Hi. This is Marty from Blue Lightning TV.
I'm going to show you how to create a face in the clouds.
Before we begin, if you're not already a subscriber to my channel, click that small "Subscribe"
button at the lower, right corner to let you know as soon as I upload new Photoshop tutorials.
Open a photo of someone's face that you'd like to use for this project.
I downloaded this one from Shutterstock.
The first step is to separate the head from the background by making a selection around the head.
To do this, let's use the Quick Selection Tool.
I find that a radius of 10 to 20 pixels generally works well for most resolutions.
Draw over your subject's hair, face and neck to select it.
To remove the selections outside those areas, press and hold Alt or Option as you drag over them.
To check your selection, press "Q" to see it as a Quick Mask.
Then, press "Q" again to revert it back into a selection.
If you're using a Photoshop version earlier than CC 2015.5, go to Select and Refine Edge.
If you're using CC 2015.5 or later, click "Select and Mask".
If you prefer to use Refine Edge instead of Select and Mask, Shift-click Select and Mask.
I did in-depth tutorials on both of these filters, so if you want to watch them, I provided
their links in my video's description below the video.
Check "Smart Radius", which detects soft and hard edges.
Drag the Radius slider a bit to the right.
To adjust the size of your tool, make sure your CapsLock key is off and press the right
or left bracket key on your keyboard.
Brush over the edge of your subject.
Output it to a "New Layer with Layer Mask".
Click the Adjustment Layer icon and click "Black & White".
Click the icon again and this time, click "Invert".
We'll convert our visible image into a Smart Object, so we can modify it non-destructively.
It'll also allow us to replace the photo with another without having to redo the effects.
To do this, Shift-click the head to make it and the black and white adjustment layer active, as well.
Click the icon at the upper right and click "Convert to Smart Object".
Open the clouds image that I provided or you can use your own if you like.
If you do use your own, the effect will look best if the middle of the sky is mostly clear of clouds.
Open back the inverted head and press "v" to open your Move Tool.
Drag it onto the tab of the clouds document.
Without releasing your mouse or pen, drag it down and release.
We'll resize and position the head in a moment, but first, change its Blend Mode to "Screen".
Open your Transform Tool by pressing Ctrl or Cmd + T.
If you’re using a version earlier than CC 2019, go to a corner.
When you see a diagonal, double-arrow, press and hold Alt or Option + Shift as you drag it in or out.
If you're using CC 2019 or later, just press Alt or Option as you drag it.
To reposition it, go inside the bounding box and drag it.
Then press Enter or Return.
Go to Filter, Blur and Gaussian Blur.
Blur it 4 pixels.
Next, we'll blend the face into the clouds.
Double-click an empty area of the face layer to open its Layer Style window.
Let's drag it over, so we can see the face.
Under "Blend If", there are two bars with sliders.
"This Layer" affects the layer we currently have selected in the Layers palette, which
in our case, is the face, while the "Underlying Layer" affects the clouds.
Basically, "Blend If" uses luminosity to blend layers together.
When we drag the left slider of "This Layer" to the right, it cuts off the face's mid-tones
and shadows the more we drag it.
Conversely, when we drag the right slider of "This Layer to the left, it cuts off the
face's lightest tones.
Dragging the left slider of the "Underlying Layer will cause the darkest pixels of the
clouds to punch holes through the head,
while dragging its right slider makes the lightest pixels of the clouds punch holes through the head.
The more we drag across the slider, the more pixels punch through.
To create a smooth transition, go to the middle of the triangular-shaped slider icon on the
darkest pixels of "This Layer" and Alt-click or Option-click it.
This splits the icon in two.
Drag the right half of the icon to the right.
I dragged it to 87.
I'll split the "Underlying Layer's right icon in half and drag the left half across to gradually
make the lighter pixels of the clouds gradually disappear through the head.
I dragged it to 200.
If you want to hide any areas of your subject such as the area below the neck in this example,
click the Layer Mask icon to make a layer mask next to your subject.
Open your Brush Tool and Brush picker.
Pick a soft, round brush.
We'll adjust the size in a moment.
Make its Hardness: 0% and its Opacity and Flow: 100%.
To adjust your brush's size, make sure your CapsLock key is off and press the right or
left bracket key on your keyboard.
Now, brush over the areas you want to hide.
Make a copy of the head by pressing Ctrl or Cmd + J.
Double-click Gaussian Blur of the copy to open it.
Change its Radius to 30 pixels and press Enter or Return.
Reduce its Opacity to 50%.
This is Marty from Blue Lightning TV. Thanks for watching!