. ‘waterfall’ layer and mask thumbnails to unlink them.

17 Click the ‘waterfall’ layer thumbnail to make it active and then go to 18 Now you can press Cmd + T to scale, rotate or move the waterfall

the Blend Mode panel and choose Lighten. The image of the figure image around until you have a composition that you like. We scaled
below will appear in places where it is brighter than the waterfall photo the photo and moved it so a part of the waterfall was cascading down the
above it. side of the man’s head.

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DOUBLE EXPOSURE EFFECT USING PHOTOSHOP LIKE A PRO

19 Now click on the ‘waterfall’ layer mask thumbnail to make it active. 20 You can paint black onto parts of the ‘waterfall’ layer mask in order

Go to the toolbar and choose the Brush Tool (B). Set the foreground to reveal more of the man’s face on the layer below. Simply use the
colour to black and from the top options menu, choose a soft brush of about brush to apply black around his facial area to the layer mask. You can also
900 pixels. apply black to mask areas around his back and arms.

21 Now click back on the ‘waterfall’ layer thumbnail to make it active 22 You can add more elements to this image if you want. Go to File

again. Go to Image > Adjustments > Levels (Cmd + L). Click and > Open and navigate to the ‘city.jpg’ image and copy that into the
drag the Highlights tab to the left, to boost the contrast and brightness of the document as you did with the waterfall photograph. Make sure this new
image a little. image is in a layer at the top of the stack.

23 You can name the layer ‘city’. Don’t worry about exact placement of 24 Unlink the layer mask and the ‘city’ layer thumbnails as you did with

the city photo just yet. Just as you did in step 14, use the ‘figure’ layer the ‘waterfall’ layer in step 16. You’re going to move and rotate the
to Select Pixels and use that selection to add a layer mask to the ‘city’ layer. photo in the same way you did with the waterfall but again, you don’t want
the mask to move when the image moves.

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USING PHOTOSHOP LIKE A PRO DOUBLE EXPOSURE EFFECT

25 Make sure the Blend Mode for the ‘city’ layer is set to Lighten. Now 26 Make the ‘waterfall’ layer mask active and use a large soft black brush

you should be able to move the photo around and scale it to suit your to mask areas of the waterfall photo so more of the ‘city’ layer can
taste. We actually rotated the skyline so it is upside down and placed it near be seen as it blends into the image. Remember the rule of thumb with layer
the bottom of the composition. masks: white reveals and black conceals.

27 It doesn’t have to stop there. If you want, you can turn the ‘white’ 28 Then you can click on the ‘waterfall’ layer mask to activate it and use

layer into a colour, or a graduated blend of blue and green as we’ve your favourite Photoshop brushes to add additional graphic elements.
done here, using the Gradient Tool (G) from the toolbar. We used a free splatter brush from www.deviantart.com.

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DOUBLE EXPOSURE EFFECT USING PHOTOSHOP LIKE A PRO

29 Make sure the brush is set to white and you can use the [ and ] keys 30 If you view the masks on their own by pressing Alt + left-click on

to make the brush smaller or larger as required. Painting with the each mask, you can see how the brushes are working. Once you are
splatter brush reveals more of the waterfall image. You can then add white happy, you have created your multi-exposure image which has a conceptual
brush marks to the ‘city’ layer mask as well. feel to it.

Seeing double in
a good way

Combine images and create new, interesting concepts.

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USING PHOTOSHOP LIKE A PRO DODGING AND BURNING

AFTER

Dodging
BEFORE

and Burning

A digital twist on classic black and This tutorial
white print techniques content is
available for
download

Dodging and burning have their roots in the image are exposed for longer onto the print, and burn techniques, we can selectively add
days of analogue photography, long before making those areas darker. With the advent brightness and contrast to produce a much
digital cameras and computers were in use. of digital technology the process is done on stronger image.
Dodging refers to the technique of lightening an a computer, but the basic principle and its
image at the darkroom stage by reducing the terminology remain the same. In our example
exposure of a photographic print in specific areas. we take a basic black and white image that
is lacking in contrast and, using the dodge
Burning is the opposite, where parts of the

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DODGING AND BURNING USING PHOTOSHOP LIKE A PRO

01 Open the image you want to work on. As mentioned, we have an 02 This particular process is a destructive technique so, to begin, press

example where the contrast has been reduced in order to Cmd + J to create a duplicate layer and name this new layer ‘dodge’.
demonstrate the effectiveness of the dodge and burn technique. This is the layer we will begin our ‘dodging’ process on.

03 In your toolbar, select the Dodge tool from the Dodge and Burn fly-out 04 Make your Exposure value about 10% and make sure the Enable

panel. From the context menu above, click on the Range button and air-brush button is selected and the Protect Tones button is checked.
select Highlights from the drop-down menu. This means we only affect the This means that the dodge effect can be added gradually and tones and
brightest tones in the image. detail are not erased with one click.

05 Next, select a soft round brush with which to apply the effect. The 06 With gentle movements of the mouse, click and drag over the lighter

Size value will depend on the resolution of the image you are working areas and highlights in the image. You will see with each pass of the
with. Keep the Hardness value at 0%. brush, the tones will get lighter and brighter. Keep working over the cheeks,
nose, eyes, hair and beard.

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USING PHOTOSHOP LIKE A PRO DODGING AND BURNING

07 How much you want to lighten the highlight areas of the image 08 At this point you could save your image and call it done, but we have

is down to personal taste. We have done some additional only covered one side of the dodge and burn technique. Now let’s
brightening, just to show the difference in contrast from the image we add some burn to the image to increase its drama.
started with.

09 Click on your ‘dodge’ layer to make sure it is active. Press Cmd 10 Go to your toolbar and select the Burn tool from the Dodge and Burn

+ J to duplicate this layer. Click the new layer and name it ‘burn’. fly-out panel. Make sure the Range value is now set to Shadows.
You could keep working on the previous layer but we just want to be able Make the Exposure value about 5% as we want the burn effects to be equally
to compare the effects. subtle in their application.

11 Begin painting over the darker areas of the face such as under the 12 If required, you can make the size of the brush larger or smaller by

eyes, nose and the shadows on the right side of the face. The idea pressing the bracket keys on your keyboard. The [ key will decrease
here is to darken existing dark areas to increase the tonal range between the brush size, while the ] key will increase it.
them and the highlights.

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DODGING AND BURNING USING PHOTOSHOP LIKE A PRO

13 If you go to the top context menu and change the range value 14 Our image has now been dodged (lightened) and burned (darkened) in

to Mid-tones, you can work on the tonal values that sit between key areas to lift the original low-contrast image. It is now much more
highlight and shadow areas. striking, thanks to a bespoke set of adjustments that default Brightness and
Contrast couldn’t achieve.

Bespoke Contrast
Adjustments

Breathe new life into low contrast photographs.

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GLOSSARY

Glossary A list of terms you may
encounter as you learn

Active layer Bits per channel Colour management Filters
The layer currently selected in the Layers panel. Determines how many tones each colour channel A system used to achieve consistent colour as an Options to alter the look of an image, for instance, to
can contain. image travels from one device to another. make it look like a mosaic, add unique lighting, apply
Adjustment layer distortions, and so on.
A layer that lets you apply colour and tonal Blending mode Colour temperature
adjustments to your image without permanently A feature that controls how pixels in an image are The degree of heat (in degrees Kelvin) that an object Flattening
changing pixel values. Use adjustment layers to affected by a painting or editing tool. The blend would have to absorb before it glowed in a certain Merging all visible layers into the Background layer to
experiment with colour and colour tones. You can colour is applied to the base (original) colour to colour. Each colour is associated with a colour reduce file size.
think of an adjustment layer as a veil through which produce a new colour. temperature, as are various kinds of light.
the underlying layers are seen. Font
Compression A set of letters, numbers, punctuation marks, and
Adobe RGB A technique that reduces the file size of bitmap images. symbols that share a common weight, width, and style.
The RGB colour space profile created by Adobe
Systems, Incorporated. It provides a large gamut of Cropping 48-bit RGB colour
colours. (See also RGB.) Trimming a portion of an image to improve its A high-bit image mode that can contain thousands
composition or to create a frame around it. of colours per channel. Photoshop supports 8-bit or
Aliasing 16-bits per colour channel, so an RGB image can be
The jagged edges seen at the edges of diagonal Definition a total of 24-bit or 48-bit, depending on the bit depth
lines, arcs, and so on, caused by pixels lining up in a Sharpness or clarity of detail in an image. per channel.
saw-tooth pattern.
Brush preset Dithering Gamma adjustment
Alpha channels A brush with preset settings for size, thickness and The approximation of an unavailable colour through The contrast resulting from darkening or lightening
Masks, which let you manipulate, isolate, and protect so on. Photoshop includes several brush presets the use of two or more available colours. The colour the mid-tones of an image.
specific parts of an image. In Photoshop, alpha for you to choose from, and you can create a large of adjacent pixels is changed in an attempt to
channels are called saved selections. To save an alpha number of your own presets as well. reproduce the unavailable colour. Gamut
channel, choose Select > Save Selection. To load an The range of colour that a device can reproduce.
alpha channel, choose Select > Load Selection. Burning Dodging
The selective darkening of a part of an image. The selective lightening of any part of an image. Gaussian blur
Anti-aliasing A softening effect applied through a bell-shaped
The smoothing of jagged edges in digital images by Camera raw format Dots per inch (dpi) distribution of tones and colours.
averaging the colours of the pixels at a boundary. A format describing data exactly as it is captured A measure of printer resolution. High dpi settings
by a camera sensor, with no in-camera processing produce prints with fine detail. Also used for GIF
Artefact applied to the capture. monitors. (See also pixels per inch (ppi).) Graphic Image File Format. A file format suitable for
Any unexpected and undesired change to a digital images that contain line art, large areas of a single
image caused by incorrect settings or faulty Canvas Duotone colour, and text. Web animations are done with
processing. Examples include blooming, moiré, The workspace around an existing image, within the A two-colour greyscale file that uses two custom inks. images in GIF format.
sharpening, and noise. image window. Layer data may lie outside of the
canvas, but it will be clipped to the canvas when Embedded profile Gradient
Aspect ratio the image is flattened. You can change the size and An ICC (colour) profile resident in an image file. Any of several methods for achieving a smooth
The ratio of an image’s width to its height. It is used colour of the canvas by choosing Image > Resize > This profile ensures that image colours are correctly transition between two adjacent colours, including
to determine how an image fits on a page or monitor. Canvas Size. interpreted. black and white.

Background layer Channel EPS Greyscale
The bottom-most layer in an image, usually A construct for describing the colour data in an Encapsulated PostScript. A file format used to save A single-channel image that includes only black,
containing the image data. The Background layer image. A black-and-white greyscale image has one images that will be used in illustration and page- white, and shades of grey. Depending on the bit
is always locked. If you want to change its stacking channel, an RGB image has three, and a CMYK layout programs. depth, greyscale images can reproduce various
order, blending mode, or opacity, you must first image has four. shades of grey.
convert it to a regular layer. EXIF
Clipboard Exchangeable Image File Format. A standard for Halftone
Backlight The temporary holding area for data stored with the simplifying the exchange of data between cameras A monochrome image made up of variably sized
Light coming from a source behind the subject. Cut or Copy commands. and software. The data may include camera model, dots simulating the shades of grey in a photograph.
date and time the photo was taken, camera settings, It is used for reproducing photographs on PostScript
Batch processing Clone shutter speed, and so on. printers and printing presses.
Performing one or more tasks to a group of files at To paint with the Clone Stamp tool. You must set a
the same time. sampling point on the active layer before you paint Exposure Highlight and shadow
with the Clone Stamp tool. A measure of the amount of light in which a photo The lightest and darkest colours in an image.
Bit depth was taken. Underexposed digital photos are too dark;
The number of colours used to represent a pixel in CMYK overexposed ones, too light. Histogram
an image. A 1-bit image is black and white; an 8-bit Cyan, magenta, yellow, and black; the inks most A bar chart showing the distribution of the pixel
image can have 256 colours or shades of grey; a printers use to produce colour images. Photoshop Feathering values in a digital image.
16-bit image can have 65,536 colours. includes full support for CMYK mode. The softening of an edge of a selection.
Hue
Bitmap image Colour cast Fill layer The colour reflected from or transmitted through
An image consisting of rows and columns of pixels An unwanted or unexpected colour shift in a photo. A type of layer that contains a solid colour, a pattern, an object. In common use, hue is the property that
in computer memory. Also called a raster image. For example, a photo taken indoors without a camera or a gradient as an interchangeable attribute. (See allows a colour to be distinguished as red, blue,
Bitmap file formats include BMP, GIF, JPEG, PSD, flash may have too much yellow. also layer and adjustment layer). yellow, and so on.
PICT, and TIFF. (See also vector graphics.)
Colour channels ICC
The component colours from which all colours in an International Colour Consortium. ICC device profiles
image are created. Usually refers to red, green, and are the industry standard for reproducing colours
blue (RGB). accurately across devices such as scanners,
monitors, and printers.
Colour depth
Measures how much colour information is available Image cache
to display or print each pixel in an image. Greater A section of hard disk space used as virtual memory.
colour depth means more available colours and more The image cache speeds the on-screen redraw of
accurate colour representation in the digital image. high-resolution images.

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GLOSSARY

Image mode Monitor resolution Quick mask Stroke
The colour mode of an image, such as Greyscale The resolution of a monitor, described in pixel A mask channel created in Quick Mask mode. (1) An outline around an image or part of an image
or RGB. dimensions. The size of an image displayed on-screen created with the Stroke command or with a drawing,
depends on the pixel dimensions of the image, the Red eye painting, or selection tool. (2) The characteristics of
Indexed colour size of the monitor, and the monitor resolution. The reflection of the camera flash from the retina the lines created with one of the painting or drawing
A colour that is rendered by using a pixel value as an of a photographed subject, resulting in a red dot in tools, especially brushes.
index to a panel of 256 or fewer colours. Noise the subject’s eye. You can eliminate it automatically
An artefact caused by interference or camera error. when you import images or by using the Red Eye Swatches
JPEG Noise is often seen as stray pixels of unexpected Removal tool. Preset colours that you can choose from in the
Joint Photographic Experts Group. A committee of colour or a generally “grainy” appearance. Certain Colour Swatches panel.
experts that develops algorithms for compressing compression techniques can amplify noise. Rendering
computer image files. Also, any graphic file to which Converting a vector layer such as a shape layer or a TIFF
a JPEG algorithm is applied. JPEG is the format Opacity text layer into a normal layer. Tagged Image File Format. A digital image format
generally used to share photographs over the web. The extent to which something blocks light. You can widely used for images that are to be printed or
change the opacity of layers, filters, and effects so that Resample published. TIFF images can be compressed losslessly.
JPEG compression more (or less) of the underlying image shows through. To change the resolution of an image by changing its
A lossy compression technique that reduces image pixel dimensions. Downsampling is decreasing the Transform
data and file size. Panorama number of pixels, and resampling up (or upsampling) To scale, shrink, enlarge, skew, distort, rotate, or
A broad view of a subject, usually a landscape, made is increasing the number. change the perspective of a layer, selection, or shape.
Layer by overlapping individual shots as they are taken and
A mechanism for overlaying and combining multiple then merging them to form one image. Resolution Transparency
images. Layers are like transparent sheets of glass A measure of the clarity and sharpness of an image. In digital photography, the functionality that supports
that you can stack and rearrange. PDF In digital images, it is measured in pixels per inch. transparent areas in an image or image layer. Certain
Portable Document Format. An Adobe file format image formats do not support transparency.
Layer group that captures the elements of a printed document, RGB
A collection of layers saved with a Photoshop image. including graphics and photos, as an electronic A model for representing colours on a computer Unsharp mask
image. You can search, navigate, print, and e-mail display. Red, green, and blue (RGB) are combined A technique that sharpens details in an image by
Layer mask PDF documents. in different proportions to represent any colour. The increasing the contrast between light and dark areas.
A protected area in an adjustment layer. Areas below RGB model can represent 256 x 256 x 256 colours. (The name originates from traditional photography,
the mask cannot be edited. Perspective where contrast is increased by adding a slightly
The angle or level from which a photograph is taken; Sample blurred negative over the original.)
Levels the camera-eye view. To select a colour with the eyedropper in order to use
Functionality for adjusting colour and tone. With a it with a drawing or painting tool. Vector graphics
Levels adjustment, you can set shadow and highlight Pixel Lines, shapes, and other graphic image components
values to use a full tonal range, adjust middle tones The basic, rectangular unit of data that a digital Saturation stored in a format that incorporates geometric
only, correct colour casts, and so on. image consists of. The edges of pixels can produce a The purity, or strength, of a colour. A fully saturated formulas for rendering the image elements. For this
saw-tooth pattern unless anti-aliasing is used. colour contains no grey. Saturation controls make reason, the graphics scale without degradation of
Locked layer colours more vivid (less black or white added) or image quality, and there are no jagged lines in the
A layer in the Layers panel that has the lock icon Pixel dimensions more muted (more black or white added). output. Adobe Illustrator is a vector graphics program.
applied. No changes can be made to a locked layer. The number of pixels along the width and height of
A Background layer is always locked. an image. This is a measure of the amount of image Selection Vignetting
data in the photo, not its physical size when printed A part of an image selected for manipulation of A darkening of the edges of an image.
Lossless compression or displayed on a monitor. any kind, duplication in a layer, colour correction,
An image-compression technique that prevents deletion, rotation, and so on. The selection consists Warping
image degradation caused by data loss. Lossless Pixels per inch (ppi) of all the pixels, fully or partially selected, contained A distortion of an image, often text, to conform to a
techniques usually use lower compression ratios A measure of image resolution stored in a camera or within the selection boundary. variety of shapes. For instance, a line of text can be
than lossy techniques. computer file. High ppi settings produce photographs warped in the shape of an arc or wave.
with fine detail and large file size. (See also dots per Sharpening
Lossy compression inch (dpi).) In photo-editing programs, any functionality that White balance
An image-compression technique using compression enhances the details at the edges of photographed A function that compensates for the different
ratios that result in the loss of some image data. PostScript objects and people. Sharpening is often applied as rendering of identical colours under different sources
A language developed by Adobe that describes the part of in-camera processing as well, although no of light: incandescent, fluorescent, sunlight, and
Matting appearance of text, graphic shapes, and sampled sharpening is applied to camera raw file images. so on.
A method for simulating transparency in images images on printed or displayed pages.
displayed on web pages. When transparency is Skewing White point
not supported, you can specify a matte colour that Printer profiles Deviation of the content of an image from a vertical A reference point used to represent white. This
matches the background to simulate transparency. Profiles that describe how printers reproduce colours. or horizontal axis. Skewing can be a camera artefact reference point is used to calculate all other colours
or an intentionally applied effect. in the image.
Midtone Progressive scan
An area that falls between the brightest highlight and A process of displaying images on-screen that draws Smoothing
the darkest shadow. 60 complete frames of video from left to right every A technique for averaging the values of neighbouring
second. Progressive scan creates a cleaner, clearer pixels to reduce contrast and create a soft, blurry effect.
Moiré picture than interlaced video.
A wavy striped pattern in an image, resembling the
pattern of watered silk. Moiré can be an artefact PSD
caused by a camera’s inability to capture the detail The native uncompressed file format of Adobe
in an image. Photoshop, based on the TIFF standard.

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