photoshop tips and tricks

Adobe Photoshop How To Guide Creating a film poster

ü Open up Adobe Photoshop and click File > New and make sure the Preset is set to International Paper. This is so that your advert/poster will print out in A4.

ü Your document should open up like so…

ü To import your images into Photoshop, go to

File > Open and select the files you wish to import.

ü You will notice that your multiple files will appear in different tabs at the top of the Photoshop workspace.

ü These separate images can be dragged on to your blank template.

ü In Photoshop (same as in Illustrator), you must create Layers to work from. Each time you add a new object/image/text etc., a new layer should be created. Your layers can be monitored in the Layers Panel. We create layers so that if you need to edit anything at a later date, you can do so without having to start the poster again.

ü It is recommended to name your layers accordingly so that you can

go back to them and edit certain objects easily.

1. Setting up your Film Poster Document in Photoshop

ü To edit/adjust an image, you need to click on it on the layers panel, so to resize

my background image of the Smokey road; I’ll click on that layer and then click on the Arrow Tool icon to resize it.

ü Always make sure that the Show Transform Controls box is ticked to resize your image.

ü I have now brought in an image of Batman that I would like to place on top of the road, however, there is another background behind him, which I would like to get rid of.

ü To fix this, I will go back into the original tab that

the Batman image opened in and get rid of the background.

ü Click the Quick Selection tool.

ü Select the image that you want to cut out from

the background.

ü You will see ‘marching ants’ moving around the parts of the image that you select.

ü Once you are happy with your selection, click

Refine Edge.  

ü You will notice that the background has disappeared and a Refine Edge options box has appeared. This is so you can finely edit the edge so no remaining background appears around your object.

2. Editing images

3. Removing a background

ü Once you are happy with your image removed from the background, make sure that the Output To section is set to New Layer With Layer Mask, and then hit OK.

ü Making sure that you have selected the Arrow Tool, you can now drag the new image on to your film poster document tab.

ü To add text to your advert, simply click the T icon and drag a text box on

to your advert.

ü Begin typing and you can change the font, colour and size in the boxes situated on the top of the toolbar

ü You will notice a new layer has been made for your text. This allows you to come back and edit it at any time, simply by clicking on the Text layer.

ü To make your text stand out a bit more or to give it a 3D effect, you can right click on the text layer and click Blending Options. This will enable you to add shadows, contours, outer strokes etc. to your Text and give it a more effective look. Have a try!

4. Adding text to your film posters

ü Play around with Photoshop and look at tutorials on YouTube. There are millions of ways to edit your photos. There are also tutorials on the Coombe Media blog!

ü ALWAYS make sure you have clicked on to the correct layer that you want to edit before amending anything otherwise it could be amending the wrong thing!

ü By clicking Image > Adjustments, you can amend the brightness, contrast,

colouring, sharpness etc. of any of your images.

ü To adjust whether you want your document to be Portrait or Landscape, you must click on the Background layer and then go to: Image > Image Rotation > 90°CW

ü There are 2 ways to save your work: you may need to save it to come back and edit at a later date, OR you have completely finished and are ready to hand it in to be marked. Here are the two ways:

5. Some handy tips

6. Saving your work

Saving your document to be edited again:

ü File>Save As ü Name your document

and save it in your desired location

ü The format must be saved as a Photoshop (PSD) file

ü Then click OK!

Saving your document to be submitted as a Final copy:

ü File>Save As ü Name your document

and save it in your desired location

ü The format must be saved as a JPEG (JPG) file

ü Then click OK!