![]() an image in which the subjects and the background blend together, you may want to also use the Magic Wand tool and fine-tune the selection using the Magnetic Lasso. If you have a more complicated image, i.e. The Quick Selection Tool is often the best tool for selecting an empty, cloudless sky. Semi-automatic selection tools like the Magic Wand and the Quick Selection Tool work by selecting areas that have similar tones. Since we are selecting the skies to be replaced from the image with our subjects, hide the layer with the clouds so that you only see the layer that includes the subjects. ![]() ![]() It is best to never simply “erase” a layer, or try to cut and paste certain parts of it. To avoid over-editing either of these images, we’re going to try and always use layer masks and adjustment curve layers that can easily be reversed or deleted. Remember: Photoshop can be a destructive editor if you’re not careful. For this particular image, we are going to need the horizons to match since the photo was shot at a low angle and the sunset in the final image is going to need to remain in the same general place it is now.Įach image here has already received good color correction so, go ahead and open them both in Photoshop as layers. Remember the five tips we discussed in the previous chapter. Thankfully, Photoshop tools are advanced enough that almost everything overly tedious or destructive can be avoided!įirst, start in Lightroom with your workflow arranged similar to how we described in our previous tutorial: one folder that contains all your tool (like these clouds and other textures you may have) and other folders that contain your photos. When performing this task, there are always two things we try to avoid: 1) destructive editing and 2) time-consuming intricate selections or brushwork. In this section, we are going to demonstrate basic techniques for combining two different images as layers in Photoshop. Part 2 | Insert Clouds with Basic Layer Masking If you’re not sure which direction your clouds should be facing, but you know you want a dramatic, shadowy look, try flipping your clouds horizontally to see which direction of light which looks better and more natural. The same rule applies for all directions, including backlit and front-lit scenes. If the sunlight is coming from the right of your image, make sure the clouds you select are also lit from the right. Always look at the shadows in your image and take note if their directionality is very obvious. This is similar to the guidelines above, but it acts as one final check to ensure a realistic composite. For example, placing a flat grey overcast sky to a scene that has sunlight would also look unnatural. For example, placing clouds from a sunset on top of a noon-day photo is difficult to do without it looking unnatural.Īlso, try your best to match the “weather” of a scene. Pay attention to the approximate time of the day your images were captured, because it is very difficult to seamlessly combine images from completely different parts of the day. Try to match source and target images roughly in these four categories: If you have a beautiful stock image of a sky that was photographed at 24mm or 16mm, it may look out of place if you try to put it on a telephoto image, shot at 85mm or greater. If your primary image doesn’t have a clear horizon, you have a lot more wiggle room in selecting the clouds you would like to use.Īnother thing to pay attention to is the approximate focal lengths of the images that are being combined. We’ve provided all of our Cloud Pack images with horizons present within the image so that this is possible with any scene you choose to integrate into your own. One thing that is rarely mentioned in other Photoshop tutorials is that it is preferable to make the horizons in both images line up with each other. So, when you are merging a beautiful, cloud-filled sky with your foreground, always remember to adjust each source layer for color, tone, and contrast separately (we will explore this further in the following tutorials). Even the most subtle differences in color, brightness, or contrast will make your final image look unnatural. Match The Mood And Post ProcessingĪnytime you combine two photos, the post-processing needs to match as closely as possible. Follow them and you’ll be off to a great start every single time you begin to blend your images together. When adding clouds to a scene, we have five tips that will be helpful for you to keep in mind in order to create seamless, natural looking images. Part 1 | Tips for Adding Realistic Clouds with Photoshop We’ll then teach you how to Insert Clouds with Basic Layer Masking. In this 2 part tutorial, we’ll first review some Tips for Adding Realistic Clouds with Photoshop. This tutorial is for the SLR Lounge Cloud Pack, a collection of over 400 cloud images designed to help photographers add interest to the skies of their images.
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