Making this wallpaper:
The Basics - Level: Advanced
- Used Photoshop 7.0
- Translatable: Almost all photoshop versions. Not likely into PSP
- Other: You'll need a basic knowledge of layer masking and manipulating. Also please use other images so that there aren't carbon copies of the same wall being posted everywhere ;)
Part 1, Preparing
1) I created a new canvas using these settings:
Width: 1024
Height: 768
Resolution: 72 or higher
Color Mode: RGB
Background Contents: Transparent
Paste, resize and sharpen
this image of Sarah Michelle Gellar and place it on the right side of you canvas, like so.
2) I decided to use
this lovely image of Kristen Bell as the second basis of my manip. To get Sarah's skin and hair to look similar to Kristen's I added a Hue/Saturation adjusment layer using these setting:
Hue: 0
Saturation: +37
Lightness: +22
3) Take the Kristen Bell image and resize it so it's as close to the same size as Sarah's face. Then mask out the rest of her body.
4) I created a new layer and merged the image into it (Control>Shift>Alt>N>E). I used auto levels (Shift>Control>L) and auto contrast (Al>Shift>Control>L) to give it slightly more contrast and sharpening. I made yet another new layer (Conrtol>Shift>Alt>N) and dragged it under the merged layer I just made. I filled the layer with #e1e2e1.
5) Now it looks like
this. So I add a layer mask to my merged layer and erase/blend the background and image with a soft fluffy brush. It doesn't have to look perfect. It should look something like
this.
6) You can color anyway you want to. For this manip i used setting from an icon coloring tutorial I found by
redlighttt. It's a nifty tut so even if you don't want to have this coloring I would still
check it out! Here's the result Part 2, Brushes
7) The left is looking so plain! Lets add some brushes! I used
these gorgeous brushes from
anaRasha and then
these breathtaking ones from
arisubox. I used #12a2e9 for the colors.
Here's the result.
Part 3, Stocks and Text
8) I took
this image and opened it in a new document. I applied auto contrast and auto levels and then added all the same adjustment layers and setting from steps 6-8.
Here's the result 8) I pasted the newly colored image towards the center of my base wallpaper. Next to it I added lyrics from the Placebo song meds.
I was alone, Falling free,
Trying my best not to forget
What happened to us, What happened to me,
What happened as I let it slip. I was confused by the powers that be,
Forgetting names and places.
Passers by were looking at me
As if they could erase it
I wrote the text in #12a2e9. It was aligned to the right, 10pt, with the Courier New font.
I then added some more of the song text
Baby did you forget to take your meds?
I used the same color and the font Violation (download
here) in 17pt.
Here's the result.
Part 4, Finishing Touches
10) I added
this brush from
_joni and
this brush from
appendixsquared in #12a2e9. I placed a piece of the image inside one of boxes. I got
this.
11) Open a new 10x10 document make sure where it says Background Contents its set to transparent. Zoom in as close as you can to the square. Select your pencil tool at a size of 1 px and draw a diagonal line from one corner to the other. When zoomed all the way in it should look like
this.
12) Still in the 10x10 document, go to Edit>Define Pattern. Go to your wallpaper document and create a new pattern adjustment layer and select the pattern you just made. Mask out everything that is over Kristen/Sarah's body and face and set the layer to softlight.
13) Now some much needed sharpening! Create a new layer and merge (Control>Shift>Alt>N>E). Set the layer to Overlay. Go to filter, other High Pass with a radius of 0.5 pixels. And your done!
Plus here are some examples of using this wall to crop and edit icons.