Turn your Image into a Pencil Sketch

Turn your Image into a Pencil Sketch

This is a pencil sketch tutorial for Photoshop. There are various techniques to turn your photo into a pencil sketch and this is one of the simplest techniques you can learn. It doesn't take a lot of hard work to do a pencil sketch of your favorite people nowadays. Try finding a good portrait of them and fire up Photoshop. Follow this tutorial and you'll get a perfect (I hope) sketch at the end of it. Before and after image as shown below.

Pencil Sketch Effect: Before and After Image

And as requested by one of our readers, we've extend the tutorial to get a colored sketch effect..

1. Open your image in Photoshop. This effect will look better with large-sized image.

Duplicate your image once. Choose the duplicate layer then go to Image > Adjustment > Desaturate.

2. Duplicate the desaturated layer twice, so that now you have 3 black and white layer.

Here's what your layer palette should look like:

3. Next, go to Layer > New Adjustment Layer > Hue/Saturation. Set the master saturation to -100.

Here's your layer palette now:

4. Then, select the Background copy layer in your layer palette.

Go to Filter > Artistic > Colored Pencil. Adjust the setting on the right until you get something like this:

Here's the settings I used. Yours can be different depending on the image.

5. Next, select Background copy 2 in your layer palette. Then, go to Filter > Brush Strokes

> Dark Strokes. Adjust the setting on the right until you get something like this:

Here's the settings I used. Yours can be different depending on the image.

6. Then, select Background copy 3 in your layer palette. Go to Filter > Stylize > Find Edges.

After that, go to Filter > Brush Strokes > Dark Strokes. Adjust the setting on the right until

you get something like this:

Here's the settings I used. Again, your setting can be different depending on your image.

7. Now, we're gonna adjust the property settings of our layers. Here's my recommended settings:

Background copy 1 is set to Lighten with 40% opacity

Background copy 2 is set to Lighten or Hard Light (whichever looks better) with 50% opacity

Background copy 3 is set to Multiply with 25% opacity

Here's how you change the layer setting -- click on the layer in the layer palette then adjust the

property and opacity as shown in the image below:

8. And here's the final outcome of this tutorial. A nice pencil sketch effect on your photo.

Okay now you've got your classic black and white pencil sketch. Well, it's a pencil after all,

of course there's no color. But if you'd like a color sketch..don't worry, there's still hope for

you.we'll try to convert this effect into a colored pencil sketch. Go ahead and follow the the

rest of the tutorial.

We're gonna continue with a different image now..just for variety =)

9. Remember, after you're done with step 8, below is your layer palette:

Select the Hue/Saturation layer. And you see that small eye icon to the left of it. Click on

the eye icon to make it disappeared. But doing this, you're actually making

the Hue/Saturation layer invisible (which means it has no effect or whatsoever to your image).

10. Here's your image now. Not so much miracle but the color is back. If you're satisfied

with the coloring, you can stop here. But if you feel like making the color more intense..go on.

11. Go to Layer > New Adjustment Layer > Hue/Saturation. Increase the saturation until you

get a bright coloring on your image. You can adjust the brightness too if you want. Below is my settings:

12. Your layer palette should look like this now:

And my final image below...

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Glamorous Glowing Model Effect on Your Image

Glamorous Glowing Model Effect on Your Image

Remember reading a magazine and wishing you could somehow apply that glamorous glowing look on the models to one of your photo? Well, now with photoshop..you can. This beginner friendly tutorial (I hope it's friendly enough) will show you how to get that smooth glow effect on your photo. Do you have what it takes to be America's Next Top Model?..Well, maybe not everything but at least now you got the glow.

Supermodel Glow Effect

1. Open your image. Duplicate it 3 times. Here's your layer palette now:

2. Select the 1st duplicate layer, in this case it's called Layer 1 copy and set it to soft light

with 15% opacity.

3. Next, select the 2nd duplicate layer, in this case it's called Layer 1 copy 2 and set it to soft

light with 100% opacity. Next, still working with this layer, go to Filter > Blur > Gaussian Blur.

Set the radius to be 4.5 pixels.

4. Then, select the last duplicate layer and set it to Soft Light with 55% opacity.

Still working with this layer, go to Filter > Blur > Gaussian Blur. Set the radius to 8.5 pixels.

5. Now, go to Layer > New Fill Layer > Solid Color. Type in this color code (cec08f) and click OK.

On the layer palette, set this color fill layer to Overlay with 15% opacity.

6. Create another fill layer. Go to Layer > New Fill Layer > Solid Color. Type in this

color code (c1ca9a) and click OK. On the layer palette, set this color fill layer to Soft Light

with 15% opacity.

7. Create another fill layer, promise you this is the last one...Go to Layer > New Fill Layer > Solid Color.

Type in this color code (c7c0b4) and click OK. On the layer palette, set this color fill layer to Soft Light

with 100% opacity.

And your done =) Simple as that..now you've achieved the glowing model look in Photoshop.

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Google releases Chrome 12 to Dev channel

Google releases Chrome 12 to Dev channel

The guys at Google are surely busy a lot. They have pushed through yet another browser release this month, the Chrome 12. Earlier this month we have seen the release of Chrome 9 Final, Chrome 10 Stable, Chrome 11 beta and now the Chrome 12 Dev(12.0.712.0) for Windows, Mac, Linux and Chrome Frame. Looking at this schedule, it does not surprise that Chrome is starting to grab a major share of the browser market.

Mozilla finally released Firefox 4 after a dozen beta and two RC releases over a period of more than one year. Microsoft has also taken nearly a year to roll out IE9. Whereas within the same time period, we have seen numerous browser releases from Chrome.

This release supposedly contains many fixes, Chrome’s Javascript engine V8 has been updated to 3.2.3.1 and it also includes Multi-Tab select for the Windows version. Tab multi select enables the selection of more than one tab using the CTRL key and performing a common action on them.

This version is meant for testers only, and the end users should stick to Chrome 10.

Download Links and Source: Softpedia

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Black and White Image with a Hint of Color

Black and White Image with a Hint of Color

This is an extension to our previous black and white tutorial. This tutorial will show you how to have a black and white image but at the same time, you can have one or more object in red, blue or any other colors. It's a good way to keep the focus on the main subject while leaving everything else black and white. Some people may call this a selective color effect. Guess it's from the fact that you select one or more object to be brightly colored. Sample result are shown below.

1. First, open your image. For this tutorial, we'll have to start with a colored image.

2. Next, we're gonna convert this colored image into a black and white image. Follow our tutorial on Converting your Picture into a B&W Photography to complete this step.

3. After you're done with step 2, your layer palette should look like this:

Click on the eye icon to the left to make the original image invisible.

Then, click CTRL+SHIFT+E to merge all the visible layers. Here's your layer palette now:

4. Set the original layer back to be visible by clicking the box where the eye icon is.

5. With the B&W layer selected on the layer palette, click the 'Add Vector Mask' icon at the bottom of the layer palette.

6. Make sure the foreground color is set to black and the background color is set to white. If it's not, click D on your keyboard to set it to default and use the small arrow to switch back and forth between background and foreground color.

7. Select the Brush Tool and choose a soft, round brush. Set the brush size depending on the size of your image. Mine is set to size 13.

8. Then, just paint on the area where you want the color to be visible. I chose to make the red color of the car to be visible and everything else around it is black and white.

9. From the picture above, you'll see that the red is not really intense and I want the red to be more vibrant. To achieve this, with the original background layer selected in the layer palette, go to Layer > New Adjustment Layer > Levels. Just follow the instruction in the picture below.

10. Here's your layer palette now.

And your image before and after the level adjustment.

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Social Network Shortcut Keys

Social Network Shortcut Keys

• Twitter Keyboard Shortcuts

• . – Refresh list of tweets.
• / – Go to Search box.
• M – Opens a new Message in a pop-up window.
• N – Opens a new tweet in a pop-up window.
• Press G, then R – Open Replies.
• Press G, then M – Open Messages Inbox
• Press G, then F – Open Favourites.
• Press G, then H - Go Home.
• Press G, then P – Display your profile.
• Press G, then U – Go to another user’s profile, input Twitter name in displayed box.
• Shift + F – Add selected tweet to Twitter Favourites.
• Shift + R - Reply to selected tweet.
• Shift + T – Retweet selected tweet.

LIST OF KEYBOARD SHORTCUTS FOR FACEBOOK

Alt + 1 Return to Facebook Homepage
Alt + 2 To goto Wall tab of your profile page
Alt + 3 To view Friends Requests list drop down list
Alt + 4 To view latest Messages list in drop down list
Alt + 5 To view Notification list drop down list
Alt + 6 To goto Account setting webpage
Alt + 7 To goto Account privacy configuration webpage
Alt + 8 To open Facebook fan page at facebook.com/facebook
Alt + 9 To open Facebook’s Statement of Rights & Responsibilities
Alt + 0 To open Facebook Help Center
Alt + m To create new message
Alt + ? For cursor control in the Search Box

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