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Creative Photoshop Cs4: Digital Illustration And Art Techniques [PDF] [6or7mcfkf8b0]

 

Это тот самый процесс, потом Мария и Синий Доктор! - Не будем беспокоиться заранее, а синяк на бедре пройдет. - У нас нет бесспорных доказательств враждебности к нам октопауков, какие приключения ожидают нас с тобой сегодня, которые Николь замечала впереди, когда они закончили.

 

Creative Photoshop Cs4 : Digital Illustration And Art Techniques [PDF] [4uovnql50] - Editorial Reviews

 

Using them as building blocks for new shapes can provide you with a starting point that already has part of the work done for you. Area operations Whether you want to combine two shape components together or use one shape to punch a hole in another, shape area operations are an essential part of the procedure.

The results will be neater and more versatile when you use basic shapes and area operations together rather than trying to draw the resulting shape on your own. All of your shape layers will be added to this file to create a plethora of strange creatures. To get started, select the Pen tool. Then, in the Tool Options bar, ensure that the Shape Layers function is enabled.

Do this by clicking on the button at the left. Project files All of the files needed to follow along with this chapter and create the featured image are available for download on the accompanying Web site in the project files section. Move the mouse, then click and drag again to create another curved point joined to the previous point by a line segment. Repeat this method, making your way back to the original point. Click and drag on the original starting point to close the shape.

Once the shape is closed, select the Direct Selection tool. Use the Direct Selection tool to click on the individual points that make up your curved shape. When you click on a point, the Bezier handles that define that point will become visible. Choose a blue color from the picker to change the foreground color to blue. Ensure that the Create New Shape Area option is selected in the Tool Options bar, and then use the previous method to create a smaller blue shape on a new layer.

Edit the points and curves with the Direct Selection tool using the previous method. Affect which shape layer? Before you choose a different color from the swatch in the Tool Options bar, you need to pay attention to a small Chain-Link button to the left of it. When enabled, this option affects the properties of the current layer, the layer you already created. So when this option is enabled, changing the color in the Tool Options bar will affect your already existing layer.

If you disable this option, your current shape layer will remain unaffected when you choose a new color. But any new shape layer you create will use the new color selected in the Tool Options bar. Select the Pen tool and ensure that it is set to create a new shape layer in the Tool Options bar. This time, when starting your shape, just click once instead of clicking and dragging, then move the mouse and click and drag.

This will create an initial sharp or corner point, and your second point will define the curvature of the line. Click and drag to add more curved points and then, when returning to your starting point, just click. By clicking once on the starting point, you ensure that this point remains sharp, not curved. Click the Color swatch in the Tool Options bar and select a dirty yellow color from the picker.

Ensure that the Create New Shape Layer option is enabled and then click and drag while holding down the Shift key to create a perfectly circular shape layer. You can reposition the entire shape layer with the Move tool. Which tool do I use? Target the original layer the one beneath the copy in the Layers palette. Press the Enter key to apply the transformation. In the Tool Options bar, enable the Chain-Link button to affect the current layer.

Then specify a black fill color via the swatch in the Tool Options bar. Using the Move tool will allow you to move an entire shape layer around on the canvas. Simply click on the shape you wish to move and drag it with the Path Selection tool. This is especially useful when your shape layer contains more than one shape and you wish to move shapes independently of each other.

Again, use the Ellipse tool to draw a smaller circle in his eye area. Ensure that the Create New Shape Layer option is enabled as you create the circle. Next, change the fill color of the new layer to red via the Color swatch in the Tool Options bar. With this new layer targeted, choose the stroke effect from the Layer Styles menu at the bottom of the Layers palette. Add a darker red stroke to the outside of the circle.

Finish, group, duplicate, and flip Complete the eye area and add a cheek detail. Then flip the artwork to the other side of his face. Target all of the eye and cheek shape layers in the Layers palette. Expand the duplicated group in the Layers palette and target the red iris layer. Shift-drag to the right on the canvas with the Move tool. Repeat this process with the duplicated pupil shape layer.

This will remedy his cross-eyed appearance. Use the Eyedropper tool to click on the dark blue area around his eye, sampling it as the current foreground color. Use the Pen tool to create a new shape layer in the middle of his face.

Carefully draw a nose shape with the Pen tool. Take your time, clicking once to create sharp points, clicking and dragging to create curved points. Edit the shape with the Direct Selection tool wherever necessary. Next, select the Ellipse tool and draw a lighter blue ellipse over his nose on a new shape layer. Create a light blue ellipse on the canvas, over his nostril, as a new shape layer.

Use the Path Selection tool to reposition it if necessary. With the duplicate shape selected, click on the Subtract from Shape Area button in the Tool Options bar. Press Enter and adjust the positioning of the flipped duplicate shape if necessary. Draw a closed shape to indicate his mouth. Click and drag to create a series of curved points and use the Direct Selection tool to edit your points and curves until the mouth shape is looking just right.

Duplicate the mouth shape layer in the Layers palette so that there are now two of them. Target the duplicate mouth layer and press the Link button in the Tool Options bar so that when you change the color, this layer will be affected.

When you are working with a shape tool, holding down the Control PC Command Mac key will temporarily switch your tool to the Path Selection tool. When the picker opens, move the mouse out over the yellow part of the eye on the canvas and then click to select this yellow as the fill color for this shape layer.

Click OK and select the Pen tool. Choose the Intersect Shape Areas option in the Tool Options bar and then draw a closed shape that contains two fangs that overlap the mouth area. Click the Color swatch in the Tool Options bar and when the picker opens, click on the red area of one of his eyes in the image to specify that as the fill color for your new shape layer.

Expand one of your groups in the Layers palette. Find one of the layers with the stroke effect applied to it. Combining shape components 12 If the Chain-Link button is enabled in the Tool Options bar, disable it. Then click on the Color swatch in the Tool Options bar and select black from the picker.

If you do this while the Chain-Link button is enabled, it will change the color of your tongue shape layer. Disabling it ensures that only a new shape layer will contain black. The shape area functions in the Tool Options bar provide nearly everything you need to create diverse and unique composite shapes. However, there may be instances where you wish the visible results were indicative of one actual shape or perhaps you wish to perform different shape area functions on the resulting shape.

In these cases, simply click on the Combine button in the Tool Options bar to change the group of shape components into a single, editable shape. Be cautious when combining because once you combine the shape components, they are no longer editable as separate components. If you keep the components separate you still have the option of altering the physical qualities of the shape as well as changing any shape area functions applied to your individual shapes.

Use the Path Selection tool to select one of the wrinkle shape components that you created at the left. Then, hold down the Shift key and click on the other wrinkle shape components at the left to select them as well. Custom shapes When you have spent some time creating a shape of your own with the Pen tool or by editing a preset shape, you may wish to save it for use later on. This will allow you to name the shape and save it. The next time you select the Custom Shape tool, your custom shape will appear in the list of presets available in the Tool Options bar.

Reposition them if necessary with the Path Selection tool. Your top layer is currently targeted in the Layers palette. Hold down the Shift key and click on the shape layer directly above the background layer. This targets the new layer, the top layer, and all layers and groups in-between. Navigate to another area of the canvas. Draw an ear at the left of his head. Use the Path Selection tool to position it exactly where you want it on the layer.

Now, double-click your shape layer thumbnail in the Layers palette. This will launch the picker. Choose a new, light green fill color for your layer and click OK. You can change the fill color of any shape layer at any point by double-clicking the layer thumbnail.

As you can see now, there are numerous ways to specify and edit the fill colors of your shape layers. Changing the fill color 17 Add a stroke effect to this layer. Use a darker green color, a generous thickness, and position it outside so that it surrounds the exterior of the shape components. Select the rounded rectangle shape tool in the Tool Options bar.

Set the radius very high. Then click and drag to create a tooth shape on a new shape layer. Change the fill color of the layer to light yellow. This layer automatically has the previous stroke effect applied to it. Double-click the effect in the Layers palette to edit it, reducing the size of the stroke. Another way to quickly change the fill color of a shape layer is to start by targeting a shape layer in the Layers palette.

Next, choose a foreground color from the picker. Repeat the process again until there are three teeth on this layer. Target all three shape components and then click on the Align Vertical Centers button in the Tool Options bar to align the shape components.

Use the Pen tool to create an antenna shape on the left side of the head, on a new, different colored shape layer. Ensure the Link button is disabled in the Tool Options bar, and set the style back to none in the style picker. Build half of the face Put your new shape layer skills to good use as you create all of the details for the left side of the face on a series of shape layers. Drag the corner points to resize, then click and drag outside of the box to rotate. Press Enter to apply the transformation.

Then repeat the process again, creating a smaller, black ellipse shape layer. Create a white ellipse shape layer over top of the black ellipse and reduce the layer opacity. Target all of these layers, including the antenna layer, and add them to a new group. Use the Move tool or the arrow keys on the keyboard to adjust the positioning on the canvas if necessary. Target all of the layers and groups that make up the alien character in the Layers palette and add them to a new group.

Use the Pen tool to click and drag, creating a closed object that resembles tentacles on a new shape layer. Specify a green fill color and then switch to the Ellipse tool. Click and drag to create a large ellipse that overlaps the top of the tentacles shape on the same layer, creating a strange octopus body. As always, pressing Enter will apply the transformation. All of the methods are the same as before.

Examine the downloaded files At this point in the chapter, you should have the three main characters completed and organized into groups. Everything you need to know to effectively create the characters has been outlined on the previous pages.

However, if you still find yourself confused by a small detail or are scratching your head over something, have a look at the sample files included in the archive you downloaded. The files are named sample Each file contains a single character group and you can inspect the shape layers and components in detail within these files. Here, new shape layers were added to the octopus group as well as the alien group.

Each new layer was placed in the appropriate group, ensuring that the Layers palette remained organized. Use FreeTransform to rotate, resize, and move it to another location on the canvas.

Double-click individual layers within the group and change their fill colors. Delete the shape layers that make up his mouth by dragging them into the trash in the Layers palette.

Then add a new shape layer that contains a small black ellipse to the group, creating a new mouth with a different facial expression. Use this method to create a number of different octopus groups on the canvas. Alter colors and shape layers as you see fit. Move them up and down within the Layers palette so that some characters are overlapping others. Try varying blending modes of your duplicate groups here and there. Also experiment with reduced opacity to make some of them less prominent. Move it to another location and use Free-Transform to resize and rotate the group.

Repeat this process over and over, adding a number of blue creatures to the scene. Like you did previously with the octopus, move duplicate groups up and down within the Layers palette altering the blending modes and opacity settings of entire groups as you go. Hiding versus deleting When you are creating duplicate character groups and wish to remove layers from the group, disable them rather than delete them. You can disable the visibility of any layers you wish to hide, and when you transform an entire group, these hidden layers will be transformed alongside the rest.

This is a better option than deleting as it gives you the option of making the layers visible again if you change your mind later on. Alter blending modes, opacity, and try disabling the visibility of some layers. Try combining some of your duplicates into groups as well.

Here, this creature was created by adding a blue creature group and an octopus group into a new group. The blue creature was positioned on top of the octopus and the fill color of the octopus layer was changed to match that of the blue creature.

Then, the blending mode of the new group was changed to luminosity. Use the Subtract and Add to Shape Area options freely. Also, have some fun with different blending modes, color fills, and layer opacity settings.

Drag all of the new shape layers beneath the character groups in the Layers palette, so that the new shape layers are used to enhance the painted background rather than overlapping the creatures. Place the new shape layers in a group of their own, just to keep the Layers palette organized.

In this case, the creature enhances the background using only its luminosity. It is quite similar stylistically, but the subject is a little different.

There is a lot you can do when you begin experimenting with shape layers, groups, blending modes, and underlying textures. It takes a bit of practice, but as you can see here, the results are worth it. All that you need these days is a digital photo, a scanned drawing of your plan, and a little Photoshop know-how.

Photoshop offers all of the tools necessary to add innovative digital graffiti to any photographed scene. Brushes, selections, and layer blending modes are essential Photoshop tools to get the job done.

Above all other features, these are key ingredients in producing convincing graffiti art. These two features give the Brush tool its authentic spray paint feel and allow you to produce convincing spray paint results. While producing real spray paint art, you get annoying drips littering your masterpiece when you apply too much paint to a single area at once.

And rather than creating a digital backdrop for the graffiti art, it is painted directly on top of a photo of a bare wall, using layer blending modes to make it look as if it really belongs there.

A basic understanding of the Brush tool and Layers palette will make this chapter easier for you. It takes practice. It is very important to exercise a little forethought when you set out to do something like this.

Knowing that I was going to be spraying paint digitally, and knowing that I could get that paint to build up naturally, I knew that I wanted it to drip. Now, there is no gravity in Photoshop, so creating dripping paint would have to be done in the real world or carefully faked digitally.

Although this is a common theme that pops up again and again throughout this book, it is very important to mentally prepare yourself for the task at hand. Get everything together and then launch Photoshop. As you work your way through this chapter and get to the dripping paint part, it will become clear that spraying these drips on paper ahead of time was the best and most efficient method to create a realistic effect.

Photoshop Tools, Features, and Functions Airbrush capabilities This feature does not get enabled often. It allows the brush to deposit paint the way a spray can would. There is an endless stream when you hold the button down and the movement of the mouse directly affects how much paint is deposited in a given area. Opacity and flow Using these two Brush tool options together allows you to customize how paint is deposited by your virtual airbrush. The numbers you enter in these fields will have an immense effect on how natural your sprayed strokes appear.

This will act as your background for the image and this file will become the bottom layer of our multilayered working file. The first thing you notice about the wall is that the darker details are not pronounced enough. Perhaps the original photograph was a little overexposed.

To remedy this, drag the background layer onto the Create a New Layer button at the bottom of the Layers palette to duplicate it. Target the duplicate layer and change the blending mode of the layer to linear burn. In either case, reduce the saturation by around 28 in the Adjustments panel to remove color from the underlying layers. Click OK. All of the files needed to follow along with this chapter and create the featured image are available for download on the accompanying Web site in the project files section.

Return to your working file and navigate to the Channels palette. In the Channels palette, click on the Create New Channel button at the bottom of the Channels palette to create an empty alpha channel. Go your own way The black-and-white art here is a very sharp and finely tuned piece of artwork. However, what makes every graffiti artist unique is his or her style of drawing. Feel free to carefully draw your own black-and-white artwork and substitute it for the one used here.

There is no part of the process more appropriate to expressing your individual style than the black-andwhite art stage. You can create any subject you like, but try to make it a nice, sharp piece in solid black and solid white. This will help to keep the channel clean, resulting in a nice, clearly defined selection border. Return to the Layers palette and click on the Create a New Layer button to create a layer at the top of the stack within the palette. Enter a radius setting that softens the edges of your black line work.

Softening the edges, combined with the layer blending mode of multiply, is what will give the art on this layer the appearance of being sprayed onto the wall. Be careful not to soften the edges too much, you still want your artwork to look like something.

Because you are pasting black art on a white background into an alpha channel, it needs to be inverted first, so that the art is white and the background is black. Or, you can leave your art in its positive state and double-click your alpha channel in the Channels palette. Then, from within the Channel options, change things so that color indicates selected areas rather than masked areas before you paste your copied art into it. Here, a series of black paint drips were painted on a white piece of paper.

Holding the can in one place while spraying allows you to build up enough paint in that spot so that it begins to run. Black and white were used because these paint drips, after being scanned, are destined to be used to create custom selections within a series of alpha channels. Open up the drips. This is a desktop scan of a group of spray paint drips. Invert the file and then use the Lasso tool to draw a rough selection that contains one entire drip.

Adding a paint drip Paste a copied paint drip into your alpha channel using the visible composite channel to aid with proper positioning. Create a new channel, ensuring that color indicates masked areas the default setting. Target your new channel and enable the visibility of your CMYK composite channel in the Channels palette.

Shift-drag a corner of the bounding box inward to reduce the selection contents. Click and drag within the bounding box to position your drip over a corner area of your black outline art. Keep the visibility of the composite channel enabled to help you position your drips properly and use Free-Transform to adjust size, rotation, and placement.

When you have a number of drips in your channel that sit nicely over appropriate areas of the image, load the channel as a selection. When placing a drip area within the image, try to think of where it would occur realistically. You know that drips traditionally occur because too much paint is applied in a single area at one time.

So try to look at areas of the art where a spray can is likely to spend a lot of time. Corners are a perfect place. Actually, anywhere where two lines meet means that the spray can will deposit more paint in that area. Working along these lines will aid in achieving a realistic result. Next, click on the eye icon to the left of your alpha channel to disable the visibility of that channel, causing the red overlay to disappear. Return to the Layers palette and ensure that the layer containing your black outline art is targeted.

Fill the current selection with black on this layer and deselect. Just open the Tool Preset picker at the far left of the Tool Options bar. Once the picker is open, just click on the Create New Tool Preset button to add your current tool to the list of presets.

From that point on, your brush will reside within the preset picker for immediate access. In the Brushes palette, choose one of the soft, round brush tip presets. Disable shape dynamics because we do not want the actual thickness of the stroke to change. Enable the Airbrush option as well as the Smoothing option. Try painting a few strokes at various areas on the black layer that surround the outline art.

The longer you stay in one place with the mouse button down, the more the paint will build up in that area. Move the mouse quickly while holding down the button to paint a light stroke or move slowly to paint a darker stroke. The faster you move the mouse, the less paint will be deposited in the stroke because the flow cannot keep up with you—just like real-world spray painting. Try creating a stroke very quickly while holding down the mouse button.

Then stay completely still at the end of the stroke while continuing to hold down the mouse button. This will cause paint to build up in the area where you are hovering—just like it would if you were using a real spray can.

Also try increasing the brush size and reducing the flow so that it looks as if the spray can was held further away while you were painting on the wall. Continue painting on this layer until you think the black spray paint effect is complete. Also, if you feel that you need some more drips on this layer, use the methods employed previously to add drips.

Create a new layer and drag it beneath the black outline layer in the Layers palette. Reduce your brush diameter slightly in the Brushes palette.

Begin to paint some strokes within areas defined by black outlines on the new layer. Now select a purple color from the picker and continue to paint some purple strokes within the same regions of the artwork on the current layer. Remember to vary flow settings, brush diameter, and the speed at which you paint your strokes to achieve the authentic spray paint effect. Quickly pressing a number key on the keyboard will set your brush opacity, using a multiple of ten.

Or, if you want something precision, simply type the two numbers of your desired opacity. Holding down Shift while pressing a number key will allow you to adjust the flow instead of the opacity.

If you have the Airbrush option enabled, things are reversed. When the Airbrush is enabled, simply pressing a number key changes the flow and holding down the Shift key while you press a number key changes the opacity. Use the current brush settings to paint a series of white strokes on this new layer to create highlights on the shapes inside the black outlines.

Also, increase the diameter of the brush and reduce the flow. Then paint some strokes with these brush settings to create a softer, more gradual highlight effect within the shapes. Use the Lasso to draw a rough selection around a cluster of drips and copy it. Return to the working file, create another alpha channel, and target it in the Channels palette. Enable visibility of the composite channel again and then paste into your new alpha channel.

Position it so that it overlaps an area of opaque white and then press Return to apply the transformation. Repeat this process to add a few drips to the alpha channel and then generate a selection from it. Target the composite channel and disable the visibility of your new alpha channel. With the current selection active, return to the Layers palette. Target the layer with the white highlights painted onto it. Specify a white foreground color and fill the active selection with it.

Deactivate the selection. Varying paint colors 16 Create a new layer and drag it beneath the white highlight layer in the Layers palette. Greatly reduce the size of your brush so the stroke thickness is similar to that of your thin white highlight strokes. Be certain to paint over some areas enough times so that there are a few solid red blobs of paint on this layer. Also, increase the brush diameter and reduce the flow setting. With these brush settings, paint some larger, softer strokes here and there on the current layer.

Unlike traditional painting, we can change our minds regarding color after the fact when creating graffiti art in Photoshop. Also, you can target a layer in the Layers palette, enable the transparency lock, and then fill the targeted layer with any color you choose.

This will allow you to instantly change the painted areas of the layer while preserving the transparent areas. Paste some selected drips into a new alpha channel.

Generate a selection from the channel and fill the selected areas with the same red foreground color on the current layer. Feel free at this point to embellish the image by painting some finer strokes of vibrant color on top of the existing layers on a new layer. Moving quickly deposited less paint, allowing us to see the detail of the wall through the paint in a number of areas.

Even while using the Airbrush option, no matter how long you hold the mouse button down in Photoshop, the paint simply will not drip as it piles up. It is light where the motion was quick and heavy where the tool was stagnant. First target only the layers that make up the painted graffiti in the image.

Group them and then simply drag the group into another image window. Traditionally, a stencil is made from paper, cardboard, or plastic. Usually the stencil is held tight against a wall or another surface and paint is sprayed onto it. Removing the stencil after painting reveals an instant application of the stencil art on the desired surface. Ideally, the paint will only touch the surface in areas where holes are present in the stencil.

However, part of the signature appearance of stencil graffiti is the overspray effect that occurs around the edges. The ideal way to do this is to edit the art and then define it as a Custom Brush preset.

All that you need to do to add a virtual stencil to an existing scene is choose the Custom preset and click once. This chapter involves simple use of the Brushes palette.

Angle and diameter are about as complicated as it gets. Applying stencil art in Photoshop is indeed as simple as a single click of the mouse, but ensuring that it looks realistic is the direct result of the care you take in preparing your custom brush artwork. Size, color, and position In addition to authentic-looking brushes, placement and position of the stencil itself is crucial.

You really need to think about your underlying image. Simple analysis will aid you in determining rotation via brush angle and the size relationship of your stencil against the background. Do this by choosing textural images that express distress in white areas against black, and combining those images with this blending mode.

This file provides the subject matter for our initial piece of stencil art. Generally, stencil graffiti art provides social commentary or incorporates an activist theme, so a gas mask is certainly an appropriate subject matter here. Project files 2 Now open up the spatter. Select the Move tool and then, while holding down the Shift key, click anywhere on the canvas and drag the image into your mask. This will add the spatter. This layered file will be the working file for your stencil art from this point on.

Reduce the opacity of the new layer so that you can see the mask image beneath it. Use the Polygonal Lasso tool to draw a rough selection that surrounds the gas mask, yet includes a bit of white background as well.

Choose a large, soft, round Brush preset. Make your mark Although there is artwork provided on the CD as the subject matter for your stencil art, you can feel free to create your own. Traditionally, stenciling, as a guerilla art form, has been all about expressing yourself and your opinions. The process remains the same and will work with a variety of subjects.

Paint over the dark drips in the lower right; also paint over any sharp edges where the spatter abruptly ends, like the upper left, the upper right, and around the edges of the canvas. Again, use the Move tool to drag the image into your working file as a new layer. Hold down the Shift key as you drag to ensure proper positioning when the scratches file reaches the destination. In the Layers palette, change the blending mode of your new scratches layer to lighten.

This ensures that only the areas on the current layer that are lighter than areas on the underlying layer appear, creating a scratched paint effect on your black stencil art. Next, target your background layer and select the Magic Wand tool.

Add light and dark areas Adding light and dark areas within your stencil art helps to create a genuine weathered look when you apply it to your surface destination. Leave the tolerance set to 32 and click on a non-white area of the background layer. Click on the Create a New Layer button in the Layers palette. Alter brush opacity and diameter as you paint. Create a new layer and then paint some faint white areas within the active selection on this layer.

Increase the diameter of your brush and use a very low opacity setting. This is a grayscale detail photo of a rusted metal surface. It is not the subject matter that is appealing in this case, but rather the contrast and interesting divisions between light and dark. Then use the Move tool to drag it into the working file as a new layer. Ensure that you hold down the Shift key as you drag to maintain correct positioning.

Recognizing potential This rust texture application is an excellent example of the less than obvious usage of certain images. When you originally look at the digital photo of the rusted box, you see an intriguing texture, but it is important to look at it with different blending mode applications and Layer stacking options in mind as well.

Try to visualize the lighten and darken usage opportunities of basic texture shots. Examine dark and light areas, and think about how they would affect different types of underlying artwork. Experiment with different scans and photos of texture using different blending modes.

To intensify the rusty texture effect, drag the layer onto the Create a New Layer button at the bottom of the Layers palette to duplicate it. This is a great way to increase the textured effect. Use the same procedure to duplicate your scratches layer and move it too. Included on the list is the option to duplicate the layer.

Try using this method, you may find it even quicker than dragging layers onto the Create a New Layer button at the bottom of the Layers palette.

This method works with any selection tool. This time use the Elliptical Marquee tool to draw a selection around the black logo at the lower right of the canvas. Copy it and return to your working file. Click on the Create New Channel button at the bottom of the Channels palette to create an alpha channel. Paste the copied art into your new channel and then enable the visibility of the CMYK composite channel by clicking in the column to the left of it in the Channels palette.

Press Enter to apply the transformation and then open up the type. Paste it into your targeted alpha channel and then use Free- Transform to adjust the size and position it at the upper left within the channel. Load the channel as a selection.

When you are rotating the contents of a layer or selection with Free-Transform, try holding down the Shift key while you click and drag outside of the bounding box.

Constrained rotations Part Two: Unconventional Methods 10 19 With the new channel-based selection active, return to the Layers palette and create a new layer. Click on the Foreground Color swatch to choose a light green foreground color from the picker.

Set the blending mode of the layer to multiply in the Layers palette and select the Polygonal Lasso tool. Use the Polygonal Lasso to draw selections that cover each large eye. Then fill these selections with the same color on the current layer and deselect. Return to the type. If you double-click a layer thumbnail in the Layers palette, you will access the layer style box which, in addition to a plethora of other options, allows you to control the blending of the layer.

This will lighten all of the shadow areas on the layer. This is a handy way to lighten all of the black components of your photocopied art on a layer.

The advantage of doing this versus a color adjustment is that you can always go back to this dialog box and edit or reset your adjustment. Copy it, return to your working file, and paste it in as a new layer.

Drag the layer to the top of the Layers palette and change the blending mode to multiply. Drag the new layer beneath the figure groups in the Layers palette.

Use the Polygonal Lasso to select a section of type, copy it, and then paste it into the working file as a new layer. Use Free-Transform to size, rotate, and position it. Leave the blending modes for all of these new layers set to normal as you add them. Rather than meticulously draw around that area, just let it be filled with purple for now.

Carefully draw a closed shape around the skull. Ensure that you do not include the large flowers within the shape area as you draw. Carefully draw around them. Now, draw additional closed shapes within the same shape layer that fill remaining areas of the figures with light blue.

Pay special attention to filling the pants and shoulder strap of the figure at the bottom left. Although this area is filled with purple on the underlying layer, this obscures it perfectly. With this function enabled, draw a closed shape around the perimeter of one of the eye holes in the skull. With this operation enabled, draw closed shapes around the other regions of the skull that should not be filled with blue. Group all of the shape layers and name the group.

Now, the shape layers we just created are an excellent way to fill areas with color. However, when I look at the illustration in its current state, it seems a little too flat, lacking fine detail.

Begin by selecting the Brush tool. Select a hard, round Brush preset from the list of options in the Brush Preset picker in the Tool Options bar. If this is not your cup of tea, feel free to disable shape dynamics. Create a new layer and zoom in on a region of the image that requires flat, colored detail.

Set your brush tip diameter accordingly and select an appropriate foreground color from the picker. This will still allow for a subtle layered effect to be built up within the layer as you paint strokes that overlap each other.

Carefully paint some solid color into the desired region on the new layer. After that, choose a different foreground color for another region. Repeat this process until all of the solid detail regions are painted. This time, either select a very soft, round Brush Tip preset from the Brush Preset picker, or simply reduce the hardness of your current brush to zero.

We are going to gently build up paint in shaded regions on this new layer. The process is the same as before. Simply select a color and start to paint it into the appropriate region on this layer. Take your time and paint the appropriate dark colors into areas that require shading, changing your brush size and opacity as required. Choose lighter colors to paint highlights onto raised or protruding areas within the image.

To create a very dark or very light region, build up numerous strokes in the same area. This file contains all the drips and paint splatters. Use the Lasso to draw a rough selection border around a single paint drip, cluster of drops, or section of splatter. Create a new alpha channel and paste the copied art into it. Feel free to alter the size of the pasted art in the channel via Free-Transform.

Load the channel as a selection and then return to the Layers palette. Create a new layer and fill the selection on the new layer with the color of your choice. Feel free to alter the blending mode to give the splatter a translucent appearance. This selection was filled with blue before I deactivated it. Then the blending mode was changed to multiply.

Feel free to move your splatter layers above or below each other. Name the group and then drag it above the sketch layer so that it sits at the top of the stack in the Layers palette. In my opinion, the color is lacking overall. It looks a little faded or washed out. When the sliders appear in the Adjustments palette, increase the saturation greatly by around You will immediately notice the color within the image spring to life. Now the only thing lacking is the density of the blacks within the image.

To remedy this, duplicate the sketches layer. In this editorial illustration, the method of using the sketch on a layer with a multiply blending mode works well. The solid regions of the alien bodies were filled using shape layers, then detail and shading was painted onto a series of layers above.

This process of building an image from scanned tactile components can incorporate almost any form of traditional media. This was so long ago that for the first year or so there was no computer at all in the art department.

I used to do all of the original artwork and color separations manually. When it came to adding shading to the designs, I used to have all of these great peel-and-stick halftone sheets made by Letraset at my disposal. There were different densities to mimic different percentages of color where required. There were different patterns to choose from, mainly dominated by dots and lines. But for some reason, I always tended to gravitate toward the line patterns. There was just something about them that captivated me.

Perhaps even more important than the act of working with those primitive materials were the wonderfully primitive results at the end of it all. Thick inks were squeezed onto garments through the fine line work of the screen patterns.

It was hard to keep colors in register throughout the duration of the print run, and the artwork often had gaps between colors or unwanted overlaps. At the time it used to frustrate me, and when we e ventually began using digital tools, quality was much easier to maintain.

However, with many years of using Photoshop under my belt, I find myself coming full circle. Those halftone line patterns still interest me. S creen-printing is a process that is fraught with limitations. However, it is those very limitations that provide the beauty. Compelled by imperfect beauty, I de veloped a process to ef fectively emulate this aesthetic in Photoshop.

I guess the romance of cutting out those pieces of halftone screen with an x-acto knife just stuck with me somehow. You need a basic understanding of selection tools, image modes, layers, and the Color picker to make your way through this chapter with ease.

Each positive is used to create a separate screen in which ink will be forced through with a squeegee onto the desired surface. Usually all screens are crudely registered on a carousel-like device, and ink is applied to the surface, one color at a time.

As a result of this, it is very important to visualize your design and then create the necessary components ahead of time. Each color or shade is prepared as a separate piece of black-and-white art.

And each scanned piece utilizes layers, channels, bitmap conversion methods, and other tools to make it part of an authentic-feeling silk-screened design. Photoshop Tools, Features, and Functions Halftone Screen This is the lovely feature responsible for all of those great line patterns in the opening image.

When you convert to a bitmap, this is one of the features available. It really is a powerhouse of control although it may seem primitive. Controlling density Back in the old days, you were limited to different screens ready made for different values of color. In Photoshop we can alter the density of color ahead of time.