Lately, it has become popular to manipulate photos to create intense surreal environments. This tutorial will show you some of the ways to create such environments.
Surreal
A dream-like or bizarre feel or look when compared to reality.
Finished Example
Let’s take a look at a finished example of a surreal environment.
Step 1 - Selecting a Photo
After browsing some free stock photos at stock.xchng, I finally decided on a picture of a road surrounded by daisies.
Step 2 - Think of Some Concepts
Now that I have my photo, I need to think of what I want to add to make it surreal. Since it is a curved road, I thought some vibrant tubes of light would create a nice effect. Also, since there were so many daisies, I wanted to make them appear to glow. I also wanted to add some more excitement into the empty sky.
Since I’m going to want some bright daisies and some glowing tubes of light, I’ll keep in mind that I may want to darken all the other parts of the photo.
Step 3 - Fixing the Background
I don’t like the tractor marks in the left field of daisies, so I’m going to use my Clone Stamp Tool to clear them away. I’ll do the same for the tracks in the upper field too.
Step 4 - Adding the First Beam
Create a path that winds up the road using the pen tool. Make sure that it extends below the actual document some, so that the end isn’t rounded. Select a 19px hard brush and set the Size Jitter Control to Fade, and give it a value around 400 or 500. Then, set the Minimum Diameter to 10%.
With your pen tool selected, right click and select Stroke Path. Select Brush from the drop down menu and make sure Simulate Pressure IS checked.
Fade Brush
You may have to experiment with different values on your Fade in order to get it to fit the size of the path.
Step 5 - Adding Layer Styles
Go into your layers Blending Options (Right Click Layer > Blending Options).
Apply the layer effects shown below, making any modifications as needed.
Outer Glow
This will create a glow off of the tube of light. I used #ff0000.
Inner Glow
This will create a lighter color starting from the center of the tube. I used #f75151.
Satin
This will help to structure the shape of the tube.
Color Overlay
This will replace the color of the tube with red. I used #ff0000.
Step 6 - Add a Unique Glow
Our red tube is looking a little boring and not very vibrant. SO LETS BRIGHTEN IT UP!
Duplicate your red tube (Right Click Layer > Duplicate Layer). Then, convert it into a Smart Object (Right Click Layer > Convert to Smart Object), so that we can easily apply and remove filters.
Now, lets apply the following filters:
Reticulation (Filter > Sketch > Reticulation)
Make sure you have black as your foreground color and white as your background color.
Chalk and Charcoal (Filter > Sketch > Chalk & Charcoal)
Make sure you have black as your foreground color and white as your background color.
Plastic Wrap (Filter > Artistic > Plastic Wrap)
Finally, set the layer to Color Dodge and set the Opacity to 44%.
Step 7 - Intensify the Glow
Create a new layer and make a selection of your red tube (Ctrl+Click Thumbnail). Set white as your foreground color and set a dark red color like #7c0707 as your background color.
Go to Filter > Render > Clouds. Then, go to Filter > Render > Difference Clouds. By pressing Ctrl+F, you can now keep applying the previous filter you applied. So press Ctrl+F a few more times to apply Difference Clouds until you end up with a result you like (be sure it is red and white). Now, set the layer to Linear Dodge and lower the opacity until you get an effect you are happy with.
Step 8 - Adding Sparkles
Grab a 3px brush and apply the following brush settings.
Then, on a new layer, brush some white sparkles all down the red tube. Then do the same thing with a nice red color. After, lower the opacity of the layer to 40-50%.
Step 9 - Adding More Colors
Repeat the process with some more colors, and use layer masks to make them twist above and below each other. If you place all the layers for the green tube, for instance, into a new group, then you can create a layer mask on the group, and it will apply it to all of the green tube layers!
Layer Masks
A layer mask limits the visible area of a layer, without erasing it. Any area on the layer mask that is white, is visible. Any area that is black, is not visible. Any gray areas will change the opacity depending on how light or dark they are.
Step 10 - Filling the Sky
In order to create the effect in the sky, we need to create our own brush.
Create a new document that is 50×50px. Create a new layer and delete the background layer, since we want the background to be transparent. Then, create a rectangle that is 10px wide by 40px high. Then, duplicate it and rotate it 90 degrees (Edit > Transform > Rotate 90 degrees). Once you’ve got your shape, go to Edit > Define Brush Preset.
You can close the new document now that you have your brush. Select your brush, and set your foreground color to #335776 and your background color to #6084a5. Then apply the following brush settings:
Brush Tip Shape
Shape Dynamics
Scattering
Color Dynamics
Other Dynamics
Add a layer mask to the layer after you brush in some plus signs. This way there is a transition from the full sky to the empty sky, and will be easier on the eyes.
Step 11 - The Darkening
This image looks pretty decent as it is, but its going to look even better when the background items are darkened. This way, the lights will have more attention and focus in the scene.
Create a new layer above your background. Fill it with black and set it to Overlay. By creating a layer mask and hiding the area of the layer over the daisies, we can make them appear to glow.
Get Creative
Even after you achieve a great effect, spend some time trying to improve it. It is rare to achieve the greatest outcome possible in one try. You may even want to start over from scratch, keeping in mind what you liked from before and what you want to change or include!
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Great tut, asusual!
Just started learning PS , a few days ago!
This site is my first teacher!
Another amazing tutorial Tyler, been waiting for this one for a few weeks
Love it! Great tutorial!
Great tut, good to see u back.
I think the B&W is cooler, maybe with a bit more colour from the flowers, I’ll do it once I have enough time.
I don’t know why but I feel like I’m the only person in the world that cannot get the pen tool to work like everybody says. I finally figured out how to make paths (instead of the default shape) but when I get the path down, the brushes don’t show up for step 4. somebody please tell me why…
Try right clicking on your path and pressing ’stroke path’. Make sure that you have a brush selected with the thickness/color you want to stroke the path with.
@Chad if your still having trouble with the pen tool, try this tutorial http://www.tutorial9.net/photoshop/pen-tool-basics-in-photoshop/.
I love the concept of the lights weaving in and out down the road
Nice work Tyler!
I dont understand the part about ctrl click thumbnail how do u do that?
I tried to follow the tutorial, but I find that I’m having the same problem as Chad. I can create a path with the pen tool and then do a “stroke path”, but I am unable to make the blending option adjustments to ONLY the line. Instead, the blending options are effecting the entire image.
How can I make adjustments to the path I created with the pen tool without effecting the entire image?
Thanks again for the great tutorial!
@graaar51: In your layers palette, by holding “Ctrl” and clicking the thumbnail of a layer, you’ll select that layers contents (as in, a selection will be drawn around all the objects in that layer).
@Mikey: Your line created from the pen tool needs to be on a separate layer than your image. I realize that I forgot to mention the creation of a new layer for the pen tool.
Tyler, thx u so much for the quick clarification! Looking forward to working with the upcoming tutorials
Dear Tyler or anyone else,
I would like to learn how to get the tubes to twist above and below each other. Is there a specific tutorial for this? Can you refer me to a good source? Thx u
@Mikey: To get the tubes to twist over and under each other, you have to create a path that will twist around the tube, and then hide parts of the layer using a layer mask so that it appears below.
Hi
Great Tutorial ! learned a lot of new things using this !
keep making more
How do I get the brush to fade IN and not OUT?
I’ve tried changing the drop down menu to Stylus Wheel which works in the preview box, but it also gives me an error (doesn’t tell me what the error is) and then doesn’t apply the fade in when I ignore the error and try anyway!
It’s driving me mad!
thanks
This is an awesome tutorial and a great effect.
I was trying to do just the ‘glowy tubes’ on a black background and when I reached the filter effects part, half of my filters were grayed out. Is that because I wasn’t using a colored background or something? Cause any other image I open the show back up.
@Vivian Hill: I figured that part out- I wasn’t in RGB mode. Ooops!
OMG im so frustrated! i can not figure out how to do the glowy tubes! every time i do the pen tool i can make the path but then it just has little slices like filled in with a certain color, then ill try and right click to select “stroke path” but it wont let me click it. And I CANNOT find the little SIMULATE PRESSURE SI thing! somebody help please.
GREAT GRAPHIC THO awsome Im luvn it
@Dylon Baker: Make sure your Pen Tool is set to Paths. You can do this by going to your top control panel once you have your pen tool selected, and press the paths button. Then you can create your path and you should be able to create the tube.
thank you, great tutorial!
How do I get the brush to fade IN and not OUT?
I’ve tried changing the drop down menu to Stylus Wheel which works in the preview box, but it also gives me an error (doesn’t tell me what the error is) and then doesn’t apply the fade in when I ignore the error and try anyway!
It’s driving me mad!
thanks
Wow!
it’s very great!
Can ANYONE help me? Iv’e come across this problem with other pieces of work too. I’d be ETERNALLY grateful if someone could help me out