129 Comments
Vibrant Photo Manipulation
September 3, 2008Using vibrant colors is the best way to make an image stand out, although getting the right balance is not always easy. Here we learn how to use lots of vibrant color to create a slightly abstract photo manipulation using pencils and fruit. We will learn how to use the pen tool effectively and also some freehand brushing which looks good.
Tutorial Files
If you are a PSD PRO member then download the PSD file and much more by going here.
Introduction
This is a simple and very effective style but does require some time being spent on it. Although its simple I wont be going into every detail, mainly to let you use your own creativity and also because the tutorial is aimed at people who have some basic knowledge of Photoshop already. Get some ideas in your head and lets get going!
Step 1
Create a new document with dimensions; 1200x1800px. Now you need to find two colorful photos or you can use the ones I did which can be found here and here. Paste both of them into your document then resize and arrange them until your image looks like the one below. If you are using your own images, they will need to have a white background or you’ll have to extract them.
Step 2
Select the pen tool then make sure in the main toolbar that paths is selected. Start at one of the pencils then create a path going to a fruit of the same color. To make the first click at the starting point then click again a bit lower down but this time hold and drag as this will smooth the curve, keep doing this until you have a path similar to the one shown below.
Step 3
Select the brush tool (the path should still be visible) then go to the brush editor and select a 6px round brush with 100% hardness. Create a new layer then just hit return and a dialog box should pop up; select brush and uncheck simulate pressure. You should now have a black curve like shown below.
Step 4
Now we are going to add some detail to it and make it look like goo, below I’ve shown four examples of what it should look like. In each of these I first used the line tool (set at fill pixels in the main toolbar) at about 2-3px and drew a line coming from the curve. I then used a 2-3px round brush and when zoomed in I added some more detils freehand by just brushing slowly, I added drops at the bottom of each line and some beads of liquid as well. This takes time to do but looks great, the same techniques are explained in another tutorial I wrote which you can read here.
Step 5
Now right click on this layer then select blending options and add a gradient overlay. When choosing the colors for the gradient use the eyedropper to select the color from the pencil’s lead and the color from the fruit, in this case the orange. This means that the line will blend in to each of them. YOu may need to select reverse here if your gradient is the wrong way.
Step 6
Create anew layer and do exactly the same with another color; for me I did it with red. Use the tecniques but you can try changing the size of the brush.
Step 7
I used a floral brush to create this detail, lots of these brushes can be found here. After making the shape repeat step 5 on this layer but using red rather than orange. I’ve shown below what mine looked like at this point.
Step 8
Now it’s just a case of repeating these steps with a few more colors, I’ve shown some examples in the next few steps but not gone into every detail. Here I did the same with the yellow pencil but I used a larger brush to stroke the path. I made it look like it was going behind some of the pencils by hiding part of the layer; you can do this two ways, the best would be to use a layer mask but if you’re not familiar with masks then either read a few more of my tutorials or just use the erasor tool. Again add some drips to this layer and change it to yellow to get something like the image below.
Step 9
For the green one I used a smaller brush anfd made it look like it was wrapping round the other lines. I also added another floral brush as these look great.
Step 10
Below I’ve shown what mine looked like at this point in the process. feel free to add more elements in to the picture, I’ve kept it quite simple here just for the sake of this tutorial but just be creative; this isn’t one of those tutorials where I teel you exactly what buttons to push so go wild and experiment.
Step 11
For the blue pencil, I used a line coming from the tip with a few drops on it and a splash at hte bottom created using a splatter brush. Do the same with the gradient overlay but choose a shade of blue as we are not trying to blend it to a fruit here.
Step 12
I did the black similarly but just made it look like a drip landed on the yellow line.
Step 13
For the dark green pencil I just made a line then used an upside down tree brush at the end.
Step 14
I did the purple and pink differently and they took me a while. I made two paths that followed each other but linked to the different pencils then stroked them and did the gradient overlay thing but had to edit them slightly afterwards.
Step 15
Now you’ll want to download a paper texture, there are loads of them free to download everywhere but the one I used can be found here. Paste it into your image then resize it to fit the document roughly, now change the blend mode to multiply and the opacity to 50%. That’s you finished, hope you learned something and manage to find some cool uses for it.
Similar Tutorials:
- Dance Photo Manipulation Part 2
- Luminescent Lines
- Spray Paint Text
- Dance Photo Manipulation Part 1
- CD Cover Design
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September 4th, 2008
rezaracted:
Hey dude! I just discovered your site. Great tuts man, keep up the excellent work!
September 4th, 2008
NaldzGraphics:
wow.very impressive.a great manipulation.thanks for the tuts.Keep up the good work Ross.
Ronald
September 4th, 2008
Wiz:
What happened to step 7?
September 4th, 2008
Ross:
Wiz, thanks for pointing that out, I just jumped for 6 to 8 oops, sorted now though.
September 4th, 2008
bandpang:
nice very nice
September 4th, 2008
Naruk:
Molto ma molto bello!!! Complimenti…
September 4th, 2008
Reginaldo Conde - Brazil:
This tutorial is just amazing! Thank you!
September 5th, 2008
stephano diego de souza:
chapado!!!!!!!!! muito louco mesmo….
September 5th, 2008
Kyle Gallant:
I really enjoyed this tutorial, I like the approach… it’s a much nicer and easier way then trying to draw it all out with vectors.
September 5th, 2008
Ross:
Thanks for all the comments guys, this one was fun to make so glad you enjoyed it too.
September 5th, 2008
Tutorials Room:
Good Tutorial! It was chosen for the main page of http://www.tutorialsroom.com
Keep on the good work :)
September 6th, 2008
Jess:
This is an amazing tutorial, but after step 5 im lost!! My layer doesnt do the right thing, how do you blend it to make the gradient colour the lines you’ve drawn! My gradient just fills the entire image!! Argh!!
September 6th, 2008
Aqua:
@ Ross
Plz…cn u tell me how do we select a path ?
September 7th, 2008
nursetsase:
thanks dudie..
September 8th, 2008
waine waine:
Thank u very much
I like this tutorial
September 10th, 2008
Antonwoods:
Just stumbled by your website via digg and ive got to say its well good, you from Glasgow? Im doing my Bsc degree in Internet Software Development up their in Caledonian University. Keep up the good work ;) :D New bookmark.
September 11th, 2008
Ross:
Anton, that’s funny I’m at Strathclyde – literally 2 minutes away, crazy eh?
September 11th, 2008
alex:
nice Tutorial
September 12th, 2008
layla2008:
Studied very beautiful
Bode Demtem
September 13th, 2008
M.Saleh:
Good Tutorial!
Thanks .
September 16th, 2008
caitlin:
wow… these are really great um you got anymore plus your sight is the shat… :)
September 17th, 2008
opridai:
Awesome :)
September 18th, 2008
Jim R.:
Absolutely fantastic images! Kudos for beautiful work and a great site. Everything is so pristine and professional.
September 24th, 2008
tommy:
Cool
Thanks for posting.
October 28th, 2008
Anita:
hey, great tutorial and an easy one ;)
i really enjoyed this one, thanks.
here’s my try:
http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3068/2981288691_c8cb2bfb2d_o.jpg
October 30th, 2008
Rupal:
hey hi…….damn good..
i have started learning using photoshop few days back…
so it was bit difficult to grasp all of it …still cud get most of the things…
i still dont know how i landed to this site..but i am thankful dat i did!
cheers..
keep it up….
December 7th, 2008
adeline:
that’s really cool……thankz for sharing =D
December 11th, 2008
Ichigo:
This is an awesome design. i love it.
February 5th, 2009
stefan:
Very nice photo manipulation!
March 16th, 2009
Luca Mercatanti:
Very good works!
March 28th, 2009
person:
i dont get step 3… it wont work for me..
April 1st, 2009
Crystal:
Create a new layer then just hit return and a dialog box should pop up;
That doesn’t happen to me at all. am i doing it wrong?
April 22nd, 2009
Gregory:
It Looks pretty cool )
June 23rd, 2009
yuanjy1984:
good tutorial!
July 2nd, 2009
www.msntruques.blogspot.com:
muito bom esse tutorial
July 29th, 2009
Anya:
this is great! love your site! thanks!
January 6th, 2010
anonimous:
Create a new layer then just hit return and a dialog box should pop up;
That doesn’t happen to me at all. am i doing it wrong? [2]
August 18th, 2010
roneybalack:
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if you think i make a spam please remove this comment.
You have good tutorials and i had post it on my website. http://download60s.com
September 21st, 2010
Tixy:
Nice and easy tutorial! Thank you!
September 30th, 2010
Miko:
I really like the main idea! Much free room to play around with the elements =)
Excellent stuff on your site, keep it up!
October 3rd, 2010
Gavin Dodd:
Really cool man. I’m doing it with colored guitars! Can’t wait till I’ve finished it!
October 21st, 2010
raymond:
very nice tut! its a nice work that you do here!
thanks
November 22nd, 2010
Norbert:
@Aqua
Use the Path Selector tool ( shortcut ‘A’ ) it is the one below the Text Tool. The black arrow.
November 28th, 2010
Renee G:
awesome and clearly explained tutorial. thank you very much for sharing your talent!
November 30th, 2010
Crimeadesign:
Awesome tutorial, thx alot!!!!
February 23rd, 2011
Treadmill Traci:
Wow! Thanks for the tutorial, this is very VERY impressive!
March 3rd, 2011
Nasieba Anwar:
Hi,
could you please tell me where is the pen tool have photoshop elements 9 and i cannot find that tool. So i can’t draw the paths from the colour pencils to the fruit.
May 2nd, 2011
Manoj Shirole:
great tuts and very awesome work and thank you 4 sharing this tut.
May 20th, 2011
Web Design Sheffield:
Great tutorial. This is just creative. Thank you for sharing this tutorial. Wonderful work.
May 23rd, 2011
Heri:
Its, realy cool, great tutorial, awesome i like it, keep sharing, thank you.
June 15th, 2011
kalabilla:
VERY WELL DONE DUDE
June 22nd, 2011
Kyle Maes:
My splatter tool doesnt work it does absolutely nothing no matter what i do!
July 25th, 2011
kooniekalrawr:
I dont get step 3. What is the return button. So I just stroked it. Is that fine?
August 14th, 2011
Emanueke:
Good thank you!
September 9th, 2011
dora:
great!!! thank you! Keep sharing pleasee :)
September 15th, 2011
venkat:
Nice and easy tutorial! Thank you!
September 25th, 2011
ahihi:
how do you uncheck simulate pressure? o.o
October 8th, 2011
Gabriel:
i cant smoothen the sides of the pen tool :) helP XD
October 14th, 2011
Jay Whittenton:
Thank you for some other informative site. The place else could I get that kind of info written in such a perfect manner? I have a undertaking that I am simply now running on, and I’ve been on the look out for such information.
November 14th, 2011
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November 24th, 2011
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December 11th, 2011
Photoshop Cs4 Training:
very interesting tutorial thanks
March 4th, 2012
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March 7th, 2012
Sueyen:
very fine thank you!
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