How to Cheat in Photoshop

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Posted on 28/03/14 09:49:38 AM

Steve Caplin
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Re: Challenge 497: In the wild

A striking image from Frank kicked off this week's entries, with a tricky view into the sun. It's a perfect match for the lighting on the elephant, which appears to come directly from behind - very well chosen. Perhaps the two elephants in the background should be casting long shadows towards us?

A well integrated scene from puffin31939, with the elephant standing at the waterhole with three others. You say you don't know what's wrong - and, really, the only thing that's slightly out is the depth of shadow. Look at the other three: the shadows are very deep, almost black. That's what we need on our extra elephant as well, and it will blend in perfectly.

I like Ant Snell's circus scene, with the elephant serving as a platform for a clown and an acrobat. And is that a fez on the monkey? Nice work - it could do with an audience! Just one thing: with all those lights, I'm sure the elephant wouldn't cast such a strong shadow.

A neat magic poster from Josephine Harvatt, featuring Arjii Bajii and his magnificent cheekbones. Does he hide the elephant under his turban, do you think?

An extraordinary view from Ben Mills, which has a real other-worldly quality to it - part Star Wars, part Jurassic. Is that now a wooly mammoth? Or has it taken a spaghetti bath?

A very fine image from LagoDiLecco, with a pair of elephants returning to wreak revenge on the ape. I like the way you've tweaked the trunk to make them look different, and the view through the windscreen sets the whole thing in context. Good to see you back, Diana.

A rather beautiful waterhole from tooquilos, with fine reflections and ripples in the water's surface. I like the tale of unjust capture, imprisonment and release in the animated version - with some great water effects. And that explains the statue!

An entertaining animation from michael sinclair with that trademark unique style of oscillation. It's a clever technique, although I think it's most effective when the animal's feet remain attached to the ground. I wish you hadn't added the second image of the dead monkey, though, and the third of it being torn apart by vultures: sometimes your taste for the bloodthirsty is a little overwhelming.

I was very amused by Eva Roth's 'elephant in the room' gag, and I wish I'd thought of it as the theme of this Challenge. It's a very good setting, with the man in the blue shift just about catching a glimpse of it. Would it have been stronger if it were fully opaque?

A great setting from Garfield72, with that bizarre tree providing a neat counterpoint to the elephant in the foreground. The shading on the tree matches that on the monkey, but the elephant seems a little under-shaded in comparison. Deepen those shadows, and it will work much better.

A glorious animation from James, as the elephant tosses the ape out of the way - and once again, the animal movement is extraordinary. Not just the legs, but the variety of positions of that trunk (which, I suspect, has been grafted on from a number of different elephants). Is this a case where Puppet Warp could have saved you a lot of trouble?

A tremendous elephant skin texture from Kathryn - a good use of Craquelure! I like the way it has been bent over the contours of the elephant, and the way the shading shows through it. You've set yourself an additional challenge there, and you've certainly lived up to it. My only real issue here is with the position of the horizon - or is the viewer hiding up a tree?

I hadn't heard brewell's rhyme before - I think we need the tune, Bruce! I found this version, but it seems you know an extra trick with the repeated monk at the end. Is it dropping down the scale? Anyway, I really like the new position of the monkey, and the splendid hand-drawn treatment - the way that circus tent fades into the background is perfect.

A very fine image from srawland, with the elephant nestled into the jungle. I found the original of your background image with TinEye, and I like the added woman with binoculars - she draws the viewer's eye neatly across the scene to the new elephant. Perhaps the monkey could have made an appearance on the terrace? Aha - there it is in the second entry, although it is a little difficult to make out. And as for following my instructions - no-one else takes any notice either!

A very verdant scene from Mariner, almost mystical in its assembly of beasts and foliage. A beautiful composition, with a real painterly quality to the scene.

An ingenious image from Linda Eckert, who has turned the elephant into a convincing pendant. I like the way you've achieved that flattened look, which is very effective. But I'd take another look at the shape of the chain: with both arms that straight, it makes the statue appear to be flat as well. Curve them more, and it will accentuate the contours of her neck:

An attractive if rather surprising beach setting from Deborah Morley, which seems like an odd place to chain an elephant. That craggy background does fit rather well, though, and I like the recoloured rope. But is that monkey still too shiny?

Posted on 28/03/14 09:51:55 AM

josephine harvatt
Gag Gadgeteer
Posts: 2603

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Re: Challenge 497: In the wild

Ha! That must be it! Thanks Steve

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Posted on 28/03/14 09:53:01 AM

Mariner
Renaissance Mariner
Posts: 3063

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Re: Challenge 497: In the wild

Thanks Steve. Short and sweet.

Posted on 28/03/14 10:33:54 AM

james
Surreal Spoofer
Posts: 1194

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Re: Challenge 497: In the wild

Thank you Steve. Borrowed images, with some Puppet Warp.

Posted on 28/03/14 1:41:42 PM

brewell
Pixel Pentagrammarian
Posts: 752

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Re: Challenge 497: In the wild

That's the tune. It's now stuck in my head again, thanks. I guess we added the repetitions for dramatic effect.

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Posted on 28/03/14 4:43:54 PM

srawland
Pixel Perfectionist
Posts: 885

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Re: Challenge 497: In the wild

Steve Caplin wrote:
Perhaps the monkey could have made an appearance on the terrace?

Thank you for the compliments. I had not thought of putting the monkey on the terrace, but given the wealth of reports on how the wildlife in Africa have discovered that the Safari lodges are excellent sources of food, it would be a perfectly believable picture to have the baboon on the terrace stealing the biscuits that were laid out with the tea. However, I don't know how to make the fur look realistic like is some of the other entries. I figured out how to get the speckling effect of the fur by using curves and then going over it with a splatter brush, but the monkey statue only came out looking like a speckled statue. Are there instructions further on in the book for how to create fur? (I have the CS5 version I'm still on Chapter 8 and have only just finished "Bald Obama") The more I visit this site the more I come to believe that I could have an entire library of books of Photoshop techniques and I still wouldn't know everything about how to use the program.

Posted on 28/03/14 5:00:07 PM

Kathryn
Woodland Wonder
Posts: 84

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Re: Challenge 497: In the wild

“a good use of Craquelure!”

Steve, I did not use that one trick pony Filter>Craquelure.
I did however try that filter but it did not even come close to resembling a real life animal skin.

Here is a small portion, screen shot sample pattern - using other arsenals of Photoshop to create and apply a texture to a given object.
A lot of trial and error.
Can’t remember all the steps at this point that I used.

Kathryn

Posted on 28/03/14 5:24:27 PM

Steve Caplin
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Posts: 7025

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Re: Challenge 497: In the wild

srawland wrote:
The more I visit this site the more I come to believe that I could have an entire library of books of Photoshop techniques and I still wouldn't know everything about how to use the program.

The best way to learn Photoshop is to keep using it - and to try out new techniques. That's the reason I started the Friday Challenge in the first place, to encourage people to attempt problems they might not have considered before. Keep at it!

Posted on 28/03/14 5:25:02 PM

Steve Caplin
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Posts: 7025

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Re: Challenge 497: In the wild

Kathryn wrote:
“a good use of Craquelure!”

Steve, I did not use that one trick pony Filter>Craquelure.
I did however try that filter but it did not even come close to resembling a real life animal skin.

Here is a small portion, screen shot sample pattern - using other arsenals of Photoshop to create and apply a texture to a given object.
A lot of trial and error.
Can’t remember all the steps at this point that I used.

Kathryn

My apologies - you've obviously put more effort into this than I at first gave you credit for. Good job.

Posted on 28/03/14 6:14:50 PM

srawland
Pixel Perfectionist
Posts: 885

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Re: Challenge 497: In the wild

Oh please do try to remember at least some of the steps involved. I was very impressed with how realistic your elephant looked and I would love to learn how you did it.

Sara

Posted on 28/03/14 8:37:24 PM

Eva Roth
Luminous Liberator
Posts: 269

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Re: Challenge 497: In the wild

thanks for your comments Steve. I did try to make the elephant completely opaque. However, it look a bit too airy-fairy to me, as if the poor animal was just a figment of my imagination. Might have improved with fine-tuning though..

Posted on 29/03/14 2:21:29 PM

Kathryn
Woodland Wonder
Posts: 84

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Re: Challenge 497: In the wild

Sara,

My general workflow with Photoshop is non-destructive.
Layers and Adjustment Layers.
Channels and creating Alpha channels
Then back to Layers.

Learning Photoshop is a journey!
Take the time to first learn the basics and go from there.
Make it fun.

I first started with Photoshop 5.5
Recently I upgraded from PS CS5 and caved into Adobe’s lease only CC.

Kathryn

Posted on 30/03/14 08:54:40 AM

Linda Eckert
maîtresse marocaine
Posts: 148

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Re: Challenge 497: In the wild

Many thanks, Steve, for the good correction!

Posted on 31/03/14 3:37:23 PM

puffin31939
Montage Mariner
Posts: 383

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