Advanced_Photoshop_Issue_138_-_2015_UK_

CREATE ROCK AND MOSS TEXTURES ON FILESILO

CREATE ROCK AND

MOSS TEXTURES

LEARN HOW TO CAPTURE ROCKY TEXTURES

CHOOSE THE PERFECT ROCK AND DISCOVER HOW TO SET YOUR CAMERA FOR THE BEST TEXTURES

which can’t be scanned. After all, you can’t just go

throwing rocks on a scanner, we’ve tried. It doesn’t

end well.

This tutorial will show you how to get out of the

studio and shoot natural, outdoor textures. The steps

are basic, but if you follow the simple formula, you

02

CLEAN IT UP

Using a hand pump, brush or canned air

sprayer, clean the dirt from the rock so the only

visible texture is the rock itself. You can also wet the

rock to further saturate the rock’s natural colours.

05

SHOOT YOUR IMAGES

Photograph your subject. Make sure you

take multiple photos, and check to ensure they

are clear and exposed properly. If photographing

a group of things try to go as wide as possible

without getting distortion.

03

POSITION YOURSELF

Pose both yourself and the rock so that

the camera is at a 90-degree angle to the surface

of the rock. This will lessen the amount of lens

correction you will have to do later.

06

OPEN IN PHOTOSHOP

Open your image in Photoshop.

Duplicate the background layer, then go to

Image>Adjustments>Shadows/Highlights. Move

the shadows, highlights, and midtones sliders to

maximum then desaturate the layer and set it to

Overlay mode.

01

PICK A ROCK

There are many types of rock found in

different locations; each provides a different texture

when photographed. Think about the applications

ahead of time so you photograph the type of rock

you need for the project.

04

ADJUST YOUR SETTINGS

For most textures you will want to keep

the ISO as low as possible. Keep the aperture over

f4.5, and the shutter speed over 1/100 sec. This

keeps both noise and blurriness to a minimum.

MAKE NATURAL TEXTURES USING RAW MATERIALS FOUND IN YOUR GARDEN

P

hotographing moss and rocks is different

than photographing other textures. Vintage

textures, coffee stains, sketchy textures and

paint splatter textures can all be scanned into

your computer. Rocks, moss, and other natural

elements have a more three-dimensional texture,

will soon be an expert at obtaining your own rock and

moss textures. In addition, many of these steps can

be applied to much more than rocks and moss. For

this tutorial, the focus will be rocks due to their

variations and ease of access, but the same rules and

steps apply to moss and other natural textures.