Aug
26
This method is a quick and simple way to spice up any photo. The best photo choice to use with this technique is practically any photo you like and want to add a special touch to.
The first thing to do is make a quick painting on canvas, and if this part of the process leaves you feeling intimidated, all I can say is: don’t be. Since all you are doing is creating a background layer for your photo the painting does not need to be a masterpiece, just something that pleases your eye. If it makes you feel better I, myself, had never done any painting on canvas before and had quite a bit of fun experimenting with it.
It’s a good idea to use an unframed canvas panel at
8” X 10” so it will be easy to scan when it’s dry.
You can use any type of paints that work on canvas; I like to use acrylic paints since they
dry quite fast.
Next, scan your work of art at 300dpi and open your photo editor.
Now, open the photo you wish to enhance and make sure your layer palette is visible
(Paintshop Pro: View/Palettes/layers or F8. Photoshop: window/layers or F7).
Place your scanned canvas painting onto a new layer above the photo layer and blend both images by playing with the transparency settings until you like what you see.
You can find this photo process and many others in my new book:
So Much More than Photography – eBook edition is now on sale for $10.
Get it here
Posted in Experimental, Photographic art, texture layer background canvas layer photo art
Aug
11
Texture from a mixed media collage 2
You can choose any surface for this mixed media background but I prefer wood surfaces such as artist wood panel or any type of wooden blocks.
What you need:
wood panel.
An old newspaper or pages from an old dictionary.
Gel Medium
White and black Acrylic paints
A big nail
1) Thoroughly cover the wood surface with acrylic black paint and let it completely dry.
2) Use white acrylic paint to cover over the black paint, but let the black paint show through in some areas.
3) Use a big nail or a screw or any other tool to scratch and distress the surface.
4) Using gel medium adhere a few pieces of old newspaper or old dictionary pages and lightly cover them with white paint.
Posted in Film photography, techniques, texture layer
Aug
09
Texture from a mixed media collage
What you need:
Any size canvas or hardboard panel.
An old newspaper or any designer/art paper.
Mod Podge.
Acrylic or water paints
Optional: distress ink.
Its true you can make some beautiful textures on your PC and it will probably be an easier, faster and a cleaner process. However, if you like the direct contact with the materials, you will sure
love this process.
Ok, now on to the details:
Cover the canvas panel with an old newspaper or a textured paper adhering it with Mod Podge. Make sure your work is sloppy and not smooth so there are creases and bumps to the newspaper.
Paint one thin layer of paint covering the newspaper. Wait until it’s almost dry, add a drop of water to a different color and paint another layer letting the layer beneath show through
in some places.
Cover your work of art with any clear finish; Mod Podge can be used for this purpose as well.
When it’s dry and ready you can scan it and use it as a background texture for your images.
(Another great application for this thing is to use it as a background for your photo print which you are going to frame and proudly display by your bed.)
Next: Texture from a mixed media collage 2
Posted in techniques, texture layer layer lighthouse texture
Aug
06
Texture from a book cover
The texture I used for the above picture came from the back cover of an old book which I scanned and used as a background.
I’m especially happy with it since the book cover I used here is actually one of my favorite books;
I Claudius by Robert Graves, which was printed in 1932 and probably had seen better days.
People keep asking me all the time where can they download or even buy textures from. So this is just a suggestion to show you that you can easily find your own textures if you just look around.
If you don’t know how to use layers in Photoshop there are many online tutorials to help you learn it fast. Here are just a couple:
www.ehow.com/ and http://tv.adobe.com/
Next: Texture from a mixed media collage 1
Posted in techniques, texture layer book cover layer richmond texture virginia
Aug
04
The next few posts are going to feature texture layers; how to work with them and also I’ll show you how to create your own textures.
* * * * * * *
The fastest way to add a new dimension to a picture is to open your photo editor and insert an additional layer of texture. This method is quite simple and mainly involves placing one or more layers that contain texture, on top of your original photo.
In addition to bringing a layer of depth, these textures often introduce the illusion of dust, dirt, stains and creases to the photo and create a final grungy and dramatic appearance.
The texture can be made on the computer, as many of the existing graphics software offer tools for making such textures and backgrounds. However, I find it incomparably effortless to simply scan homemade textures or even designer papers (sometimes called scrapbooking or decorated paper). Often, people prefer to use found textures such as peeling paint, leaves, fabrics, rust or scratched surface, which they capture on film (or digitally) and set as backgrounds for their images.
Whatever textures you choose for your art work, you will blend them in your photo editor on different layers so that your photo will act as the background layer. Play around with the transparency and blending mode settings to let the textures show through your photos.
When blending the textures with your photo, you can insert as many layers as you wish – don’t limit yourself to one type of texture; you can combine as many texture layers as you like for a unique edge.
The reason this technique is so effective is because people are often drawn to texture, especially when it is unexpectedly found in a two dimensional image.
Next: MAKE YOUR OWN TEXTURES
Posted in techniques, texture layer texture venice beach
Jul
04
Place: Mount Vernon, Virginia. The home of George Washington.
Date: Fall 2009
Image process: texture layer
Place: Mount Vernon, Virginia. The home of George Washington.
Date: Fall 2009
Image process: texture layer
“I bade adieu to Mount Vernon, to private life, and to domestic felicity, and with a mind oppressed with more anxious and painful sensations than I have words to express, set out for New York in company with W Thomson and Colo Humphreys, with the best disposition to render service to my country in obedience to its calls, but with less hope of answering its expectations.”
George Washington. Diary entry. April 16, 1789
HAPPY 4TH OF JULY!
Posted in Best Photos, texture layer George Washinton mount vernon texture virginia
Jan
04
One way to create a background for the Texture Layer technique is to get scrapbooking or designer or any other decorated paper which you can then scan and manipulate to work with your photo.
I found lots of these wonderful papers at Michael’s; they have a couple of aisles displaying a bunch of designer papers and since they all look good the real problem is which ones to get.
I like using these papers for photo backgrounds mainly because after I scan them and have a digital copy I can use the actual paper in my mixed media projects,
such as this one.
Posted in Best Photos, techniques, texture layer downtown LA papers texture layer
Nov
30
A few days ago I’ve receive an email asking me to answer a simple question: What’s the difference between street and urban photography?
I would suggest they are two terms which pretty much describe the same thing; for the most part street photography is about photographing urban life or people in urban situations.
However, some photographers insist to make a distinction between the two genres;
Street photography often features people or some other human element, frequently to reveal a social comment, while urban photography tends to portray the urban landscape; buildings, structures, bridges and does not necessarily include the human component.
I’ve seen a few passionate arguments amongst street photographers about the definition of the genre and which pictures can be accepted into the street photography category.
Maybe there is a difference but maybe its just semantics, it doesn’t really matter because when you’re out there armed with a camera you probably photograph both people and the urban landscape and whatever else unfolds in front of you.
Posted in Best Photos, Thoughts about photography, texture layer philadelphia street photography urban photography
Nov
17
Until now, when working with texture layers I would choose the picture I wanted to work on, then looked around my textures and try to choose the right texture or textures that will work with this particular image. I would then layer the texture/s on the image and if the texture didn’t work I would delete the layer and try a different texture. This process was not only a tedious one but mostly it was strenuous on my PC’s memory (and my patience!).
A few days ago I had an idea to create one file that has all my favorite layers in one place. So I layered 10 of my favorite textures and saved the file as a psd file so all the layers are preserved. The file size is about 90MB so it’s somewhat a large file but it’s not too bad.
Now I open the picture I want to work with and add it as a new layer at the very bottom, underneath all the textures. At this point all there is left to do is play around with the transparency of the various layers, “turn off” (make invisible) the textures I don’t need, until I like what I see. And that’s pretty much it!
(picture was taken on a rainy day in Valley Forge, Pennsylvania where the Continental Army under the commend of General George Washington set camp over the winter of 1777-78)
Posted in Best Photos, texture layer layers psd textures Valley Forge
Nov
10
To celebrate my scanner’s return to life I decided to scan an old paper and apply the texture layer technique to a photo.
I chose a photo I took recently in Gettysburg when I stumbled in the evening upon these guys who were camping in tents looking cool in their civil war uniform.
So I layered the old paper over the original color photo and then converted the photo to black and white but left the paper in its original sepia tone. I set the blend mode of the top layer to overlay 80% transparency. Next I applied the dodge and burn tool to different areas as needed.
And for the final touch I added an old ragged border.
Now this takes me back!
Posted in techniques, texture layer civil war gettysburg texture layer
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