QUICK TIP
Are you getting tired of swapping back and forth
between the Add and Delete Anchor Point tools
when adjusting shape layers? Just use the Pen
tool and tick Auto Add/Delete in the options bar.
Now simply click to add a point, or click on an
existing point to remove it.19
SHARPEN IT UP
Press Cmd/Ctrl+J to duplicate the merged
layer. Drag the Smart Filter to the trash. Go to Filter>
Other>High Pass and set the Radius to two pixels,
then click OK. Set the layer to Overlay. Add a layer
mask, then paint black in areas to reduce the
sharpening. You might be wondering why we didn’t
use the Smart Filter mask like the last step. By using
the layer mask, you can remove the sharpening and
provide a window to the underlying layer.24
USE LEVELS
Let’s brighten things up a bit. Click the Add
New Fill or Adjustment Layer button in the Layers
palette, and choose Levels. You can use the sliders
under the histogram to adjust the intensity levels of
Shadows, Midtones, and Highlights in the image.
Here we nudged the Midtones leftward, making a
gamma adjustment that lightens the overall image.
At the bottom, we moved the dark output level slider
slightly inward to limit how dark things can get.
Fiddle with the sliders until you’re happy.20
OVERLAY BLUR
We’ll now begin the final stage where we
really nail the look and atmosphere we desire. It’s
advisable to create a group at the top to contain
these. You can turn the group’s visibility on and off to
see how things are looking. We’ll use a series of
adjustment and fill layers, but first let’s kick things off
by overlaying a blur shot. Place (Embedded) Blur.jpg.
Set to Overlay blend mode. Add a layer mask, then
paint black in areas to reduce.21
USE COLOR LOOKUP AND VIBRANCE
Click the Add New Fill or Adjustment Layer
button in the Layers palette, choose Color Lookup.
Pick the Candlelight preset then paint black in the
mask to reduce in areas such as the main facial
features and the water swirl textures. Add another
adjustment layer, this time choose Vibrance. Max
out the vibrance, which increases the vibrancy while
protecting skin tones. For an extra bit of kick, you
can pump up the Saturation to +10 (or more). If
increasing, you can paint black in the mask to tone
down in areas.22
ADD COLOURS
Now we’ll fine-tune the colouring
throughout via a series of Color Fill layers. For
each colour you want to use, add a Color Fill layer,
choose the colour, then click OK. Invert the mask,
then paint back with white to add. Set the blend
mode to Overlay (if too intense, try Soft Light). You
can also lower the opacity to tone it down. Here
we added some greens (#6ed728, #56972a) and
cool colours (#11fcf9, # 1434f4), as well as a dark
flesh colour (#7e4c4c).23
APPLY MORE ADJUSTMENTS
We’ll continue with a few more adjustment
layers that will refine the look. Click the Add New Fill
or Adjustment Layer button in the Layers palette,
then choose Gradient Map. Load the Photographic
Toning presets and choose Cobalt-Iron 2. Set the
layer to Soft Light, and reduce the Opacity to 40%.
Now add another Color Lookup layer, choose Foggy
Night. Set the layer to Multiply and drop Opacity to
50%. Paint black in the mask to reduce further.