Actions

Making an Action in Photoshop for use over and and over again is not difficult. Once you have made an action you can use them in a variety of images without having to go through the entire process. Photoshop does it for you. Actions can be created in any version of Photoshop.

I will be creating this pastel look in Actions

I will be using this free stock image. You will find it here 

It belongs to mbvstock

Step 1 : Go to Windows>Actions.

Step 2 : The Actions dialogue box opens. You will find a number of presets depending on your version of Photoshop. But we are not going to use them. Instead we will create one of our own.

Step 3 : Click the Create new action icon.

Step 4 : Give the Action a name. I have named it Pink Haze.

Step 5 : Click the Record button.

Step 6 : The Red button turns on. Photoshop begins recording the Action.

Step 7 : Click the New Fill or Adjustment Layer button.

Step 8 : Click on Curves from the pop up menu.

Step 9 : The Curves dialogue box opens.

Step 10 : Click on The Red Channel. 

Step 11 : Drag the top of the diagonal slightly upwards and at the bottom slightly down.

Step 12 : Click the Green Channel.

Step 13  : Now drag in the opposite direction from the Red Channel. Drag down the diagonal slightly at the top and up at the bottom.

Step 14  : Click the Blue Channel.

Step 15 : Drag slightly at the top and at the bottom.

Step 16 : If you click on the RGB channel, the three channels looks like this.

Step 17 : Click on the Background Layer.

Step 18 : Click on the New Fill or Adjustment layer button. Click on Hue/Saturation.

Step 19 :  Drag the Saturation slider to -50.

Step 20 : Click on the Background Layer.

Step 21 : Click the Add New Fill or Adjustment Layer button. Click on Solid Color from the pop up menu.

Step 22 : Click the Pink in the Spectrum in the middle Click a pink shade at left.  If you want the exact shade type f0bdf3 in the highlighted box. Click OK.

Step 23 : Reduce the Opacity to between 8 and 10% 

Step 24 : Click the Stop recording button.

The image has a soft pastel look. The Action has been created.

Step 25 : I have opened a new free stock image. You will find it here

It belongs to FoxxyStock

Step 26 : Bring up Actions. Click on Pink Haze and the Play Selection.

Look at that! Photoshop has done the work for you. That is all.

Other photoshop tutorials are here 

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Brush Design 2

I had shown how to create a simple background with Brushes and layers. The tutorial is here

To continue from there. You can add a figure to the background.

This is the effect I will be creating.

Step 1 : This was the background created in the earlier tutorial for which I have given the link above.

Step 2 : I have extracted  the figure from the background of a free stock image. You will find the free stock image here

It belongs to 

skydancer-stock

Step 3 : Drag and drop it the image of the cutout figure onto the Background with the Move Tool.

Step 4 : Press CTRL+T. Drag out a corner handle to make the figure bigger. Press ENTER.

The selection will disappear.

Step 5 : The figure is on the topmost layer or Layer4.

Step 6 : Drag Layer 4 to just above the Background Layer.

The image looks like this.

Step 7 : Change the Blend Mode to Hard Light.

The image looks like this.

Step 8 : Click on the topmost layer which is now Layer3.

Step 9 : Click the New Layer icon. A new Layer 5 forms on top.

Step 10 : Flip the Foreground Color to White by pressing x on the keyboard.

Step 11 : Click the Brush Tool.

Step 12 : Click in the top panel to open the Brush controls. Set the Hardness to 100% and the Size to around 70.

Step 13 : Bring up more Brush Controls by clicking the Brush Control icon at the right.

Step 14 : Click the Brush Tip Shape. Drag the Spacing slider till the tip separates as shown.

Step 15 : Click on Shape Dynamics. Leave it at the default settings. 

Step 16 : Click scattering. make sure Both Axes is checked.

Step 17 : Drag with the Brush as shown.

Step 18 : Click and drag with the Brush on other parts of the image as shown.

Step 19 : Lower the Opacity of Layer5 to 70%.

The image looks like this.

Step 20 : Go to Filter>Distort>Spherize.

Step 21 : The Spherize dialogue box opens. Leave them at the default settings. Click OK.

This is how the image looks.

Step 22 : Go to Filter>Distort>Polar Coordinates.

Step 23 : In Polar Coordinates, check Rectangular to Polar. Click OK.

The finished image. Other photoshop tutorials are here

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