How to Create Artwork from a Photo

Many of us would like to be able to paint beautiful portraits or landscapes that we could use to decorate our homes. Painting well, however, requires years of training and practice to become proficient. With today’s digital or film cameras, it is possible to produce a great looking picture. If you have access to a computer with photo editing software, you will be able to create a work of art that simulates a painting by a skilled artist.

Instructions

Difficulty: Moderate

Things You’ll Need:

• Windows or Mac computer with Photoshop or similar photo editing software installed.
• Photo for artwork

1. If you are using a print, you must first scan or have the print scanned into a digital file which can then be loaded into the software application. Your local film processor can do this, usually placing the photos on a compact disc. If you have a digital camera, you can use the uploaded image.
2. Launch the application (Photoshop is used in these examples). Bring the image file into the program by clicking on the Open option on the File menu. Locate the photo where you have stored it. See picture above.
3. Once you have the image on the screen. Inspect it to see if you need to crop it in order to have a nicely balanced picture. Crop it using the Image> Crop menu items after drawing a mask using the Mask or Marquee tool from the Tool Palette, usually on the left side of the work space. The picture will be cropped outside the mask you draw.
4. Be sure you are satisfied with your image and then save it using a slightly different name (such as pic2.jpg). This way, you can still return to the original.
5. Use Image>Adjustments> Auto Levels to adjust the contrast, color and brightness. If you don’t like the result, use Edit>Step backward or Undo.
6. In Photoshop, there are various tools called Filters on the Filters menu. In programs, such as Corel Photopaint, There is an Effect menu. You can use the Art Strokes option to modify your image.
7. In your application, determine which effect or filter you want to use. That is, do you want a pastel, watercolor or oil effect? In the examples, I used the Photoshop Artistic filter and the Cutout option. The cutout option reduces the detail in the picture so that is resembles a painting, rather than a photo. Generally, photos contain greater detail than paintings, and it is the skill of the painter that conveys information about the subject without using so much detail.
8. Image using the Cutout Filter in Photoshop. 8. Select Filters>Artistic>Cutout. Notice the changes in the image. If you are satisfied at this point, you can save the picture and be on your way. See photo.
9. The example image has a very uninteresting sky, so I selected the Magic wand tool and then clicked on the sky to create a mask or marquee around the scene. Hold down the Shift key while clicking the wand on all sky portions.
10. Choose the Select menu and the Inverse option. To separate the sky and buildings.
11. Click the Background icon to select background color. In the Color dialog, select a light blue.
12. Select File>New to create a new image of solid sky color. Return to your image and select Edit> Copy.
13. Select the sky image and select Edit> Paste to paste your edited picture of the buildings onto the sky.
14. Image with replaced sky. Use the Blur Tool (next to the Smudge tool on the Tool Palette) to soften the line where the buildings and sky meet. Save your picture using a new name. See Deauvillefin2.jpg.

Tips & Warnings

• Avoid having a large object positioned exactly dead center. This draws the eye away from everything else.
• Try to achieve balance with perhaps two objects on the left and three on the right side of the image. Just try to make the scene interesting.
• If the picture is a portrait, avoid having the background similar in value to the face.
• You can also find a different image perhaps with clouds or sunset and paste the foreground in your image on top of the new sky.
• You can experiment with other adjustments, but be sure to save each as different names in case you change your mind and want the previous image.