Welcome to another Exclusive Photoshop tutorial written specifically for the PSD Vault VIP Members! This tutorial will go through in detail the creation of a realistic artwork with and dramatic lighting of the alien invasion by using Photoshop.

This tutorial is written exclusively for PSD Vault by digital artist Maria Semelevich.

If your membership is active, simply log in and download the tutorial now at the VIP members area.

Final Image Preview

This is the image you will be creating: (click to enlarge)

Alternative Colour Scheme:

What You Will Learn

This Photoshop tutorial will cover:

1. How to correct the image defects
2. Tools and techniques of retouching city landscape
3. Creation of a Comet Brush
4. Toning and Sharpen of the Image

Sample Screenshots

Interested? Log in to your VIP members area to download it now! Not a member yet? Click on the banner below to sign up:

The post VIP Exclusive Photoshop Tutorial – Alien Invasion Scene Creation in Photoshop appeared first on Photoshop Tutorials, Digital Art Tutorials and Showcase - PSD Vault.

In this tutorial, I will show you how to make a portrait with city elements in Photoshop. This is a intermediate level difficulty tutorial and can be a bit tricky to complete, but why not have a try!

Note: The Photoshop tutorial is done in Photoshop CC – therefore some screenshot may have slighting different layout as in the earlier version. Some brushes are exclusive to Photoshop CS6 or above.

Here is a preview of the final effect I have for this tutorial: (click to enlarge)

PSD File Download

You can download the PSD File for this tutorial via the VIP Members Area for only $6.95/Month (or less)! You will not only get this PSD File, but also 200+ other PSD Files + Extra Goodies + Exclusive Photoshop tutorials there. Signup now and get exclusive :) Find out more about the VIP Members Areas

To complete this tutorial, you will need the following stocks:

Model

City Stock 1 by Allendra3

City Stock 2 by ChrisBeckerArt

City Stock 3 by fl8us-stock

Splatter Brushes

Cloud Brushes (Download a few from the list)

Step 1

Create a new document sized 907px*1380px with white background. Load the model into Photoshop. Cut out the model and paste it to our document:

Use a cloud brush you downloaded as eraser, go through the hair, shoulder region of the model as shown below:

Also use a soft eraser to remove the bottom right part of the model – we will place a few elements inside this later on:

Step 2

Apply the following adjustment layers as clipping masks for the model layer created in the previous step:

Black and White

On the layer mask of the black and white adjustment layer, use the splatter brush as eraser, remove some parts around the face and fingers as shown below:

Curves

And here is the effect so far:

Create a new layer below the model layer, use the cloud brush to paint some cloudy effect as shown below:

Step 3

Load the “City Stock 1” image into Photoshop, select the red building from the image:

Copy and paste the building below the in between the model layer and the cloud layer, resize it to fit our canvas size. Reduce its layer opacity to around 80%:

Use the Splatter Brush as eraser, remove some parts of the city building as shown below:

Apply the following image adjustment layers as clip masks for this building layer:

Black and White

Levels

Curves

Here is the effect so far:

Step 4

Load the “City Stock 2” into Photoshop and select the following building:

Copy and paste the building into the following area of our canvas, use free transform tool and eraser tool to fit the building into the model’s body shape:

Apply the following adjustment layers to this building layer:

Black and white

Levels

and here is the effect so far:

Step 5

Load the “City Stock 3” image into Photoshop, select the road part with the direction sign:

Copy and paste the selection to our document and put it below the model layer, use the free transform to adjust its shape:

Apply the following image adjustments to this road layer:

Black and White

Levels

Curves

and you will have the following effect:

Step 6

We will be adding a couple traffic lights and street signs to our image. Go to “City stock 1” and select the following traffic light:

Copy and paste the selection to our document, re-size and place it over to the city street:

Apply the following image adjustments to this traffic light:

Curves

Levels

and here is the effect:

Go to “City stock 3” image and select the following street lamp and advertisement:

Copy and paste it to our document and apply the following image adjustments:

Black and white

Levels

Attach this element to the model as shown below:

Step 7

We’re almost done! To finalise this photo manipulation, I added a couple of image adjustment layers on top to give it some colour:

Selective Color

Vibrance

and here is my final effect: (click to enlarge)

That’s it for this tutorial! Hope you enjoy it and find it useful! If you have any questions about the steps, please contact me or leave a comment below. I will try my best to answer them.

Till next time, have a great day!

The post How to Make a Portrait with City Elements in Photoshop appeared first on Photoshop Tutorials, Digital Art Tutorials and Showcase - PSD Vault.

In this tutorial, I will show you how to make this Photo Manipulation of a Warrior in Battle in Photoshop. This is a intermediate level difficulty tutorial and can be a bit tricky to complete, but why not have a try!

This photo manipulation is inspired by the “Destiny” Game Box Art.

Note: The Photoshop tutorial is done in Photoshop CC – therefore some screenshot may have slighting different layout as in the earlier version. Some brushes are exclusive to Photoshop CS6 or above.

Here is a preview of the final effect I have for this tutorial: (click to enlarge)

PSD File Download

You can download the PSD File for this tutorial via the VIP Members Area for only $6.95/Month (or less)! You will not only get this PSD File, but also 200+ other PSD Files + Extra Goodies + Exclusive Photoshop tutorials there. Signup now and get exclusive :) Find out more about the VIP Members Areas

To complete this tutorial, you will need the following stocks:

Rock Stock 1

Rock Stock 2

Warrior by mjranum-stock

Building

Wolf

Fire

Step 1

Create a new document sized 1440px * 867px with black background. Load the “Rock Stock 1” image into Photoshop and select the following portion – we will use this to form the ground of our manipulation:

Copy and paste the selection to our document, re-size it and use a soft eraser to fade the edges of the rock, as shown below:

Apply the following adjustment layers as clipping mask to this ground layer:

Black and White

Levels

and here is the effect so far:

Use a cloud brush or the cloud filter, add some cloud effect around canvas, particularly in the area where the warrior and the building will be placed:

Step 2

Load the warrior image into Photoshop and cut out the warrior, place it into the centre position of our canvas:

Apply the following adjustment layers as clipping masks to this warrior layer:

Black and White

On the above black and white’s layer mask, reveal the following area of the model (this is in preparation of adding fire to the model in later step):

Levels

Layer mask on the above levels adjustment layer:

Use a soft round brush and the Warp tool, create a curved highlight over the axe:

and here is the effect so far:

Step 3

Load the building stock image into Photoshop, select the following portion from the stock:

Copy and paste the selection to our document, place it on the left side of warrior as shown below:

I use a number of Crack Brushes to create this broken/cracked wall effect on the building:

Apply the following adjustment layers as clipping masks on top of the building layer:

Black and White

Levels

Curves

and here is the effect so far:

Group all these layers linked to the building into a layer folder. Duplicate this layer group, and select the dupcliated layer group and press Ctrl + T, choose “Flip Horizontal”:

Move this duplicated layer group to the right side of the canvas as shown below:

Use a soft eraser, remove part of the building on the right to make it look different to the one on the left:

Step 4

Load the “Rock Stock 2” image into Photoshop and select the tip of the rock:

Place your selection into Photoshop and use the free transform tool to rotate it, and use a soft eraser to fade its edge and blend it with the ground and the building:

Apply the following adjustment layers as clipping masks to this rock layer:

Black and White

Levels

Layer mask on the levels adjustment layer:

Group all layers related to the rocks together, duplicate this group and flip it horizontally. Move it to the right side:

Step 5

We will give the warrior a wolf companion. Load the wolf stock image into Photoshop, copy it out and place it onto the left rock:

Apply the following adjustment layer as clipping mask to the Wolf layer:

Black and White

Levels

and here is the effect so far:

Step 6

Load the fire stock into Photoshop and select the following area:

Attach the selection to the model’s body and axe – use the free transform tool to adjust the shape of the fire:

Attach another piece of the fire to the building on the right and make it look like it’s erupting from the window:

Step 7

I decided to add some flying particles around the canvas. Use a particle brush to paint some particles as shown below:

Use the Motion Blur filter with the following setting on this particle you just painted:

And here is the effect you will have:

Repeat this above process and add more particle around the canvas:

Step 8

In this last step, I decided to give the photo manipulation a “Rusty” effect. I flattened the layers, and duplicated the background layer, applied the following “Accented Edges” filter to the duplicated layer:

I added the following layer mask to the duplicated layer to hide the accented edge filter effect in some area:

and this is the effect so far:

I further applied a few adjustment layers to add colours for our design, here this is my end result: (click to enlarge)

That’s it for this tutorial! Hope you enjoy it and find it useful! If you have any questions about the steps, please contact me or leave a comment below. I will try my best to answer them.

Till next time, have a great day!

The post Photo Manipulation of a Warrior in Battle in Photoshop appeared first on Photoshop Tutorials, Digital Art Tutorials and Showcase - PSD Vault.

In this tutorial, I will show you the process used to create this “Fall of the Dinosaurs” Digital Art in Photoshop. This is an intermediate level difficulty tutorial and can be a bit tricky to complete, but why not have a try!

Note: The Photoshop tutorial is done in Photoshop CC – therefore some screenshot may have slighting different layout as in the earlier version. Some brushes are exclusive to Photoshop CS6 or above.

Here is a preview of the final effect I have for this tutorial: (click to enlarge)

PSD File Download

You can download the PSD File for this tutorial via the VIP Members Area for only $6.95/Month (or less)! You will not only get this PSD File, but also 200+ other PSD Files + Extra Goodies + Exclusive Photoshop tutorials there. Signup now and get exclusive :) Find out more about the VIP Members Areas

To complete this tutorial, you will need the following stocks:

Landscape 1

Landscape 2

Dinosaur 1

Dinosaur 2

Planet

Flame

Step 1

Create a new document sized 1400px * 793px with black background. Load the landscape 1 stock image into Photoshop and select the following portion:

Copy and paste the selection into our document and place it on the bottom of our canvas:

Use a soft eraser to fade the top edge of the grass as shown below:

Apply the following adjustment layers as clipping mask to this grass layer:

Black and White

Levels

and here is the effect so far:

Step 2

Still on “landscape 1” image, select a portion of the sky:

Copy and paste the selection to our document, use a big soft eraser to remove parts of the sky as shown below:

Apply the following adjustment layer as clipping mask to this sky layer:

Black and White

Levels

and here is the effect so far:

Use a cloud brush, paint some cloud over the ground as shown below:

Step 3

Load the “landscape 2” image into Photoshop. Select the mountain of the right:

Copy and paste the selection to our document, place it on the right of the document. Use a soft eraser to fade the edges so it blends with the rest of the image:

Apply the following adjustment layer as clipping masks to this new mountain layer:

Black and White

Levels

and here is the effect so far:

Repeat the above process, add another mountain region on the left of our canvas:

Paint some cloud effect around the newly added mountains:

Step 4

Load the “dinosaur 1” image into Photoshop. Move it onto our document:

Place the dinosaur on the following position:

Apply the following image adjustments to this new dinosaur layer:

Black and White

Levels

Load the “dinosaur 2” image into Photoshop, cut out the dinosaur from the rest of the image:

Place it on the following position on our canvas:

Apply the following image adjustments to this new dinosaur layer:

Black and White

Levels

and here is the effect so far:

Add another same dinosaur on the following position:

Paint some cloud around the dinosaur:

Step 5

Go back to the “landscape 2” image, select the lower mountain from that stock image:

Copy and paste it onto our document, use a soft eraser to remove the following parts from the new layer to blend it with the rest of the image:

Apply the following image adjustments to this mountain layer:

Black and White

Levels

Step 6

Load the “Flame” stock image into Photoshop, select the lower portion of the image:

Copy and paste the selection to our document, re-size and place it on top of the centre of the mountain. Change the blending mode of this new flame layer to “Screen”:

Select some fire particles from the flame stock image:

Copy and paste the fire particles onto our document, change the blending mode to “Screen” for the new fire particle layer, place it around the dinosaur:

I added more fire elements around the canvas:

Step 7

Load the “Planet” stock into Photoshop. Copy and paste the image onto our document, place it at the centre of the canvas:

Use a soft eraser, fade the edges of the planet:

Apply the following adjustments to this planet:

Black and White

and here is the effect so far:

Step 8

We can add some simple meteor effect around the canvas. Paint a small white dot on the sky:

Use a cloud brush to paint a tail as shown below – adjust the size and angel of it with free transform tool:

Repeat this process add more of this meteor effect around the cavnas:

Step 9

We’re almost done! For final touches, we can flatten the image and duplicate the background layer, apply the following “Accented Edges” filter on the duplicate layer:

Apply the following layer mask (shown in red colour) on the duplicate layer:

and here is the effect so far:

I further added some colours with a couple of colour balance adjustment layers, and this is my final effect: (click to enlarge)

That’s it for this tutorial! Hope you enjoy it and find it useful! If you have any questions about the steps, please contact me or leave a comment below. I will try my best to answer them.

Till next time, have a great day!

The post Create “Fall of the Dinosaurs” Digital Art in Photoshop appeared first on Photoshop Tutorials, Digital Art Tutorials and Showcase - PSD Vault.

In this tutorial, I will show you the process used to create Ship Fleet Under Sea Monster Attack Scene in Photoshop. The concept of this artwork is that a ship fleet was attached by sea monster when passing though uncharted water.

This is an intermediate level difficulty tutorial and can be a bit tricky to complete, but why not have a try!

Note: The Photoshop tutorial is done in Photoshop CC – therefore some screenshot may have slighting different layout as in the earlier version. Some brushes are exclusive to Photoshop CS6 or above.

Here is a preview of the final effect I have for this tutorial: (click to enlarge)

PSD File Download

You can download the PSD File for this tutorial via the VIP Members Area for only $6.95/Month (or less)! You will not only get this PSD File, but also 200+ other PSD Files + Extra Goodies + Exclusive Photoshop tutorials there. Signup now and get exclusive :) Find out more about the VIP Members Areas

To complete this tutorial, you will need the following stocks:

Sky by cosmicspark

Ocean

Cliff by whynotastock

Rock (Pick 1 from the list)

Ship 1 by lomapatta-stock

Ship 2 by mjranum-stock

Octopus by Stickfishies-Stock

Water Splash Brushes by redheadstock

Step 1

Create a new document sized 1440px * 750px with black background. Load the Sky stock image into Photoshop and select it, copy and paste the selection to our canvas. Use the free transform tool to adjust the size of the Sky layer to fit our canvas. Then, use a soft eraser to remove parts of the sky as shown below:

Load the Ocean stock image into Photoshop and select the following section of the ocean:

Copy and paste the selection to our document, use a soft eraser to fade the edges of the ocean:

Apply the following adjustment layers as clipping masks to this ocean layer:

Black & White

Levels

and here is the effect so far:

Step 2

Load the Cliff stock image into Photoshop and select the cliff:

Copy and paste the selection to our canvas, place it at the position shown below:

Use the Burn tool with the following setting, darken parts of the cliff:

Apply the following Black and White adjustment to remove the colours of the cliff:

Repeat the above process, and add 2 more cliffs to our canvas. Make sure you adjust each cliff’s size and shape using the free transform tool, so they don’t look exactly the same:

Step 3

Load the Rock stock image into Photoshop. I used the following stock from the download link at the beginning of this tutorial, but you can any stock you like from that download page. Select a portion from the rock stock image:

Step 4

Still using the Rock stock image, select a few smaller pieces and add them to the following position, above the ocean. Remove the colours of the rock layers using Black and White adjustment:

Use a cloud/smoke brush, gently paint some cloud effect around the cliff and above the ocean. These cloud will add dramatic effect to the shipwrecks that we will be adding into the next step:

Step 5

Load the “Ship 1” stock image into Photoshop and select the ship:

Copy and paste the selection to our document, resize and place it to the following position:

Apply the following adjustment layer as clipping mask to this ship layer:

Black and White

Levels

and here is the effect so far:

Repeat the above process, add a few more ships onto the ocean. Adjust their size and layer opacity accordingly:

Step 6

Load the “Ship 2” stock image into Photoshop and make a selection of the ship: (doesn’t matter if your selection is a bit rough)

Copy and paste the selection to our canvas, place it onto the following position. Flip the ship horizontally:

Apply the following adjustment layers as clipping masks to this new ship layer:

Black and White

Levels

and here is the effect so far:

Repeat the above process and add another same but smaller ship to the following position:

Use a cloud brush to paint some extra cloud around the ships:

Step 7

We will be using an Octopus as our monster in this step. Load the Octopus stock image into Photoshop, select the Octopus and paste it to the following position. Flip the layer horizontally and rotate it slightly clock-wise:

Apply the following adjustment layers as clipping mask to this Octopus layer:

Black and White (set layer opacity to around 75%)

Levels

Fade the parts where Octopus connects with the cliff using a soft eraser, and here is the Octopus so far:

I further added a couple Octopus Tentacles in the ocean (with colours removed):

Here is the overall effect:

Step 8

In this final step, I’m adding a couple of water splash around the tentacles using the splash brushes downloaded at the beginning of the tutorial:

Also added some particles effect around the ships using a particle brush:

I then apply some colours to the image using  a number of image adjustment layers such as color balance, selective color and hue. This is my final result: (click to enlarge)

That’s it for this tutorial! Hope you enjoy it and find it useful! If you have any questions about the steps, please contact me or leave a comment below. I will try my best to answer them.

Till next time, have a great day!

The post Create Ship Fleet Under Sea Monster Attack Scene in Photoshop appeared first on Photoshop Tutorials, Digital Art Tutorials and Showcase - PSD Vault.

Welcome to the 49th edition of “Typography Blendr”! This is a series to showcase some highly creative, beautiful typography works from around the web. So if you’re working on a typography design project and need inspiration, this series will be a great place to check out!

If you would like your typography work to be featured here, feel free to submit them to PSD Vault DeviantART group (under Text Effect) or PSD Vault Flickr Group.

Here goes the list, enjoy!

That’s it for this post! Hope you enjoy these typography artworks and get inspired. Till next time, have a great day!

The post Typography Blendr – Volume 49 appeared first on Photoshop Tutorials, Digital Art Tutorials and Showcase - PSD Vault.

Welcome to another Exclusive Photoshop tutorial written specifically for the PSD Vault VIP Members! In this Photoshop tutorial, we will create a breathtaking magical landscape of the eastern highlands. Download tutorial now at PSD Vault VIP area.

This tutorial shows how to develop morning and evening version of the same image out of a plain background, using photo manipulation techniques and advanced tricks. Also, we will try in action “Shake Reduction” filter and how to work with a new “Select and Mask” tool, released in Photoshop CC 2015.5.

This tutorial is written exclusively for PSD Vault by digital artist Maria Semelevich.

If your membership is active, simply log in and download the tutorial now at the VIP members area.

Final Image Preview

This is the image you will be creating: (click to enlarge)

Sunrise Version

Sunset Version

What You Will Learn

This Photoshop tutorial will cover the following main topics:

1. Construction landscape and basic color correction
2. Light, Sky, Cloud Creation
3. Create Depth of Field

Sample Screenshots

If your membership is active, simply log in and download the tutorial now at the VIP members area! Not a member yet? Click on the banner below to sign up:

The post VIP Exclusive Photoshop Tutorial – Create Magical Landscape in Photoshop appeared first on Photoshop Tutorials, Digital Art Tutorials and Showcase - PSD Vault.

In this tutorial, I will show you the steps I used to create this “City in Flame” Digital Montage in Photoshop. We will mix several objects such as city buildings, solider, vintage car, plane and flame in order to the achieve the final result. Have a try!

This is an intermediate level tutorial and prior knowledge of layers, image adjustments, masks are required.

Note: The Photoshop tutorial is done in Photoshop CC – therefore some screenshot may have slighting different layout as in the earlier version. Some brushes are exclusive to Photoshop CS6 or above.

Here is a preview of the final effect I have for this tutorial: (click to enlarge)

PSD File Download

You can download the PSD File for this tutorial via the VIP Members Area for only $6.95/Month (or less)! You will not only get this PSD File, but also 200+ other PSD Files + Extra Goodies + Exclusive Photoshop tutorials there. Signup now and get exclusive :) Find out more about the VIP Members Areas

To complete this tutorial, you will need the following stocks:

Soldier

City building

Vintage Car

Plane

Flame

Step 1

Create a new document sized 900px * 1200px with black background. Load the vintage car stock image into Photoshop and select the following piece from the ground:

Copy and paste the selection to our document, place it at the bottom of the canvas and use a soft eraser to fade the top edge as shown below:

Apply the following black and white adjustment to this ground layer:

Use a cloud/smoke brush (plenty of these over the web) to paint some smoke effect above the ground. Here is the effect so far:

Step 2

Load the soldier stock into Photoshop and cut out the solider. Place it to the following position on our canvas. Use a soft eraser to fade the following edges of the model so it blends into the background:

Apply the following image adjustment layers to this model layer:

Black and White

Levels

Mask on the levels adjustment layer:

Curves

Mask on the curves adjustment layer:

And here is the effect so far:

Step 3

Load the building stock into Photoshop and select the right portion of the building:

Copy and paste the selection to our canvas and place it to the right side of the solider. Move this new building layer below the solider layer.

Use a crack brush to add some cracks to the building:

Apply the following adjustment layers for this building layer:

Black & White

Levels

and here is the effect so far:

Step 4

Load the flame stock image into Photoshop, and use the Lasso Tool with 40px feather to select the following portion:

Attach the flame to the building and set its blend mode to “Screen”:

and here is the effect so far:

Add a couple more buildings to the following portions with the same process. Adjust the opacity of the buildings so they are slightly darker than the first building.

Also make sure to reduce the size of these 2 buildings you added:

Step 5

Load the vintage car stock image into Photoshop and select the car:

Place the selection to the following position, fade the bottom of the car with a soft eraser:

Apply the following black and white adjustments to the car layer:

Go to the flame stock into the select the following portion of the flame:

Attach the fire to the car and set its blending mode to “Screen”. You may need to adjust the size of the fire to fit the car:

Add some fire to the ground as well using the same process:

Step 6

Load the plane stock image into Photoshop, select the plane and place it to our document. Use the free transform tool to flip the plane horizontally:

Apply the following Levels adjustment to the plane layer:

Select the following portion of the flame stock

Attach the selection to the place and set its blending mode to “Screen”:

And here is the overall effect so far:

I further adjusted its colours with a couple of colour balance adjustment layers. This is my final result: (click to enlarge)

That’s it for this tutorial! Hope you enjoy it and find it useful! If you have any questions about the steps, please contact me or leave a comment below. I will try my best to answer them.

Till next time, have a great day!

The post Create “City in Flame” Digital Montage in Photoshop appeared first on Photoshop Tutorials, Digital Art Tutorials and Showcase - PSD Vault.

In this tutorial, I will show you the steps I used to create this “Urban Assassin” scene in Photoshop. We will combine a model image with several other objects such as street, building, dragon, and finish up with smoke/cloud overlay. Also will be adding some blood effect with relevant splatter brushes.

This is an intermediate level tutorial and prior knowledge of layers, image adjustments, masks are required.

Note: The Photoshop tutorial is done in Photoshop CC – therefore some screenshot may have slighting different layout as in the earlier version. Some brushes are exclusive to Photoshop CS6 or above.

Here is a preview of the final effect I have for this tutorial: (click to enlarge)

PSD File Download

You can download the PSD File for this tutorial via the VIP Members Area for only $6.95/Month (or less)! You will not only get this PSD File, but also 200+ other PSD Files + Extra Goodies + Exclusive Photoshop tutorials there. Signup now and get exclusive :) Find out more about the VIP Members Areas

To complete this tutorial, you will need the following stocks:

Model by KaylaDavion

City by Random-Acts-Stock

Dragon by Selficide-Stock

Mechete by slappy138

Cloud brushes

Splatter brushes (Pick any one you like)

Step 1

Create a new document sized 960px * 1200px with black background. Load the model image into Photoshop and select the model on the left:

Copy and paste the selection to our document, re-size and place it to the position shown below:

Apply the following adjustment layers as clipping masks to the model:

Black & White

Layer mask for the above black and white adjustment layer:

Levels

Layer mask for the above levels adjustment layer:

Curves

and here is the effect so far:

Step 2

Load the building image into Photoshop and select the street:

Copy and paste the selection to our document, place it below the model layer and use a soft eraser to fade the edges as shown below. Also slightly rotate this street layer clockwise:

Apply the following adjustment layers as clipping mask to this street layer:

Black & White

Levels

Step 3

Go the same building image, select this part of the building show below:

Copy and paste the selection to our document and again place it below the model layer. Resize and place it to the position shown below. Rotate it to the same angle as the street.

Use the cloud brush you downloaded as eraser, erase parts of the building as arrows indicated:

Apply the following adjustment layers as clipping mask to this building layer:

Black & White

Levels

and here is the effect so far:

Step 4

Go the building image again and select the pub portion of the image:

Place it on the right side of the model as shown below. Also rotate it to the same angle as the street:

Apply the following adjustment layers as clipping masks to this layer

Black & White

Levels

and here is the effect so far:

Use the cloud brush or the cloud filter, add some cloud/smoke effect around the canvas:

Step 5

Load the dragon image into Photoshop and select the whole image:

Copy and paste the selection to our document, re-size and place it on the right of the model:

Add one more dragon to the top on the model as shown below:

Step 6

Load the machete image into Photoshop and select it:

Copy and paste the selection to our canvas, resize and place it to the position shown below. Apply the following Motion Blur filter to add some motion to it.

Add a few flying machetes to the image. Adjust their sizes and also apply relevant motion blur to them:

Hint: Use Ctrl + F to apply motion blur repeatedly to fine-tune its effect

Step 7

We will add some extra cloud and blood effect to the image. Use the cloud brush to paint some cloud around the arms:

Use a red splatter brush, paint some random blood over the body and the machete:

Make sure the layer blend mode of the blood layer is set to “Overlay”:

Optionally, we can also add some smoke traces around the body using a Fractal Brush:

and here is the effect so far:

Step 8

In this final step, I decided to add a brush stroke filter to this building on the top left.

I flattened the image and duplicated the background layer. I then made a selection of the building, and chose the “Ink Outlines” filter as shown below:

Apply this above filter to the building, reduce the layer opacity of the duplicated layer to around 55%, and here is the effect:

I further applied some colours to the image using a couple of colour balance adjustment layer, and here is my final effect: (click to enlarge)

Please feel free to experiment your own colour scheme, and see what results they bring you.

That’s it for this tutorial! Hope you enjoy it and find it useful! If you have any questions about the steps, please contact me or leave a comment below. I will try my best to answer them.

Till next time, have a great day!

The post Create a Urban Assassin Scene in Photoshop appeared first on Photoshop Tutorials, Digital Art Tutorials and Showcase - PSD Vault.

In this tutorial, I will show you the steps I used to create this interesting photo manipulation using Ice Texture, Planet and Human Face in Photoshop. Plus we will be using a number fractal stock and apply some custom brush painting effect. Have a try!

This is an intermediate level tutorial and prior knowledge of Photoshop layers, image adjustments, masks are required.

Note: The Photoshop tutorial is done in Photoshop CC – therefore some screenshot may have slighting different layout as in the earlier version. Some brushes are exclusive to Photoshop CS6 or above.

Here is a preview of the final effect I have for this tutorial: (click to enlarge)

PSD File Download

You can download the PSD File for this tutorial via the VIP Members Area for only $6.95/Month (or less)! You will not only get this PSD File, but also 200+ other PSD Files + Extra Goodies + Exclusive Photoshop tutorials there. Signup now and get exclusive :) Find out more about the VIP Members Areas

To complete this tutorial, you will need the following stocks:

Model

Ground by CAStock

Moon by AshenSorrow

Ice by Stock7000

Ice Fractal by Krynnstock

Crack Brushes

Step 1

Create a new document sized 1400px * 788px with black background. Load the ground stock image into Photoshop and select the following portion:

Copy and paste your selection to our document, place it at the bottom and use the free transform tool to adjust its size until it fits our canvas. Use a soft eraser to fade the top edge of the ground as shown below:

Apply the following adjustment layers as clipping masks to the ground layer:

Black & White

Levels

Use a cloud brush or the cloud filter, add some cloud/smoke effect around the ground:

Step 2

Load the model image into Photoshop and make a selection of the head/face area:

Copy and paste the selection to our document and flip it horizontally, re-size and place it above the ground as shown below:

Use the crack brush as eraser to add some cracks around the face:

Apply the following adjustment layers as clipping mask to this face layer:

Black & White

Levels

Layer mask on the above levels adjustment layer:

And this is the effect so far:

Step 3

Load the moon stock image into Photoshop and select the moon:

Copy and paste the selection to our document and place it at the rear of the head:

Use a soft eraser to fade the edge of the moon and apply some cracks on it:

Apply the following levels adjustment to the moon layer:

Add some cloud just above the moon as shown below:

Step 4

Load the ice stock image into Photoshop and select a portion as shown below:

Copy and paste the selection to our document, re-size and place it over the head area as shown below:

Change the blend mode to “Hard Light” for this new ice layer:

Repeat the above process, add more ice texture around the canvas as shown below:

We can also apply some ice texture over the ground using the same method above:

Step 5

We can add some ice particles around the face area. To do this, simply go to the ice stock image and make a new layer:

On the new layer, use any particle brush to paint some particles, and make a selection of the particles:

Go back to the background layer and copy the selection:

Paste the selection to our document, scatter the particles around the canvas:

Step 6

Load one of the ice fractal stock into Photoshop and select it:

Copy and paste the selection to our document, eraser parts of the fractal that you don’t want, attach it to the facial area and above the ground:

Use the following ice fractal image:

Add apply it to the head area as shown below:

Add some subtle cloud/smoke effect around the canvas as shown below:

I further added a couple of colour balance adjustment layers to add some cool colours to the artwork, and this is my final result:

Please feel free to experiment your own colour scheme, and see what results they bring you.

That’s it for this tutorial! Hope you enjoy it and find it useful! If you have any questions about the steps, please contact me or leave a comment below. I will try my best to answer them.

Till next time, have a great day!

The post Photo Manipulation Using Ice Texture, Moon and Human Face in Photoshop appeared first on Photoshop Tutorials, Digital Art Tutorials and Showcase - PSD Vault.

Welcome to the 123rd volume of “Imagination Unleashed: Best of PSD Vault DeviantART Group”, which is a showcase I run regularly here on psdvault.com featuring some fantastic, highly-creative digital artworks in the PSD Vault DeviantART group.

When you look at those digital artwork, pay attention to their colour scheme, creative ideas, and manipulation techniques used. Try and learn from the good works is a great way to improve.

Hope you enjoy those works as much as I did and find them inspirational! Meanwhile, if you have some cool designs and would like to be featured in this series, you can simply join the PSD Vault DeviantART group.

If you like those works, then show those awesome designers some support! Click on the image to visit the author’s DA page and drop them a comment :)

Here goes the list, enjoy!

That’s it for this showcase! If you have some cool designs and would like to be featured in this series, you can simply join the PSD Vault DeviantART group.

The post Imagination Unleashed: Best of PSD Vault DeviantART Group – Vol. 123 appeared first on Photoshop Tutorials, Digital Art Tutorials and Showcase - PSD Vault.

In this tutorial, I will show you how I create a Wizard Summoning Lightning Magic Scene in Photoshop. We will construction a surreal landscape with a few stock images (castle, mountain, etc) first, then add the lightning effect with custom brushes.

This is an intermediate level tutorial and prior knowledge of Photoshop layers, image adjustments, layer masks are required.

Note: The Photoshop tutorial is done in Photoshop CC – therefore some screenshot may have slighting different layout as in the earlier version. Some brushes are exclusive to Photoshop CS6 or above.

Here is a preview of the final effect I have for this tutorial: (click to enlarge)

PSD File Download

You can download the PSD File for this tutorial via the VIP Members Area for only $6.95/Month (or less)! You will not only get this PSD File, but also 200+ other PSD Files + Extra Goodies + Exclusive Photoshop tutorials there. Signup now and get exclusive :) Find out more about the VIP Members Areas

To complete this tutorial, you will need the following stocks:

Rock ground image (use “Image 3” on the page)

Rock mountain image (use “Image 1” on the page)

Castle

Stair by Michael-Rayne

Wizard by AilinStock

Lightning Brushes

Step 1

Create a new document sized 1400px * 765px with black background. Load the rock ground image into Photoshop and select the following portion:

Copy and paste the selection to our document, use the Perspective option in Free Transform tool to add some perspectives to form the ground:

Fade the following parts of the ground with a soft eraser:

Apply the following black and white adjustment to this ground layer:

and here is the effect so far:

Step 2

Load the rock mountain image into Photoshop and select the following portion:

Copy and paste the selection to our document, place it to the right side of the canvas as shown below:

Apply the following adjustment layers to this rock layer:

Black and White

Levels

and here is the effect so far:

Repeat the above process and add another rock to the right side of the canvas:

Step 3

Load the castle stock image into Photoshop and select the castle:

Copy and paste the selection to our document, place it in the middle of the canvas as shown below:

Apply the following adjustment layers as clipping masks to this castle layer:

Black and White

Levels

and here is the effect so far:

Step 4

Load the stair stock into Photoshop and select the stone stair from the image:

Copy and paste the selection to our document, re-size and place it to the following position:

Use a soft eraser to fade the edges of the stair to blend it with the surrounding objects.

Step 5

Load the wizard image into Photoshop and select the wizard:

Place it to the following position on our document:

Use the lightning brush, add a bolt of lightning to the wizard:

Use a cloud brush, paint some cloud/smoke effect around the document:

Step 6

We will create some floating stones with lightning energy around the canvas. Go to the rock mountain image and select a piece of it:

Copy and paste the selection to our document, reduce its size:

Use a cyan colour brush, paint some lightning effect below the rock with the lightning brush:

Repeat the above process and add more floating stones around the canvas:

Use a red lightning brush, paint some lightning pattern over the mountain to form a “Lava Flowing” effect:

Add some lightning over the sky as well:

Step 7

We’re almost done! I decided to apply some brush strokes filter effect to the image. Flatten the image and duplicate the background layer, apply the following “Accented Edges” filter to the duplicated layer:

Apply the following layer mask (red) on the duplicated layer:

I further added some colour to the image with a couple of adjustment layers, and this is my final result: (click to enlarge)

Please experiment your own colour scheme and the adjustment layers, and see what result different colour brings you.

That’s it for this tutorial! Hope you enjoy it and find it useful! If you have any questions about the steps, please contact me or leave a comment below. I will try my best to answer them.

Till next time, have a great day!

The post Create Wizard Summoning Lightning Magic Scene in Photoshop appeared first on Photoshop Tutorials, Digital Art Tutorials and Showcase - PSD Vault.

In this tutorial, I will show you the process of creating “Eagle Warrior” Human Photoshop Manipulation in Photoshop. We will mix a warrior model image with a couple of eagle images, and add some custom brush paintings to spice up the effect.

This is an intermediate level tutorial and prior knowledge of Photoshop layers, image adjustments, layer masks are required.

Note: The Photoshop tutorial is done in Photoshop CC – therefore some screenshot may have slighting different layout as in the earlier version. Some brushes are exclusive to Photoshop CS6 or above.

Here is a preview of the final effect I have for this tutorial: (click to enlarge)

PSD File Download

You can download the PSD File for this tutorial via the VIP Members Area for only $6.95/Month (or less)! You will not only get this PSD File, but also 200+ other PSD Files + Extra Goodies + Exclusive Photoshop tutorials there. Signup now and get exclusive :) Find out more about the VIP Members Areas

To complete this tutorial, you will need the following stocks:

Warrior

Eagle 1

Eagle 2

Rock

Splatter Brushes (Pick a few from the list)

Step 1

Create a new document sized 850px *1200px with white background. Load the warrior image into Photoshop and select the warrior:

Copy and paste the selection onto our document and place it as shown below:

Apply the following image adjustment layers as clipping masks to this model layer:

Black and White

Levels

Curves

and here is the effect so far:

Step 2

We will add some rock texture over the warrior in this step. Load the rock stock image into Photoshop, use the Polygonal Lasso Tool:

Make a selection of any layered rock piece like this one below:

Copy and paste the rock selection to our document, then apply the following Black and White adjustment:

Use the free transform tool, adjust the shape of the rock and fit to to the warrior’s body as shown below:

Use the same process, add a couple more rock textures to the warrior:

Then make a new layer BELOW the warrior layer, use the splatter brushes you downloaded, paint some patterns around the body and canvas. My effect looks like this:

Step 3

We will add some rocks around the canvas and behind the warrior in this step. Again we make a selection of a portion of the rock stock image:

Copy and paste the selection to our document and put its layer below the warrior layer. Use the free transform tool to adjust its size and use the splatter brush as eraser and basically rough up the edge:

Apply the following Black and White adjustment to this rock layer:

You will have the following effect so far:

Repeat the above process, add more rocks around the canvas as shown below:

Step 4

Load the “Eagle 2” stock image into Photoshop and select the left eagle:

Copy and paste the selection onto our document and place it above the rock as shown below:

Apply the following Black and White adjustments to this layer:

and here is the effect you will have:

Step 5

Load the “Eagle 1” stock image into Photoshop and select the eagle:

Copy and paste the selection to our document and place it behind the warrior as shown below:

Apply the following image adjustment layers as clipping masks to this eagle layer:

Black and White

Levels

Curves

and here is the effect so far:

I further added some colours for the image, and here is my final result:

Please experiment your own colour scheme and the adjustment layers, and see what result different colour brings you.

That’s it for this tutorial! Hope you enjoy it and find it useful! If you have any questions about the steps, please contact me or leave a comment below. I will try my best to answer them.

Till next time, have a great day!

The post Create “Eagle Warrior” Human Photo Manipulation in Photoshop appeared first on Photoshop Tutorials, Digital Art Tutorials and Showcase - PSD Vault.

In this tutorial, I will show you the process used to create ocean monster attack surreal digital art in Photoshop. We will combine a number of objects such as city buildings, ocean and rocks to form the base on the image, and use an octopus stock photo as the monster. We will also add some tornado onto the image to finalise the effect.

This is an intermediate level tutorial and prior knowledge of Photoshop layers, image adjustments, layer masks are required.

Note: The Photoshop tutorial is done in Photoshop CC – therefore some screenshot may have slighting different layout as in the earlier version. Some brushes are exclusive to Photoshop CS6 or above.

Here is a preview of the final effect I have for this tutorial: (click to enlarge)

Alternative Colour Scheme:

PSD File Download

You can download the PSD File for this tutorial via the VIP Members Area for only $6.95/Month (or less)! You will not only get this PSD File, but also 200+ other PSD Files + Extra Goodies + Exclusive Photoshop tutorials there. Signup now and get exclusive :) Find out more about the VIP Members Areas

To complete this tutorial, you will need the following stocks:

Ocean

City 1

City 2

Rock

Octopus

Tornado by AshenSorrow

Step 1

Create a new document sized 1500px * 844px, fill the background layer with a light grey colour as shown below:

Load the ocean stock image into Photoshop and select the following portion:

Copy and paste the selection to our canvas. Adjust the size of this layer so that the ocean part will take around 3/4 of the canvas height. The slightly rotate it clock-wise with the free transform tool:

Reduce the layer opacity of this layer to around 80%:

Apply the following adjustment layers as clipping masks to this ocean layer:

Black & White

Levels

Curves

and here is the effect so far:

Step 2

I decided to add some extra waves to the ocean to make it look more stormy. Go to the ocean stock and select a piece of the ocean as shown below with a Lasso tool (set feather to 40px):

Copy and paste the selection to our document, apply the black and white adjustment to this wave layer and place it onto the ocean:

Use this process to add more waves around the ocean:

Load the rock stock into Photoshop and select the following portion:

Copy and paste the selection to the right side of the canvas, blend it into the ocean and make it submerged:

Step 3

Load the “city 1” stock into Photoshop, select the following portion from the stock image:

Copy and paste the selection to our document, remove the unnecessary parts from it and place the buildings over the rock:

Load the “city 2” stock image into Photoshop and select the following portion:

Copy and paste the selection and place it to the bottom left as shown below:

Use a particle brush to add some particle effect around the buildings:

Apply the following adjustment layers as clipping masks to this building layer:

Black and White

Layer mask on the above black and white adjustment layer:

Levels

and you will have the following effect so far:

Repeat the above process, add more buildings to the centre and right side of the canvas:

Hint: use free transform tool to flip, distort the buildings to add variety and depth.

Step 4

Load the octopus image into Photoshop and we will use it to create the ocean monster. Cut out the octopus and place it to the position shown below. Use a soft eraser to fade the bottom part of it as shown below:

Apply the following adjustment layers to this octopus layer:

Black and white

Layer mask on the above black and white adjustment layer:

Levels

And you will have the following effect:

Repeat the above process to add 1 smaller monster to the left side,

Step 5

Add more waves to the top of ocean with the method described in step 2:

Use a cloud brush, paint some cloud around the top:

Load the tornado image into Photoshop, make a soft selection of it:

Copy and past the selection to our document. Use it to form 3 tornodes, make sure their sizes are different from each other:

Add some particles around the canvas:

This is my overall effect without adding any colour:

And this is the my final result with colours added: (click to enlarge)

Alternative Colour Scheme:

Please experiment your own colour scheme and the adjustment layers, and see what result different colour brings you.

That’s it for this tutorial! Hope you enjoy it and find it useful! If you have any questions about the steps, please contact me or leave a comment below. I will try my best to answer them.

Till next time, have a great day!

The post Create Ocean Monster Attack Surreal Digital Art in Photoshop appeared first on Photoshop Tutorials, Digital Art Tutorials and Showcase - PSD Vault.

In this tutorial, you will learn how to make disintegrating human effect in Photoshop. We will turn a stand female model photo into a dark, mysterious disintegrating portrait of a witch. Custom Photoshop brushes will be the main tool of this tutorial.

This is an intermediate level tutorial and prior knowledge of Photoshop layers, image adjustments, layer masks are required.

Note: The Photoshop tutorial is done in Photoshop CC – therefore some screenshot may have slighting different layout as in the earlier version. Some brushes are exclusive to Photoshop CS6 or above.

Here is a preview of the final effect I have for this tutorial: (click to enlarge)

PSD File Download

You can download the PSD File for this tutorial via the VIP Members Area for only $6.95/Month (or less)! You will not only get this PSD File, but also 200+ other PSD Files + Extra Goodies + Exclusive Photoshop tutorials there. Signup now and get exclusive :) Find out more about the VIP Members Areas

To complete this tutorial, you will need the following stocks:

• Grunge Texture Pack
• Model by mjranum-stock
• Hair Brushes
• Fire
• Magic Glyph
• Splatter Brushes

Step 1

Create a new document sized 1440px * 679px with black background. Load the grunge texture (I used image 02 in the pack) into Photoshop and make a selection as shown below:

Copy and paste the selection to our document, adjust its size with free transform tool and cover the canvas:

Apply the following image adjustment layers as clipping masks:

Black and White

Levels

and here is the effect so far:

Step 2

Load the model image into Photoshop and cut out the upper part of the model, paste it into the following position on our canvas:

Apply the following image adjustments as clipping masks for this model layer:

Black and White

Levels

Curves

Use the hair brushes, paint some hair on the right side of the face as shown below:

Step 3

We will work on the disintegrating effect in this step. I decided to use the “Dried Blood Splatter” set:

Paint some splatter around the body:

Then use the eraser tool, set the eraser to use the same dried blood splatter set, break the splatter painting apart:

This is the effect I have after I repeat the above process several times:

I also added some splatter painting around the face area:

On the left side, I add some cloud painting:

Step 4

We will add a magic glyph into the image. Load the glyph stock image into Photoshop:

Select the entire image, paste into on our document and place the new layer below the model layer. Set its layer blend mode to “Multiply”:

Reduce the layer opacity to around 40% for the glyph layer, so it’s barely visible:

Load the fire stock into Photoshop and select the left side of the fire ring:

Copy and paste the selection to our document and set its layer blend mode to “Screen”:

Move the fire to the glyph area, adjust its size and here is the effect you will aim to achieve:

Step 5

We will add fire to the model’s eye in this step. Go to the fire stock image and select the following part with Lasso Tool (set feather to 40px):

Copy and paste the selection, use the free transform tool to compress, stretch it as shown below:

Create a new layer on top of the fire layer, use a soft white brush to paint a dot as shown below:

Change the layer blend mode of this white dot layer to “Overlay”:

Duplicate this white dot layer 10 times, and this is the effect you will have:

Step 6

We’re almost done! For final touches, I added some red/blood particles around the canvas to spice up the disintegrating human effect:

Paint some cloud at the bottom of canvas:

Finally, I flatten the image and made an duplicate of the background layer, applied the following “Accented Edges” effect to the image:

This is the effect so far:

I further added some colours to image with a couple of colour balance adjustment layers, and this is my final result: (click to enlarge)

That’s it for this tutorial! Hope you enjoy it and find it useful! If you have any questions about the steps, please contact me or leave a comment below. I will try my best to answer them.

Till next time, have a great day!

The post How to Make Disintegrating Human Effect in Photoshop appeared first on Photoshop Tutorials, Digital Art Tutorials and Showcase - PSD Vault.

Learn how to create this beautiful photo manipulation of appearance of a mysterious angel in Photoshop. In this tutorial, you’ll learn how to create amazing atmosphere with realistic effects and a unique effect for the angel. We will study the limitless possibilities of adjustment layers and blending modes. Create effects, use a lot of interesting tricks and techniques, tools and much more!

The PSD file of this tutorial is available to buy on PSD Vault Shop, or via the PSD Vault VIP members area.

This Photoshop tutorial is written exclusively for PSD Vault by Digital Artist Maria Semelevich.

What you’ll be creating

I really wanted to convey the mood of magic and tranquility. The most interesting thing about this angel is that I tried to make it transparent, but also visible at the same time. I’ll start tutorial by creating a background, color correction, image toning, adding sun rays and glowing candles. Then we will compose the image of the angel from the resources. We will work with layer masks and adjustment layers, Next, we will apply various techniques and blending modes to create the effect of levitation and transparency. We complete the image of an angel with smoke and color effects. Then harmoniously integrate the result into the finished composition. The final step will be to add special effects and sharpening. All that you need in this tutorial is good mood, free mind, inspiration, and Photoshop starting from CS version. I use Photoshop CC 2017.0.1

Final Result Preview

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Tutorial Resources

• Church (5056×3365) – Pixabay
• Wings (1920×1275) – Pixabay
• Dress (1995×2900) – Pixabay
• Statue (1360×2048) – Morguefile
• Real Smoke Brushset – pstutorialsws
• Textures and Objects Pack – MariaSemelevich

Step 1

Before you start, I strongly recommend to you download all the resources in a convenient place and in the best quality! Go to File > New… or use Cmd/Ctrl + N to create a new document and use the following settings: Width: 4000px, Height: 2828px, resolution 300ppi, Background Contents: Black. Our background is only one image, so use File > Place/ Place Embedded… or just drag and drop “church-498525” image into working document. In Free Transform mode (Cmd/Ctrl + T or Edit > Free Transform) scale image proportionally to around 20.92% for horizontal and vertical scale, Rotate on -0.32 degrees and apply changes.

Step 2

I did not like the lighting equipment in the church, so I remove it. Take Clone Stamp Tool (S) with Hard Round brush preset and set following settings: Size: 10 – 70px Opacity: 100%, Sample: All layers. You can use “Rotate the clone source” option from Clone Source panel (Window > Clone Source) to more accurately apply the correction. Be attentive and careful! Use appropriate sources to clone the texture, follow the architectural style and do not forget to create a new layer for each item or several brush strokes. When you’re done with it, select all created layers and merge it (Cmd/Ctrl + E or Right click > Merge Layers).

Step 3

To create a more magical atmosphere, I created rays of light from the stained glass in the temple. For this, go to Select > Color Range… In the window that appears I choice Select mode “Highlights” and set Fuzziness: 20%, Range: 190. It is very important to find the right combination of values so as less as possible is unnecessary appear in the selection. Select a layer with the temple and use Cmd/Ctrl + J to separate content on a new layer. Duplicate this layer three times and change Blending Mode for all four layers to “Linear Dodge (Add)”. Group layers, by using Cmd/Ctrl + G or go to Layer > Group layers and set same Blending Mode.

Step 4

Now we need to add a blur to get the shine from the stained glass and the rays. I used two filters “Gaussian Blur” and “Radial Blur” from Filter > Blur. Apply the following filters with settings, starting with the bottom glass layer.

• “Gaussian Blur” filter with Radius: 200px;
• “Gaussian Blur” filter with Radius: 20px;
• “Radial Blur” filter with Amount: 100, Blur Method: Zoom, Quality: Best;
• “Radial Blur” filter with Amount: 50, Blur Method: Zoom, Quality: Best. Layer Opacity: 50%

It should look something like shown in the image below. Do not be afraid to experiment and use other settings or blending modes and their combinations. It is important to use the original colors of the image, rather than light gray or white, because this is stained glass, also texture is more gently combined with the environment, which helps achieve greater realism.

Step 5

Use Eraser Tool (E) or add layer masks (Layer > Layer Mask > Reveal All) to layers with rays and with a big soft brush, with Opacity around 20-50%, remove where the texture looks badly or too bright. For example, on the lowest layer, blurring on the benches gives an incomprehensible glow. Also, I partially remove an effect from the other layers near the column on the right side of the image and slightly in the depth of the temple, because these elements have become too bright and spoil the image. Also, you should pay attention to the edges in the foreground from the blurred stained glass. It is necessary to make the transition more smoothly and naturally.

Step 6

Now I’m starting to create a color atmosphere. The temple looks very bright and colorful, but I want to create an atmosphere of mystery, so I’ll make the tone more muted and less bright. So, I add some adjustment layers and first of them is “Black & White” (Layer > New Adjustment Layer > Black & White or use “Create new fill or adjustment layer” icon). Use preset “Maximum Black”, change Blending Mode to “Luminosity” and reduce Opacity to 50%. This will slightly change the chiaroscuro of the room and remove unnecessary saturation.

Step 7

Now I have darkened the edges of the image to create the main light spot, increase the depth of the image and hide the color. Add “Gradient Map” adjustment layer with “Black, White” preset. Remove effect in the center of the image and make the transition of color at the level of the columns of the building on adjustment layer mask, by using Brush Tool (B) with soft round form, black color, and Opacity: 100%.

Step 8

Go to Layer > New Fill Layer > Gradient, in the window that appears set Style: Radial, Angle: 90 degrees, Scale: 180%, Preset “Black, White” with a Reverse option. Change Blending Mode to “Overlay”, Opacity: 55%. The hall is very changed. I like the center of the image, where the solar atmosphere remains in combination with the dark hall. This will focus the viewer on the main thing.

Step 9

Add one more “Gradient Map” adjustment layer with “Sepia 2” preset from “Photographic Toning” gradient set. You can find it among others additional sets by clicking on an icon in the form of a gear. Now the shadows have ceased to be too contrasting and a nice haze appeared in the image. This is very complementary to the atmosphere, but it is necessary to restore effect of other colors, so reduce Opacity to 45%.

Step 10

On this, the image toning is over and now I will add some fire to the candles. This will help reveal the story in the picture. I decided not to be lazy and photographed a candle. You can follow my example or use my image or any other. In any case, I place “003” image from my resource set into working document and resized to the appropriate scale. Use several copies (Cmd/Ctrl + J) of different sizes, and place them on lamps on the foreground and on the altar. The flame must be in proportion to candles, remoteness of objects, as shown in the image below. Use “Screen” Blending Mode to hide blacks and blend a flame.

Step 11

Create a new layer (Cmd/Ctrl + Shift + N) with “Screen” Blending Mode and Opacity: 35%. Take Brush Tool (B) with soft round form, Size: 300px, Opacity: 50% and #de7f21 color. Pointwise draw light from the candle, trying to brush center was on a candle. Create a new layer with “Overlay” Blending Mode. Brush Size: 45-150px and #feee69 color and repeat the same with a smaller brush size. On the last new layer with “Soft Light” Blending Mode, use a lighter color: #fde993, Brush Opacity: 100% and with the same brush to create a glow.

Step 12

At this work with the background is over and we begin to create an angel. Go to File > Place/ Place Embedded… and open “file0001117378127” statue image. Resize it (Cmd/Ctrl + T or Edit > Free Transform) proportionally to around 45.77% for horizontal and 45.79% for vertical scale.

Step 13

To separate the statue from the background, I used Chromatic key compositing technique. Open Channels panel (Window > Channels), hold Cmd/Ctrl+ Opt/Alt+ Shift and click two times on Red channel thumbnail (or another channel with good visibility of the desired object and contrast) to make the selection of intersecting with itself. In this exceptional case, it will help create a better contrast. Then, click on “Save selection as channel” icon to separate it on a new channel, which we will edit. Use Cmd/Ctrl + D to deselect and edit the entire image. In general, it is better to work with a duplicate of the original channel, but if the result is certainly good, then you can cut corners a little.

Step 14

Take a Brush Tool (B) with hard round form, Size: 20-85px, set brush Blend mode to “Overlay” (Shift+ Opt/Alt + O) or “Normal” (Shift+ Opt/Alt + N) (depending on the editing areas), Opacity: 50-100%. Set Default Foreground and Background colors (D). Carefully restore the statue with white color and remove the background with black color, until you get a clear silhouette without halftones. I also removed wings because I’ll replace them with more realistic ones a bit later. Also, some details like the sleeve of the dress will not fall into the selection and this will give the form a slightly abstract look, which is quite good in this case. Optional, you can apply “Levels” adjustment (Cmd/Ctrl + L or Image > Adjustments > Levels) with a slight shift for whites and blacks (values depending on your result), to increase the contrast between the statue and the environment and remove debris and noise, if any.

Step 15

Hold Cmd/Ctrl and click on channel thumbnail, which you edited to create a selection and go back to Layers panel. Click on “Add a layer mask” icon (Layer > Layer Mask > Reveal Selection) to hide the background. I also apply a “Minimum” filter (Filter > Other > Minimum) with Radius: 0.3px and Preserve: Roundness to make the selection smoother, directly on the layer mask.

Step 16

Duplicate layer with statue (Cmd/Ctrl + J) and flip it horizontally (Edit > Transform > Flip Horizontal). Place the duplicated layer under the layer with the original statue and move the image, so that the hand is aligned with the trunk. Use layer masks of both layers and soft black brush to hide hand with a torch on the first layer and blend folds of clothing and hand with the original image of a statue.

Step 17

Next, I replaced the dress with a more realistic one. Place image “woman-1905520” and transform this layer, so that the skirt would fit and become a continuation of the statue, as shown in the image below. Repeat Steps 13-15 to separate the dress from the background, but leave the halftone in the fabric folds to get the transparency effect.

Step 18

Use a layer mask and soft black brush to blend cloth and statue. Everything is similar to the steps in which we worked with the statue. Except for one thing – add “Levels” adjustment as a Smart Filter (click on layer thumbnail and use Cmd/Ctrl + L), and move a gray slider to value 0.47. It’s darkening the dress, but it’s necessary. You will see the effect of this a little later.

Step 19

Place image “wings-474114” into working document. In Free Transform mode scale image proportionally to around 22.65% for horizontal and vertical scale, Rotate on 14.73 degrees. Duplicate this layer (Cmd/Ctrl + J) and flip it horizontally (Edit > Transform > Flip Horizontal). With Move Tool (V), arrange both wings relative to the statue, as shown in the image below. In order not to move the wing vertically, hold Shift key during the movement. Place both images under layers with a statue in a layer stack. Hide excess wing from each side, by using layer masks.

Step 20

And the last thing I’ll add is the flying fabric. Just place image “Flying fabric” from my resource set and transform it, as shown in the image below. This is a ready-made element and it only needs to be placed behind the rest of the layers with the angel. You can use other images and various pieces of fabric and make your own version. Everything is completely in the power of your imagination. Be sure to group all the layers with the angel (Cmd/Ctrl + G) and change Blending Mode to “Screen”.

Step 21

Now let’s start the effects! I recommend you to hide the group with the background and work on a black color, so you can more accurately see the details, effects and the color applied. Periodically open the background to see the composition as a whole and the quality of the effect. Add “Black & White” adjustment layer with preset “Lighter”, as Clipping Mask (Cmd/Ctrl + Opt/Alt + G or use icon at the bottom of opened window).

Step 22

Next, add “Invert” adjustment layer and adjust the contrast with “Levels” adjustment layer with Blacks: 55, Midtones: 0.41, Whites: 169. All these layers are used as Clipping Masks, so carefully check your Layer panel to avoid misunderstandings. At this stage, you have several options. You can change settings and achieve good contrast with the help of “Levels” which we added or darken more than necessary (current settings) and restore the details in the right places. I chose the second way to control lighting and detail. So, create a new layer above “Black & White” adjustment layer. Use Brush Tool (B) with Opacity: 5-20%, Size: 10-150px and black color to restore or white to hide necessary elements and details.

Step 23

Group all these layers (Cmd/Ctrl + G), and change group Blending Mode to “Screen”. Add “Gradient Fill” adjustment layer between background and angel groups, with following settings – Gradient: #000000 > #1a1a1a (Location: 29%) > #727272 (Location: 58%) > #ececec (Location: 90%), Style: Radial, Angle: 90 degrees, Scale: 90%, Preset “Black, White” with Reverse option. Move the gradient a little up, closer to the body of the statue, when “Gradient Fill” window is opened. Change Blending Mode to “Linear Dodge (Add)” and reduce layer Opacity to 55%.

Step 24

Select a group “Angel and mist” and use Cmd/Ctrl + Opt/Alt + E to create a copy of the content on a new layer. Duplicate this layer (Cmd/Ctrl + J) and change Blending Mode of both layers to “Color Dodge”. To the first layer apply “Gaussian Blur” with Radius: 5.0px, add inverted layer mask (hold Opt/Alt key and click on “Add layer mask” icon) and with soft white brush restore details on the face of an angel and a dress. Apply the same filter to the second layer, but with a larger radius, around 30px. Add a layer mask and remove the excess glow from the angel’s wings. Reduce layer Opacity to 50%. Move both layers to group with an angel on Layer panel.

Step 25

Now add smoke and fog to an angel. Load “Real Smoke Brush set” into Photoshop. Create a new layer topmost in a group “Angel and mist” and with “Color Dodge” Blending Mode. Using different brushes from brush set and Size: 700-1500px, Opacity: 70-100%, color: #cbcbcb, apply the texture to the angel, paying more attention to the dress and flying cloth. Try to create a soft transition from the angel to the smoke, as if it dissolves in the smoke. Where the effect looks excessively, remove it with a soft round brush on an inverted layer mask or with Eraser Tool (E).

Step 26

Hold Cmd/Ctrl and click on a layer thumbnail to create a selection. Add an inverted layer mask (Opt/Alt + click on “Add layer mask icon”) to a group “Angel”, with a soft round brush partially remove the effect from the fabric folds and face. Work with layer and mask of the group to achieve the transition effect from light smoke to dark. I got the result, shown in the picture below.

Step 27

Create two more layers with “Screen” Blending Mode below “Angel” group. Use smoke brushes with settings for the brush, as in Step 25, but reduce the size. Add more details and create a transition from multiple streams of smoke to the angel’s image. Use the transformation tools (within reasonable limits) and many layers, which you can then easily merge (Cmd/Ctrl + E) into one. Feel free to experiment! Your creative decisions are very welcome! Also, do not forget that you can adjust the texture mapping using layer Opacity and layer masks or Eraser Tool (E).

Step 28

Again, create a copy of “Angel and mist” group on a new layer (Cmd/Ctrl + Opt/Alt + E), add a white layer mask and remove glow from wings with a soft round black brush (Opacity around 30%). Set Blending Mode to “Color Dodge”, Opacity to 27%.

Step 29

Now add a little color. I created a tint in bluish tones so that the angel contrasted with the lighting of the temple. Add “Color Balance” adjustment layer with the settings, as shown in the image below. Change Blending Mode to “Multiply” and on adjustment layer mask remove an effect from and angel body with soft round brush and brush Opacity to around 30%. Duplicate this layer and change Blending Mode to “Darken”, Opacity to 75%. And again remove the effect on the layer mask, but with a larger brush and with greater opacity value, to create a transition from the contrived blue tone to the gently green.

Step 30

This completes the work with the angel, but since many different blending modes have been used, you cannot just open the background and enjoy the result. If you apply the adjustment layers with the color to the group with the angel, the result is not very good. Consequently, create a merged copy of the entire image via Cmd/Ctrl + Opt/Alt + Shift + E and change Blending Mode to “Screen”. Now hide all layers and groups with the angel, except gradient fill layer above background group. For this layer you need to reduce Opacity to 35%. Now you can enjoy the work that has been done, as soon as you open the group with the background. You can duplicate this layer and try other blending modes or adjustment layers and get a completely different result. Do not hesitate to edit the layers with the angel, especially from the Step 22, if the effect in some places will be invisible or in excess.

Step 31

Add a little blue glow from the angel, to harmonize it in the picture. Go to Layer > New Fill Layer > Gradient Layer… In window “Gradient Fill” that appears, set following gradient #3376f3 > #1a3b7a (Location: 45%) > #000000, Style: Radial, Angle: 90 degrees, Scale: 110%. change Blending Mode to “Screen”, Opacity to 20%.

Step 32

Take a Brush Tool (B) with Size: 400px, Opacity: 40% Color: #3767bf and on a new layer with “Color Dodge” Blending Mode, draw a reflection of the shining angel on the temple walls. Just a small oval to emphasize realism. Reduce layer Opacity to 50%.

Step 33

Now I will create an imitation of a vignette by adding “Gradient Fill” adjustment layer with “Black, White” preset, white slider Location: 45%, Style: Radial, Angle: 90 degrees, Scale: 180%, checked “Reverse”. Use Blending Mode “Multiply”, Opacity: 80%.

Step 34

This is an additional step, but if you want, you can add to your work a few foreground elements such as bokeh or use a larger smoke brush(as shown in the image). Also, if you want, you can add a few lens flares and various lighting effects. All for your taste and discretion!

Step 35

Create a merged copy of finished artwork (Cmd/Ctrl + Shift + E). Go to Filter > Other > High Pass… and set Radius: 1.0px. Set Blending Mode of this layer to “Linear Light” and reduce Fill to 50%. This layer will increase the clarity of all details.

Conclusion

That’s all! This artwork is completely ready. Here my final result. Thank you very much for taking the time to study this tutorial! Do not be afraid to experiment and good luck to you! Have a question or a comment? Leave it in comment section below :)

The post Create Mysterious Angel Artwork in Photoshop appeared first on PSD Vault.

In this tutorial, I will show you the process of making a beautiful alien landscape with floating rocks in Photoshop (similar to the movie “Avatar”). We will use several interesting object blending techniques to combine several stock images, in order to form the final effect. Have a try!

The PSD file of this tutorial is available to buy on PSD Vault Shop, or via the PSD Vault VIP members area.

This is a beginner-intermediate level tutorial.

Note: The Photoshop tutorial is done in Photoshop CC – therefore some screenshot may have slighting different layout as in the earlier version. Some brushes are exclusive to Photoshop CS6 or above.

Here is a preview of the final effect I have for this tutorial: (click to enlarge)

PSD Vault VIP Membership

You can download the PSD File for this tutorial via the VIP Members Area for only $6.95/Month (or less)! You will not only get this PSD File, but also 200+ other PSD Files + Extra Goodies + Exclusive Photoshop tutorials there. Signup now and get exclusive!

To complete this tutorial, you will need the following stocks:

Mountain

Rock

Cliff

Tree 1

Tree 2

Temple

Waterfall

Step 1

Create a new document sized 1440px * 900px with the default white background. Fill the background layer with the Gradient Fill tool with the following colour (light blue as foreground colour, white as background colour)

Load the mountain stock into Photoshop, select a portion of it, copy and paste your selection to our document. Place it to the bottom half of the canvas as shown below:

Use a soft eraser to fade the top edge of the mountain layer, so that it blends into the background layer:

Apply the following Lens Blur filter to this new mountain layer:

and here is the effect so far:

Step 2

Load the Rock stock image into Photoshop and select a portion of it:

Copy and paste the selection to our document. Reduce its size and rotate it upside down, move it to the following position:

I used the Burn tool to darken the right side of the rock, and erased parts of the rock:

We can add some extra rocky pattern to this rock layer. Load the Cliff stock image into Photoshop and select a portion of it

Copy and paste the selection to the rock layer, set it as clipping mask. Set its layer blend mode to “Hard Light”:

and here is the effect so far:

Step 3

We will add native plants around the rock in this step.

Load the Tree 1 stock image into Photoshop, select a small portion of it with the Lasso Tool:

Copy and paste the selection to our document. Use the free transform tool to adjust the shape and angel of this new layer. Repeat this process, cover the rock with plants as shown below:

You can even break apart your plants with eraser tool (use the chalk brush) to make the plants look more realistic:

Load the Temple stock image into Photoshop and select the template portion:

Copy and paste the template onto the top of the rocks, blends it with the surrounding trees/rocks:

Load the Waterfall stock into Photoshop, select the waterfall:

Attach the waterfall to the right side of the rock, as shown below:

Step 4

We can add more floating rocks in this step, simply by repeating step 4. Ensure each rock looks different from each other with various sizes and tree placement:

Once you’re happy with the rocks, merge their layers into a single layer. Use the Blur tool, blur the following objects around the canvas to create depth of field:

Step 5

I added a natural linkage between the 2 smaller floating rocks in this step. Select the following piece from “Tree 2” stock image:

Copy and paste selection our document, resize and use the Warp tool to bend it as shown below:

Duplicate this layer, add some greens to them with the tree leaves:

Use the Blur tool to blur them slightly:

Here is the effect so far:

Use a cloud brush or cloud filter, add some cloud effect over the canvas:

I further added the contrast and colour balance of the image, and this is my final result of the beautiful alien landscape: (click to enlarge)

The post How to Create Beautiful Alien Landscape with Floating Rocks in Photoshop appeared first on PSD Vault.

In this tutorial, I will show you the process of creating this “Resurrection” surreal photo manipulation in Photoshop. The photo manipulation simply tells a story about a girl’s spirit being resurrected in a surreal environment. The environment is filled with space elements such as nebula & star.

Along the way, we will practice selection, image adjustments, object/layer blending, and painting of hair with pen tool.

The PSD file of this tutorial is available to buy on PSD Vault Shop, or via the PSD Vault VIP members area.

This is an intermediate level tutorial.

Note: The Photoshop tutorial is done in Photoshop CC – therefore some screenshot may have slighting different layout as in the earlier version. Some brushes are exclusive to Photoshop CS6 or above.

Here is a preview of the final effect I have for this tutorial: (click to enlarge)

PSD Vault VIP Membership

You can download the PSD File for this tutorial via the VIP Members Area for only $6.95/Month (or less)! You will not only get this PSD File, but also 200+ other PSD Files + Extra Goodies + Exclusive Photoshop tutorials there. Signup now and get exclusive!

To complete this tutorial, you will need the following stocks:

Lake

Model by mjranum-stock

Nebula 1

Nebula 2

Water Splash Photoshop Brushes

Lightening Photoshop Brushes

Cloud Photoshop Brushes

Step 1

Create a new document sized 1440px * 800px with black background. Load the lake image into Photoshop and select the following portion:

Copy and paste the selection to our document, re-size it to fit the size of the canvas:

Apply the following adjustment layers as clipping mask to this lake layer:

Black & White (set its layer opacity to 90%)

Levels

Use the cloud brush, paint some cloud over the sky. Here is the effect so far:

Step 2

Load the model image into Photoshop. Cut out the model and paste it to the following position. Erase the legs.

Apply the following adjustment layer as clipping masks:

Black & White

Levels

Use the following layer mask on the levels adjustment layer:

Curves

and here is the effect so far:

Step 3

Use the water splash brushes, paint some splashing effect around the body:

Use a soft black brush, paint some subtle shadow effect to the following position:

Step 4

Load the “Nebula 1” stock image into Photoshop and select the entire image, paste it onto our canvas:

Change the layer blending mode to “Screen” for this nebula layer:

Apply the following layer mask for this nebula layer:

Go back to the “Nebula 1” image and use the lasso tool with 40px feather, select the following portion:

Paste the selection to the right side of the model (You will need to reduce its size a bit from the copy):

Load the “Nebula 2” image into Photoshop, select the following portion with the Lasso Tool (again set feather to 4opx):

Copy and paste the selection to our document, paste it to the centre of the sky:

Step 5

We will work on creating the hair in this step. Firstly let’s pick a 4px, soft brush:

Use the Pen Tool, draw a path as shown below:

Right-click the path and select “Stroke Path …”:

Stroke the path with the brush tool and tick “Simulate Pressure”, then press “OK”:

You will have the following effect:

Duplicate this layer and adjust the size with free transform tool:

Use the Hue/Saturation adjustment to adjust the lightness of the hair:

Keep duplicating and adjusting, you will finish with the hair effect similar to below:

Step 6

Use the lightening brush we downloaded, add some lightening effect to the following area:

I added some colour to the image with a couple of colour balance adjustment layers, and this is my final result: (click to enlarge)

That’s it for this tutorial! Leave me a comment below if you have any questions. Enjoy it? Help me share it around by using the share buttons at the top of the tutorial!

The post Create “Resurrection” Surreal Photo Manipulation in Photoshop appeared first on PSD Vault.

This tutorial is available to buy on PSD Vault Shop for only US$4.95, or via the PSD Vault VIP members area.

Welcome to another Exclusive Photoshop tutorial written specifically for the PSD Vault VIP Members! In this tutorial, digital artist Jenny Le will show you the process of creating an abstract, fantasy portrait. You’ll learn how to combine a portrait image with a space background, create some interesting effect using basic Photoshop tools, adjust the color and light and more.

If your membership is active, simply log in and download the tutorial now at the VIP members area.

Final Image Preview

This is the image you will be creating: (click to enlarge)

What You Will Learn

This Photoshop tutorial will cover the following key topics:

1. Advanced “Space Hair” creation using the Liquify Tool
2. Advance Lighting Effect rendering in Photoshop

Sample Screenshots

If your membership is active, simply log in and download the tutorial now at the VIP members area! Not a member yet? Click on the banner below to sign up:

The post VIP Exclusive Photoshop Tutorial – Fantasy Portrait appeared first on PSD Vault.

In this tutorial, I will show you the steps I used to create this "Urban Assassin" scene in Photoshop. We will combine a model image with several other objects such as street, building, dragon, and finish up with smoke/cloud overlay. Also will be adding some blood effect with relevant splatter brushes.

The post Create a Urban Assassin Scene in Photoshop appeared first on PSD Vault.