How to Use the Twirl Filter Effect in Adobe Photoshop

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By Richard Burke
eHow Contributing Writer

Article Rating: (4 Ratings)

Original Picture

Adobe Photoshop has fourteen different categories of special effect filters. They are easy to use and allow the user to completely change and enhance an image. The TWIRL special effect allows you to skew the subject matter of your image. Like most of the filters it comes with a special control panel that allows you to control the amount of artistic effect.

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Difficulty: Moderately Easy

Instructions

Things You'll Need:

Adobe Photoshop 6.0 or later running on a MAC or PC Computer
A copy of an image for editing.

Step 1

The Twirl Control Panel

Open your saved image in Adobe Photoshop. Once you have opened the image, select FILTER/DISTORT/TWIRL to open the TWIRL control panel. Use the plus and minus signs to alter the view in the preview window so you can see the impact of your effect.
Step 2

Using the sliders

Use the sliders to control the amount of twirl to the image. Minus numbers twirl to the left and positive numbers twirl to the right. The results will be displayed in the preview box. Click OK and the image will re-render and you will see the adjusted image. To cancel the change click UNDO or STEP BACKWARD in the history panel.
Step 3

Positive twirl

This image was done with a positive twirl of about 400
Step 4

Negative twirl

This image was done with a negative twirl of 600. This is artistic rendering using images. Experiment and have fun.

Tips & Warnings

Try using images with a distinct subject. Twirling a forest scene may look more like a Jackson Pollack painting than a photo. This is fine, if this is what you want.
This is a very popular special effect so use it sparingly and wisely. Try using different subjects other than political figures, we have all seen enough of those.
Remember to save to a different name to preserve your archival image.
If you don't undo and then decide you want to, step backward using the history panel.

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