Adobe Photoshop Negative Strip Effect Tutorial

Create negative film strip effects using Photoshop.

Photoshop, marketed by the Adobe Corporation, is one of the most widely used photo editing and general graphics programs around. It is often used to edit, retouch or otherwise alter photographic images for use in advertising and publications. One of the most useful things about Photoshop is the range of tools, filters and image effects that are available to the user. For example, if the user wants to have a graphic that looks like a negative film strip, this is fairly easy to accomplish using Photoshop.

Instructions

1. Load the image that you want to use as the basis for your film strip onto your computer, either by copying it from a camera or by scanning it from a print copy. It should not, itself, be a negative image.

2. Open Photoshop. Select "File" from the menu and choose "New." In the dialog that appears, enter the width and height that you want for your film strip graphic. The resolution can be left at 72 unless the document will be printed, in which case raise it to 300dpi. Click "OK."

3. Click on the "New Layer" button below the "Layers" palette. Select the "Paint Bucket" tool from the tool palette and use it to fill the new layer with black.

4. Select "File" from the menu and choose "Open." In the dialog that appears, go to the location where you saved your image and open it. Go to the "Layers" palette and right click on the background layer. From the options shown, choose "Duplicate Layer." In the dialog, make the other open document the "Destination" for the layer.

5. Go back to the main document. Select the top layer in the "Layers" palette. Right click on the layer, and choose "Duplicate Layer." The current document the destination. Repeat this to create as many copies of the image if you want frames in the film strip.

6. Select "Edit" from the menu and choose "Transform." From the options, choose "Scale." Use this function to resize the image copies and position them where you want them on the filmstrip.

7. Right-click on the top layer and from the options choose "Merged-Down." Repeat this until you merged all the images onto one layer.

8. Select "Image" from the menu and choose "Adjustments." From the options, choose "Invert." Select "Image" from the menu and choose "Adjustments." From the options, choose "Desaturate." Finally, under "Adjustments," choose "Hue/Saturation." Increase the red in the image and click "OK." Save your work.

References

• Cornell University: Photoshop Basic Tools