Photoshop Compositing Secrets - Matt Kloskowski [78]
STEP SEVEN:
Since objects that are closer to us tend to be more saturated in color than things that are off in the distance, we’ll need to enhance the tree a little. So, click on the tree layer to target it, then click on the Create New Adjustment Layer icon, choose Vibrance, and in the Adjustments panel, crank the Vibrance up to 100. Then add a Hue/Saturation adjustment layer, and set the Saturation to 10 and the Lightness to 7. Now, to force each adjustment to only affect the tree layer below them, Command-click (PC: Ctrl-click) on each adjustment layer and go to Layer>Create Clipping Mask.
STEP EIGHT:
To make it easier to keep these layers together, click on the topmost layer (Hue/Saturation) and then Shift-click on the bottom shadow layer to select them all. Go to Layer>Group Layers to put the tree layers into a folder and rename it, so it’s easier to keep track of. It’s a good idea to memorize the keyboard shortcut for grouping, which is Command-G (PC: Ctrl-G), because we’ll be using groups a lot in this chapter.
STEP NINE:
Lastly, open the other tree photo and use Color Range, like we did back in Step Three, to select it from the white background, and then copy-and-paste it into the main image. Use Free Transform to make it larger (don’t forget to press-and-hold the Shift key to constrain proportions) and position it in the top right (I increased the size of mine to around 200% of the original). Then, add a layer mask to the layer, and use a small, soft-edged brush to paint away the grass at the bottom of the tree, so it blends better with the grass on our new background.
©ISTOCKPHOTO/ELENA ELISSEEVA
Creating the Composite
As for creating the composite, I think you’ll find that once you have a rough comp created and then start creating the actual composite, things start to come together pretty quickly.
STEP ONE:
Before we get started, you may have noticed that in most of the other chapters in the book, I showed you how to select the subject from the background. However, I mentioned earlier that this chapter was more advanced than the others, so I’m assuming you’ve got a good grasp on selections by now. Plus, these are pretty easy selections here, so they shouldn’t give you much trouble. Okay, let’s start with the main image. I took quite a few poses of the couple on the couch, so I had a lot of choices. I knew there was going to be a child hanging from the tree, and thought it’d be cute to have the mom with this “What the...?!” look on her face and the dad, well, just bored with a remote in his hand (yes, I know they’re outside. Remember, they went green and “almost” gave up everything). So, go ahead and open the image of the couple, use the Quick Selection tool/Refine Edge dialog to select them from their background, and move them into our composite.
Note: Don’t forget that all of the images (with selections already made) for this chapter (as well as all of the other chapters) are available on the book’s download site. So, if you’re the lazy type (you know who you are!), you can follow along without having to do all of the selection work (and I wouldn’t blame you one bit).
STEP TWO:
Create a new blank layer beneath the couch layer for a shadow. Then, with the Rectangular Marquee tool (M), make a rectangular selection at the bottom of the couch. Fill it with black and then deselect. Now, go to Filter>Blur>Gaussian Blur, and apply a 25-pixel radius to it to soften the edges, then reduce the Opacity of the shadow layer to 80%.
STEP THREE:
Next, create a new blank layer above the couch layer. Right now, the legs of the couch look like they’re hovering above the grass. So, to fix this, press the S key to get the Clone Stamp tool, make sure that All Layers is selected in the Sample pop-up menu in the Options Bar, and then Option-click (PC: Alt-click) to sample an area of grass near the couch. Then, with a small brush,