THEEDIT
104 PRACTICALPHOTOGRAPHY
1
Open your action shot
You’ll need an image that features a moving subject,
ta ken with a fast shutter speed to freeze the scene,
making it look static. Open your action shot into Photoshop
by clicking on File>Open. Then, with the Layers palette visible
(Window>Layers), hit Ctrl+J to duplicate the layer.
4
Addmorelines to dictate direction
Toadda newPath Blur, click on the preview image
and drag to form a line. This will apply a second blur,
which you can use to fine-tune the direction if you have multiple
moving elements. If you click but forget to drag, click a second
ti me to place the end point, and press Enter to confirm.
2
Open Path Blur from the Blur Gallery
Go to Filter>Blur Gallery>Path Blur. The interface will
change, and the right-hand side will bring up the Blur
Tools palette. Ensure the Centred Blur box is checked and the
Edit Blur Shapes box is unticked. Set the Taper to 0% and Speed,
which is global, to 100%.
5
Hide the blur where you want sharpness
To make your moving subject sharp again, click and drag
a new Path line where you want the blur to disappear.
At first this will add more blur, but holding down Ctrl and clicking
on both white anchor points will reset the line’s Speed to zero,
and remove the effect. Repeat this as many times as required.
3
Draw in some blur
You’ll notice a blue line with
a directional arrow has now
appeared, and the image preview has
become blurred. Click on one of the
white anchor points on this line and
drag to apply blur, with the arrow
facing in the direction of movement.
Avoid dragging it over areas you
want to remain static, in this case the
subject. Once placed, click and drag
the blue point in the middle to apply
a curve to make the blur follow the
flow of the shapes in the image and
the direction of movement. Check
you’re happy with the effect of the
100% Speed setting – the amount
of distance in your blur – since it is
global and will therefore be applied
to any further Path Blur lines that are
added to the image.
