Photoshop Compositing Secrets - Matt Kloskowski [25]
STEP 14:
Next, we’ll add some reflections to his helmet’s visor by copying the background and warping it to fit the visor. Click on the topmost layer in the Layers panel to target it and choose Select>All. Then click on the Eye icons to the left of the two motorcycle layers to hide them, so only the background is visible. Choose Edit>Copy Merged to copy everything (except the motorcycle), and then choose Edit>Paste to paste it on its own new layer.
STEP 15:
Click where the Eye icons used to be to the left of the two motorcycle layers to turn them back on. Then, go to Edit>Free Transform (or press Command-T [PC: Ctrl-T]), press-and-hold the Shift key, click on a corner handle, and resize the new background layer, so it’s roughly the size of the helmet, maybe a little larger (as shown here).
STEP 16:
Next, go to Edit>Transform>Warp and in the Options Bar, from the Warp pop-up menu, choose Inflate, and then increase the Bend amount to 100%. Press Return (PC: Enter) when you’re done to lock in the changes.
STEP 17:
Add a layer mask to the warped layer and, with a black brush, just paint away the warped background everywhere, except the right side of the visor. You may need to switch to the Move tool and move it around a little to get it to fit into place. When you’re done, reduce the Opacity of the layer to around 40%–50%. You just want a little reflection in there, but not much. Repeat Steps 14–17 and add a reflection to the wind guard on the front of the bike. But, this time, don’t transform it as small and reduce the opacity of the layer to 20%, so it’s even less visible than the other reflection. (Note: Be sure to move the new background layer that you create in Step 14 to the top of the layer stack after you create it.)
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Tip: Clean Up the Visor
If you want to get really detailed here, you can add a new blank layer and use the Clone Stamp tool (S) to clone the light stand out of the existing visor reflection. But I’m not going to bother doing that here.
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STEP 18:
Okay, we’re almost done. Now for some finishing touches: Let’s create a new layer to do some dodging and burning. Click on the topmost layer in the Layers panel to target it, then press Command-Option-Shift-E (PC: Ctrl-Alt-Shift-E) to merge everything together into one new layer on top. Select the Burn tool from the Toolbox (or press Shift-O until you have it), and in the Options Bar, set the Range to Midtones and the Exposure to 20%. Now, paint in any places where you want to make the image darker. I painted over the front of his helmet and the front of his jacket because I thought the light was too bright compared to the rest of the image. Do the same thing with the Dodge tool (press Shift-O until you have it) if you want to brighten any parts of the image, like the edge of the jacket, to accentuate the back lighting on him, along with the lighting behind him.
STEP 19:
It’s time for a little grit and sharpening effect. Again, merge everything together on a new layer at the top of the layer stack. Then, go to Filter>Other>High Pass, set the Radius to 15 pixels, and click OK.
STEP 20:
Now you have a grayish layer on top of all the others. Change the layer blend mode to Hard Light and it’ll hide the gray, but keep that gritty detail effect the High Pass filter applied. It has the appearance of not only sharpening the photo, but it also adds some depth and dimension to it, as well. It does brighten some parts of the photo, too, though. So, try adding a layer mask to the layer and painting the brightness away from the areas where it doesn’t look good (like the front of his jacket and the lights along the top of the tunnel).
STEP 21:
Next, we’ll add an effect to the headlight. I