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WELCOMEISSUE 112

Welcome to the latest issue of Advanced Photoshop. Being able to work across different platforms is a key attribute for any designer. Working with CGI in particular can boost your popularity.

IN THIS ISSUE:

GRAPHICSDIGITAL PAINTING

PHOTOMANIPULATIONPHOTO EDITING

ANNA�LISA SAYWELLEditor

So that’s why this month we are bringing you a CGI and Photoshop special. With over 20 pages of top techniques based on how to work with CG elements, including expert CG landscapes, sci-fi concept art and 3D abstract graphics, we are sure you won’t be disappointed!

Elsewhere in the issue, take a look at creative filters in Photoshop and whether they should have a place in the industry, or peek at our top 15 tips for professional designers, including using gradients and shapes effectively. In the reviews section, we take a look at Alien Skin Software’s Exposure 5 as an alternative choice for photo editing, and explore Wacom’s Bamboo Lamp app to see if it offers anything new.

Last, but by no means least, we have compiled a selection of exclusive content on this month’s disc, including a video tutorial and Photoshop brushes not yet on sale. Enjoy!

FIND US ONLINE:@advancedpshop /AdvancedPhotoshop

.co.uk

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ISSUE 112 CONTENTS

COVER ART

Creative director Mike Campau has been a

long-standing contributor to Advanced Photoshop.

His work is always of impeccable standard, so

why not show it off to all of our readers? See more

from him on page 27.

MIKE CAMPAUwww.mikecampau.com

TYPOGRAPHYNEW MEDIA

including a video tutorial and Photoshop brushes

FIND US ONLINE:/AdvancedPhotoshop

STUDIO INTERVIEW:MOONBOT STUDIOS18Invention comes first at this studio. Explore how they use Photoshop tools to make this happen

66 PHOTOMANIPULATION:BUILD A FANTASY LANDSCAPEMaster photo textures, Photoshop brushes and CG elements to create a post-apocalyptic scene

EYE ON DESIGNWhat’s hot, who’s in and the latest art & design happenings

PRO PANELOur contributors share Photoshop secrets06INDUSTRY NEWSThe latest information from the creative world08

16 PROJECT FOCUSDelicious advertising

10 PORTFOLIO INTERVIEW3D and CGI illustration

CONTENTSISSUE 112

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CONTENTS ISSUE 112

10 3D & CGI ILLUSTRATION

15 TIPS FOR PRO DESIGNERS 26 72 PAINT A STEAMPUNK�INSPIRED PORTRAIT

34 CREATIVE FILTERS

FOR BACK ISSUES, BOOKS AND MERCHANDISE VISIT:

TECHNIQUESProfessional artists reveal their high-end skills in our easy-to-follow workshops

15 tips for professional designers26 INDUSTRY FEATURE

REVIEWSWe put the latest creative kit,books and apps to the test

82 FEATURE:Alien Skin Software’s Exposure 5

86 REVIEW:Bamboo Loop

Free with issue 112 of Advanced Photoshop

RESOURCE COLLECTION

PLUS:• Tutorial project files• Exclusive wallpapers for mobile and desktop• Custom fonts worth $60

Featuring 40 high-res images, exclusive Photoshop brushes and premium Actions

TAILOR�MADE CREATIVE CONTENTExclusive video tutorial covering how to work with fi lters

96 ON YOUR DISC

Mixed media collaboration48 WORKSHOP

Work with fi lters42 FEATURE WORKSHOP

3D abstract graphics60 WORKSHOPMoonbot Studios18 STUDIO INTERVIEW

Creative fi lters in Photoshop34 INDUSTRY FEATURE

Ministry of Sound Running Trax56 HOW I MADE

SEE PAGE 24 FOR THE LATEST OFFERSUBSCRIBE TODAY!

66 Build a fantasy landscapeWORKSHOP

From traditional to digital art88 READER INTERVIEW

76 Sci-fi concept artWORKSHOP

72 Paint a steampunk-inspired portraitWORKSHOP

76 RENDER SCI�FI CONCEPT ART

Create graffiti stencils92 RESOURCE PROJECT

48 MIXED MEDIA 88 TRADITIONAL TO DIGITAL

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eye on design pro panel

pro panelOur cOntributOrs share their PhOtOshOP secrets, exPlaining hOw they create an array Of stunning effects using tOOls and OPtiOns

eye on design

AdAm KuczeKwww.ak-art.netIf you want to make a concept feel like a snapshot from a movie, blur the foreground elements slightly. You can even make them slightly transparent if you want. Then de-focus the background elements.

The Motion Blur filter may also come in handy. Make a copy of the image, apply this effect and then erase the parts you don’t want to be blurred, revealing the original artwork beneath. Combining both effects will create a dynamic depth of field.

Dust, tiny scratches, lens distortion, subtle flares, chromatic aberration and a bit of film grain applied at the end will make your concept feel even more convincing. ■ check out Kuczek’s post-apocalyptic tutorial starting on page 66

christiAn hecKerwww.tigaer-design.com

Creating concept art can be a tricky thing. If you’re working on a project with tight deadlines, it’s best to use every tool your arsenal has to offer. Anything

goes, from using custom brushes to photos, blending modes and filters. The goal is to work fast and to create an image that mirrors the requested idea. This not only works for commercial projects, but can also help when you’re stuck working on a personal project.■ hecker shows you how to work with cGi in his sci-fi scene tutorial on page 76

AndY POttshttp://andy-potts.com/

Edit>Paste Special>Paste Into is a useful technique for building layers of texture in a figure or object. It’s also especially useful when experimenting with unusual shapes. Pasting paint textures into specific

areas of light or shadow can enhance colour and vibrancy. You also have the versatility to move your texture or shape within the attached Layer Mask, resulting in some interesting and usable accidents.■ Find more of Potts’ mixed media work from page 48

© Andy Potts © Adam Kuczek

© tigaer-design.com

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© Imagine Publishing Ltd 2013ISSN 1748-7277

Magazine teamEditor Anna-lisa Saywell anna-lisa.saywell@imagine-publishing.co.uk

☎ 01202 586243

Editor in Chief Dan Hutchinson Features Editor Adam SmithSub Editor Alicea FrancisPhotographer James SheppardSenior Art Editor Duncan CrookHead of Publishing Aaron AsadiHead of Design Ross AndrewsContributorsJulie Bassett, Simon Skellon, Stephen Ashby, Chris McMahon, Radim Malinic, Simon Prades, Andy Potts, Adam Kuczek, Marc Goodman, Ashley Walters, Christian Hecker, Kirk Nelson, Marcus Faint, Alison Innes, Rachel Shemilt and Charlotte Crooks

AdvertisingDigital or printed media packs are available on request.Head of Sales Hang Deretz☎ 01202 586442hang.deretz@imagine-publishing.co.ukAdvertising Manager Jen Farrell☎ 01202 586430jennifer.farrell@imagine-publishing.co.ukAccount Manager Becky Palmer☎ 01202 586438becky.palmer@imagine-publishing.co.uk

Cover discMultimedia Editor Steve Dacombeapxtrahelp@imagine-publishing.co.uk

InternationalAdvanced Photoshop is available for licensing.Contact the International department to discusspartnership opportunities.Head of International Licensing Cathy Blackman☎ +44 (0) 1202 586401licensing@imagine-publishing.co.uk

SubscriptionsHead of Subscriptions Gill Lambertsubscriptions@imagine-publishing.co.uk

For all subscription enquiries:adphotoshop@servicehelpline.co.uk☎ UK: 0844 848 8402☎ Overseas: +44 (0) 1795 592 88013-issue subscription (UK) – £62.3013-issue subscription (Europe) – £7013-issue subscription (ROW) – £80

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FoundersGroup Managing Director Damian ButtGroup Finance & Commercial Director Steven BoydGroup Creative Director Mark Kendrick

Printing & DistributionPrinted by: William Gibbons & Sons Ltd, 26 Planetary Road, Willenhall, West Midlands, WV13 3XTDistributed in the UK & Eire by: Seymour Distribution, 2 East Poultry Avenue, London, EC1A 9PT ☎ 0207 429 4000Distributed in Australia by: Gordon & Gotch, Equinox Centre,26 Rodborough Road, Frenchs Forest, NSW 2086☎ + 61 299 728 800Distributed to the rest of the world by: Marketforce,Blue Fin Building, 110 Southwark Street, London, SE1 0SU☎ 0203 148 8105

DisclaimerThe publisher cannot accept responsibility for any unsolicited material lost or damaged in the post. All text and layout is the copyright of Imagine Publishing Ltd. Nothing in this magazine may be reproduced in whole or part without the written permission of the publisher. All copyrights are recognised and used specifically for the purpose of criticism and review. Although the magazine has endeavoured to ensure all information is correct at time of print, prices and availability may change. This magazine is fully independent and not affiliated in any way with the companies mentioned herein.Photoshop is either a registered trademark or trademark of Adobe Systems Incorporated in the United States and/or other countries and is used with express permission. All $ prices are US Dollars unless otherwise stated.

If you submit material to Imagine Publishing via post, email, social network or any other means, you automatically grant Imagine Publishing an irrevocable, perpetual, royalty-free license to use the images across its entire portfolio, in print, online and digital, and to deliver the images to existing and future clients, including but not limited to international licensees for reproduction in international, licensed editions of Imagine products. Any material you submit is sent at your risk and, although every care is taken, neither Imagine Publishing nor its employees, agents or subcontractors shall be liable for the loss or damage.

Imagine Publishing LtdRichmond House, 33 Richmond Hill,Bournemouth, Dorset, BH2 6EZ☎ +44 (0) 1202 586200Web: www.imagine-publishing.co.uk www.advancedphotoshop.co.uk www.greatdigitalmags.com

The magazine for Adobe® Photoshop® professionals

ASHLEY WALTERSwww.ashleywalters.netOne of the most powerful filters a digital painter has is Liquify. It allows you to gently correct proportion issues without having to start over. But first, use the Marquee tool (M) to select an area you want to edit, then go to Filter>Liquify. Use the Forward Warp tool (W) to

carefully push features into place and press OK.■ See how Walters creates steampunk styles on page 72

LUKE CHOICEwww.velvetspectrum.com This work was digitally painted in collaboration with wakeupmrsingh.

com, using a combination of flat angle brush strokes with minimal bristles. Using a drawing tablet, click a single point, then shift-click another point at varying lengths. Manipulate these marks using Transform>Warp, achieving the curves you wanted. This allows you to edit this style faster.■ Discover Choice’s work for Nike from page 56

Creating concept art can be a tricky thing. If

you’re working on a project with tight deadlines, it’s best to use every tool your arsenal has to offerCHRISTIAN HECKER / WWW.TIGAER-DESIGN.COM

© Luke Choice

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eye on design industry nEWs

G-TechnoloGy Driven creaTiviTy compeTiTion 2013The perfecT plaTform for professionals and amaTeurs, who sTand a chance To win $5,000 and premium G-TechnoloGy exTernal sToraGe

industry news

Of course, if personal accolade doesn’t sell this, there are other notable incentives. These include a whopping $5,000 cash prize and a new

G-Technology G-DOCK ev with Thunderbolt

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G-DOCK ev with thunDerbOlt

the G-dOCK ev with thunderbolt is being billed as one of the ultimate prizes at this year’s driven Creativity Competition. it is the only two-bay solution with interchangeable and rugged storage modules, letting you remove the drives and not have them bare. it also gives you the ability to connect them to your laptop via usB 3.0 – both of which are 1tB in size, meaning maximum storage capacity. the thunderbolt connections make daisy chaining with other G-dOCK ev solutions or thunderbolt-based devices a breeze. in addition, the device is Mac-formatted out of the box with a thunderbolt cable also included, so you’re good to go from the off. Available now at £599/$750.

Ever wanted to be valued for your innovation and drive, as well as the aesthetic qualities of your work? If you have, this year’s Driven Creativity Competition from G-Technology is

the platform for you. Professionals and amateurs alike are permitted to enter, so what’s stopping you?

This annual contest recognises and supports artists’ hard work and passion across multiple categories, which again opens it up to anyone who wants to enter. Whether you’re an animator, photographer, love to shoot film or compose music, anyone is capable of displaying their talents. Check out the official website at www.g-technology.eu/competition and you’ll discover a video reel of great examples that were produced in previous years.

The prestige of winning any international competition is encouraging, and Driven Creativity

exposes you to audiences across the globe. Julien Legay should know – he headed a group of four students who were the overall winners of the 2012 event with their project A Fox Tale. This was entered into the professional animation category. He explains: “It’s great that G-Technology offers a platform for people like us to showcase our work and recognises the efforts that go into it. The Driven Creativity Awards are proof that you can be rewarded for hard work and determination. We intend to enter the awards again this year.”

Of course, if personal accolade doesn’t sell this, there are other notable incentives. These include a whopping $5,000 cash prize and a new G-Technology G-DOCK ev with Thunderbolt – released in April of this year. A professional winner, an amateur winner and a runner-up will be selected from each of the

categories, including animation, music, photography and short film.

But the G-Technology Driven Creativity Competition is also forward thinking, and looks to promote and reward emerging formats – so the GoPro Active category is included. This recognises contributions from creatives who capture video content using a GoPro wearable or gear-mountable camera.

There’s also a People’s Choice Award for the entry with the highest online votes, and even runners-up receive high-performance, premium external storage solutions from G-Technology’s range of products. Every participant has something to play for.

To enter, sign up at at www.g-technology.eu/competition/enter_here. Whether you’re an established or up-and-coming talent, the contest is open to you. Entries close 29 October 2013.

Dreaming Of Dubai: Winner of Professional Best Photography in 2012

HISTORICAL FACTS MADE EASYALL ABOUT HISTORY IS THE SENSATIONAL NEW MAGAZINE FROM THE PUBLISHER OF HOW IT WORKS

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Photoshop CC is now available, and there are plenty of resources that give you a head start on how to use it. The Adobe Photoshop CC for Photographers book from Focal Press features all the tools and techniques serious photographers need to know about when using Photoshop. These are covered in over 800 full-colour pages. We have four copies to give away.

For your chance to win one, please answer the following question:

- In what year was the author of this book, Martin Evening, inducted into the Photoshop Hall of Fame?

Find the answer at www.focalpress.com.Please email your answers to advancedpshop@imagine-publishing.co.uk including your full name and address. The deadline for all entries is 19 September 2013. Only one entry per person allowed. The winner will be randomly selected after the closing date and notified in due course. The editor’s decision is final and no cash alternative will be offered. Employees of Imagine Publishing are not permitted to enter.

WIN A COPY OF ADOBE PHOTOSHOP CC FOR PHOTOGRAPHERS

Four books up for grabs from publisher Focal Press

I’m A Crazy Little Daisy, Wild And Free: Runner-up of Amateur

Best Photography in 2012

Katharina: Winner of Amateur Best Photography in 2012

The Fencer: Runner-up of Professional Best

Photography in 2012

009

All About History is the bold new launch from the makers of groundbreaking magazines How It Works and All About Space. Imagine Publishing’s latest

publication delivers fascinating historical facts and stories, illustrated with stunning photos, infographics and digital art that will engage and inspire all Advanced Photoshop readers.

Its visual impact and easy-to-understand articles provide a dynamic alternative to the academic approaches of other history magazines, found on dusty newsstands. It’s all about well-crafted stories filled with accurate facts and expert opinions.

“Our ferocious commitment to bringing mainstream entertainment sensibilities to the Knowledge/Science sector has been ably demonstrated by our first two launches,” explains Aaron Asadi, Head Of Publishing at Imagine. “I believe All About History will be our most successful title yet in this regard. I am delighted to be a part of the launch of this phenomenal product.”

The first issue is packed with awesome topics, including 50 events that changed the world, the underworld of ancient Rome, the last day of President Lincoln and much more!

The new launch also signals the startup of companion website www.historyanswers.co.uk.

For those of you who love your portable devices, digital editions of All About History will be available for Android, iPhone and iPad. Download yours from www.greatdigitalmags.com.

All About History magazine hit the stands worldwide on 27 June 2013, and is now available to buy from only £3.99/approx $6.

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EYE ON DESIGN PORTFOLIO INTERVIEW

FREELANCER WALDO LEE TAKES US BEHIND THE SCENES OF HIS INCREDIBLY DIVERSE PORTFOLIO

PORTFOLIO INTERVIEW

3D AND CGI ILLUSTRATION

www.walee.comw_a_l_e_e

Looking at the work of freelance 3D/CGI illustrator and photographer Waldo Lee, it’s difficult not to be struck over by just how diverse it all is. From stunning retouched

images of dancing women, to cars created from household objects, his work spans a huge range of ideas and demonstrates ceaseless creativity.

“Many people say that I use digital tools in such a way that you don’t really see that my images are made with them,” he tells us. “The blending between my photography and the 3D renderings really emphasise the final image as a whole. Some others, though, say that they just like the little touch of fun to each of my images!”

Waldo’s career didn’t start out in the advertising and illustration business. After a brief stint in graphic design, it was in the videogame industry that Waldo truly got his teeth into. “I worked for a videogame

company called Kalisto Entertainment, working in the Paris studio. I was responsible for creating the design of a level in a platformer game. I learnt a lot in terms of working as part of a team and the skills required when designing in real-time 3D.”

Since turning to freelance, Waldo has worked for an impressive list of clients. “To name a few, I have worked for Sony, Amnesty International, Audi, Orange, Jeep, Desperados, LG, Syfy, Yoplait – they’re really different from one another, and that’s what I like about it; being able to offer my skills no matter what I have to do!”

Read on to discover just how Waldo injects such variety into his workflow.

CAN YOU TELL US A LITTLE ABOUT YOURSELF AND YOUR HISTORY AS AN ARTIST? I’m a freelance 3D/CGI illustrator and photographer

based in Paris. It all started for me through the influence of my mother, who is herself an artist – namely a painter and a sculptor. I couldn’t really say that my skills come from my school background, as that was pretty much computer science studies. I was always really passionate about art, though, especially digital art back in the days of the Amiga.

I’m largely self-taught, as I was always curious to learn new tools related to CGI. There weren’t any art schools that would deal with that kind of stuff back in my day. However, even though my school orientation wasn’t art related, it really helped me in the sense that I could learn new tools and software really quickly later on in my life.

I started out doing jobs like flyers and posters, and then I moved onto working within the videogame industry, as that was something I really wanted to do. After a great experience of working in the

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01Beaux Arts Magazine: This project saw Waldo work in collaboration with photographer Marc Da Cunha Lopes (www.marcdacunhalopes.com) for a Beaux Arts Magazine commission. It’s one of his most striking pieces of work © Leo Burnett

02France Galop: Once again working with Marc Da Cunha Lopes, Waldo created the 3D monster made out of leaves, while Marc provided the original photography © Y&R - Waldo LEE / Marc DA CUNHA LOPES

03Graffiti Girls: Also shot by Waldo’s collaborative partner Marc Da Cunha Lopes, this editorial series for Lady Caprice Magazine demonstrates a keen knowledge of how to make an image truly pop © Waldo LEE / Marc DA CUNHA LOPES

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eye on design portfolio interview

gaming business, I moved onto being a freelance artist, and I’ve loved it ever since.

When did you first discover your talent With PhotoshoP?I can’t really say. I probably started toying with version 3.0 of Photoshop on Windows and of course it was a blast compared to what you could do with Deluxe Paint on the Amiga! The layers, the brushes; everything was just so cool.

Where do you find insPiration?Everywhere. It can come from a book I’ve read; from an exhibition I attended; from a movie I’ve just seen; from a walk in the mountains; from surfing on the web. Inspiration can come to me from anywhere and everywhere. From colours, to shapes, to feelings; you just have to open your eyes. There’s beauty all around you.

hoW do you ensure your Work feels fresh and different from that designed by your Peers?I try to stay creative in the work I do by incorporating everything I like into something of my own. I try pushing the boundaries of things that haven’t been done yet.

hoW do you strike a balance betWeen commercial and Personal Work? Commercial work comes first, as you’ve got to put food on the table! As such, for me the balance between commercial and personal work is related to how much I need to do to pay the bills. However, it can happen that between two jobs I’ll find some free time. Then I can work on my world, and sometimes when I’m too lazy, I’ll finally sleep to get some rest! The funny thing about it is: when you spend most of your time working for clients, you wish you had more time to work on personal projects, but when you do, you find yourself procrastinating.

Would you say that maintaining a level of Personal Work is imPortant for your artistic develoPment?Definitely. You have to pay attention to your personal work, as it is what really represents yourself as an artist. You don’t always have the liberty to do whatever pleases you on a commercial project, and if you want to let your portfolio grow while displaying a great degree of diversity, then you have to take some time to work on your own projects. Also, regarding your artistic development, you have to take some time to learn new tools and create new techniques that will help you work faster and sharpen your style.

Which artists have had the biggest influence on you and your aesthetic?There are so many artists, but to name a few, I’d say

04

05

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07BRIGHT Magazine Poster: Waldo worked on this illustration for a huge poster, which came free for those who subscribed to BRigHT magazine. it showcases Waldo’s 3d abilities, as well as his Photoshop skills © Waldo Lee

06Optimize The Sun: Waldo’s portfolio is incredibly diverse, featuring a broad variety of style and content. Whatever the project, though, it’s always sure to be imaginative © Waldo Lee / Marc dA CUnHA LoPes

05tRUN: The strong use of light makes for an extremely sleek and effective image in this piece of work © Waldo Lee / Marc dA CUnHA LoPes

04Syfy: This is an example of Waldo’s full 3d/Cgi work. However, as with any work of this kind, Photoshop was heavily used in postproduction © Waldo Lee

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eye on design portfolio interview

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Mode2 for his unique graffiti style, HR Giger for his crazy biomechanical design, and Katsuhiro Otomo for being the artist that introduced me to the world of Japanese illustrators and their crazy mecha designs.

Generally speaking, I would say that a lot of the things I do come from the influence of the hip-hop and Asian culture. Also, nowadays with the internet, you can easily gain access to the work of new, talented artists. They always make you want to push the limits of what you do.

How would you best describe tHe style of your work?A friend of mine told me that I do images that are serious, but with a twist of fun. From my point of view, I simply make images that look good to my eye, and hopefully that will please the viewer’s eyes too. It’s true that most of my work looks photorealistic, but I really don’t want to be stuck in one category, as there’s so much I want to explore.

can you describe How you approacH a new project for a client? I start by sketching out the idea on paper, and then validate this initial idea with the client, along with the artistic direction. That includes the colour scheme,

the lighting, and so on. This step should provide a reference guide as to what you want to sell to your client. This way, you don’t start with a circle and end up with a triangle, if you know what I mean.

Once you’ve got the base idea set, you’re ready to execute your image. This means spending some time in the photo studio or sitting in front of the computer for several days until it’s all done. Of course, you will need to validate your progress with the client during the process of creating the image, but the initial sketch will always be a reminder to stay on the path you’ve set for yourself.

wHat would you say is tHe most important tecHnique you Have learnt in pHotosHop during your career?To be honest, Cmd/Crtl+S! You can never save too often, as you never know when the almighty crash might strike.

in wHat ways Has pHotosHop been integral to implementing and enHancing your design work?Photoshop is really great at dealing with all the post-work regarding the light and the calibration of the colours of your image. You really have some

great flexibility dealing with all these adjustment layers to get the look you want for your creation. This is especially the case when you compose an image from different media – for instance, photo shoot and 3D/CGI integration. When dealing with a lot of 3D rendering with a lot of different passes, it’s really easy to composite the pass in Photoshop to save some time when adjusting for the correct look you’re aiming for.

■ stay up-to-date Don’t be left behind. Keep up-to-date with the latest techniques and technologies that are evolving the artistic world. You need to consistently sharpen your workflow, finding ways to work ever faster and more efficiently.

■ quality versus quantity When working on a piece for your portfolio, always be sure to spend the time required to make it really top notch. It’s better to have a few images that are top quality rather than hundreds of images that are average. You want to show your client that the images they will get will always be good.

■ sHarpen your style Take the time to work out how you can make your style unique and stand out from the crowd. You don’t want to be a copycat, replicating all of the work that’s already out there. There’s no secret to achieving this; just work, work, work.

portfolio tipsWaldo reveals the core qualities that distinguish a good artist and a great one

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Voodoo Doll: this image was part of some work research that Waldo performed for the rosbeef! advertising agency in Paris © Waldo lee

eye on design Delicious aDvertising

We met up With Russian design studio CatzWolf to leaRn hoW it tRansfoRmed oRdinaRy teapots and Cups into fine-looking feasts

project FocUS

Delicious aDvertising

They were changed, of course, but this mostly only concerned the shape of the objects. The textures should be as natural, realistic and lush as possible. You should avoid over-retouching the image, though, as this can actually start to make it feel unrealistic to the viewer.

How was PHotosHoP used tHrougHout tHe Process?What we have in the final images is actually a collage of many studio-shot fragments. They were carefully placed together using Photoshop and then retouched to make them look whole. We used Photoshop to add some volume and physicality to the image, making tweaks to the lighting and shade, and then some details were hand drawn onto the images to make them feel even more lifelike.

wHat PHotosHoP tools were useful in tHis Project and How did you go about using tHem?We used the Liquify tool a lot during this project to deform and rebuild the various shapes of the pots and cups. Mainly, however, we used the usual set of correction tools and light and shade brushes for drawing by hand.

wHat were tHe main cHallenges you faced wHen creating tHese adverts?There were many challenges, but in truth the biggest one was the size of the posters! These were A1 and at 300dpi. This complicated everything from the material selection to the shooting session, and made the drawing and retouching process much longer than usual.

No single image stood out as being any more or less difficult than the others. They were all very similar to each other in terms of the process, different only from one another in the details. There were some standout elements, however. The dragon fruit, for example, has a very complicated shape, so we needed to divide it into several fragments first, and then put them back together in such a way as to form a handle and spout. The final image also needed to be covered with drops of water, which we had to draw in by hand during the last steps of the creative process.

Tom Altman is the CEO of Catzwolf, a company he founded in 2009

after five years of working at BBDO. The company started out working

through freelancers, but soon adopted a studio workflow. Today,

Catzwolf provides illustration, creative retouching, 3D, animation

and digital services such as web production, mobile app

development and Flash projects.

Tom AlTmAnabout tHe studio

www.catzwolf.com

TAsTy TeApoTs For CurTis

name of Project

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You would be surprised to learn the lengths that advertisers go to in order to sell you delicious-looking food. From using glue in the place of milk to actually varnishing

hamburgers for that nice, tasty sheen, there are hundreds of tricks to make what is probably stale, cold food look tempting and delicious.

A far less complex method of achieving the same goal is to simply fire up Photoshop. That’s what Russian studio Catzwolf did, at least, when hired to make a series of adverts for Curtis tea. However, the studio was more imaginative than simply adding some steam and condensation to cups of coffee. Catzwolf went all out, transforming teapots and cups into the embodiment of their contents. The result is a tantalising series of images that immediately illustrate the refreshing, thirst-quenching contents of the drinks in question in one quick glance.

We sat down with Tom Altman, CEO of Catzwolf, to discover exactly how the team went about achieving this goal.

can you give us a bit of background on tHe Project? wHat was tHe brief given to you by tHe client?

Out main goal was to create an amazingly realistic mix of fruit and tea ware in one simple image. The viewers needed to be able to almost taste the teapots and cups, and even to want to bite them! The creative agency supplied us with detailed sketches, which

helped us a great deal in understanding the end goal of the project.

How mucH PHotograPHy was used in tHese images, and How mucH of it was edited? The number of photographs used was different for each image we created. Some only required two or three, while others, such as the chocolate praline

cup, needed about ten. For a project like this, you require top-quality photos when

starting out, with lighting similar to that which the final image will have. This ensures

that all the parts fit together nicely when it comes to manipulating the original photo.

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Photoshop is a big program with an extensive set of tools for raster graphics. However, we only use a limited number of tools and filters in our work. I would say that I wish the application was more stable, and worked without any failures or crashes. Although they are rare, they do happen, and they can really hold you back. Also, I would like to see a faster operation speed when working with big files. However, as a whole, Photoshop is a very well-balanced piece of software and I really can’t raise many complaints about it.

I would like to thank the authors for the back-up saving option introduced in the latest version. This new addition has saved us a lot of hassle in the past

following program failures. We no longer have to worry about losing work.

What tips Would you offer to others looking to create pieces like this? To begin with, you need an artistic education, or at least some traditional drawing skills either on paper or on a graphics tablet. Specifically, pay attention to details, but don’t forget the object’s image as a whole. You need to think about both to create a great piece of art.

Finally, practise a lot with graphic software. That is essential. Once you can use simple tools correctly and efficiently, good results will come naturally.

Elements like this spout needed to be carefully cut out from photos of the original orange. Shading was then carefully applied in order to give it a sense of depth and believable authenticity

Features such as the condensation making its way down the side of the teapot were hand drawn after using shade brushes, as were features such as the steam emanating from the spout

The size of the final image posters meant that much more attention needed to be given over to detail. Note the slightly rougher edges to the chocolate – this was a feature added during post-production

can you give us a little more detail on these stages? hoW did you add other elements such as the steam?This is usually the final stage of the work, when the picture is almost ready. Water droplets, steam and some other small details that render the tea ware as more fresh and lifelike objects are put into the image at the end. We utilise maximum zoom and great photo references to ensure that everything looks right in the final image.

are there any tools that photoshop does not yet have that you Would like to see implemented?

All images © Artemy Altman

STUDIO INTERVIEW

INVENTION COMES FIRST AT THIS STUDIO, WHERE INDIVIDUAL TALENTS COMBINE TO CREATE EXTRAORDINARY ENTERTAINMENT. SEE HOW THEY’RE USING PHOTOSHOP TOOLS TO HELP MAKE THIS HAPPEN

MOONBOT STUDIOS

EYE ON DESIGN STUDIO INTERVIEW

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M oonbot Studios began when friendships converged to form a place of outstanding individual talent. Partners Brandon Oldenburg, William Joyce and Lampton

Enochs all had experience in different areas of the entertainment industry. The three teamed up to tell the stories they wanted to in new and exciting ways, on their terms and with their friends. They did this while operating out of Louisiana, USA.

In fact, this shared passion for storytelling is essentially what continues to bind the latest team members together, now including art lead Joe Bluhm and artists Tyler Schatz and Christina Ellis. As individuals and as a collective, they strive to present work in every available medium – even those yet to be fully realised commercially. “It’s important to have every discipline covered by the best of the best, but a real passion for what we do is our team’s number

one asset. It’s our major strength,” explains creative partner Oldenburg.

Moonbot always keeps an eye out for exciting and innovative ways to deliver its projects. “A great example is the way we’ve dabbled in augmented reality,” Oldenburg reveals. “Projects include the IMAG-N-O-TRON app for our Morris Lessmore picture book and the Diggs Nightcrawler video game for the PlayStation Wonderbook.” However, he’s

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quick to warn that the gimmick is always secondary to the story. “We need to be certain that it makes sense for a story to be told in that medium before we work with it.”

The entire team share the belief that life is too short, which would explain Moonbot’s willingness to experiment no matter how precarious it may be. This leads to Oldenburg urging you to enjoy what you do. “We have to appreciate the process and the journey just as much as the final product,” he adds. “It’s cool when clients recognise your playful nature and it affirms you’re doing something right. This is how we are, and play is at the core of everything we do.”

Oldenburg describes most of the Moonbot team as generalists in terms of style, which allows them to produce many looks and end products. Each team member has a fundamental art skill, but must they also have multiple talents. This seems essential in the modern creative arena. “The same person that paints the backplate for a film might help design a character for a game,” explains Oldenburg. “If things change, we then have the ability to adapt to each and every circumstance.”

So far, Moonbot Studios has had a ‘build it and they will come’ approach. The studio’s first project, The Fantastic Flying Books of Mr. Morris Lessmore, set a high standard. “We knew that our first foot forward had to be our best. It sets the bar for everything else you do,” reveals Oldenburg. “You’re only as good as the last thing you did. Our clients

eye on design studio interview

We knew that our first foot forward had to be our best.

It sets the bar for everything else you do

acknowledge this quality and expect the same from everything they ask us to do.”

This means Moonbot’s commercial work can become very involved. With this in mind, Oldenburg makes sure the chemistry is right when working with clients. He explains: “As much as clients court us and kick our tires, we do the same to them. We want to make sure the brand we’re associated with meets our standards. This way, we’re invested in every project we take on and so are our clients.”

The team makes sure that the entire process is documented, with the intention of sharing as much of it as possible. “That’s one of our favourite parts of our ‘special sauce’,” muses Oldenburg. “I grew up on DVD extras and there’s a whole DIY community that wants to know how an end product was made.” Showing the world the cogs in their machines allows their audience to become more emotionally involved in all Moonbot Studios’ projects.

Moonbot is armed with the latest creative arsenal, allowing Oldenburg and his team to continue to

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Diggs Nightcrawler is a bookworm detective seeking to find out who pushed his pal Humpty Dumpty in Moonbot’s game for the PlayStation Wonderbook

Diggs Nightcrawler character DesigN See HoW MooNbot StuDioS DeSigNeD itS leaD cHaracter for DiggS NigHtcraWler uSiNg PHotoSHoP bleNDiNg MoDeS aND bruSHeS

Diggs Nightcrawler is Moonbot Studios’ latest video game for PlayStation’s Wonderbook augmented-reality platform. The project was created in collaboration with the Sony London Studio and Exient. “It’s a film noir, mother goose story about a bookworm detective who needs to find out who bumped Humpty off the wall,” explains art lead Joe Bluhm. “I relied heavily on reference material, including Humphrey Bogart’s appearances in film noir movies, to create the character design for Diggs Nightcrawler.”

04 CharaCter variationsOnce the design is looking more

three-dimensional, you can easily create variations using the Lasso tool and Transform functions. You can move around parts, then deform and distort them quickly, creating design variations to present to the team.

01 sketCh digitallyStart designing characters with sketches,

both on paper and in Photoshop. Different opacity settings and blending mode options can emulate traditional light table or tracing paper techniques. This way of working gives more freedom to iterate.

06 Final lookOnce the design is nailed down and the

team are happy with the direction, our technical artists create the 3D character you see in the video game. The more efficient we are with the art, the more time we have to spend on crafting the in-game details.

03 Create volumeCreate a new layer above the silhouette

one and link both together. This new layer is the place to develop a sculpted version of the character. Clipping masks conveniently allow you to paint within a silhouette.

05 adding Colour to diggsYou can paint on a new layer and colour

the sculpted designs using blending modes such as Color and Overlay. This lets you quickly get a feel for how a final composition might look. You can also give your image an extra kick by adjusting Hue and Variations.

02 reFine the sketChOnce the team likes a sketch, we flesh it

out by painting more detail and volume. Change the sketch layer mode to Multiply and paint a silhouette on a layer underneath, creating a base for your painting so it looks more 3D.

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anticipate and experiment with innovative design processes. “We have Dell computers with tons of RAM so our artists can paint extremely large backplates for our animated films,” he explains.

Most of the Moonbot team use Wacom tablets, either Cintiq or Intuos. They also occasionally use Python to automate exporting images from Photoshop, based on different parameters for each project. “We use Photoshop almost exclusively when texturing 3D assets that are created in Maya, as well as for textures composited later in Nuke,” explains Oldenburg. “We use several other programs from the Adobe Creative Suite as well, from both version CS5 and CS6.”

Photoshop, however, is used in almost every phase of Moonbot’s workflow: whether it’s painting and illustrating books, designing app icons and interfaces, or texturing assets for games. “Heck, we even use it to produce model sheets, style frames, character design, storyboarding, point-of-sale displays and marketing material,” Oldenburg adds. Amazingly, he continues by saying, “but that’s just a tiny bit of how we use it.”

The team all use Layer Comps when storyboarding. “We’ll start by creating a frame in Photoshop, usually a layer for backgrounds and characters,” explains Oldenburg. “We’ll then group layers together for each shot. The Behind blend mode for brushes is useful for painting behind line drawings. We’ll then add a Layer Comp for each frame.” Hot keys are set up on each creative member of staff’s tablets so that they can quickly move through groups, seeing what’s working in the sequence and what is not.

Painting is a technique that is heavily involved in all of the studio’s concept and illustration work, so Photoshop brushes have become a vital part of the

Moonbot toolkit. “As we’re developing a visual style for a project, we’ll download or create brushes to share among the team,” Oldenburg tells us. “This is helpful because it keeps the style consistent among artists with different approaches.”

Speed is of the essence at a commercial studio like Moonbot, and Oldenburg does admit to being hard set on ensuring this mantra is stuck to. “I’m always analysing how much time it takes to create something. Speed is really important, so that we can have the time on the back end to make a project great,” he explains. “I want to get to the final idea as soon as possible. To do that, you’ve got to get

through a bunch of bad ideas fast. It’s easy to be precious with things too soon.”

Although Adobe Photoshop lets you work at the required pace, it will not do all the hard work for you, you have to do this yourself. Neither will the other advanced software. “Diverse skills, love of storytelling and being really, really good at what you do are also essential,” admits Oldenburg. “Draw from life and do this a lot. Many members of our team have known they wanted to work at a place like this since they were six years of age. It’s love at first sight because of their passion. It’s like we’ve been waiting to meet them our whole lives.”

eye on design studio interview

A DAY IN THE LIFE OF CHrIsTINA ELLIs Christina is Currently working on art for Moonbot’s upCoMing piCture book, the nuMberlys. she takes the tiMe to share her day

09:00 Look up inspiration

In the morning, I usually try to find something cute and fun to keep on my computer monitor throughout the day.

09:30 Work on thumbnaiLs

Today, I’m working on the cover of The Numberlys picture book, so I started with thumbnail sketches from William Joyce.

11:00 making brushes

I’ve made and modified some Photoshop brushes to use on the illustrations for The Numberlys book.

11:15 adding texture

This is one of the brushes I’m working with today. I’ve shared it with Kenny Callicutt, another artist working on the project.

12:00 reference materiaL

We have a big reference library at Moonbot and I have really enjoyed checking out Little Nemo in Slumberland.

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13:00 Changing the hue

The Numberlys is mostly a monochromatic book, but sometimes I add a sepia tone using Hue/Saturation.

14:00 time for a break

Whenever I need a rest, I sketch on the back of printouts. I’m here nine hours a day, so breaks are important.

15:00 adding textures

This afternoon, I’m using Quick Masks in Photoshop to add a different texture to this part of the illustration.

16:00 dolls on my desk

I keep dolls and toys on my desk, which are sometimes cute and sometimes creepy. They help me to stay inspired.

17:00 end of the day

I report the time I’ve worked on the project in our time-tracking system at the end of every day. This helps us stay organised.

Top 5 producTion Tips At Moonbot, we’re AlwAys trying to find better wAys to collAborAte, off And online

■ brainstorm ideas Go through 99 bad ideas as fast as you can because the 100th one will be great. Quick iteration is incredibly valuable. Nothing is too precious at the start of a project.

■ CommuniCate regularly Stand up, walk away from the computer and talk to the people around you. This makes your ideas better and it’s much more fun to involve others.

■ prioritise tasks Get to work early. Start the day by looking at your to-do lists and prioritise. Doing this every day helps you focus your efforts.

■ take a break Your professional work is only as good as the time spent off work. You need to find a balance. Great work doesn’t come from working all day, every day, for your entire life.

■ get organised We collaborate all the time and pass PSDs from artist to artist. Having your layers and files organised makes the whole process a lot easier. Just be sure to name layers appropriately. Al

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MATTE PAINT FROM A RENDERJACEK PILARSKIhttp://jacekpilarski.comDigital matte painter Jacek Pilarski explains how to create an image from a 3D render. “The

most important thing at the beginning is to get the right shape from renders. Everything else, like colours and additional details, can be corrected or added in Photoshop along with photos and painting retouches. There are a few ways of creating 3D matte painting. Personally, I like to build my scene around one render.”

© Jacek Pilarski

TIPS FORDESIGNERSPROFESSIONAL

PROFESSIONAL ARTISTS AND DESIGNERS SHARE THEIR ESSENTIAL TIPS TO HELP YOU TAKE YOUR ARTWORK TO THE NEXT LEVEL

01 THE 3D RENDER“Height Map from National Map Viewer is a

fast way to create believable terrain. After saving the map with MICRODEM, I improved the quality using World Machine and its erosion node. I also exported Flow and Deposition maps for distribution in Vue.”

02 ADD SKY TO SET THE MOOD“I created two clipping masks set to Multiply

and Lighten, filled with the cloud and distant sky colours, which were manipulated using Opacity and Curves. I added sunlight on a duplicate layer set to Screen mode and again adjusted with Curves.”

03 FINISHING TOUCHES“Finally, I added textures and renders, and

painted in elements like foliage and the figure. Since I wanted to imply more action with motion blur, I painted most of the elements in the first plane instead of modelling them, to speed up the process.”

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■ Colour grading“To finish each image, I applied some colour grading using a combination of photo filters, Curves and Gradient Maps”

■ Shadows“I created shadows cast from the sculpture on the dancer and vice versa. Doing this correctly is key to making composites believable”

■ Render“Using alphas from the render and creating custom masks to isolate the dancers, I had to carefully intertwine the two together”

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MIKE CAMPAUwww.mikecampau.com

Digital artist Mike Campau created this image as part of the ‘Motion in

Air’ series. Each image freezes a moment of time in a dancer’s aerial maneuver

and turns them into static sculptures that represent their motion and style. “Original dancer shots were stock photography and stylised to fit within the scene. The sculptures and

stage areas were created entirely with CGI using Luxology’s MODO. The key to blending the CGI render and the stock photo is to match up their lighting setups. In this case, I was starting with a photograph, so I had to harmonise lighting in CGI to make sure all the highlights and shadows matched colour, intensity and direction.”

BLEND CGI AND PHOTOSHOP

created this image as part of the ‘Motion in Air’ series. Each image freezes a moment

of time in a dancer’s aerial maneuver and turns them into static sculptures

that represent their motion and style. “Original dancer shots were stock photography and stylised to fit within the scene. The sculptures and

The key to blending the

CGI render and the stock photo is to match up their lighting setupsMIKE CAMPAU / MIKECAMPAU.COM

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USE GRADIENT SHAPES EFFECTIVELYARI WEINKLE http://ariweinkle.comAri Weinkle is an artist and designer who has been working in the industry for six years,

during which time he has worked for clients such as Adobe and Shutterstock. He created this geometric artwork, The Alternative Of Two, using Photoshop’s Shape tools and Gradient options. “Gradient shapes are a key part of my workflow. In this artwork, they add another layer of depth. To see this effect in action, begin by creating a triangle using the Polygon tool and changing the number of sides to three in the settings. From there, set the Fill to a two-colour gradient at a 90-degree angle. Duplicate your triangle by pressing Cmd/Ctrl+J. Next, position the new layer to the right of your base layer. Use the Direct Selection tool to grab the top point of the shape and drag it over to the left so that it is at the same point as the previous shape layer. Then, grab the point at the bottom-right and drag it so that it is above the left corner, creating a faux 3D pyramid. Finally, change the angle of the gradient to 130 degrees under the Fill options. Using this technique with different types of shapes can create incredibly varied results. Alternatively, you can combine different colour gradients to create a more surreal effect.” © Ari Weinkle 2013

TECHNIQUES 15 TIPS FOR PROFESSIONAL DESIGNERS

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CREATE SYMMETRY IN GRAPHICSLUCA MOLNARwww.lucamolnar.comIllustrator and painter Luca Molnar knows how important it

is to balance an illustration. “Creating symmetry is very easy to do in Photoshop; it can also really make a piece stand out. Just Ctrl/right-click on the layer containing your object, choose Duplicate Layer, then go to Edit>Transform and choose Flip Horizontal or Flip Vertical. Now place your new object next to your previous one to make your composition symmetric. Use guides to make sure it is all in the right place.”

FORM HARMONY AMONG OBJECTS JONATHAN FOERSTERwww.atleastwedream.comDigital artist Jonathan Foerster uses an array of

different elements in his work, from stock photography to 3D rendered objects. “When piecing elements together, I generally use colour correction, saturation adjustments, contrast adjustments and the brushing of highlights and shadows using different blend modes. This gives the [impression] that objects are in the same space and lighting. When finalising the piece, I make these adjustments as well to ensure harmony as a whole.”

DON’T FAKE ITDAVID COUSENSwww.coolsurface.com For designer David Cousens, one of the vital ingredients to good artwork is authenticity.

“Take the time to research the subject and content of your designs: look at reference photos, watch films, read up about the subject in books or visit a relevant place. Your research will inform you and filter into your artwork, and your audience will recognise the authentic details and be impressed. When you try to fake details, somebody will always notice. Being well informed helps to avoid making any silly mistakes”.

USE A MOOD BOARD TO PLAN PROJECTSALEXANDER OTTO www.alexanderotto.comAlexander Otto is an art director and designer who has been in the industry for seven years. He has worked for some impressive clients,

such as Alfa Romeo, Redbull, Mazda and Chanel. Otto was given the opportunity to work on style frames for the Infiniti FX50 project, on behalf of Parasol Island (www.parasol-island.com). The main idea was to figure out how they could integrate the car into a dark and foreboding landscape. “Before I start a new project, the first thing that I do is find reference images and use these to create a rough mood board. This helps you to visualise the direction and idea that you plan to go with, but it also makes sure that you and the client are on the same page before you head too deep into your design. As soon as a clear design direction is set, you can spend the hours making your design work and look beautiful, but before that you should make sure everything is set. That not only saves you time later on, but also keeps you from becoming frustrated and unmotivated.”

A lot of detail went into these style frames to ensure that the final result was well integrated

The style frames were created using lots of different photographic sources, perfectly composited together

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USE SHADOWS/HIGHLIGHTS TO BLEND STOCKMARIO SÁNCHEZ NEVADOhttp://aegis-strife.netMario Sánchez Nevado created this colourful composite as an advertising poster for artistic

collective Hysterical Minds’ (www.hystericalminds.com) exhibition at the Parallax Art Fair, London 2012. “When I build photomanipulations, I need several stock photographs from many different sources, such as stock image websites or my own photography. The quality, lighting and other specifications tend to be quite different from each other, so my main goal is to homogenise them and make them look as if they were taken in the same shoot. My preferred method for this is to use Shadows/Highlights, which you can find in the Image>Adjustments menu. It allows you to correct over and underexposed areas of the photos, lightening or darkening pixels according to the overall luminance of the picture. This is very useful for creating a consistent light spectrum across the different stock files. Depending on their original lighting conditions (intensity, direction, harshness etc), you can use settings to achieve similar lighting [across all of the photographs].”

© Mario Sánchez Nevado

BUILD UP YOUR ILLUSTRATIONSSTEVE SIMPSON www.stevesimpson.comSteve Simpson produced these labels and neck hangers for El

Mariachi, a Mexican wine. He was initially engaged by branding agency IKON BC just to illustrate the neck hangers, but later was given the opportunity to design and illustrate the labels. “The agency supplied a template for the hangers, over which I sketched my three amigos. Once approved, I scanned them into Photoshop and used them as a base for my illustration. First, I copied the pencil drawing onto a new layer, reduced its opacity and set it to Multiply, allowing me to use it as a guide for rendering the layers beneath it. Using the Shape tool, I traced the main elements of the characters onto multiple layers and adjusted the colours accordingly. I then rasterised the shapes, locked down the transparency, and using a textured brush, added depth, light and shade. I spend a lot of time tweaking colours using the Hue/Saturation slider. To give the colours a little more depth, I added a couple of layers of scanned-in paper textures, one set to Multiply for shadows and the second set to Linear Dodge for highlights.”

© Steve Simpson

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ADD CONTRAST AND HIGHLIGHTSPERTTU MURTOwww.perttumurto.com This image, One Night, is an EP cover for a band called Timeflies, and was created by Perttu Murto. Here, he shares his technique for giving an image

some final contrast and highlights, making artwork look and feel like a professional package. First, you need a flattened or merged layer of everything you have done, and then you need to duplicate that layer. “Go to Filter>Other>High Pass and change the Radius value as you wish, experimenting to find the right value for your piece. After that, change the High Pass layer to Overlay and then play with the opacity.”

WORK WITH MIXED MEDIADARIUSZ SZWEDOwww.d-sphotography.co.ukAdd interest to your digital artwork by

incorporating traditional media, as photographer Dariusz Szwedo did in this graphics based image. “The main image was from a set of photographs of my friend and some stock photos. In order to achieve the paint effect, I have scanned in some ink splashes which I made myself, as well as some brush presets. Several shapes were also brought into the image: simple circles as well as some lines were created with the Polygon tool. Finally, shadows were done with a simple selection filled with black and a Gaussian Blur set to about 500.”©

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■ High Pass“A High Pass layer is often used to

sharpen images in Photoshop and is commonly used by pros”

■ Great effects“Using this method should give your image better contrast, make it sharper and boost your highlights”

■ Final touch“If you make any additional changes to your image, you will need to redo the High Pass effect”

The quality, lighting and other

specifications of the stock photographs I

use tend to be quite different from each other, so my main goal is to homogenise them and make them look as if they were taken in the same shoot. To do this, I use Shadows/HighlightsMARIO NEVADO / HTTP://AEGIS-STRIFE.NET

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SOURCE THE RIGHT PHOTOGRAPHYBART VAN LEEUWENwww.oedipoes.comBart van Leeuwen’s

amazingly detailed photomanipulations are the result of carefully selected photographic elements. “BM-Doublicious (shown here) is made out of several more or less recognisable parts, such as the front of a car (for the body) and a gas turbine (for the gun).” The best thing that you can do for your photomanipulations is to spend a few minutes working out what kind of photography you need, so that you can search with a purpose. For this image, van Leeuwen was looking for “shiny metallic parts; a reflective car door or a motorcycle helmet, for example.”

BUILD A BRILLIANT BACKDROPRICHARD ROBERTS http://richardbroberts.comRichard Roberts created this image for Tiger Beer’s Tiger Translate, which aims to celebrate global creativity through

exposure to different cultures and experiences. Bringing creative artists from the East and West together, they showcase their artistic collaborations spanning the areas of music, design and art, fashion, dance, photography and more.

“One of the key features in designing this piece was creating a soft Asian mountain backdrop. Compiling a few images together with different layer blending modes, specifically Overlay and Soft Light, did this. The key is to start with a very soft plain background such as calm clouds. After that, bring in your mountain stock photos and use Overlay or Soft Light, and mess around with the opacity.

I usually turn the images I am laying down to black and white by desaturating them so that they pick up the colours of the base image. So, for example, my base image was a soft, calm blue cloud photo. I laid a dark contrasted black-and-white mountain photo on top of that and played with the blending mode. Overall, this is a fantastic tip when trying to achieve an almost silhouetted background in your image. It can also be done with trees, which looks fantastic. It can really give your piece that extra edge.”

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001 | Work to a guide“For the overall composition, I used a few photographs of female models as guidelines, onto which I placed the photographic parts”

002 | Use similar photos“The key to making it all believable is consistency of the photographic parts [in terms of] contrast, colour and lighting”

003 | Get creative“Even the limbs and headgear in this artwork are made from photographs, which can be manipulated to fit their intended use in the image”

004 | Key tools“Essential tools for this kind of image are quite basic: the Pen tool for cutting out and the Warp tool for deforming stock”

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I usually turn the images I am laying down to black and white by desaturating them so

they pick up the colours of the base imageRICHARD ROBERTS / HTTP://RICHARBROBERTS.COM

CREATING WEB TEMPLATESRADIM MALINICwww.brandnu.co.ukFor art director Radim Malinic, the ability to save HTML-ready web mock-ups in Photoshop is an

invaluable tool. “The majority of clients will not understand the website sizing from a PDF or JPEG. In fact, it manages to confuse most of the less-savvy clients, but it is easy to demonstrate the final design in a browser without writing a line of code. The option ‘Save for Web’ will generate the ‘index.html’ with an image folder, all ready for an upload to your test server. There’s also an option to slice the design directly from guides to make the HTML mock-up even quicker.”

CREATE ATMOSPHEREVALP MACIEJ HAJNRICHwww.valpnow.comGraphic illusionist Maciej Hajnrich is a master of mood: “Building an appropriate

atmosphere was one of the main goals for this artwork. To achieve this mixture of dark ambient lightning, I was using adjustment layers including Exposure and Curves. I grouped key elements, such as the background, head and groups of painted roots, and changed their blending mode to Normal. This allowed me to make colour corrections within each group without affecting others. There is another nice trick to keeping a dark image saturated at the same time: change the blending mode of the Exposure layer to Luminosity.”

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ContributorsADAM SPIZAKWWW.SPIZAK.COM

Digital illustrator Adam Spizak lives by the Oil Paint filter, using it to produce the exciting, vibrant style seen throughout his portfolio of work.

STEVE SIMPSONHTTP://STEVESIMPSON.COM

Award-winning illustrator Steve Simpson uses only a few filters, to create believable imitations of traditional print effects in his projects.

RADIM MALINICWWW.BRANDNU.CO.UK

Art director Radim Malinic strongly believes that well thought out filter application improves the editorial images for his clients.

ARCHAN NAIRHTTP://ARCHANN.NET

Art director Archan Nair uses every filter at his disposal and any that suits his surreal mixed media style at that point of his invention.

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TECHNIQUES CREATIVE FILTERS IN PHOTOSHOP

working with stock images that don’t always come with the same quality.”

His last sound bite is of course referring to the new Photoshop CC Camera Shake Reduction filter. Matte painters, creative retouchers and digital illustrators will certainly put this option to good use, under the circumstances noted by Spizak. All these art forms are steeped in photomanipulation and rely on compatible detail to create authentic looks. This serves as a prime example of how important the appropriate use of a filter can be when achieving successfully visual outcomes.

FASTER WITH FILTERSThis is an opinion shared by art director, illustrator and graphic designer, Radim Malinic (www.brandnu.co.uk). “To me, Photoshop filters are like candy sprinkles on a chocolate cake. They play a crucial part and add to the final ingredient,” he muses. “But much like sprinkles without a base, you can’t make a great looking image with just a bunch of filters. Well thought out filter application always adds that much-needed finishing flourish, adding depth to an image.”

Even more fundamental is the ability to deliver your work within the deadline given, and combining the correct filters with the right tools becomes essential. “This isn’t the same as cutting corners,” adds Spizak. “Utilising your filters to boost your strengths will make you more competitive in the creative arena.”

Adobe also realises this, so the latest filter functionality serves to help you improve your workflow. Photoshop CC caters for users who like to make manual adjustments, but this new software also does a great job fixing any image automatically. Latest algorithms lay the foundation for impressive editing, which is just one more reason to embrace these latest additions.

New functionality has been well received. As Malinic tells us: “Photoshop should be a tool that helps you achieve your ideas much quicker. Whether it be just trying different art direction ideas or cramming for an urgent deadline, all the latest filters offer a myriad of possibilities to finish an editorial or graphics piece with ease.” However, with Photoshop CC, it’s as much about the method as it is the outcome. Many of the CS6 filters are now applicable as Smart Filters, so you can run them non-destructively. This reflects how older filter versions are still being readily adopted.

CLASSIC FILTERSSubsequently, this coupling of old and new shows how Adobe has actually been packing Photoshop full of useful filter upgrades since version CS6, perhaps even earlier. Award-winning illustrator and designer Steve Simpson (http://stevesimpson.com) certainly thinks so, as he reveals: “I’ve been using Photoshop since 2.5, when you had to go off

Photoshop CC combines the power of Adobe Camera Raw 8.0 (ACR), now available as a filter option. The reason why this is so great is that the Camera Raw filter presents its own host of new options that improve image results. These can be applied to any merged image or image layer in your stack. The all-new Spot Removal tool, Upright controls and Radial filter are applicable. The Camera Raw filter is also wholly editable at any time, as it can be applied as a Smart Filter.

and make a cup of coffee while waiting for the progress bar to finish. It really could take ten minutes or more. I think if anything, my style might have been influenced by finding and adapting filters and brushes to create effects more conveniently.”

There will always be filters that seem obsolete. However, Photoshop’s user base spans many levels and markets, so what some may consider as old and useless could be a vital tool for someone else. Illustrator and art director Archan Nair (http://archann.net) agrees. Although filters have never dictated his style, they’ve definitely contributed to and enhanced the mixed media looks in his work. Those he chooses to use depend on the direction of a piece of work and feeling he gets from it.

“Photoshop is such a vast tool that certain filters might be used in a lot of areas and never in others. So I never find any of them totally useless.”

Some artists are far more dedicated in their use of filters, however, which determines the version of Photoshop they use. Digital illustrator Adam Spizak is a prime example, as he endorses Photoshop CS6 and the Oil Paint filter introduced with this version, although he runs this from the Creative Cloud. This allows him to successfully fuse photography, digital painting and 3D in his signature style.

Spizak admits that 3D elements can make his digital illustration especially sterile. “Being able to give these a softer look with this filter makes my work feel more authentic and less synthetic. I would

New Camera Raw filter

This isn’t the same as cutting corners. Utilising your filters to boost your strengths will make

you more competitive in the creative arenaADAM SPIZAK / WWW.SPIZAK.COM

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This image is a prime example of how the Gaussian Blur filter can be easily used to detach UI elements and create a three-dimensional effect, highlighting widgets

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■ UPDATED BLUR GALLERY

The Blur Gallery was one of the more notable updates in Photoshop CS6, supplying users with three brand-new filter types to create effects with. These include Field Blur, Iris Blur and Tilt-Shift. A simple new interface with on-image and in-context controls enables users to quickly create photographic blur effects with one focal point, or vary the blurriness between multiple focal points. This still exists in Photoshop CC, but is a little more special, as you can now apply any of the Blur Gallery filters as a Smart Filter.

■ UPDATED LIGHTING EFFECTS FILTER

This update in Photoshop CS6 finally addressed dialog size issues, allowing you to apply effects full-screen – no more squinting! CS6’s new Adobe Mercury Graphics Engine reinforced improved tool functionality, with effects applicable in real-time on screen. The filter includes three options: Spot Lights lets you alter the intensity, location and direction; Point Lights, acting as a light bulb does, lets you alter location and intensity, but not direction; Infinite Lights completes the set and is more distant, only letting you change intensity or colour. Each is now also applicable as a Smart Filter in Photoshop CC.

■ ALL-NEW SMART SHARPEN FILTERThe all-new Smart Sharpen can still be found from the Filter>Sharpen menu. A new Noise slider now sits in the dialog, which lets you boost the Amount slider like never before, combating artefacts through improved algorithms. Even at a maximum Amount of 500%, you’re able to create usable effects.

■ NEW SHAKE REDUCTION FILTERPhoto editing has never been so easy with the brand-new Camera Shake filter. This fixes single-focus images that have been affected by your hands shaking when shooting. The filter’s algorithms go about radically fixing images automatically, but you can also manipulate effects manually.

FILTER UPDATES IN PHOTOSHOP CC TAKE A LOOK AT HOW FILTERS HAVE PROGRESSED OVER THE YEARS

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UPDATED BLUR GALLERY

The Blur Gallery was one of the more notable updates in Photoshop CS6, supplying users with three brand-new filter types to create effects with. These include Field Blur, Iris Blur and Tilt-Shift. A simple new interface with on-image and in-context controls enables users to quickly create photographic blur effects with one focal point, or vary the blurriness between multiple focal points. This still exists in Photoshop CC, but is a little more special, as you can now apply any of the Blur Gallery filters as a Smart Filter.

Photo editing has never been so easy with the brand-new Camera Shake filter. This fixes single-focus images that have been affected by your hands shaking when shooting. The filter’s algorithms go about radically fixing images automatically, but you can also manipulate effects manually.

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TECHNIQUES CREATIVE FILTERS IN PHOTOSHOP

advise you to avoid the Shine setting though, as this option can make the elements look too clayish and moody.” He’ll also apply digitally painted looks on top of 3D elements using the very same filter, which is an essential step in his work process.

On a very basic level, using the Oil Paint filter is great to blend colours while keeping image edges and silhouettes intact. “Often, after base shapes are added, I’ll apply the Oil Paint filter to blend colours, working with thumbnail on quite high settings. Oil Paint>St ylization is set to 7 and Cleanliness to 40, which polishes shape detail,” he explains.

Full service graphic design and illustration studio DKNG Studios (www.dkngstudios.com) also continues to use CS5, primarily out of convenience and familiarity with the software. Creative director Dan Kuhlken explains: “The basic filters we tend to use are Guassian Blur, Render Clouds and Add Noise. These are usually just a first step that we can refine later. We don’t require filters with very robust option settings.”

Based on the simplicity of the filters DKNG use, these seem to have had a lot of staying power. “They’re so universally used and can be fairly subtle in appearance. We try to avoid being overbearing with our use of filters because we want them to be

invisible to the end viewer,” reiterates other creative director Nathan Goldman.

FILTERS FOR PRINTSince the majority of DKNG’s work is also screen printed, the team starts by using very basic layers and shapes. “We’ve since graduated to using a lot of texture and depth in our work,” explains Kuhlken. “Filters have allowed us to explore a more realistic style, while at the same time being able to output halftone separations required for our print medium.”

DKNG use Gaussian Blur filter to blur the halftone dots until they disappear. “This lets us work with a close approximation of the original, anti-aliased file,” reveals Goldman. “This is typically achieved with a Gaussian Blur>Radius of 5.0px, but varies depending on the texture, size of the halftone dots, as well as the resolution.”

Similar filters play a huge part in Middle Boop’s work (www.middleboop.com), by illustrator Gordon Reid. When he started out using Photoshop, his work was very flat and a lot more hand-rendered. “As I developed skills in Photoshop, I began to experiment with all sorts of filters,” he reveals. “Eventually, I found a number of go-to types that have been used in countless pieces of my work, and have really been a key factor in evolving it.”

Now, he uses Photoshop filters to help create work for all manner of formats, including branding, infographics, editorial illustration, vinyl, advertising campaigns, and surprisingly, web design. “Filters add depth and texture to my illustrations, and without them I don’t feel my work would be of as high a calibre,” he admits. “For example, without the Noise, Gaussian Blur and Motion Blur filters, my piece for West One Music wouldn’t be as strong.”

01 SEPARATE LAYERSArtwork should be imported

into Photoshop in at least three layers, recreating a foreground, mid-ground and background. This is so you can independently apply varying degrees of blur and opacity to each layer.

02 APPLY GAUSSIAN BLURWith the background layer

selected, apply a Gaussian Blur with Radius set between 5 and 7px. This creates a deeper, more distant look. Reducing the opacity of this layer will also create the illusion of depth.

03 LAYER BLURRED EFFECTS

With the mid-ground layer selected, apply Gaussian Blur again, with the Radius set at half the value of the first – between 2 and 4px. This creates the appearance of an object that is positioned just below the surface of the water.

Filters for poster designDKNG use the Gaussian Blur filter to imitate depth

Photoshop is such a vast tool that certain filters might be used in a lot of areas and never in

others. So I never find any of them totally uselessARCHAN NAIR / HTTP://ARCHANN.NET

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001 | Oil Paint fi lterAfter the base render of the head is complete, scale up the image by 100% and apply the Oil Paint filter to blend colour. This helps to remove jagged edges and achieve a smooth outline. Set both Oil Paint>Sty lization and Cleanliness settings at 4, with no Shine setting at all, as you don’t need texture at this point.

003 | Back to Oil PaintOnce you have added the elements, apply the Oil Paint filter again to unify your image. All 3D elements get the Oil Paint treatment to make sure they fit better and look less artificial. Back flames get Oil Paint>Stylization and Cleanliness slider treatment, set to 2.5 and 3. This retains detail, but softens sharp areas.

002 | Liquify fi lterLiquify can be a lifesaver, especially when working to tight deadlines. Constantly jump back and forth to the Liquify tool while painting to modify elements that don’t fit or feel right. Use a large brush to apply Liquify effects and change the shape of the 3D renders.

004 | Smart Sharpen fi lterI use Smart Sharpen to exclude the Highlights by setting this slider to the maximum value – the higher the setting, the less visible sharpening will be. Set at Amount of 167%, Radius at 5.6px and Reduce Noise at 9%. Play with Shadow settings to get a nice boost of detail in darker areas.

MULTIPLE FILTERS DIGITAL ILLUSTRATOR ADAM SPIZAK REVEALS HOW HE ADDS PHOTOSHOP FILTERS TO CREATE PAINTERLY LOOKS

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TECHNIQUES CREATIVE FILTERS IN PHOTOSHOP

The Add Noise filter is certainly a valuable tool to Reid, and especially so when his work takes on a more retro feel. He explains: “I rely on this often to add the finishing touch to a piece. In my West One Music artwork, I applied then set the Noise>Add Noise filter at an Amount of 44.79%, with Uniform settings and Monochromatic active to achieve the perfect look.”

FILTERS WITH WEBWith regards to web design, many styles trending are minimalist, clean and functional. Special effects are becoming rare, and perhaps applying filters for such projects goes against the grain. But certain designers are still finding ways to make use of Photoshop filters.

User Interface (UI) designer Grégoire Vella (www.gregoire-vella.com) still uses these to produce three-dimensional effects. He too comes back to Blur filters, as he explains: “I apply Gaussian Blur to create drop shadows or to detach UI elements from a background. For example, in my Placemotion widget design, I needed a green, blue

and brown background. So I chose a photo of a cow in a meadow and added the Gaussian Blur filter, setting the Radius at 60px. It’s funny because I’m the only one who knew that’s a cow behind the widget – the only one!”

Vella also predicts how the new Camera Raw filter in Photoshop CC will help to edit photo-based web elements. “If I have to deal with photos, this new filter will no doubt save time,” he explains. “I’ve already researched how to open a JPEG with Camera Raw in CS6, but never found a direct solution. So from now, I know I can use the Camera Raw filter directly, via the updated menu.”

So after reading what our experts have to say, we once again pose the question: should you avoid using Photoshop filters? It’s hard to move away from 20 years of history and application. The gradual build up in development of the filters arsenal has given many creatives the chance to work with some great all-time classics, to produce convincing commercial design. Only time will tell if the latest additions will become as indispensable as the rest.

Reidmore retro feel. He explains: “I rely on this often to add the finishing touch to a piece. In my West One Music artwork, I applied then set the Noise>Add Noise filter at an Amount of 44.79%, with Uniform settings and Monochromatic active to achieve the perfect look.”

FILTERS WITH WEBWith regards to web design, many styles trending are minimalist, clean and functional. Special effects are becoming rare, and perhaps applying filters for such projects goes against the grain. But certain designers are Photoshop filters.

(www.gregoire-vella.com(www.gregoire-vella.com(produce three-dimensional effects. He too comes back to Blur filters, as he explains: “I apply Gaussian Blur to create drop shadows or to detach UI elements from a background. For example, in my Placemotion widget design, I needed a green, blue

Package design

03 PAINT COLOURColor Range was used to select black

areas, which I cut and pasted onto a separate layer. I then coloured individual areas while retaining some of the pencil texture. Locking down the layers and using the Brush tool lets you rough out colours before committing.

02 ADD THE STAMP FILTERThe pencil sketch was scanned into

Photoshop, where I applied Levels to increase contrast and boosted resolution from 300 ppi to 400 ppi. I then applied the Stamp filter to the slightly blurred image, creating a look similar to linocut or block print.

01 TRADITIONAL SKETCHI was tasked with designing the

packaging for Mic’s Chilli Inferno Sauce. I was able to consider and personalise each part of the bottle, right down to the barcode. All the main elements were drawn using a retractable pencil to retain gritty pencil lines and a less digital feel.

STEVE SIMPSON SHOWS US HOW HE USED FILTERS TO REPLICATE TRADITIONAL PRINT EFFECTS

Filters have allowed us to explore a more realistic style, while at the same time output

halftone separations required for print mediumDAN KUHLKEN / WWW.DKNGSTUDIOS.COM

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■ TOPApply Add Noise to a layer placed over the entire piece. Set layer Opacity to around 20% and activate Uniform and Monochramatic. Amount was then set at 35%

■ LEFTEven though the final image uses really dark tonal values, each of the thistle plants has extra contrast added via High Pass

■ RIGHTThe flattened final image was simply Sharpened. Though this filter is more for photographers, it works really well with illustrations and designs

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CREATE COMMERCIAL STYLES WITH THE AID OF PHOTOSHOP FILTERS IN COMBINATION WITH OTHER OPTIONS

WORK WITH FILTERS

The beauty of book covers is something that many designers and illustrators will talk about at considerable length. Book cover design might even be at the top of their lists,

just before album covers. It’s an exciting format to work with, and if the book is successful, your artwork can be seen everywhere. However, cover design can also prove to be very tricky. Unlike abstract album art, illustrators and digital artists can only skim the top of the full story when creating a book cover. So designing one for an elaborate tale can be difficult to get right.

In this case, the story is about unexplained change in one person’s life. Graphic designer Radim Malinic was tasked with coming up with a design to portray that. This tutorial goes behind the scenes to explain the logic behind the design process and decisions. An image can say a thousand words and it is the designer’s task to find the right representation to achieve that with ease and finesse. You will find out about stock image research, typeface choices, quick retouching tips and of course, Photoshop filters. You can even follow the steps to create a book cover design of your choice. Let’s get started.

SEARCHING FOR STOCKFIND THE RIGHT IMAGES AND CUT OUT CORRECTLY

03 CUT OUT IMAGESAs with any photo

collage project, the next part could be either tedious or exciting, depending on whether you enjoy cutting out with the Pen tool. You can minimise your efforts by choosing images with white backdrops, as these are much quicker to extract via Channels, or even the ever-so-improved Background Eraser. Once you have cut them out, save them as a transparent PSD.

01 THE RIGHT STOCKThe magic of digital collage illustration

begins with research for the right elements. The success of an image depends on the quality of your chosen photo stock. As the budgets for projects can be highly varied, a subscription website can help you with spreading out the image costs.

02 DETAILED SEARCHIt pays off to spend extra time on the site

and do an extensive stock search, considering your options. Having a choice of a few images for each element also helps. Once Photoshop is open, it’s better to be prepared than have to go back to find additional stock.

WORK WITH FILTERS TECHNIQUES

BOOK COVER DESIGN

CONSTRUCT YOUR BOOK DESIGN

WORK IN PROGRESS

Progress 1: A rough mock-up

Progress 2: Add effects

Progress 3: Choose typeface

RADIM MALINICwww.brandnu.co.uk

OUR EXPERT

Whether it’s work for international household brands or small start-up businesses, Brand Nu provides unrivalled, innovative and forward thinking art direction and illustration.

@brand_nu

04 LENS CORRECTIONSometimes, even the best image will need

tweaking so that it fits right in your composition. The photo of the town house needs a heavy Lens Correction to fix its perspective. Go to Filter>Lens Correction and click Custom. Vertical Perspective needs to be set to -68 and Horizontal Perspective to -2. Set Scale to 66% so that the image doesn’t jump out of the main view window. The roof is then straightened using Free Transform.

05 EASY FILE IMPORTThis is when the fun starts. The images are

all prepared as single layers and can then be put into a new Photoshop document to create the basic layout. Since you have each object as a transparent PSD, simply dragging them onto the main PSD canvas right from the Finder window will spare you a lengthy one-by-one import. By importing an image directly, the layers will also retain their file names, which will save you time renaming any.

06 ADD ADJUSTMENTSThe majority of the photo images were shot

at different times of the day, with different settings. You need to blend the images closer together to make them look as if they are illustration elements, with a surreal quality. To do this, add a Hue/Saturation adjustment layer and set Saturation to +25. Another important step is to bring out a better contrast through Levels via an adjustment layer. Select Preset>Increase Contrast 1.

07 DODGE AND BURN WITH BRUSHESThe previous step has already brought out much nicer colours, but the overall effect can be taken to

another level. Any regular object can be retouched to have extra shadows and highlights. This makes them a little more exciting. Add a new layer with a Clipping mask and set its blending mode to Overlay. Press the D key to set foreground and background colour to default black and white. Activate your brush, select a soft round style and set brush Opacity at 10%. Use white brush strokes to accentuate highlights and black for shadows. This is technically dodge and burn, but with a lot more freedom and versatility.

08 BLEND IN IMAGERYThe elements should look like hybrids

between a photo element and a hand-drawn object. The Undergound sign, after being cut out from the image, is given a full black Color Overlay blending mode set to Color Dodge, which will lighten the object. Then, in the same way, add Gradient Overlay with colour #f4dec6, set to Normal at 64% Opacity. These effects will remove some of the hard colour values and make it blend better with other elements.

QUICK TIP Some of the filters can be used as custom patterns to save you time. Put an hour aside to prepare noise layer patterns of various strength and opacity. These can then be applied as a new pattern via an adjustment layer, with extra options to vary the effect.

TECHNIQUES WORK WITH FILTERS

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Retouch youR elementsClone, transform and re-Colour objeCts in your digital illustration

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13 Add noiseEvery step is about giving the image a fresh

identity. Create a new layer and fill it with a light grey colour. Select Filter>Noise>Add Noise. Set Amount to 35%, activating Uniform and Monochromatic. Create a copy of the layer but hide this duplicate. Return to the original noise layer and lighten it using a Brightness & Contrast adjustment. Set its blending mode to Multiply. Unhide the duplicate layer and set its blending mode to Vivid Light at 35% Opacity.

12 Work With detAilNow repeat the process with the country

house. Its texture will provide for even more exciting results. You can brush in-between tiles with small brushes to achieve tonal opposites. Detailing can be very intricate, so create two new layers to apply each colour. This will help with any tonal overlays. Your element should look almost like a film set item or even a computer-generated object. Basically, anything but a regular photo cutout.

11 Free trAnsForm editsContinue to tweak the perspective using the

Free Transform options (Cmd/Ctrl+T). Apply this to the building in your image, holding the Opt/Alt key to move the top-right corner out of the shape. Help yourself by switching on the transparent grid (Cmd/Ctrl+;). This helps you to visualise the re-alignment of right angles. Be sure to blend the bottom edge using a layer mask. Also apply the brush dodge and burn technique learnt in Step 7.

09 second hAlF plAnningAlthough there is a hint of the final image coming together, there’s still quite a lot to do. The book

cover needs to be bright in colour and full of exciting details. In the next few steps, you will retouch a few more elements to give them a more illustrated look, clone out text and add more colour.

10 Blending optionsIn order to give the image full perspective,

you need a simple way of adding some ground for the objects to stand on. The solution was found in a cobbled street image, which was brought in and warped to suit the angle. This was placed between the main character and the buildings behind her. Select Layer Style>Blending Options, hold down Opt/Alt to separate the points and slide the Underlying Layer options to a value of 124 /238 255.

001you need to retouch elements successfully and also get pleasing results quickly. it’s all about finding unexplored possibilities rather than giving yourself a headache

003select layer styles>Color overlay and add a solid black colour (#000000), with blend mode set to Color dodge. also add a white to transparent gradient overlay, with opacity set to 64%

002signage in your elements can be changed easily. just clip a new layer on top, set Clone stamp to sample all layers and clone out any type

001 002 003

Your element should look almost like a film set item

or even a computer-generated object. Basically, anything but a regular photo cutout

15 TWO-TONE BACKGROUNDThe two-tone background is actually quite

important, as it represents how this book is a story of two parts. Create a new layer above the background and fill it with pink (#e7a8cc). Create another new layer and fill this with orange (#f9be88). Click Cmd/Ctrl+T to activate Free Transform and scale your orange layer so that it sits halfway on your page. Now add a vignette effect using Levels to breathe more atmosphere into your design. Just paint out your centre using a layer mask.

16 FONT STYLESA design should give you an idea of the

story at first glance, therefore the choice of typeface is also important. There are thousands of options out there. The ones used in this instance are Cheap Pine for the lean, tall type and ITC Caslon 224 for the rest of the text. Their contrast strikes a nice balance between the modern-feel, condensed type and the classic values of a serif. Feel free to experiment with other type styles and see and how they influence the final look of an image.

18 SMART OBJECT MASKWith all main elements firmly in place, see if

you can squeeze a bit more energy and motion into the image. Get an image of a flower and cut out a few petals. Place them around the canvas at various sizes. Turn each flower layer into a Smart Object and apply Gaussian Blur with Pixel Strength set between 4 and 8px. This will make the petals appear closer to the viewer, causing a depth of field effect. Select one of the petals and paint to the Smart Filter Mask to brush away some of the effect, for a subtle blur.

17 DROP SHADOW EFFECTSYou can work up the shadow on your main

type using a little trick called Drop Shadow. Open the Layer Styles options and add Drop Shadow with 25% Opacity; Distance, Spread and Size all set to 10%/px; and angle at 90 degrees. Ctrl/right-click the FX option in your layer and select Create a Layer. This will separate the shadow from the type, which is automatically placed below the main layer. Click Free Transform and push the shadow towards the centre of the page. This should create a camber-like effect.

14 PAINT IN SHADOWYour objects may still appear disjointed, so

cast shadows will help to make them look grounded. These shouldn’t be too harsh, but are subtly achieved by painting with a simple soft round brush on a layer set to Multiply. It’s never recommended to brush with heavy brush opacity. As in Step 7, only use 10% Opacity and Flow. The virtual light source is heading from the bottom-right corner, diagonally through the centre. Paint your shadows in an imaginary 11 o’clock direction.

3D EFFECTSADD BLUR AND SHADOW EFFECTS TO CREATE DEPTH OF FIELD

TYPE STYLE RESEARCHIt is important to pre-determine the cover type and its balance with imagery and illustration. A quick trip down to your local book shop will help you to formulate your ideas. The style of some current titles and their placement on the market should give you an idea of what you do and don’t want to do. In addition, bear in mind the sizes of book covers on new devices such as kindle or iPad. An alternative cover with a bold type is a possibility, helping you not to compromise too much on the printed edition design.

The two-tone background is actually quite important,

as it represents how this book is a story of two parts

TECHNIQUES WORK WITH FILTERS

046

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TAKE THE OUCH OUT OF RETOUCHING

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PHASE 1: TRADITIONAL MEDIASIMÓN PRADES SHOWS YOU HOW TO MASTER YOUR MARK-MAKING WITH HIS EXPERT DRAWING TECHNIQUES

02 SIMPLE SHADINGTry not to go into too much into detail while

shading with your pencil marks, as you’ll want to save most of your efforts for when you’re detailing in ink. All you need to do is present the areas of the face that create shadow and contour, like the brow and the nose.

01 PENCIL ON PAPERUsing the model in ‘DSC_5534.psd’ as a

guide, sketch a face in pencil. Try to identify the significant parts, for example the nose, eyes and mouth. As all pencil lines will be erased later in the creative process, you don’t have to be overly careful; just go with the flow instead. This lets you add interesting lines to work with when inking later on.

03 FIND YOUR WAYAlso make sure you don’t spend too much

time obsessing over one area of the face – move around as much as possible. This way, you won’t lose the view of the whole image. You can learn a lot by educating yourself on the hatching techniques of the masters like Rembrandt and Ingres, but you’ll find your own way the more you work with pencil and paper.

FIND OUT HOW TO TAKE YOUR TRADITIONAL IMAGE INTO DIGITAL SOFTWARE TO CREATE THIS VIBRANT STYLE

GRAPHICS

MIXED MEDIA COLLABORATION

Collaboration is defined as a process where two or more people work together to realise shared goals – in this case, a super-vibrant piece of artwork. We have teamed up with

two of the globe’s most talented mixed media artists, from totally different ends of the creative spectrum, and asked them to merge their comparative styles into one super style. Mixed media has never felt so energised.

Traditional artist Simón Prades (www.simonprades.com) puts pencil to paper in a productive way, showing you how to master physical application for an authentic result. Brush marks, paper types and post-production tools are

all discussed in Phase 1. Andy Potts (www.andy-potts.com) then picks up the baton, running with it headfirst into Photoshop. Phase 2 of this tutorial explores ways to digitise your image using photo stock, textures and more. These are combined with Prades’ impressive scanned illustration to produce this vibrant masterpiece.

Photoshop makes it all possible, of course, and you’ll discover how to apply layer masks; crop, cut and paste texture and image stock in new ways; and boost colour using adjustment layers combined with blending modes. By the end, you’ll have mastered this fresh mixed media style, which is applicable to any of your future projects.

MIXED MEDIA COLLABORATION TECHNIQUES

ANDY POTTSwww.andy-potts.com

OUR EXPERT

Andy Potts is a London-based illustrator and motion designer. His career has encompassed image making, graphic design, animation and art direction. He’s worked for clients including the BBC, The New York Times, Little White Lies and Warner Music.

@AndyPottsTweet

SOURCE FILESOn the disc you can find the start model file, ‘DSC_5534.jpg’, which made this entire tutorial possible. Work from this using the steps to recreate all of the effects you discover in these pages.

SIMÓN PRADESwww.simonprades.com

OUR EXPERT

Simón Prades is a freelance illustrator living and working in Saarbrücken, Germany. He works for editorial and advertising clients such as The New York Times, Vice, Nike and Serviceplan.

@simonprades

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08 time to stopOne of the biggest problems when drawing

freehand is knowing when to stop and say ‘enough is enough’ before moving on into the digital canvas. It’s natural to spend too much time on something rather than quitting too early, but sometimes you overdraw the picture and regret doing it, by which time it’s too late. A good drawing lives from the contrast between the light, sketchy parts and the areas where you really went into detail.

06 Find your rhythmTry to switch between pen and brush often,

so you achieve rhythm in your drawings. Rhythm is actually something that is very important, as the more you keep your hands moving, the more interesting marks you’ll make. In parts like the hair, it doesn’t make sense to show each and every strand. So again, look out for lighter and darker areas and use the brush, especially when there is not a lot of ink left on it, to create good textures.

04 Work With inkOnce you feel as though there is enough information in the pencil marks, move onto working with

ink; in this case made by Rohrer & Klingner. You only need to use a normal nib and brushes. There are lots of different materials available for you to try and buy, but in the end what you feel comfortable using depends on your practice. This is more important than spending too much time looking for material in art shops. Sometimes it’s a case of the simpler the better.

07 embrace the mediumLittle side effects of your ink drawing

always add personality. These include strokes or points and circles you’ll leave on the paper, and are things you can’t experience when working digitally with a tablet. It’s good just to let these happen, as you can still erase parts later. Also, keep sheets of paper at hand for cleaning the brushes or noting ideas. This is always a good source for textures you might want to use later when colouring digitally.

05 dark to lightRemember: there is no going back when

working with this medium. Every line you draw is permanent and you will have to live with it. A simple way to tackle mark-making with ink is to approach your drawing as you did with your pencil. Start working in the darker areas of the image, then move onto the lighter ones. Draw without fear and you’ll make your inking look interesting in the end.

quick tip A lot of people may ask themselves what the point of drawing on paper with ink is, when Photoshop, Illustrator and drawing tablets are available. The main reason is that your way of creating is always more unique when working in analog. This shows much more about you and your rhythm than if you were to start directly in digital media.

Techniques mixed media collaboration

09 Scan your imageAfter the work is dry, move onto digital

application by simply scanning the picture in. This is better than taking a photo. If you’re working with an A4-size scanner, you’ll often have to merge parts in Photoshop. Always aim to scan in around 200 per cent larger than the intended final size, as this gives you the possibility to crop the picture or rearrange the composition and still have a high resolution at the end.

12 intereSting arefactSAs mentioned before, there are little side effects that might appear in your image. Embrace the

strokes and splodges caused by drawing in ink, as they add personality and individuality to an image, even if not every art director will let you get away with keeping them in. If you want to highlight certain elements in a graphical way, just paint beneath your line work on a new layer using a bright colour. Working with a drawing tablet helps a lot here, letting you paint precisely and keep inside the lines.

13 add more bruSh markSWhen you have areas that feel a bit too

empty or perhaps just a little boring, you can always work with some of the brush strokes you created while drawing but didn’t use. Recycle these by scanning them in, colouring them using the techniques in Step 11 and overlaying them on top of your background, beneath your line work. Edit these marks by lowering the layer opacity and working to layer masks. These always look more authentic than digital brushes. However, there are some very nice expert brushes on the web, such as those by Kyle Webster (www.kyletwebster.tumblr.com).

10 Separate the blackSThe good thing about working with ink is

that you don’t have to worry too much about the tonal correction once you’ve scanned to Photoshop. You would if you had scanned your pencil drawing. Just try to filter out all good black marks and lose the paper colour, using Select>Color Range. Choose Select: Shadows, then duplicate to a new layer. Erase the original backdrop, create a new layer beneath your ink layer and add a new colour (#b0c6c2).

11 colour your black markSYour black marks may now seem too harsh

when offset against your coloured background. You can add a new colouring to your black marks by again selecting Color Range to target your black marks (Select>Color Range>Select: Shadows), then fill the selection with a new colour. You might have to try a few times to get the right one, but to help why not try starting with a dark blue hue (#17293f) like the one used in the example, so contrast isn’t lost?

051

Embrace the strokes and splodges caused by drawing

in ink, as they add personality and individuality to an image

Phase 2: enhance digitallyLet’s recap on what’s been done before proceeding to phase 2, produced by digitaL artist andy potts

14

052

switch between pen and brush often, so you achieve rhythm in your drawings. this is very important, as the more you keep your hands moving, the more interesting marks you’ll make

choose select>color range and separate your marks from

the original background by duplicating them into a new layer. this lets you re-colour

these using a simple selection and the fill command. apply a colour that achieves contrast

with a new background

with your ink marks on a separate layer and the old

background deleted, you can now add a new one.

simply create a new layer at the bottom of your layer

stack and fill this with a colour that again

contrasts with your newly coloured ink marks

recycle your leftover brush marks by scanning, copying and pasting these into your artwork. position them between your line and background layers, then re-colour and edit with layer opacity and layer masks to create a mixed media effect

19 style the hairUse Gradient Map to apply colour to the hair

in the model photo layer beneath your face layer group. Choose a bright magenta foreground and a royal blue background in the palette, then apply a Gradient Map to the model photo, as shown in this example. This will pick out magenta hair texture in the drawing. Use a mask and gradient to fade out the body, leaving only the left side of the face affected. Use the Lasso tool to create two simple selections at the front of the hair, painting in a magenta tint.

17 Place the faceDrag and paste the model cutout into your

working PSD. Set the Opacity of the illustrated model layer to 50% to help position the photograph with the drawing accurately. Use Transform (T) to adjust the photographic face to fit the lines. Create a new path layer and use the Pen tool to trace around the model’s face only. Select the Path (Cmd/Ctrl+Return). Press Cmd/Ctrl+J to copy and paste to a new layer and place this above the blue colour tints created in Step 15.

15 increase canvas sizeTo add a little breathing space around the traditional illustration, extend the canvas at the top and

sides. This provides more space at the top in particular. The decision to boost colours was made, implemented by adding a new blue base colour (#02498b) on a new layer. Add a vector mask to this. Apply a black to white Radial Gradient tool to the mask to make this colour layer faint around the edges and set the layer blending mode to Overlay. Duplicate this layer and remove the mask to strengthen the overall blue, but retain a more intense central area.

18 Blue in the faceHide the photo layer and reduce the opacity

of the brush marks. Select the cutout layer, press Cmd/Ctrl+U and set Saturation to -100. Hold Cmd/Ctrl+L and set Levels to create a higher contrast. Duplicate this and place the new layer beneath the original version. Set the foreground to dark blue and the background to light blue, then apply a Gradient Map. Set the blending mode to Soft Light at 50% Opacity. Apply a layer mask to both layers and add gradients as shown to blend elements.

16 cut out the modelNext, you’ll add flesh tones to the illustration

using the original photo. Open the ‘DSC_5534.psd’ file supplied, then choose Select>Color Range. Use the Color Picker to choose the white space around the model and set Fuzziness to 160, picking out fiddly hair edges. Inverse the new image selection choosing Select>Inverse. With the selection, activate the Lasso tool, hold Shift and quickly draw around the face and hands area to complete a whole model selection. Press Cmd/Ctrl+J to copy and paste your selection to a new layer.

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Techniques mixed media collaboration

24 Edit shapEs with masksOpen ‘magenta_splat.psd’ and copy it. Back

in your image, activate the illustrated model layer and select Edit>Paste Special>Paste Into. Position the magenta shape in the lower-left area of the hair. Cmd/Ctrl-click the thumbnail yellow shape layer, create a new layer and fill your selection with magenta. Open and drag the circular ‘mask.psd’ into your image. Select it, activate the previous magenta shape layer and click Add Vector Mask. Move your mask over the magenta shape to create the desired effect. Place behind the model’s hair.

23 zEbra tExturEAt this stage, you’ll want to add more visual

interest to the image. This will be in the form of zebra marking in the brush marks in your backdrop. Open ‘zebra_mask.psd’ supplied on the disc and drag the layer into your image. Add a layer mask to the brush mark layers applied in Step 13. Select the zebra shape by hovering the cursor over the layer thumbnail and click while pressing Cmd/Ctrl. Activate the brush mark layer mask and fill the zebra selection with black to create the new mask shape in that texture.

22 add hints of yEllowNow the face is in place, start to develop

the illustration and composition around it. Open ‘yellow_dots.psd’ and drag it into your image, placing it beneath the illustrated model and eye shape layers created earlier. Apply a Hard Light layer blend mode to this new layer and do the same with ‘yellow_shape.psd’. The yellow adds another colour dynamic to the illustration and highlights the model’s eyes and hair in unusual yet interesting ways.

20 EyEs and lipsUse your Lasso tool to create simple eye

shape selection on a new layer under the drawing layer. Fill these with an off-white colour. Select the black-and-white face layer and create a selection around the lips using the Lasso tool. Copy and paste to a new layer, place above the illustrated model layer and set blending mode to Hard Light and Opacity at 50%. With the lip selection still active, create and fill a new layer above this one with a magenta colour. Set its blending mode to Color.

21 dEtail fEaturEsNow that the colour, flesh tones and hair have been worked out, it’s time to add a few simple

finishing touches to the face to bring it to life. This is before working on the rest of the illustration. We’ll do this by detailing certain key facial elements, like the eyes, lips and hair.

001A sense of realism is important, introduced with the photo texture skin tones and the colouring of the model’s eyes

003You’ll now continue to add even more elements to enhance the mixed media feel of this collaborative image. You’ll be working with textures and masks

002A photographic layer has been placed above the model’s lips, set to hard Light blending mode to add more realism. An applied magenta colour keeps the vibrant theme going

001 002 003

Adding digital textures to the illustration will help to blend the photographic elements

054

25 Add structure to your designOpen ‘bridge.psd’ and paste it into the

top-right of your image, under the blue tint layer. Open ‘building.psd’ and repeat, positioning it to the left of the model. Set both layers’ blending modes to Overlay and Opacity to 70%. Add a layer mask and gradient to fade away the bottom edges. Cut out the lamppost from ‘building.psd’ using the Marquee tool. Apply Levels, add a Multiply blending mode, then place it at the bottom. Place the final ‘building_2.psd’ under the bridge, set to Overlay and at 70% Opacity.

26 texture imAge AreAsOpen ‘texture_1.psd’ and place it in the

bottom-left below the blue tint layer. Add a layer mask and use a gradient to fade the right side. To get a smooth fade on the top edge, simply Cmd/Ctrl+J the texture, delete the existing mask, add a new one and edit again. Add another gradient mask to fade the remaining top edge and apply an Overlay blending mode. Add the ‘texture_1.psd’ again, place this above the bridge layer and set Saturation to -100. Mask out edges with the Gradient tool.

27 texture the whole imAgeAdding texture to the illustration will help to

blend the photographic elements. Open ‘texture_2.psd’ and place it beneath the blue tint layers, filling the whole canvas. Add a Soft Light blending mode and set Opacity to 30%. Paste the same texture into the black-and-white face layer, using the Edit>Paste Special>Paste Into technique in Step 24 and setting the same Soft Light blending mode and 30% Opacity. This lets you move it to an optimum position and work with the facial features through the mask.

28 more grAdient mApsOpen ‘palm_tree.psd’ and paste it into the

bottom-left, above all the layers. Open ‘texture_2.psd’ and apply a magenta to blue Gradient Map. This creates colourful texturing. Edit>Paste Special>Paste Into a selection of the palm tree layer, then scale and position accordingly. Place the final ‘yellow_shape_2.psd’ over the main palm tree and set this layer’s blending mode to Hard Light for a little final flourish.

29 Add levelsThe image tones are quite subtle and could

do with being a lot more vibrant. You can resolve this issue by merging your image, then selecting Layer>New Adjustment Layer>Levels. Set Shadows to 15, Midtones to 0.90 and Highlights to 245 to boost the contrast. This will result in an exciting, digitally fleshed-out ink drawing of a beautiful woman in a tropical urban environment.

Colour rangingBeing able to edit a photograph and cleanly take the texture you need is important when working in digital mixed media. Use Hue/Saturation to create a black-and-white image, then apply Color Range to cleanly select either black or white areas, adjusting Fuzziness to accurately decide selection amounts. To ensure you get the most from your selection, choose the opposite colour you need, then inverse your selection before cutting out. This picks up more pixels in tricky edges. You can then lift your texture and use this to mask detail from the original photo, or even fill it with colour for a pop art effect.

055

I wanted to create a distressed background that reflected an

outdoor environment, as well as a dark, cold, atmospheric version of the image for a winter release

056

© Ministry of Sound Australia

© Ministry of Sound Austra

lia

HOW I MADE

MINISTRY OF SOUND RUNNING TRAX 2013

LUKE CHOICE

This album cover image began as a 3D model that was created inside Cinema 4D. CGI artist Luke Choice (www.velvetspectrum.com) used an array of deformers to achieve an explosive look in certain

areas of this render. These create a sense of motion and velocity, reflecting the energetic music tracks on the album.

Choice rendered out the image using V-Ray, which enabled him to get the most realistic representation of the shoe. He then

DISCOVER HOW ENERGETIC CG ELEMENTS ARE PERFECTED INSIDE PHOTOSHOP

started to adjust the image colours using multiple gradient map adjustment layers and colour overlays inside Photoshop. “I wanted to create a distressed background that reflected an outdoor environment, as well as a dark, cold, atmospheric version of the image for a winter release,” he explains. Choice also added a couple of ink splash stock images, once again turning to gradient map adjustment layers to blend, overlay and mask out specific areas.

057

HOW I MADE TECHNIQUES

03 MOTION GRAPHICSEasily create dynamic

streaks of light of varying widths by adding a starry landscape. Apply a Motion Blur filter to this new layer, at an angle that compliments the direction of the shoe.

01 SELECTIVE COLOR Render out your image and open it in Photoshop. Perfect

individual colours using a Selective Color adjustment layer. This helps to specify the desired intensity.

02 GRADIENT MAPSAn alternative way to

specify colour is to set different coloured gradient maps on top of one another, then brush away from the attached layer mask with a black brush.

BLEND

SPECIALCGIBLEND

CGI

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Techniques HOW I MADE

04 Depth of fielDDuplicate the shoe layer and apply a Lens

Blur filter to imitate depth of field. This makes the image look like a real photograph. Apply a layer mask and brush away to reveal the main focus.

05 Colour DepthIn order to create a richer blend of cyan in

the background, make sure that the black base colour has a majority of cyan in the CMYK breakdown grid.

06 DoDge anD BurnSet the Dodge tool exposure at a low value

and apply it to the render’s specular highlights, enhancing these as well as lighter colours. Then apply the Burn tool to create depth.

08 Colour overlaysBuild up coloured highlights by duplicating

the same layer, then increasing its size. Reduce Opacity and set this duplicate layer’s blending mode at Random to create a softer blend.

07 texture overlaysWhen overlaying a texture in the

background, clip a black-and-white gradient map instead of converting to Grayscale. That way, you can personally control the level of detail.

I use gradient maps as opposed to a Hue/Saturation adjustment layer most of the time. But this depends on the complexity of the colour breakdown in an image. Using a gradient map allows you to create the exact blend of colours you’re after, rather than running the risk of a Hue/Saturation layer distorting them.

MasTer coMplex blending by avoiding hue/saTuraTion

Colour Control

Most sections of the image will have a gradient map applied in some way. This helps to create a surreal colour palette, which gives it a graphic style © Ministry of sound australia

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060060

LEARN TO BUILD ATMOSPHERE WITH TEXTURE, SHAPES AND PHOTOSHOP’S EXTENSIVE COLOUR ADJUSTMENT TOOLS

GRAPHICS

3D ABSTRACT GRAPHICS

A bstract art has a long history of placing the surreal among the real and you will be capturing some of the essence of that heritage in this tutorial.

You will begin by using 3D modelling software (we used Cinema 4D) to generate a number of abstract stocks quickly and easily. Then move into Photoshop CS6 or above, manipulating your stock images to create a unique and interesting design, which can be placed into a vivid and atmospheric scene of your own creation.

By following this tutorial, you will have used the Magic Wand tool as a simple method of preparing

stocks for manipulation, used Dodge and Burn to help blend those stocks into your scene, become familiar with Layer Masks and seen the benefits of using Groups in organising layers. Finally, you will use several of the Adjustment Layers available in Photoshop to dramatically transform the image through changes to colour, vividness and depth.

It can’t be stressed enough that the key to creating images like this is constant experimentation and it may prove difficult to replicate some of the steps in this tutorial. More important here is that you create something unique, interesting and very much in the spirit of abstract art.

MARC GOODMANwww.el-nombre.deviantart.com

OUR EXPERT

A self-taught Photoshop enthusiast for over six years, Marc is a UK-based artist who mixes commercial work with his more abstract-style personal pieces.

SOURCE FILESA selection of abstract 3D stocks can be found on the disc, and the rest are available from sxc.hu.

FROM 3D MODELS TO VIVID ABSTRACTION

WORK IN PROGRESS

Progress 1: Paste the abstracts

Progress 2: Colour effects

Progress 3: Colour adjustments

CONSTRUCT THE ABSTRACT RENDER AND MANIPULATE SHAPES TO BUILD THE CENTRAL ABSTRACT IMAGE

061

01 START IN 3DStart in Cinema 4D. Create a text spline

(Create>Spline>Text). Go to the text object properties and in the text box enter a letter. Go to Create>NURBS>Extrude and in the Object Manager, drag your Text Object into the Extrude NURBS. Select the Extrude NURBS and press C, making it editable.

02 CREATE THE ABSTRACTSThere are now three objects: the NURBS

and two Caps. With the Move tool (E), move the two Caps away from the central NURBS. Now select Extrude (Mesh>Create Tools>Extrude) and click one, hold the left mouse button and move, giving your object substance. Repeat on the other two objects.

03 DEFORM, TEXTURE AND RENDERSelect the Magnet tool and change to

Polygon mode. Select and move random points on the objects to create interesting shapes. Apply deformers to manipulate further. Repeat the first three steps, making a range of abstract shapes. Create a texture with a vibrant colour and apply to all objects. Now render several PNG images in various positions, giving a range of stock images.

3D ABSTRACT GRAPHICS TECHNIQUES

BLEND

SPECIALCGIBLEND

CGI

040062

Techniques 3D abstract graphics

04 Paste in the abstractsNow move to Photoshop and create a

large portrait canvas. Open up all of the newly created abstract stocks and for each one, go to the Channels window and Cmd/Ctrl-click on the Alpha Channel preview window. This will automatically select the abstract, letting you copy and paste each one into the new canvas. Close all of the stock files and return to the new canvas. Select all of the abstract layers and put them into a group (Cmd/Ctrl+G) and rename it ‘Abstract’.

05 Fill the backgroundPick one of the abstracts with the most

vibrant colour and hide all of the others. Now create a light to dark colour gradient that will contrast well with the colour of the abstracts. In this example, it is a range of blue hues. Note that it doesn’t need to go too dark, as you will be using a number of adjustment layers later. Create a new layer, select the Gradient tool, then choose Radial Gradient and fill the background from a point in the upper-right quarter to the bottom edge.

06 build your imageUnhide all of the abstract stocks again and

arrange them around the canvas so that they can be used to create your base image. Generate a sense of flow from the top of the canvas to the bottom by using those stocks with the longest lines. Using the Transform tool (Opt/Alt+T), you can resize, rotate and flip them to generate that top-to-bottom shape and flow. Try to use Transform as much as possible to avoid repetition and obvious use of the same images, for a more interesting design.

08 start to add eFFectsNow to start adding some more dynamic

elements. The first step will be to create an almost tangible ‘glow’ around the abstract. Hide the gradient background layer so that you see the chequered pattern underneath, indicating transparency. Press Cmd/Ctrl+Opt/Alt+C and paste to create a single layer of the work so far. Ctrl/right-click on the Stocks folder layer and select Duplicate Group. Rename the duplicate ‘Main Glow’, maximise it, hide all layers and place the layer just created inside it. Now unhide the gradient background.

07 trim the FatThere will always be elements that just don’t seem to fit or sit contrary to the overall flow. Those

need to be removed, so add a Layer Mask to each stock that you want to adjust. This means you can erase and experiment without fear of permanently erasing the originals. Just press X to quickly swap foreground and background colours, and paint on the Layer Mask directly to put anything erased straight back in.

Quick tip When creating the glow, the majority of work is just resizing the original image. To make it more interesting, create a number of areas that stand out. A great way to do this is to use the Smudge tool with a soft round brush, teasing some of the glow’s edges out.

063

3D abstract graphics techniques

10 Tidying upSimply adding a glow in one layer has the

downside of ‘flattening’ the depth, but allows you to see where it works best. Begin to restore depth by adding a Layer Mask and removing the Dodge from anywhere it doesn’t fit. Now unhide some of the other layers in Main Glow, setting them to Dodge and moving them into the Stocks group. By putting them between and behind the original layers, you can get some of that depth back. Experimentation is key.

11 Build up depThNow start work on the background to build

atmosphere and depth. Open a stock image of bubbles in a dark liquid and put it in a new group called ‘Background’, which will go below the other two groups. Resize the stock to cover the entire canvas and set to Soft Light at 50% Opacity. Select Filter>Blur>Gaussian Blur and set it to a high radius. The intention is to lose the detail but take advantage of the contrast, to re-create some of the ethereal elements of underwater light.

12 Add To foreground TexTureOpen further bubble stock images and

place them in the Background group. Repeat the process in the previous step using varying levels of blur and use them to frame the focal abstract. Now open a bubble stock with a good amount of high-contrast detail and place it above all your other groups. Resize it to ensure that it covers the entire canvas and change the layer mode to Color Dodge. The highlights in the stock will bring out detail in the background and create points of foreground interest.

13 unexpecTed elemenTsSome of the best examples of abstracts

contain an unexpected element of reality. The image created here has a strong underwater atmosphere, so now add some real fish. Open the stock image (www.sxc.hu/photo/823028). As it has a clear background, you can quickly remove the fish from its surroundings. Select the Magic Wand (Shift+W) and click the background. Increase Feather or Smooth by small increments to refine the selection, being careful not to lose too much of the stock.

09 eAsy colour effecTsOnce you’ve created an interesting design, you need to make the colour really stand out. Add easy

colour effects by taking the compressed layer, changing it to Linear Dodge and adjusting the Hue. Experiment by moving it around the canvas, seeing how it affects the abstract and the background.

build layers and elements Apply strokes with your brushes And tweAk the composition

The intention is to re-create some of the ethereal

elements of underwater light

001 002 003

003take the compressed layer and change it to linear dodge. resize it so that it covers both the abstract and background

001open hue/saturation and slowly cycle through the hues until you find one that complements abstract and background

002repeat the dodge process with the duplicate stock layers, experimenting with hues and building up further effects

040064

Techniques 3D abstract graphics

Finishing touches Add more sTock, AdjusT colour And Apply filTers

14 More fishUse Transform to resize and position the fish

to the left of the abstract, facing into the middle. Open the other two fish stock images (www.sxc.hu/photo/893415 and www.sxc.hu/photo/573350) and extract them from their backgrounds. Transform them so that they are facing in from the right side of the canvas. Now lightly use Dodge and Burn to help them fit in with the scene. Apply a gentle Gaussian Blur to one of the fish to simulate a degree of depth.

17 Colour adjustMentsAdd a Levels Adjustment layer, changing

the drop-down from RGB to Green. Drag the left tab to 60, removing a lot of green from the background. Repeat with Red. Add another Levels layer, adjusting the middle tab for Red and Green to 0.78, and on another one, increase the middle Blue tab to 0.71 and reduce the right to 243. The pink needs to blend more with the blue, so add a final Levels Adjustment layer, setting the Red left to 19 and middle to 0.89.

18 tidying upPress Cmd/Ctrl+Opt/Alt+A to select the

whole canvas, then copy and paste to quickly make a single layer version of the image. Duplicate the layer and apply a Smart Sharpen filter. Apply a Layer Mask and remove any areas that appear over-sharpened. Copy and paste the whole image once more. Lastly, select the Burn tool with a very large round brush (Hardness 0) and burn the bottom edges of the canvas in a ‘V’ shape.

15 add bubble stoCk iOpen a bubble stock, paste it into the

canvas and change the colour mode to Lighten. Test the stock in various positions around the abstract, both above and below the original layers, making the bubbles fit with the flow and shapes already created. Again, be sure to use the Transform tool to rotate, scale and Warp the stock, ensuring that there is no obvious repetition. Only pick two or three areas to add bubbles to, so that the effect isn’t overused.

16 add bubble stoCk iiThe bubble stock used in the example

doesn’t have a lot of definition on the Lighten layer mode, so you can paint straight onto the layer to make the bubbles stand out. Select the Brush tool and change to a small brush of 3-6px and Hardness of 0. Using small strokes, paint directly on top of the stock bubbles to help define them. Using this small white brush, you can also paint some smaller bubbles around the abstract to add to the fine details.

Quick tip It’s easy to become too familiar with an image, meaning you can’t see the weaker elements that could be easily fixed. One way to look at the piece differently is to desaturate it to black and white and see if you still have the same high-contrast focals you’re aiming for.

content-aware patching Working in larger image sizes than ever before quickly leads to systems being pushed to their limits. So flattening your images is increasingly necessary, and it’s inevitable that errors sneak through. At this point, Photoshop’s array of clone and retouching tools will help. For small retouches, the Clone Stamp is ideal. For larger areas, the Patch tool can be used. Select the tool, changing the Patch option to Content-Aware. Define the area to be corrected, click, and while holding the button, move around until you find a match for the area to be fixed. Photoshop will automatically blend the patch in.

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066066

Techniques Build a fantasy landscape

From mock-up to impressive Finale

Work in Progress

Progress 1: compose elements

Progress 2: values and colours

Progress 3: add details

067

BUILD A FANTASY LANDSCAPE TECHNIQUES

MASTER PHOTO TEXTURES, PHOTOSHOP BRUSHES AND CG ELEMENTS TO CREATE THIS POST�APOCALYPTIC SCENE

PHOTOMANIPULATION

BUILD A FANTASY LANDSCAPE

P ost-apocalyptic landscapes overtaken by wild nature have a certain undeniable charm. This makes them a pretty common request from clients in the matte paint

world. This tutorial shows you how to get to grips with this commercial style, giving you a head start in creating unique and believable scenes.

The image created goes for a more modern look, inspired by blockbuster movies such as I Am Legend and the latest sci-fi hit Oblivion. A combination of 3D and photography is explored, discussing how these can be merged to create believable looks. Digital painting plays a massive part in producing successful outcomes.

ADAM KUCZEKwww.ak-art.net

OUR EXPERT

Kuczek is a freelance concept artist and matte painter, working primarily for the entertainment industry. He specialises in sci-fi themes.

@adamkuczek

SOURCE FILESIf you want to follow the tutorial, you will find all the main files, including 3D renders, photographs and brushes, on the CD.

The reason for using CG assets is very clear. There are simply times when you will need something ever so specific that you won’t be able to find in any stock library. In a situation like this, elements created in 3D software come in handy. For the purpose of this tutorial, you’ll use a couple of additional applications, namely Autodesk Maya (totally optional) and freeware DAZ 3D.

Adjustment layers also play a major role in this tutorial, as you use them to merge your elements. You’ll also be required to paint digital ‘patches’, additional foliage, detailed textures and create the right mood that will eventually result in a realistic post-apocalyptic scene.

PUTTING VARIOUS MEDIA TO GOOD USEFROM THE INITIAL SKETCH TO PHOTOSHOP

01 INITIAL SKETCHThe initial sketch only needs to be very

loose. You’ll use this to come up with an idea and a rough composition, which can be adjusted and played with in 3D later on. Begin by drawing out a sketch of a ruined cityscape with a central figure. The viewer’s eyes should be led through the painting, moving from the characters, through the buildings on the right to the far skyscraper.

02 COLLECT REFERENCE Once you have an idea of what you want to

create, it’s time to collect photo textures. Create a rough composition to see what looks best, using photos of high-rise buildings, stones, foliage and the sky. All are supplied on the disc. You could also take snapshots of yourself or friends posing for your intended scene, which is much better than trawling through stock libraries.

03 BLOCK IN 3DFor scenes that involve a lot of

architectural elements, blocking the overall shapes in 3D is very helpful for a number of reasons. This helps to establish proper composition, scale, perspective, and basic light and shadow. Maya was used for the creation of this base render, but pretty much any 3D application will suffice, including freeware like Blender or SketchUp.

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TECHNIQUES BUILD A FANTASY LANDSCAPE

04 CREATE ENVIRONMENT ELEMENTS You can either model the architecture yourself or import ready-made models

into the scene. In this particular image, a few models from the DAZ 3D library (www.daz3d.com) were used, especially the ‘Dystopia’ series, many available for free download. This saves time and ensures that you get more realistic results. Such elements can be rendered out either directly in DAZ using the sketch as a backdrop for rough placement, or imported into any other 3D application as OBJ files, together with their textures.

06 RENDER THE SCENENow it’s time to bring all the main

elements into Photoshop. Composite the sky image into the background and scale it accordingly. This important element dictates the overall mood and general light colour in the image. Make sure that all CG elements are placed in respective folders and named accordingly – this helps you to stay organised when using multiple stock. Also add selections then masks to all the major elements like foreground ruins, background buildings and characters.

07 BRING ELEMENTS TOGETHERNow adjust the colour and light value of

each element to separate the foreground, midground and background from one another. Lower contrast in the far buildings using Curves or Levels. Foreground buildings are too dark, so remedy this with Curves. It’s also good to balance the colour in the entire image, bringing all the elements together. This can be done by creating an additional group at the top of the layer stack, adding the Curves, Hue/Saturation and Color Balance layers you might need.

08 BASIC COLOUR ADJUSTMENTNow you can lay down the first textures

and brush strokes. It’s a good idea to start with big chunks of photo stock placed on top of the main parts of the image, in areas such as the ground and ruins. Starting with small details like individual plants would make the process much longer, and it may be hard to blend all the elements seamlessly. You should always go from big shapes to small, from higher contrast to lower, from full opacity to lower opacity and from full to washed-out colour.

05 IMAGE CHARACTERSYou could use model stock to create image characters if you

can find the right pose. But here, a 3D model was used instead. Poser or DAZ 3D has loads for you to find. You can apply a bit of digital painting on top of the render to create patches and elements like belts, buckles, bandages, bags and so on. Dirtiness can be achieved by applying a generic grunge texture, overlaid on top with low opacity. The spear and feral animals are also painted over kit-bashed 3D models.

QUICK TIP Clipping masks are essential when working on complex matte paintings or photo-heavy projects. These can be used to couple adjustment layers with specific elements, controlling their colour, contrast and saturation values. Such non-destructive editing is vital if any changes are necessary, able to be applied at any stage.

■ GOD’S RAYSAnother way to create a convincing atmosphere is by adding God’s Rays. Create these by filling a triangular selection with a yellowish gradient. Set the layer opacity quite low, so that the effect is subtle and doesn’t look over the top. Additionally, you can add dust by painting a few brighter dots here and there.

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■ OVERLAPPINGOne way to make sure your scene looks like it occupies a three-dimensional space is to use overlapping to your advantage. The more architectural, foliage and smoke layers you can put down the better. Even distribution will give your image the depth it requires.

■ ATMOSPHERIC PERSPECTIVEMatch the values of the far background to create the right depth. There are three main elements that need to be adjusted at this point; the sky, buildings and distant fog. A balance between these is important so that your background isn’t too muddy.

BUILD A FANTASY LANDSCAPE TECHNIQUES

CREATING DEPTH AND ATMOSPHEREADJUST AND OVERLAP ELEMENTS TO IMPLY A THREE-DIMENSIONAL SCENE09

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TECHNIQUES BUILD A FANTASY LANDSCAPE

BRING THE IMAGE TO LIFE USE PHOTO ELEMENTS AND CUSTOM BRUSHES TO CREATE RICH TEXTURES

10 LAYER TEXTURES Add photographs to create rich textures.

You’ll find all those used in this image supplied on the disc. You can use Curves to blend textures into the scene, making these darker or brighter. Alternatively, you can apply an Overlay or Soft Light blending mode and adjust the opacity. The background should be kept relatively light without too many distracting details, otherwise the image may end up looking flat.

Giving surfaces a weathered

appearance may take some time, as it’s quite hard to replicate nature’s randomness

13 ADD MORE FOLIAGENow paint more foliage, showing it climbing walls and peeking out of the cracks

in the ground. Some roots hanging here and there won’t hurt either. When creating additional leaves with the sun behind, you should remember about sub-surface scattering and that the light will brighten them up. Feel free to also use photo stock or custom brushes; a couple of these are on the disc. Unless you’re using additional textures in your brushes, you should control the size of your brush strokes. Otherwise, they may appear too smooth and out of place in comparison to the detailed surfaces.

14 FINAL SCANOnce the environment is complete, focus on detailing your

character and the wild animals by adding subtle rim lights, shadows and additional textures. Also make sure that the overall contrast and colours are the way they should be. If you have accumulated dozens of layers, once you’re happy with the image it’s good to make a copy of the file, then flatten the whole thing. Enlarge it up to 100% and scan it for any elements that need fixing.

11 DESTROYED BUILDINGSNow create the damaged buildings. There

should be no 90-degree angles and no straight CG edges. Giving surfaces a weathered appearance may take some time, as it’s quite hard to replicate nature’s randomness. Very often, hand-painted roughness looks artificial and not very convincing, because it’s too evenly distributed or has non-realistic shapes. If parts of a building fall off, they don’t disappear; they should be scattered or piled up on the ground.

12 PHOTO VERSUS BRUSH STROKEYou can now start painting over the whole

image, fixing parts and bringing all the elements together. If you’re relying on photos for detail and texture, don’t over-exaggerate your digital painting. The difference between high-resolution photo detail and brush strokes can become noticeable. Use small, rough brushes to merge and enhance parts of the image. A good tool to use is the Clone Stamp, especially if you need to extend some textures.

THE RIGHT BRUSH FOR THE RIGHT PROJECT Creating your own brushes is a better idea than sourcing them. New brushes can be made easily by picking an element from a photo that you want to use, such as a leaf or a few blades of grass. Select the Channels panel to separate this element from the background. Clean it up by painting with black and white, making sure there is no noise or jagged edges. Then select Edit>Define Brush Preset and give your brush a name. Bring up the brush controls and adjust things like the spacing and flow while testing the brush. Once you’re happy with the way it looks, save it for future use.

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DESIGN INSPIRATION BEHIND THE SCENES STEP-BY-STEP ADVICE

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01 VISUALISE YOUR IMAGEBefore starting, visualise what you want to

accomplish. In this case, the goal is to paint a Steampunk piece which integrates portraiture with mechanical elements. It’s meant to be a dark, atmospheric image with lush colours to invoke mystery and interest. Remember to download the resources before you start.

02 GATHER REFERENCEPaintings should be unrecognisable from

reference unless the material belongs to you, so take liberties in deviating from online sources. The easiest way to obtain reference is to take photos yourself, but be sure that all of your images have the same light source or be prepared to paint them differently to how they appear.

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FROM START TO FINISH

WORK IN PROGRESS

Progress 1: Sketch the outline

Progress 2: Paint the image

Progress 3: Add effects

SECTION HEADER

PAINT A STEAMPUNK�INSPIRED PORTRAIT TECHNIQUES

ASHLEY WALTERSwww.ashleywalters.net

OUR EXPERT

Ashley Walters is an illustrator with a love of all things fantasy and sci-fi. She spends her spare time being a mum to three kids and watching Doctor Who.

SOURCE FILESIncluded on the disc, you will find the Photoshop file of the illustration as well as corresponding texture and pattern files to help you replicate the steps listed in the tutorial.

The following tutorial is for those who wish to learn the basics of digital painting and discover tips and tricks to add texture, luminescence and mystery to illustrations

with simple Photoshop methods. Learn to sketch non-existent objects using basic

perspective and visualise lighting so that you can add any element to your painting regardless of reference. Discover the difference between form shadow and cast shadow and how to effectively render both.

Once you understand how light interacts with your subject matter, the possibilities are limitless.

Learn how to pick compelling colours to establish mood, to paint different materials such as cloth, metal, and skin, including how to apply textures and patterns realistically using filters. Finally, discover the secret to creating glow effects and glares using various layer blending modes. From start to finish, you will learn how to employ Photoshop effectively to create a compelling painting.

BACK TO BASICSDECIDE THE AIM OF THE PIECE AND CHOOSE YOUR REFERENCE

03 START A NEW DOCUMENTBegin by creating a new document (Cmd/

Ctrl+N). Set the image dimensions to 4800px by 6400px at 300ppi. Decide between RGB or CMYK for your colour mode (RGB can achieve richer colours while CMYK is useful for printing). Fill it with a warm green tone in the middle-range of value (not too light and not too dark).

USE LIGHT, SHADOW, COLOUR AND TEXTURE TO CREATE A CAPTIVATING PORTRAIT

PAINT A STEAMPUNK�INSPIRED PORTRAIT

Once you understand how light interacts with your

subject matter, the possibilities are limitless

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08 Create the BaCkgroundCreate the illusion of a light source just off

canvas using a hard round brush in a pale yellow hue. Sweep the brush downward to emulate the glowing effect of light on a wall. Picking a dark green, sweep the same brush along the edges of the canvas to push the corners into darkness. Blend the colours with a soft round brush as necessary. Note that the light will be brighter and the change between values will be more drastic near the top where the light is closest to the wall.

06 understanding lightForm shadow (or core shadow) creates the

illusion of form and gives objects depth. It occurs when light fails to completely wrap around the form of something and is a gradual transition from light to shadow, with softer edges (like the cheekbone, which at first catches the light and then curves downward into shadow). Cast shadow occurs when something (like the nose, for example), blocks the light, throwing areas below into darkness. It tends to have sharper edges.

04 sketCh the outlineCreate a new layer named ‘Sketch’ (Layer>New>Layer). When sketching, think about the focal point

to keep the eye moving within the image. Use your reference as a rough guide as you freehand the sketch in a dark burgundy colour. Keep in mind perspective as you draw objects without reference, like the dragon and goggles. It helps to sometimes draw boxes in perspective with the rest of the piece and then chisel away at the objects inside to create angular shapes before finally rounding off the details.

07 Visualise where light fallsWhen creating an object without reference,

it is vital to be able to picture in your mind where the shadow would fall if you could see it. Sometimes it helps to picture the subject matter as if it were made up of several small geometric polygons. Look at each surface plane and ask yourself if the angle would catch the light or not, then translate that into your painting. Don’t forget to add in cast shadows of made-up elements to ground the work and give it a cohesive feel.

05 PiCk ColoursColour defines the mood of a piece. The key

to having lush colours is finding a balance between rich and dull. Too bright and your image looks contrived and over-the-top. Too dull and your image looks washed out. Lighter colours should be less saturated and darker colours more saturated. On a new layer, pick a basic flesh colour, scribble and repeat, increasing the saturation as you go darker. To help the image pop, add subtle oranges and warm pinks for the eyes and cheeks. Pale cyan works as a highlight colour to contrast against warm shadows.

quick tip Paint separate elements on their own layers so that you can lock the transparency and paint each one without going over the edges. To do this, choose the corresponding layer in the Layers palette and click the checkered square icon at the top next to the word ‘Lock’.

Techniques Paint a SteamPunk-inSPired Portrait

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down to detailApply pAint, Add texture And creAte Atmospheric effects

13 Add Atmospheric effectsThe last step is to add subtle atmospheric

effects. Create a glare on the highlight of the goggles using a soft round brush in a pale yellow colour on low opacity. For the blur on the dragon wings, copy the wings onto a new layer underneath and use the Motion Blur filter. Set the angle to 40 degrees and the distance to 200px. Use a smoke brush for the dragon steam. To make it glow, on a new layer use a soft green brush set to Hard Light.

12 Add texture And pAtternTexture and pattern add realism to your

work when done correctly. To create the illusion of wallpaper, paste a damask pattern on a new layer and set the layer Blend Mode to Overlay from the drop-down menu on the Layers palette. Reduce the opacity of the layer so that the pattern is not overbearing but still present. You don’t want your image to be too busy or distract viewers from the figure in the foreground.

09 stArt pAintingOn a layer beneath the sketch, paint the

skin using a default round brush. Keep your Opacity and Flow at 100%, and rely on the sensitivity of your tablet to blend the colours. Make a clear delineation between light and shadow. As you continue to refine, add the transitions between the two values using a soft brush when needed. Use your highlights sparingly for the greatest effect. Merge your Sketch layer and your painting layer and gently paint out the sketch until all the lines are gone.

10 shiny versus dullWhen painting matte surfaces like the

cotton vest, do not paint highlights. Only two values are needed for these – mid-tone and shadow – with gradual transitions between the two on occasion. When painting reflective surfaces like silk or brass, however, exaggerate the drastic change in value by using sharp specular highlights in areas where the light would logically fall and by using contrasting strokes. Remember to incorporate surrounding colours, as metal is highly reflective.

11 pAinting skin And hAirWhen painting skin, find a balance between

matte and shiny. The skin will have sharper and brighter highlights if the face is wet (like around the eyes) or where oils of the skin reflect light (like on the nose and inner tear duct). If you haven’t already, add these specular highlights to create luminescence. When painting hair, start by putting in the darkest values first, and then add the midtones using a chunky round brush. Gradually reduce the size of the brush until you are painting individual strands.

More on patternPattern should conform to the form beneath. To create the effect of the pattern wrapping around the silk shirt, paste the pattern on a new layer above the painting. Create a quick mask over your painting by clicking between the two layers on the Layers palette and pressing Opt/Alt. Set the layer Blend Mode to Overlay and reduce the Opacity to 30%. Go to the Liquify filter (Filter>Liquify), and with the painting layer visible beneath your pattern, use the Forward Warp tool (W) to push the pattern downward around the edges of the arm. Do the same for the fabric texture above the vest area.

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DISCOVER HOW TO USE A DULL 3D RENDER PLATE TO CREATE A STRIKING SCI�FI SCENE

DIGITAL PAINTING

SCI�FI CONCEPT ART

A rtists, in every artistic field you can think of, have different approaches to realising ideas. When it comes to concept art, you have to work quickly to create something that mirrors the initial idea and creates

mood and atmosphere. It’s not so much about creating a pixel-perfect painting. One approach would be to start with rough brush strokes that become more and more detailed over time. A different approach is to use a plate picture, which can be from a photo or a 3D render. In this case, it’s a plain 3D render.

The advantage to using this is that there is a lot of information on it. Things like highlights, shadows, colours and atmosphere can easily be sampled off the plate image, which can help you to find a starting point. In this tutorial, there is a 3D plate that serves as a base. You will then use painting techniques to add more depth. You will also use photos, with the help of blending modes and textures, to suggest more detail. Last but not least, take a look at how filters can give it a stylised look. Now, it’s time to see how to bring some life into a dull scene!

TECHNIQUES SCI�FI CONCEPT ART

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CHRISTIAN HECKERwww.tigaer-design.com

OUR EXPERT

For the past few years, I have focused on creating environmental concept art and illustrations using digital matte painting techniques. I learnt everything in an auto didactic way, and I now build my own techniques to create fantastic landscapes for practically everything, from book covers to games and movies.

@tigaer

SOURCE FILESAll textures used and the complete PSD can be found on the disc. The PSD contains extended layers, showing how the different elements can be used.

Techniques Sci-Fi concept Art

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04 Fixing the maskNear the horizon, you will see a few small

holes in the mask. First, release the selection. Hit M and click somewhere on the picture. With the mask still active, use the Eraser (E), Ctrl/right-click and select a small standard round brush to fix the areas. The colour white closes the hole and black opens areas in the mask, and you can easily switch between them using X. Masks are perfect tools for non-destructive work and allow you to go back at any time to fix or adjust things.

01 the plateFirst, go onto the disc and gather up all of the resources. Load the ‘plate.psd’ file into Photoshop. Immediately take

a look at all the space available to you for extensions, specifically in the sky region. That is what you should focus on right at the beginning; adding in a sky replacement.

03 Channelling the skyNext, open the Channels palette. If not

active already, it can be found via Windows/Channels. Hold Cmd/Ctrl and click the small preview thumbnail of the Sky channel. A selection should appear. Switch back to the Layers palette and click the Sky folder. To apply the selection as a mask, click the square and circle icon at the bottom of the Layers palette. Notice that the mask is inverted. Just click the mask thumbnail next to the folder and correct it with Cmd/Ctrl+I.

02 preparing the sky replaCementOpen ‘sky_a.jpg’ and load the image into

Photoshop. Hold Cmd/Ctrl while dragging the picture onto the ‘plate.psd’ tab in the upper-left corner of the screen. Hold your mouse there until the ‘plate.psd’ appears. Then, move your mouse onto the picture and release the mouse. Repeat the procedure with ‘sky_b.jpg’. Double-click the layer name in the Layers palette to change the names of the imported photos to Sky_a and Sky_b and put them into a new folder titled ‘Sky’.

From here To There

Work in Progress

Progress 1: room for detail

Progress 2: rough painting

Progress 3: A dynamic scene

Masks are perfect tools for non-destructive work, and allow you to go back at any time to fix or adjust things

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07 Blend the skyWith the mask selected, use the Eraser (E),

Ctrl/right-click and take a soft round white brush at 277px and 0% Hardness. Now add some aerial perspective by painting along the horizon line as well as softly reducing the impact of the overlaid photo textures around the sun. Be sure to have Opacity set to Pen Pressure, under Transfer in the Brush settings (F5).

06 Replacing the sky #2Toggle Sky_b visible and do the same as

before, but move the right side more into the picture. Now set Sky_a to Vivid Light at 66% Opacity and place the layer above Sky_b. This gives a bit of extra texture to the clouds. Now, set the Sky folder to 70% Opacity to make it blend a little more with the overall scene. To fix areas around the sun and horizon, click on the Sky folder mask again.

05 Replacing the sky #1Click on the eye symbol left of the Sky_b

layer to toggle it invisible and select Sky_a. Since it’s far too big, use Cmd/Ctrl+T to transform it. Make the bottom part of the image align with the horizon. Go to the upper-left point, click, and move it to the upper-left corner of the workspace. Do the same for the right side. Use squashing and stretching to make the sky fit the perspective and sit nicely in the scene.

08 looking foR detailNow it’s time to focus on the city. While

there is great depth and nice silhouettes, it could still do with a little more detail. For orientation, open and import ‘specular.jpg’. Hit Cmd/Ctrl+A, switch to the Move Tool (V) and use the buttons in the tool bar to align it horizontally and vertically. Rename the new layer ‘Specular’ and set the blending mode to Screen or Color Dodge. This will give you an overview of the areas (marked white) that need a little extra detail.

09 painting detailPainting highlights onto the edges of

certain structures adds more detail and depth, but accuracy is not too important right now. First, make the Specular layer invisible, hit Cmd/Ctrl+Shift+N to create a new layer and name it ‘Painting’. Use a round brush at 6px Size and 90% Hardness and start to paint along some of the edges of the buildings. Hold Opt/Alt to switch to the Color Picker and sample highlight colours right off the picture.

10 city BackgRound extensionCreate a new layer via Cmd/Ctrl+Shift+N

and name it ‘Back City’. Now create a hint of city far in the distance by sampling (Opt/Alt) a darker colour from the foreground. Again, use a hard round brush with a size of 22px. Hold Shift while painting short, straight vertical lines into the background. These don’t have to be accurate, since you only want to suggest detail. Last but not least, set the Opacity of the Back City layer to 75%.

Quick tip To add a little bit more detail to your brush strokes, open Brush Properties (F5). Check Scattering and set it to 133%. Transfer should also be active, with the Opacity set to Pen Pressure. This is an easy way to suggest more detail when painting simple things, especially if using a tablet.

15 TexTuring #1First, create a new folder and name it

‘Textures’. Open ‘IMG_1561.jpg’ into your project, put it into the Textures folder, name the layer ‘Lights’ and set its blending mode to Lighter Colour. With Cmd/Ctrl+T, reduce it to a third of its original size and turn it 90 degrees. Now place it on the facade of the right building. To remove unwanted parts that still are visible, go into Levels (Cmd/Ctrl+L) and change the middle value to 0.75.

13 Make iT shineNow it’s time to bring the lights into the city.

Press Cmd/Ctrl+A and then Cmd/Ctrl+C. Switch back to the city, paste (Cmd/Ctrl+V) the beam in there and change the layer’s name back to ‘Spot’. Do the same for the Point layer. Put them into a folder named ‘Lights’. For now, toggle Spot invisible, click the Point layer and set it to Linear Dodge. Press Cmd/Ctrl+T, reduce the size by holding Shift, find a spot to put it and hit Enter.

14 adjusTing The lighTsScatter lights by holding Alt Gr. Easily vary

the light sizes with Cmd/Ctrl+T and the colours with Hue & Saturation (Cmd/Ctrl+U). This results in a ton of layers. If it becomes too much, just hold Cmd/Ctrl, select all the Point layers in the Layers palette and press Cmd/Ctrl+E. Set the blending mode back to Linear Dodge. The same procedure can now be used for the spotlights. Playing with parameters like size, colour and opacity help to add variation to the lights.

12 a plaTe of lighT #2Create a copy (Cmd/Ctrl+J) of the Point layer and name it ‘Spot’. Turn the Point layer invisible and

move (V) the Spot layer to the right. Run Filter/Noise/Median with a radius of 24px to avoid artifacts. Hit Shift+M until the square selection tool is active again and create a selection right through the centre of the light. Via Cmd/Ctrl+T, stretch the light to the left. Ctrl/right-click to select Perspective, click the upper-left corner, drag it down and hit Enter. This results in a light beam-like shape. Save the image as ‘light_plate.psd’.

11 a plaTe of lighT #1 To bring in lights, create a separate picture

that will serve as an additional plate. Cmd/Ctrl+N creates a new file. Make it 3000px wide and 1650px high. In the new picture, fill (G) the background black. Press Cmd/Ctrl+J and name the new layer ‘Point’. Hit the Marquee tool via Shift+M until the round selection is active. Hold Shift, draw a circle selection and fill it black as well. With Filter/Render/Lens Flare, 100 Brightness and the 105mm Prime, try to locate the centre of the flare and execute the Filter.

Techniques Sci-Fi concept Art

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20 additional touchesAfter adding/extending textures and lights with the techniques explained above, it’s time for the

additional touches. Hold Cmd/Ctrl, select all layers, press Cmd/Ctrl+J and Cmd/Ctrl+E to create a copy and merge them down. In Filter/Filter Gallery/Artistic, select Poster Edges. Use a Thickness, Intensity and Posterization of 2. However, art is all about personal preference. If you wish to create a more realistic image, as seen on the first pages of this tutorial, don’t apply the filter and instead add in detail like the lighting bolts.

Playing with parameters like size, colour and opacity help to add variation to the lights

16 texturing #2Detail is all about variation. Load ‘IMG_0903.

jpg’ and treat this texture the same way as in the previous step. Press Cmd/Ctrl+J to create a copy. Name one copy ‘Lights B’ and the other copy ‘Facade’. Toggle Facade invisible and click the Lights B layer. Press V and move the layer to the right building again. Use 28% Opacity and the Color Dodge blending mode. Different blending modes help to create variation in the lights.

19 sampling detailsThese textures can also serve as plates. For

example, to get more detail into areas that still look a bit empty, just click the Lights B layer and choose the Clone Stamp (S). A simple round brush does the job fine. Be sure to have ‘Current Layer’ active. Check and uncheck ‘Aligned’, depending on whether you want to sample a light over and over again or if you want to paint an area. This is an easy way to duplicate windows and lights.

17 make it sitWhile you are allowed to be a little sloppy,

you should still keep perspective in mind, especially when applying textures to buildings. The lines of light in the Lights B layer do not exactly match the building. To fix that, use Cmd/Ctrl+T again to go into transform mode. Reduce the size and make it sit better by adjusting the upper and lower-right corner points. Hold Cmd/Ctrl+Shift while dragging the points up and down.

18 the other sideNow, toggle the Facade layer visible again.

Select the layer, hold Cmd/Ctrl and move it to the tower on the left side. Again, transform (Cmd/Ctrl+T) this texture, make it smaller and turn it 90 degrees. Set it to blending mode Lighter Color and 24% Opacity. Create a copy (Cmd/Ctrl+J), transform to squash it a little and move it down. Now you have a few textures to copy and paste onto other elements. Use the Eraser (E) to remove parts you don’t need.

Quick tip If you are working in a newer version of Photoshop, you can easily import images by dragging the file from your desktop into the Photoshop workspace of your current open project. It will automatically create a new layer. Be sure to uncheck ‘Place or Drag Raster Images as Smart Objects’ in the Photoshop Preferences.

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reviews Alien Skin SoftwAre expoSure 5

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Digital photography is fast replacing chemical film processing. finD out how photo-effect plug-ins are filling the hole left behinD

Alien Skin SoftwAre expoSure 5

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M any photographers choose not to work with photo effects for one reason or another. Some believe this to be cheating, while others find techniques

time-consuming and prefer a simple point, click and publish workflow.

However, it’s hard to deny that the photo-effect plug-in is quickly becoming fundamental for those wanting to stylise their snaps. More so when you consider how hard digital cameras make it to take a ‘bad’ photo.

The eager adoption of digital photography means chemical processing has been firmly replaced. But it’s the resulting artifacts from older film that adds character to your snaps and has ultimately inspired the age of Instagram. It seems that the

discontinuation of original film has left a massive hole – one that Alien Skin Software’s Exposure 5 is only too happy to fill.

This plug-in lets you add traditional film characteristics to exceptionally high-resolution 8-bit or 16-bit digital frames, straight out of the camera. This is made even easier by Alien Skin Software, which delivers on its promise to reduce “the need to fiddle with techy controls” through a redesigned Exposure 5 interface. This is now even more coherent than before, without any drawn-out application times.

The creative process operates from left to right, using a simple series of presets and familiar slider controls. This may sound straightforward, even limiting, but you won’t end up with low-key results.

Frequent Photoshop and Lightroom-goers will notice many similarities between these and the Exposure 5 interface. This means you’ll be efficiently wielding this plug-in’s tools and options in no time at all. Subsequent panel functionality gives you every opportunity to scrutinise the details.

Simply click the arrow icons found at the side of each panel so that they face inwards. This hides them and presents your photograph at a full-screen size. All you need to do is hover your cursor over these arrows once more to make the panels reappear. You can then remove the cursor from the panel space to automatically switch back to full-screen mode.

Plug-ins and their Place

Rolls of film were once an integral part of a photographer’s kit, supplying a multitude of popular brand names and various ISO ratings. These would include Fujifilm’s 35mm negative Superia films for capturing beautiful colour; Kodak’s colour slide film Ektachrome for vivid exposures, and Ilford’s HP5 Plus monochromatic 35mm negative for that tangible dose of authentic grain.

Sadly, many of these traditional films have now been discontinued. Those that have survived don’t come cheap, averaging around £5/$8 for rolls of 36 frames. Add on the cost of processing and it soon becomes clear that film photography is a passion with a high cost.

Considering this and how you can incorporate the same styles into a digital workflow using plug-ins, you see why Exposure 5 has its place. This makes it simple for photographers to integrate traditional effects into Photoshop. But plug-ins do not come cheap either, with Alien Skin’s Exposure 5 retailing at £130/$199, and Tiffen Dfx Photo and Nik Collection by Google setting users back approx £98/$149. However, considering these are one-off fees, purchasing them doesn’t seem as much of an obstacle.

oPerating system: • OSX 10.7, 10.8 • Windows 7, 8

sPecifications: • An Intel Core 2 processor • A monitor with 1280 x 768 resolution

£130$199

www.alienskin.com/exposure

The entire interface: The charcoal interface doesn’t distract you from image effects. Just make sure Photoshop>Color Mode is set to RGB to be able to activate the plug-in

Full-screen mode: Having hidden the panels, you can scrutinise your image in full-screen mode. Simply hover over the arrow icons to unhide a panel

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Black and white: Who says black-and-white photography is boring? Here, you can add aged looks in seconds with a simple click of a preset

REVIEWS ALIEN SKIN SOFTWARE EXPOSURE 5

Once your workspace is set, it’s time to apply your effects. This starts with the Presets panel to the left of the interface, which offers 25 types for you to choose from. Each preset type includes its own set of styles that can be applied instantly to your photo. To simplify things even further, Alien Skin Software has built-in themes that group Presets. These include All, Color, B&W, Favorites, User and Recent.

Of course, preset styles shouldn’t be applied indiscriminately. Some are more suitable for portrait photography while others lend themselves to vintage images. Some additional themes would help those who are unsure, for example Color Portrait, Color Landscape and so on.

As it is, Exposure 5 depends on your prior knowledge. When that’s not available, it becomes a matter of self-exploration, which is particularly effortless. This plug-in lets you apply whatever look you want, to any extent, then pull this back instantly if you don’t like your results. Simply click the Reset Controls (Home) icon in the top-right of the Presets panel and restore an image to either Neutral or Neutral (B&W).

Exposure 5 also allows you to de-clutter your interface instantly when experimenting. Leafing through preset styles can mean having stacks of thumbnails open at one time in the panel. These can be closed simultaneously using the Collapse icon, just to the right of the Search field. This option may seem insignificant, but it reinforces a purposeful workflow, which in turn means more efficient time management and creation.

The Color theme holds some great Exposure 5 presets. It also reflects how Alien Skin Software is promoting the most authentic looks possible. Color Films – Slide is a particularly interesting set, which supplies you with effects from discontinued films. This again offers evidence that the plug-in is a sound alternative to near non-existent chemical processing.

Activate the Color Films – Vintage preset to discover Autochrome, also referred to as Autochrome Lumière. This is a notable inclusion, as

it is one of the first ever colour process techniques, revealing just how inclusive the styles provided are. Kodachrome effects, ranging from 1936 to 1974, are also present in this set.

Color Films – Polaroid provides one of the widest range of looks, some appearing much older than others. If you’re looking for something more extreme, then there are Lo-Fi styles available which replicate the looks achieved by plastic and toy cameras – a big hit with Instagram enthusiasts. Physical camera alternatives would offer you less options and more cost. But a Color Infrared preset

No longer are the Scratches presets faked; they now

come from real photo scans

COLOUR IN�CAMERA

■ COLOUR SPACE DSLRs can shoot images in either AdobeRGB or sRGB colour. Using AdobeRGB opens up a broader spectrum of colours, providing more life-like tones. They generally turn out flatter in contrast to if you were using sRGB, which is better for monitors and web-based portfolios.

As with anything photo-related, the editing starts before the shoot, inside the camera. Matching up the camera settings to the intended finished process will make sure your plug-in workflow runs as smoothly as possible. Follow these steps to prepare your camera for colour effects.

■ PREDETERMINE SATURATIONWhenever colour is pushed to its limits in post-production, noise distortion closely follows. Use manual saturation and tonal adjustments in the camera’s custom menu to control the appearance of colour, giving you a better chance of avoiding image artefacts further down the line.

■ BRACKET FOR COLOUR White balance, or the colour temperature of light, is tricky to get right. Give yourself more choice in the post-production phase by shooting using different white balances. Most cameras have White Balance Bracketing and will shoot three images at once in different variations of colour.

Personal choice: There are a multitude of presets to choose from. Some of the most popular reside in the Lo-Fi preset, especially Kodak Ektar100 – Holga 120

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also shows how Exposure 5 is a forward-thinking plug-in, supplying you with the ability to apply a style that is seriously gathering pace.

Referring back to vintage looks, these combine Border, Light and Dust & Scratches effects. You can personalise these by using the options beneath the settings panel, to the right of the interface.

Simply click the arrow in the Option thumbnail to activate it and then visually browse through the available styles. Border lets you add from a selection of textures, which replicate techniques developed in the darkroom. Lighting Effects lets you add light leaks and sun flares, with the latter augmenting the atmosphere in outside shots especially.

The word emulate is more appropriate when referring to the Dust & Scratches option. No longer are the Scratches presets faked mathematically; they now come from real photo scans, creating even more believable looks for subtly ageing photos.

Once you’ve made your choices, you can edit the orientation of each effect. You can also randomise these settings. Zoom and Opacity sliders are supplied, so you can determine the strength and scale of an effect. This helps to make sure that it doesn’t interfere with the subjects in your image.

Exposure 5 is of course fully customisable, so you can build and create your own styles from scratch and then save them as User presets. Simply click the Create A New Preset (plus) icon in the top-right of the left panel. Exposure 5 also provides you with advanced controls, similar to those inside Lightroom, Camera RAW and Photoshop. Colour filters, tonal curves, sharpening and vignetting are just a few available from the Settings panel, which can be applied manually. These too are added with consummate ease through the use of sliders.

Top 3 Lomo camerasA fun AlternAtive to creative plug-ins

quick fiLTer fixestake a look at the effect of exposure 5’s filters

Belair X 6-12 City SliCker£199/$249This shoots through a range of different frame formats, from a wide 6x12 photo to a square 6x6, as well as 6x9. The Lomo camera features auto-shutter settings and an on-the-top viewfinder. Colours appear especially vivid with the wider frames.

luBitel 166+£289/$349The Lomo Lubitel 166+ is at the top of its class. It’s an ode to the classic Russian twin-lens original and is a medium format camera, which produces wonderfully detailed Lomographic artistry from the word go.

Exposure 5 provides an intuitive interface with the ability to please all users. Its tools and options can be applied instantly or personalised to any degree. There are plenty of vintage effects that will entice traditional photographers to try something new, and lots of contemporary styles to entertain modern users. It’s not film, but it may just be the next best thing.

VerdicT: 4.5/5 Diana Mini anD FlaSh£79/$99Mix up the framing of your shots with square or half-frame stills. The Diana Mini uses 35mm film rolls to capture images that are soaked in light, for brilliant overexposure effects. Its immodestly sized flash also helps this along.

kodak ektachrome GX 100 – Overexposed

agfacolor neu – Dust and Scratches

Wizard of Oz – Sepia

agfa Ct Precisa 100

Cyanotype - Brushed (orange tone)

kodak ektachrome eir – More contrast

Dust and Scratches – kodak tri-X 400

agfa rSX ii 100 lomo lC-a

noon Day Sun

Using a smartphone to express ideas pictorially appeals to all creative types. That’s why Wacom urges you to consider its new Bamboo Loop app. Focussing on

easy, day-to-day use where you create a photo-based card and then share it with friends or colleagues. They can then reply by scribbling on the same card or hand writing a message. It’s a simple premise that allows you to readily exchange inspiration, photographing a plethora of real-world subjects including colour, pose and form.

The app’s default themes are relatively basic, giving you scope to work with only a few colour filters and frames. However, more creative styles are available through an in-app purchase, including vintage, art paper and candy themes, along with many more.

Navigation is simple when using multi-touch gestures. Scribbling on the app is made considerably easier with the Bamboo Stylus mini – a diminutive little pen that attaches neatly to your iPhone. This is

BAMBOO LOOPhttp://bambooloop.wacom.com• Free • iPhone, iPad, iPod touch

SHOOT, SCRIBBLE AND SHARE IDEAS WITH FRIENDS USING THE LATEST APP FROM WACOM’S BAMBOO SERIES

VERDICT: 6/10A steady app suited to its routine task for sharing simple ideas fast when on the go. However, those more serious about sharing ideas may find it limiting.

CREATING YOUR CARDSHARE YOUR INSPIRATIONS IN SECONDS

REVIEWS BAMBOO LOOP

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■ PICK A FRAMETap the infinity icon at the bottom of the interface and select a friend who you want to send your card to. Flick through the selection of frames available until you find one you like, then hit the white photo button at the bottom of the interface to add your snap.

■ START SCRIBBLINGUse the Pen tool to scribble messages and draw on your snap, or use the Highlighter to bring attention to part of your shot. You can use the Eraser tool to correct any mistakes you make and there is a range of ink colours at your disposal.

■ MORE STYLESYou can buy more styles of paper and frames by tapping the star icon in the top-right corner. You’ll have to choose individual packs, but will get several frames with each one. Once you’ve bought a set, you’ll be able to select it when scrolling through your options.

It’s a simple premise that allows you to

readily exchange inspiration, photographing a plethora of real-world subjects including colour, pose and form

sold separately from www.wacom.com for £12.99/$14.95.

Operation is admittedly a very linear process, which is great when your time for sharing is limited, but there may not be enough options to deter you from using standard text or email formats. It’s true that doing this takes seconds in iOS 6, plus any person can download a photo to their device, view it in a larger size and reply just as quickly without having Bamboo Loop.

However, this app is free, so it shouldn’t be too hard to persuade your friends and working team to invest. Nothing diverts from the fact that Bamboo Loop is a playful solution to idea sharing which will complement your workflow.

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BUY YOUR ISSUE TODAYPrint edition available at www.imagineshop.co.uk

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Available on the following platforms

Hear How Takumer Homma moved on from TradiTional painTing TecHniques To become a successful digiTal arTisT

reader interview

From traditional to digital

reader interview From traditional to digital

Takumer Designwww.takumer.comwww.advancedphotoshop.co.uk/user/takumer.homma

Takumer Homma

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Bot: a suggestive painting that focuses on detailing only in the focal areas. Use the default Soft round brush in Photoshop to knock back the values, and the Lasso tool to define shape

Bridge Town: Using photos only in necessary places, especially in the highlight areas and the main focus points. remember to play with warm and cool while shifting hue for colour temperature

T akumer Homma only got into digital art when he was forced to buy his first PC after graduation from high school and enrollment in college. “Some of the projects I completed

had to be done digitally. I was introduced to Photoshop as a photo-retouching program and I wasn’t aware of its painting capabilities until the last year of my Industrial Design studies. But after graduating, when I first bought and saw concept art for games and films, the fire was lit. I invested in a tablet and started learning while I worked full-time, then I gradually started taking it seriously as a potential career path about three years ago.”

Read on to discover Homma’s influences, what he thinks about the changes to Photoshop CC and what his hardest learning curve to date has been in this Reader Interview.

WHo are your key influences?I was heavily influenced by Luigi Colani when I was involved in automotive design. His unconventional approach to industrial design really inspired me and I fell in love with his ‘biodynamic’, which is a term he uses to describe the rounded and organic forms in his designs.

Since I started doing concept art and illustrations, I began looking at Syd Mead, John Singer Sargent, Edgar Payne and J.C. Leyendecker, who I learnt to appreciate more as I got more involved in the entertainment industry. I do love the impressionistic approach in art, but recently I have found myself looking at illustrators more.

WHaT is THe mosT reWarding projecT you Have been involved in?

Clockwise from top left;

My Neighbor: Inspired by Hayao Miyazaki’s My Neighbor Totoro, this was my translation to a sci-fi version. Exploring custom brushes, I created a few textured brushed by turning on Dual Brush in the brush settings Necromancer: When painting something dramatic, you need to make sure you understand the form you are lighting up. You can create a Linear Dodge layer on top and paint the highlight separately

Hunter: This was a good character design exercise. I focused on designing his facial structure to create a certain personality. Remember to also pay attention to different materials; you are allowed to use photo references

I do love the impressionistic approach to art, but recently I have found

myself looking at illustrators more

Even in a simple painting like this, be sure to establish the foreground, midground and background

Although it is a very suggestive painting, pay attention to the edges; soft versus hard

Try and leave the detailing stage to the end. I have used photos and references to add some noise

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Create an overall mood; is it cool or warm? You can use Color Balance adjustment to easily add an overall colour

FROM TRADITIONAL TO DIGITAL READER INTERVIEW

Although this wasn’t for the entertainment industry, jewellery design was very fulfilling. Earlier in my career, I worked for a diamond jewellery design company that specialised in engagement and wedding rings. Custom designing for an individual, 3D modelling for manufacturing and seeing it worn and appreciated in front of me was very rewarding. Everything is very digital these days, so I enjoy being able to see a big smile on a person’s face.

WHAT PHOTOSHOP TECHNIQUES AND TOOLS DO YOU USE MOST?I approach my designs very much like a traditional painting, and sometimes I go all the way without using any tools other than the Brush and Color Picker. However, other times I may find myself using the Smudge tool a lot; I find it very useful in my work. The Warp tool, Lasso tool and adjustment layers are often used in the design process. I have also started to explore Color Dynamics in the Brush settings, and although I am still new to it, I am finding it to be extremely helpful, especially for use in my environment paintings.

This may sound cliché, but one of the most important tips is to continue studying the foundations. I also think one of the major advantages to using traditional medium is that you become more disciplined to make an intentional stroke or line rather than an empty one.

Another tip would be to spend a good amount of time researching existing products and services; I just reorganise this information in my artwork. Lastly, try not to disregard other industries. Everyone is creative in their trade and I have learnt so much from engineers, investors and entrepreneurs. If you can keep your eyes open, I believe you can diversify as an artist.

HOMMA SHARES HIS TOP TIPS ON MAKING IT AS A DIGITAL ARTISTINDUSTRY TIPS

I do have different approaches to creating images depending on its use. When I need to focus on design, I usually start off with a line drawing or greyscale painting. However, if it is an illustration for a cover or press shots or something that needs a loud image, I start with colour and work purely like a traditional artist with heaps of planning.

WHAT IS THE HARDEST THING YOU HAVE HAD TO LEARN AS AN ARTIST?Having moved from one industry to another a few times, I must say that the hardest thing about it is learning to really appreciate new things in a really short space of time. Once I have accepted them, the process becomes a lot smoother, and doing so is a critical part in understanding what the client, art directors or your audience wants and more. Becoming a versatile artist or designer takes a long time, and I am still constantly exploring, learning and improving within the industry. WHAT DO YOU THINK ABOUT THE NEW CHANGES TO PHOTOSHOP CC?

There are benefits for those just starting out and looking to get their foot in the door, but for those who are committed to this long term, I think it’s a disadvantage. I would much prefer to own software I can go back to whenever I want to, and not lose the access to my files and programs once I decide to stop the subscription. Another thing that I am scared of is the possible incremental increase in price that I have no control over. I wish there was a choice.

WHAT PROJECTS ARE YOU WORKING ON AT THE MOMENT?I am currently working as a concept artist on a PC game for Epiphany games, an unannounced project and I have been lucky enough to be able to work on a variety of subjects including characters, environments and architecture. The project really keeps me refreshed, and the research I do for each topic is very educational and motivating.

I also work as an illustrator and artist for the gaming industry, which has a very high turnover of projects, but I really enjoy having the opportunity to work on a variety of themes.

This was the final project for my Industrial Design studies. Although its base is a 3D rendering, you still have to touch it up by using adjustment layers and path tools to create a precise selection

I used quite a few photos in this image to achieve the detailed look, but remember to paint over it if necessary. Make sure the photos don’t dictate your design approach

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These hand-sprayed textures lend themselves to just about any project. Backgrounds are white and can easily be set to Multiply blend mode to layer on top of your existing art.

These hand-sprayed textures lend themselves to just about any project. Backgrounds are white and can easily be set to Multiply blend mode to layer on top of your existing art. ON

TH

E D

ISC GO MEDIA/

ARSENAL SPRAY PAINT TEXTURE PACKADD YOUR OWN GRAFFITI EFFECTS DIGITALLY

WANT TO KNOW HOW TO MAKE THEM BY HAND AND IN PHOTOSHOP? HERE’S HOW…

CREATE GRAFFITI STENCILS

G raffiti has always been about exhibiting a message. While this was originally confined to an individual level, commercial brands are now using this style to promote their own messages

to the public. Looks are of course cleaner and more controlled, as they’re applied in a digital workspace. But they’re no less exciting.

This mainstream appeal hasn’t gone all the way in eradicating the taboo rush individuals get from looking at and creating traditional styles. Practising artists continue

to produce vibrant and colourful images that invoke strong reactions among their viewers, whether they were made by hand or digitally.

In this issue’s Resource Project, we explore ways to create graffiti using both digital and traditional mediums. You’ll discover how to to produce your own stencils, and find out how graffiti styles are built for commercial projects. We also have a great giveaway, offering readers the chance to win a book of laser-cut stencils designed by the some of the world’s top graffiti artists.

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ON THE DISCTUTORIAL FILESRESOURCE PROJECT

CREATE GRAFFITI STENCILS BY HANDUSE THE RIGHT TOOLS FOR THE BEST RESULTS

01 THE CORRECT CARDFirst, source yourself some black card that

is between 200gsm and 300gsm. Stick this down to a cutting board firmly using Blu-Tack. This will stop the card shifting when cutting out your stencil.

02 PLACE PHOTOWork from a photo, but lighten all shadows

inside Photoshop using Levels or Curves before printing. This allows you to see detail more clearly. Apply glue to the card and stick down your photo.

03 DRAW YOUR LINESUse a thick black marker to apply your

lines. These should all join to help you to avoid ‘islands’ – interior areas detached from your lines that you’ll lose once cut out (see boxout above).

05 FIXED SURFACESecurely stick your stencil to a surface. This

stops your medium getting in behind your card. Applying Spray Mount to the front of your stencil will suffice, but do this in a well-ventilated area.

04 CUT OUTCarefully use a very sharp scalpel to cut out

all the black lines in your image. You can check your progress by flipping the card, checking the cut, then re-securing it using the previously applied Blu-Tack.

06 APPLY YOUR STENCILNow apply your medium. This can be paint,

chalk or even spray paint. If it is the latter, be sure to wear a protective mask. Spray Mount lets you peel the stencil from the surface without damaging it.

CREATE GRAFFITI STENCILS ON THE DISC

Using the number zero, notice how in Example 1 the centre is surrounded by a solid mark (an ‘island’). Cutting out the black will result in the centre falling out. By adding ‘bridges’ (see Example 2), it will stay intact in your stencil.

ISLANDS AND BRIDGES

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Create graffiti stenCils in PhotoshoPUse AdjUstments And Filters to emUlAte cUt-oUt eFFects

01 convert to greyscaleOpen your image in Photoshop, then apply

Hue/Saturation (Cmd/Ctrl+U). Set Saturation to -100, creating a greyscale image. Add an S-curve using Curves (Cmd/Ctrl+M) to boost shadows and highlights, so that all facial contours are obvious. Improve exposure using the Dodge and Burn tools.

02 Define featuresSelect Image>Adjustments>Threshold and

apply a setting that picks out edges and clearly defines facial elements, such as eyes, lips and the tip or side of a nose. This is just the start of the cut-out effect for your stencil.

03 apply filterThe second phase of creating your stencil is

to apply Filter>Filter Gallery and choose Cut Out. Settings may vary, but essentially you want to simplify detail before you okay effects. Select the Eraser tool and add it to join up isolated white marks, bridging all ‘islands’ in your image.

on the disc CREATE GRAFFITI STENCILS

atos Vektorgraffowww.behance.net/atosvektorgraffo

Create graffiti with PhotoshoP and illustratorMany graffiti images start with a sketch, which is the case with this work from Jefferson Ramos, aka Atos Vektorgraffo. “I’ll scan and import my design into Adobe

Illustrator and redraw its design using the Pen tool,” he explains. “I detail all parts, including shadows between the letters applied on separate layers.”

The image is then imported into Photoshop so that lighting effects can be added with a Level adjustment layer. “I adjust highlights and shadows, then apply brushes to brighten colours, detailing shapes and edges,” he adds.

He finally applies a drop shadow effect to create a 3D look. “I normally duplicate my design, creating a layer on top,” he reveals. “I select the original layer beneath and Cmd/Ctrl-click the layer thumbnail to make a selection. I then fill this with black (Shift+F5) and drop layer Opacity to 50%. Lastly, I apply Gaussian Blur.”

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Stencil Republic, published by Laurence King (www.laurenceking.com), features 20 laser-cut stencils on perforated card which can be removed and used. These have been created by a host of international artists, which include A1one, Artiste Ouvrier, Pisa73 and many more.

Advanced Photoshop have three copies to give away. For your chance to win, visit www.laurenceking.com/en/stencil-republic and answer the following question:

What is the name of the graffiti artist representing Portugal in this book?

Please email your answers to adam.smith@imagine-publishing.co.uk. This competition closes on 1 September 2013.

WIN A COPY OF STENCIL REPUBLICFeaturing 20 laser-cut stencils from the world’s best graffiti artists

KENT FLORISwww.kentfloris.com

01 APPLY COLOURMake a selection by Cmd/Ctrl-clicking a

layer thumbnail. Add a Gradient Map adjustment layer and use the Gradient Editor to specify the colour spectrum you want to add to this section of the image.

02 EDIT COLOURUse a Color Balance adjustment layer to

even out image tones. With this adjustment layer, you’re able to achieve a warmer or cooler look in the artwork, as well as colourise your shadows, midtones and highlights.

03 ADD CONTRASTMerge your layers separate from the

background and duplicate (Cmd/Ctrl+J). Set this new layer’s Blending Mode to Soft Light, then set its Opacity at 50%. This will enhance the contrast.

© N

ike

EDITING CG GRAFFITI IN PHOTOSHOPMAKE SELECTIONS AND ADJUST COLOURS TO CREATE A VIBRANT EFFECT