Advanced_Photoshop_Issue_136_-_2015_UK_

ADD THE FINAL FLOURISHES

USE ADJUSTMENTS AND CREATIVE EFFECTS TO BRING IT ALL TOGETHER

TECHNIQUES CREATE A SCIFI COMPOSITE FROM PHOTOS

QUICK TIP

When using adjustment layers, you will achieve

better results by stacking subtle effects, rather

than using a single adjustment at full strength.

Build up several adjustment layers to achieve the

exact effect you want – even of that means you

have ten Levels adjustments all at low opacity!

TIE COLOURS TOGETHER

When you’re adding in high contrast stock photos

to a sci-fi cityscape, set them to Screen and the

darker areas will disappear. This trick using

Screen mode is really useful and is used here not

just on the waterfall but with many other

elements of the piece. Working with dark stock

images, the blacker the better, the lights in the

city, the neon signs, the afterburners and

contrails of the vehicles, are all created using the

same technique. Even the mist and shards of

light in sky are achieved this way.

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ORGANISE LAYERS

If you haven’t already, now would be a good

time to start organising your layers into folders –

things are about to get busy. Select all five layers

associated with Building 2, then click the Folder icon

at the bottom of the palette. Name the resultant

folder, ‘Building 2 Folder’. The reason you should call

a folder, ‘folder’ is so that you can easily distinguish it

from its contents when right-clicking the image, as

sometimes you will have many layers and folders,

and folders within folders. Organise the rest of the

layers accordingly, including a Buildings folder for all

your individual Buildings folders.

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CREATE HEIGHT

Keep adding buildings and structures

until the city looks suitably dense. Once you are

happy with the composition you can start working

at street level. The same principles apply here but

you will probably find Transforming in Warp Mode

useful to establish a layout that fits within the

curvature of the base. Add a layer mask to your

Buildings folder, then very subtly mask away

some of the tops of the tallest buildings – just

enough to give them a look of misty heights.

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MAKE ADJUSTMENTS

Create a new folder above Buildings, and

call it Adjustments. Create a Levels adjustment

layer, softly masked around the city, and use it to

increase the contrast slightly. Create a second

Levels layer and use it to increase the light levels,

then mask it so that it only applies to, in and

around the top right of the dome.

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ADD THE WATERFALL

For the waterfall, find a suitable image

with light water against a darker background.

Change the opacity mode to Screen, and you’ll

notice that the darker areas start to disappear.

Clipping on a Levels adjustment and deepening

the blacks while nudging up the whites will take

this even further. Then it’s just a case of masking

away what’s left, while keeping any rocks etc that

you might want, for a cleanly isolated flow.

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FINISHING TOUCHES

Finally, create another Adjustments folder.

This one will sit right at the top. Add a Color Balance

layer, select Shadows then pull the slider -15 towards

Cyan. The next Color Balance layer will be used for

the Midtones. Increase these slightly, particularly

the Green as this will help with some of the

organic elements without contradicting the desert.

Play with Levels, Vibrance, Brightness and

Contrast, until you find a look you are happy with.