- MASTER
ADJUSTMENT LAYERS
19. COMPLETE YOUR PIECE
Thanks to their non-destructive application, many of our
artists cite the adjustment layers in Photoshop as
essential for photobash work, used to blend
photography and digital painting into one final image. “It’s
tricky to narrow it down to just one tool in Photoshop
that I would consider my key tool for photobashing, but I
feel that the adjustment layer options comes pretty
close,” says Travis Wright. “A good artist can use almost
any photo in a photobash by using the adjustment layers
to change the lighting on certain elements, add shadows
or match the colours to the surrounding environment.
This is where having a decent grasp of basic art
fundamentals comes into play a lot with photobashing.
You still need to consider your light sources and overall
colour mood that you want to capture with the image.
Adjustment layers are an invaluable tool for bringing a
piece together from what may originally seem like a
bunch of unrelated photos.”Martin Nebelong (www.martinity.com) talks us
through the final stages of his photobash work:
“When I’m nearing the end of a photobash, I often
review the piece on my mobile using Pixl Preview. It
mirrors what you’re seeing in Photoshop. Seeing
your painting in small size, and on a different screen,
can often give you a clue about whether or not the
values of your painting are working. The most
successful photobashes can be read, even at
thumbnail size.“I also often make a new layer and merge all
layers into it (Cmd/Ctrl+Alt/Opt+Shift+E). Then, I run
the image through the Filter>Camera Raw Filter,
which lets you tweak all different sorts of parameters
that will help your finished painting look more
consistent... If I need to draw extra attention to a
certain part of the image, I use the Blur Gallery to give
a depth-of-field effect. Sometimes I apply a very slight
amount of noise to the image, which can also help
bring the elements together.”© Travis Wright 2015 © Martin Nebelong#/.#%04 !24)34 4/.9 !.$2%!3 25$/,0( ˴WWW.ZULUSPLITTER.DE˵
TAKES US THROUGH THE BASIC PROCESS OF A PHOTOBASH, FROM
CONCEPT TO COMPLETION- RELIGHT SCENE ELEMENTS
FAST WITH QUICK MASK
© Tony Andreas RudolphHave an idea: First, you need to
[decide] what kind of concept or image you want to create. Make a 3D
sketch or black-and-white sketch to figure out perspective, light
direction and the elements you want to have in your final imageLook for photos:that match your sketches or ideas. Look for images
Don’t be too picky. Randomness can sometimes be helpful to add
ideas to your imageTransform images: Transform the
images by clicking Cmd/Ctrl+T and hold the Cmd button for the Free
Transform tool. Don’t stretch the image too heavily [so you] don’t
destroy your source imageBlend images together:Integrate the images with
colour-grading techniques by using the Color Match tool or
Curves. Make sure that you don’t lose the material’s effects in
your colour-grading processApply masks: Work
with masks when you start adding your
images to your concept. Don’t use the
Eraser tool to delete the stuff you don’t like.
This helps [if you want to] reuse your photos
Overpaint the photos:painting your photobashed Start
elements to customise them, fixing parts and integrating
them into your concept. Just sticking images together
doesn’t make a cool result