This post was published February 3rd, 2010 by Dory on Blissfully Domestic in Photography.

*in a fierce, booming WWF voice* Howduhya like me now?!?! Huh?!?! HUH?!?!

By the way, you should run over and leave a quick comment on my post. It’ll help me perpetuate the rumor that I’m popular or something.

By the way squared, even if you don’t give a rat’s patootie about Photoshop, you should comment anyway. We don’t discriminate against non-Photoshoppers, so feel free to just say anything, such as what year you discovered Britney Spears was actually pretty lame. Or maybe just apropos of nothing, name any color a la that Facebook craze that reigned for six crazy days where we told the color of our bras and giggled like sixth graders. Don’t be boring and just red. Meh. Say, Burnt Carrot! Or, Used Coffee Grounds Sienna! Or, Open Herpes Wound Crust! Or… uh…

*runs out of the room*

——————————————————

*applause sign lights up and the crowd goes wild*

By the way, if there’s anyone out there that’s all Photoshoppy, I would love for you to join in the fun and bring Photoshop Phriday to your bloggy casa. Just let me know. Or hold Glenda the Good Witch’s hand, click your heels together three times and chant, “There’s no place like blog, there’s no place like blog, there’s no place like blog…” Ya know, whatever. It doesn’t have to be a fancy shmancy lesson. Maybe you just Photoshop one of your images and throw up your before and after pic. That’s all. C’mon, play wiff me!

Anywho… buckle up… here we go.

An (Almost) Pain-free Introduction to Photoshop Layers

Let’s talk about a layer.

Hey, now, get back here! Let me at least try!

Kthx.

Now, a lot of people think this a big, hard, kind of spooky concept and turn off their brain as soon as someone tries to explain what a layer is. But if I can understand it, anyone can understand it. So stick with me on this.

A layer is like a transparency you put on an overhead projector.

Let’s pretend that you’re holding two sheets of transparencies.

And that I’m rich and famous and wearing a lavender tutu.

Draw a box with a red marker on one and on the other, draw a circle with a green marker.

Now put one on top of the other (your choice; go wild!) and you’ve just created two layers! Yay, you!

Ok, I’m going to open a flat image (that means one layer). See in the Layers palette, there’s just one layer called “Background.”

Oh, look, it’s me! Hi, me!

Let’s also greet my zit which is large enough to be its own entity.

Oh, Dory, you lament, what with all your mad Photoshop skillz, why on God’s polluted earth would you put up this photo without making that monster of a zit disappear?

Because I’m a lazy bum. Moving on.

See the button in the lower right hand corner that looks like a little garbage can? Ok, now see the button to the left of it? Ok, now be the button.

Or just click it and shun my little Zen vibe I had going there. Thanks a lot, there, Killjoy.

With that one little click, you’ve created a new layer! Go, you!

Did you ever draw a mustache and beard on someone’s picture with a Sharpie? You’re about to!

Before we draw, ‘D’ makes sure the default colors are on; black foreground, white background.

Now to illustrate how your layer works, we’re gonna draw on it. Grab the pencil tool. ‘B’ grabs the brush and Shift + B will switch that to the pencil tool.

You now have a virtual black marker in your hand. How’s it feel? Mighty and powerful? Fabulous.

Just how big do you want that marker to be? Right click anywhere in the image to bring up this handy, dandy little box. I chose 20px, and 100% will make it not fuzzy at all. Now let’s have some fun! Go ahead and draw away!

Niiiiiiiiiiiiiice. Very nice. I now feel very manly and rugged. I have an irresistible urge to scratch myself inappropriately and belch loudly.

See the eyeball next to our new layer? Click that.

The layer that we drew the mustache and beard disappeared! I am again my very feminine and facial-hair-free self. Well, mostly. I’d like to take this opportunity to thank my ancestors for my polish heritage that means I have to get the proof of said heritage waxed off every 6-8 weeks.

I could go nuts here with all the mustache and chin hair and hot wax jokes, but you’re very busy and important and have many things yet to get done today. I can respect that. Moving on.

For my next trick, I’m going to show you yet another way to add a layer. There’s only roughly eleventy-jillion.

Ok, here’s my husband. Ain’t he a handsome feller, though?! I sure think so!

I grabbed the Marquee tool (shortcut ‘M’) to select Tom’s mustache and goatee. If you want to switch Marquee Shapes, Sh+M cycles through.

Next I hit Cmd-C to copy the selection and then go back to my original image and Cmd-V to paste it.

Oh, wow. WOW. That’s just nine kinds of WRONGNESS. It’s just sitting there stewing in its own WRONGNESS being WRONG.

But see how it automatically makes a layer for your pasted selection? Pretty groovy, huh?

Now click the eyeball next to Layer 1.

Just like I told you earlier, it’s like a stack of transparencies. The drawn mustache is under the real one, just like it shows in the palette.

In the Layers palette, where it says Layer 2, click and drag that layer so it’s below Layer 1 and drop it.

See, now the drawn mustache is on top of the real one!

Well, now you understand layers! I told you it wasn’t too scary!

THAT, however, is. *shudders*

Oh, see, now that’s just disturbing on so many different levels.

Speaking of levels… That’s what I’m going to talk about next time; Levels!

I just know I’m going to have nightmares about this.

I’m sure you’ll all collectively breathe a huge sigh of relief that I’m starting to come out of my funk. Oh, for crying out loud, just pretend and let me dream, Mah Peepull. Assume a caring, nurturing expression and nod a lot. I don’t care if you’re actually thinking about Chia Ninja Snails and/or switching to Bounce from Downy while you do it. Just do it. February is always the hardest month for me to get through, then March hits and I’m in the home stretch to spring.

This helped my mood brighten… When I turned in my latest Photoshop post for review at Blissfully Domestic, my editor posted it then emailed me to tell me she loved it and to eHighFive me. Which I’m pretty sure is illegal in at least 13 states and is consequentially and simultaneously 11 kinds of hawsum.

The only drawback is the subsequent testing I’m going to have to undergo at the eClinic for eSTDs. I shouldn’t worry about it too much, though. There’s probably an eShot or an eCream for that.

By the way, you should click that link up there, run over and leave a quick comment on my post. It’ll help me perpetuate the rumor that I’m popular or something.

By the way squared, even if you don’t give a rat’s patootie about Photoshop, you should comment anyway. We don’t discriminate against non-Photoshoppers, so feel free to just say anything, such as what year you discovered Britney Spears was actually pretty lame. Or maybe just apropos of nothing, name any color a la that Facebook craze that reigned for six crazy days where we told the color of our bras and giggled like sixth graders. Don’t be boring and just red. Meh. Say, Burnt Carrot! Or, Used Coffee Grounds Sienna! Or, Open Herpes Wound Crust! Or… uh…

Clearly, I have some issues. But there I go again– Thank you, Colonel Obvious! (After someone said to me a few days ago, “Wow, you look kind of tired or sad or something”  the Captain was promoted to Colonel.)

I just realized I discriminated against people who haven’t come to the realization that Britney Spears is lame. Irony, Mah Peepull, irony.

What a difference focus makes, huh?

This post was published March 6th, 2009 by Dory on Blissfully Domestic On their Photo Bliss Channel. 

*in a fierce, booming WWF voice* Howduhya like me now?!?! Huh?!?! HUH?!?!

Click on through and leave me some verbal cocaine commently luvs so we can propagate the illusion that mah peepull like me or something crazy like that. Go on, it’ll be fun! They’re giving out free sparkly purple ponies over there! Ok, they’re really not, but wouldn’t that be totally cool if they were?!

——————————————————

*applause sign lights up and the crowd goes wild*

By the way, if there’s anyone out there that’s all Photoshoppy, I would love for you to join in the fun and bring Photoshop Phriday to your bloggy casa. Just let me know. Or dive through Teh Innernetz Toobz and pop up and say “BOOGADAHBOOGADAHBOOGAHDA!” and scare the crap outta me. Ya know, whatever.

Anyhoo… on with the show.

Didja ever notice how sometimes eyes turn out too dark? But you know those pretty colors are there! I’m going to show you a real quick, down and dirty way of lightening and jazzin’ up those eyes.

This will get graphic intensive so I’m gonna cut my feed reader peepulls a break. Please click on through.
Read the rest of this entry »

Then as hard as I tried, I couldn’t NOT do it.

Do what? you inquire.

(As an aside, my photoshop powers carry an awesome amount of responsibility which I find immensely easy to ditch when it suits me.)

Well, in way of explanation, first I read this post wherein Tanis is speaking on “ping envy.” (Shuddup, that’s what we call it at our house.)

Then I clicked a link she posted to this website, where I saw this picture:

Well, lookit that! A CityGirl! What a coincidence, I have a CityGirl! She’s one of my best bloggy BFFs, and has perpetual immunity from getting kicked off my Google Reader. I’m 99% sure that she’s subscribed to me, too; which is a state that I am about to place in a very precarious position. A state which is in grave danger and very well could change after I post this:

*ducks and covers*

*peeks out from hiding spot*

CityGirl, you still love me, right? Right?! I get as good as I give, so feel free to wail away on me!