Invitation Tutorial, Challenge 43 by luna_61
From This 
to This
Thank you for the invitation.
Adobe PhotoShop 7.0
1. Auto Adjust-Levels, Contrast, Color
To brighten and highlight- On some pictures this will not work. I do this before I crop to a smaller size.
2. Crop 100x100- I always look for the most interesting view of the photo. And I crop several views before I select the one I want.
3. First I put a new base layer white-Add a New layer of pink #F8D9DA set Normal 100%
4. Now I add my cropped icon and set to Overlay I used 100% but lower opacities work also.
5. Add icon base and set to Luminosity-Erase the water leaving only the clouds. This deepens the cloud coloring.
6. Duplicate this layer and set to Multiply 100%
7. Duplicate this layer and set to Color burn 100%
8. Add a base icon layer set to Hue 100%-This brightens up the pinks
9. Add base layer
10. New adjustment-Curves layer to brighten/lighten it up and then Merge down the curves layer
11. Then set to Hue 100%
12. Duplicate layer- set to Linear burn 100%
13. Add new transparent layer- To make the clouds pinker use a soft brush with Pink- F4DADA on the brush over the top half -the cloud layer.
Blue-96CAE4 brush over the bottom half the water.
Set this layer to Overlay 74%
Now I wanted the blue to be a little brighter so I went to the top cloud half layer and smudged it a bit to brighter the blue but to also make the shadow of the sail on water brighter.
14. I still had a spot in the middle that did not take the blue it was all washed out so I added a new layer and using a soft brush touched up dull spots in the water to make them bluer. I even brushed over some of the wave where it was a purple coloring.
15. Add a base desaturated layer set to Luminosity 57%
Use erase tool 29% and erase some of the bottom of the clouds.
This keeps the light and darkens the bottom of the clouds.
You could probably flatten the layer and use the burn tool but I feel like I get more control this other way.
Flatten and you are done!
I used no textures on this icon just color layers or changes in the base modes. I love getting a bright shinny coloring. I experiment a lot. I started out using Photoshop Elements 2.0 which did not have selective coloring and this is still my prefered way of getting the coloring to be bright and vibrant on icons.
Now I love to see what else the Mode layers will do and here is what happens if you change the Mode on the first base layer.
Ack! Sorry forgot to label this one but this is just to show you the various colorings. This could also be right after step #13 since it still has that dull coloring in the middle of the icon.
ColorBurn 100%
LinearLight
Screencap of the layers palatte.
to This
Thank you for the invitation.
Adobe PhotoShop 7.0
1. Auto Adjust-Levels, Contrast, Color
To brighten and highlight- On some pictures this will not work. I do this before I crop to a smaller size.
2. Crop 100x100- I always look for the most interesting view of the photo. And I crop several views before I select the one I want.
3. First I put a new base layer white-Add a New layer of pink #F8D9DA set Normal 100%
4. Now I add my cropped icon and set to Overlay I used 100% but lower opacities work also.
5. Add icon base and set to Luminosity-Erase the water leaving only the clouds. This deepens the cloud coloring.
6. Duplicate this layer and set to Multiply 100%
7. Duplicate this layer and set to Color burn 100%
8. Add a base icon layer set to Hue 100%-This brightens up the pinks
9. Add base layer
10. New adjustment-Curves layer to brighten/lighten it up and then Merge down the curves layer
11. Then set to Hue 100%
12. Duplicate layer- set to Linear burn 100%
13. Add new transparent layer- To make the clouds pinker use a soft brush with Pink- F4DADA on the brush over the top half -the cloud layer.
Blue-96CAE4 brush over the bottom half the water.
Set this layer to Overlay 74%
Now I wanted the blue to be a little brighter so I went to the top cloud half layer and smudged it a bit to brighter the blue but to also make the shadow of the sail on water brighter.
14. I still had a spot in the middle that did not take the blue it was all washed out so I added a new layer and using a soft brush touched up dull spots in the water to make them bluer. I even brushed over some of the wave where it was a purple coloring.
15. Add a base desaturated layer set to Luminosity 57%
Use erase tool 29% and erase some of the bottom of the clouds.
This keeps the light and darkens the bottom of the clouds.
You could probably flatten the layer and use the burn tool but I feel like I get more control this other way.
Flatten and you are done!
I used no textures on this icon just color layers or changes in the base modes. I love getting a bright shinny coloring. I experiment a lot. I started out using Photoshop Elements 2.0 which did not have selective coloring and this is still my prefered way of getting the coloring to be bright and vibrant on icons.
Now I love to see what else the Mode layers will do and here is what happens if you change the Mode on the first base layer.
Ack! Sorry forgot to label this one but this is just to show you the various colorings. This could also be right after step #13 since it still has that dull coloring in the middle of the icon.
ColorBurn 100%
LinearLight
Screencap of the layers palatte.