Photoshop Tutorial 1: How to Convert Your Photos into Watercolor Illustrations
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Fast, easy method.
First, let's look at the simplest way of doing it, to get you started. I'm not insulting your intelligence, only making it so simple that someone who hasn't worked in photoshop till now also can follow. So please be a bit indulgent.
(Click on any image to view full size, unless you have some super-optic ability!)
1. Open one of your photos in Photoshop. If you don't have one ready or want to first just try this, right click and save my cat instead.
2. Click on Filter, then on Artistic, finally on Watercolour, as shown in the screen shot.
Filter -->Artistic --> Watercolour
You get the result shown below. This is the quickest, easiest method, a straight forward one. Sometimes this is quite enough for our purposes. Now promise me that you tamper with the variables in the watercolour menu and learn something more. Please?
Watercolour Kitty!
The Kenny Method - slightly complex but easy.
Now I'll tell you how I do it. I'm using an important concept here that Photoshoppers use: Mix effects to produce good...well, effects. Don't use any filter straight from the can.
Okay, open the pic as you did before. Duplicate the layer.
Good Photoshop Habit: Always duplicate the original. Saves time and effort... just in case.
1.
2.
3.
Now you have arrived at this funny effect, but patience. Breathe deeply, curse me a bit, and continue.
Voila!
When you have the time, tamper with the various parameters and check out the subtle differences in the effects. Next time,. I'll be back with a new effect tutorial. Have fun!
If you haven't, please visit my display of artistic effects, and see what I have done. You can do better!
Want to learn more tricks? Go to part two, please.
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Comments
Welcome. O first lady!
I am delighted to have the honour of showing you these tricks, Violet!
Will await that hub, it will be a wow, I'm sure. Hit them in two places!
useful hub. I only just recently took an interesting in using my photochop. I think my first one was ninjablowfish attack:
http://www.geocities.com/deadsheepwalking/ninjabfi
and you can do negatives, emboss and oilify. I use labtech.
Hehe I took a look at that ninja blow fish attack. Clever work!
actually it was pretty sloppy but it went with a current fad and in all fairness it was my first try. :p
this sounds right up my alley am excited to give it a try soon...Lot's to catch up with now though that am better....you are just wonderful...G-Ma :O)
It's great for a first try, Iðunn! My first try is not as exhibitable!
You are better, G-Ma?
Daughter allowing you to stay up late?
Will wait to see your Photoshop work in your hubs soon, then.
I have Paint shop pro So in that we dont have filters. But I have imortalised your cat. I hot waxed it and enamelled it and they look great.
I have done a lot with transparencies. Having photos with the water going through it and used to send them on emails although havent done for ages. But there is a lot to learn and tinker with. good informative hub.
Lol! That sounds like cruelty to animals!
So you do your wonders with Paintshop Pro?
Thanks, Eileen!
Kenny, this is great. I have to buy PhotoShop now!
It's great that you are motivated enough to buy photoshop, Kat! All the best!
Hail to the photoshop king!!
Great tips Kenny, as always..
Eileen - I too have Paint Shop Pro. I had fun playing with your cat, Kenny! I wasn't as cruel as Eileen, I only used a coloured pencil and some brush strokes on it, then gave it glowing edges.
Hail Compu-Smart! We who are about to be killed by the real experts salute you!
Caspar, you are a kind man! That the cat won't mind.
Hey thanks for the tips. I been editing images for months. This is a good hub for me. I'll try this in GIMP because I'm not using Photoshop. Thanks a again.
Thanks, Zeckeill. Gimp is a good program. Maybe the commands are different, but the effect would be similar.
Yeah, I'm trying it right now.
All the best to your effects! :)
I have to give this a try. Thanks, Kenny.
Thanks, Peter, that's a promise! :)
Hi Kenny.
This is a very helpful and interesting tutorial. Thanks for sharing!
Thank you, Creative, and welcome to my hubs!
Thanks for the info.
Welcome, Tim, my pleasure.
Wow, I love that watercolor effect. I have Photoshop 7, now I just need to find the time to play with it.
Good for you, Joni! Hope you post your results, and a link here.
Ashok I paint and draw and have one hell of a time with photoshop. I know it's supposed to be great but i get all locked up in the layers deal (i'm starting from scratch not with a photo).
Thanks for this bit here, it helps and I love watercolors. I've painted a few myself.
Laurie B.
If you paint in watercolours, you probably don't need this tutorial. It's for those who can't, Laurie. With photoshop, as with any graphic software, it's best to learn one thing at a time. For example, just use only one layer and one kind of brush till you get used to it.
Hope you become an expert soon!
Ashok
Thanks for this as I'm just a newbie with Photoshop Elements... it's fun, but likely I ought to start from the beginning as well. Thanks for the advice ;o)
Dear Amy, the trick is to start with a simple job, using basic tools, not exactly at the beginning. You might as well start doing this, step by step, if you like, or anything like this. Then you can begin to do more complex things, and in no time you are an expert!
Thank you.
This is terrific Kenny! Thanks for sharing. I've always wanted to write a children's story but not really fancying myself to be much of an artist, I thought I would have to find someone who could do the pictures for me. Now I can do my own pictures - thanks to you!
Figur8, this is the first, specific, practical instance where my tutorial is going to be put to use. I am delighted, thank you!
Hi Kenny thanks for the techniques. I have been doing digital photography for a long time but I have not played around with Photoshop. I have tried Picasa and thats fascinating! Blessings.
Thanks, Encourager,why don't you get round to having some fun with Photoshop?
I love your work. I am new and am taking a class from an adult school but feel like there is so many questions not answered. We copy somthing we like but then we are on our won. Do you have any sugestions. ?
Thank You for these wonderful pictures.
Dear Priscilla,
Thanks for that compliment. For starters, copying is fine. You can learn the basics that way. After a point, try going off on graphical tangents of your own. Create your owm stuff. If you need help, there are lots of tutorials in the web. Of you ask your questions on a google search, there's a good chance that somebody would have posted the answer.
I am mostly self-taught. If you start teaching yourself, you don't have to rely on weak tutors. All the best to you!
Inspiring hub! I have always believed that drive and passion create talent. It does in drawing. I agree with Mahatmi Gandhi's famous quote: "What you think you become."
Yes, thoughts become things. If I can imagine I can draw, there's a great possibility that I can draw.
Thanks for your hub that brings in hope to people who don't think they have talent in the visual arts.
franciaonline
I am delighted to see another hubber who shares my belief. Thank you very much! :)
Hi Kenny, now that I am experimenting a bit with photoshop I can now better understand this hub. hehe I've tried the other approach the clicking on the filter and watercolor option. Hmmm now I will try this new one that you propose. :) Thanks... to more lessons. Onward!!! march 2, 3,4...
Wonderful, Michelle, now march onward to create beautiful photoshop ripples! :)
WoW!! Cool tricks.. I think on my next day to myself I will spend a good bit of it reading the rst of your hubs! I enjoy being artistic! Thanks Kenny for some inspiration
Thank you, Miss, glad that you are inspired!
Watcha Kenny,
well described, excellent bit of work with PS.
best Mick
Aw thank you, Micks! :)
Wow, this is one good hub, with instructions that are simple and straight forwards to understand. Great information
Delighted to be of help, Dheeraji! :)
Simple and easy and look great.
Thanks
Rated up for sure
Thank you, All of all! :)
Thank you! Well written, and you may assault my intelligence ANY time when it comes to the elusive PS!
Hope you become an expert photoshopper soon, Aculifter!
Love the subject and the colors. The photo you started with is very nice, too.
Aw, ty Julia! She is a beautiful cat. :)
Well all the comments seem to be made to years ago, well am abudding photgrapher who is learning the trick of photoshop.
thank you very much and looking forward to using the techniques and practice on different photos to give different results. God bless you
Have fun, Madge! :)
VioletSun says:
2 years ago
I am the first one to post a comment. Yay! Just being silly. LOL! This is great! It never occurred to me to play with photographs and convert them to watercolor. Thanks, Kenny for opening up potential venues of creativity for me. I am thinking of experimenting with photos for verses I have written... hmmmmmm....