Tip of the Day | Page 16

Brushy Blend Modes

Want to cycle through the Brush tool’s blend modes without having to click in the Options Bar? You must have the Brush tool selected, so press the B key, and then hold down the Shift key and press + or – to move up or down the list, respectively. Also while you’re painting, you can navigate through your Brush panel by using the Arrow keys on your keyboard.

April 27th, 2009 | Web Editor | Tip of the Day | Comments (0)

Tracing Can Help

If you need a little help getting started with digital painting, try this: Open your photo (or a royalty-free stock image), then click the Create a New Layer icon at the bottom of the Layers panel to add a layer above the photo. Fill this new layer with a slightly off-white color (R:249, G:244, B:225), and then lower the layer’s Opacity to 50% to simulate tracing paper. Add one more layer above this and trace away.

April 24th, 2009 | Web Editor | Tip of the Day | Comments (1)

Get Started Sketching

Start your sketch on a new layer above the Background layer. Sketching one element per layer will allow you to use the Move tool (V) and Free Transform (Command-T [PC: Ctrl-T]) to rearrange your composition endlessly.

April 23rd, 2009 | Web Editor | Tip of the Day | Comments (0)

Find Your Dry Brushes

With oils and acrylics, using a dry brush is a very common technique. To simulate a dry brush in Photoshop, pick a default chalk brush (or any brush except Round) by clicking the Brush Preset Picker in the Options Bar, clicking the right-facing arrow, and choosing something like Natural Brushes 2 from the list. (When the warning dialog pops up, click Append to add these brushes to your current set, or OK to replace them.) Next, open the Brushes panel (Window>Brushes), uncheck everything except Smoothing and then lower the Flow setting in the Options Bar.

April 22nd, 2009 | Web Editor | Tip of the Day | Comments (0)

You “Knead” the Eraser Tool

An eraser has always been part of the artist’s toolbox; digital art is no exception. Choosing the Eraser tool (E) with a soft-edged, round brush and lowering the Opacity in the Options Bar is similar to using a kneaded eraser to soften hard edges and enhance blends and highlights. Additional eraser tip: In Photoshop, any brush can become an eraser by choosing Clear from the Mode drop-down menu in the Options Bar.

April 21st, 2009 | Web Editor | Tip of the Day | Comments (0)

From Natural to Digital

You could also do your sketching with traditional media, and then scan the final to open it in Photoshop. A quick Levels adjustment will help to eliminate smudges. Then add layers above for painting. Set the layer blend mode to Multiply so you can see through to your sketch. This can help make the move to digital a lot easier.

April 20th, 2009 | Web Editor | Tip of the Day | Comments (0)

It’s All About the Texture

Texture can be added so that only bits of it peek through, or through all layers after the painting is finished. To do this, create a new layer, press Shift-Delete (PC:Shift-Backspace), choose 50% Gray from the Use menu, and click OK. Then take this layer into the filter gallery to apply the texture and change the layer’s blend mode to Overlay or Soft Light. The reason for putting this on a separate layer is that if you later want to have the painting printed on canvas, you can easily turn it off or delete it.

April 17th, 2009 | Web Editor | Tip of the Day | Comments (0)

Save Your Wrist

The Brush tool (B) is by far the most important instrument for anyone who wants to translate his or her old-school painting techniques into the digital realm. Using a Wacom graphics tablet is essential; painting with a mouse is possible but your wrist will hate you.

April 16th, 2009 | Web Editor | Tip of the Day | Comments (0)

Tabbing Documents

Here’s a Photoshop CS4 tip for the road: In Photoshop CS4, dragging a document window over another document window will automatically place the two documents into a single window with tabs to allow you to access them from within a single window.

April 15th, 2009 | Web Editor | Tip of the Day | Comments (1)

Quick rocky surface

Quick rocky surface In your document, go to the Channels panel (Window>Channels), and click on the Create New Channel icon. Now, using black and white for your Foreground/ Background colors, perform the exact same steps as in the “Quick Marble” tip: Go to the Filter menu and choose Render>Clouds, then choose Filter>Render>Difference Clouds. Press Command-F (PC: Ctrl-F) a few times to reapply the Difference Clouds filter until you get the desired look.

Click on the RGB channel and fill it with the color you want for your rocky surface. Next, go to the Lighting Effects filter (Filter>Render>Lighting Effects) and in the dialog, set the Light Type to Directional. For the Texture Channel (at the bottom of the dialog), choose the Alpha 1 channel you just created, then drag the Intensity slider all the way to the right to Full .

Finally, try various Properties settings until you have what you’re looking for, and click OK. from Bert Monroy

April 14th, 2009 | Web Editor | Tip of the Day | Comments (0)

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Photoshop Tutorials

2012 Text Effect

Recreate the text effect from the title to the new blockbuster movie.
More Fun with 3D

Continue exploring the possibilities with Photoshop’s new 3D tools.
Reverse Restoration

Corey shows you how to make a new photo look damaged by blending in some unusual textures.
3D Background Effects

Use Photoshop’s new 3D tools to create some dazzling background effects.

Premium Video Tutorials From NAPP

Photo Retouch
Scott Kelby shows you how to take an overexposed photo into a great photo using Photoshop. Want Great Photoshop & Photography Skills?

Extended Definition Processing
Scott Kelby shares a technique he's been working on, which gives your final image an HDR look using just one photo.
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Smart Object Masking Trick
Dave Cross shares a trick he discovered that will help you remove white from around your subject when using smart objects.
Want More?

Light Painting
Dave Cross takes a popular trend - light painting - and shows you how you can paint text recreating this cool trend.
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Viewing and Basking in your Image

When I’m done working with an image, I like to sit and admire it (hey, I spent six hours working on it, I should). To do that, I hit the Tab key, then hit the F key three times. This hides all of the panels and toolbars and lets you see the image by itself surrounded by black. To get back to regular mode, press the F key and the Tab key one more time.