Creating Photo Montages


Here's a great way to blend any two (or more) photos together to create a photo montage (often referred to as a collage).

Step One

©ISTOCKPHOTO/TRISTA WEIBELL

©ISTOCKPHOTO/SHARON DOMINICK

Open the photo that you want to use as your base photothis will serve as the background of your collage. (Note: Make sure you're not in Maximize Mode by deselecting it under the Window menu, under Images.) Now open the first photo that you want to collage with your background photo.

Step Two

Press V to switch to the Move tool, and then click-and-drag the photo from this document right onto your background photo, positioning it where you want it. It will appear on its own layer (Layer 1) in the Layers palette of your background image.

Step Three

Hold the Control key and at the top of the Layers palette, click on the Create a New Layer icon. This creates a layer directly beneath your current layer (Layer 1). Now, click back on the top layer, then press Control-G to group your photo with the blank layer beneath it. Press the letter D to set your Foreground color to black.

Step Four

Switch to the Gradient tool by pressing G, and then press Enter to bring up the Gradient Picker (it appears below the Gradient thumbnail in the Options Bar). Choose the second gradient in the Picker (this is the Foreground to Transparent gradient).

Step Five

Click on the middle (blank) layer in the Layers palette to make it active. Although you can't see your top photo, try to click the Gradient tool near the center of this photo and drag toward the center of the document. The point where you first clicked on the top layer will be at 100% opacity, and the point where you stop dragging will be totally transparent. Everything else will blend in between. If you want to start overeasy enoughjust press Control-Z to undo and click-and-drag again. (Be careful: If you drag beyond the image's border, your Foreground color will appear in the gradient.)

Step Six

©ISTOCKPHOTO/SEAN LOCKE

If you want to blend in another photo, click-and-drag that image onto your montage, click on the top layer in the Layers palette, then start again from Step 3. Add as many images as you'd like.



The Photoshop Elements 4 Book for Digital Photographers
The Photoshop Elements 4 Book for Digital Photographers
ISBN: 0321384830
EAN: 2147483647
Year: 2003
Pages: 201
Authors: Scott Kelby

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