The Digital Eye

There are times when a picture requires more than just the usual editing. Sure, as a matter of course, you’ll apply all of the typical adjustments – Levels, Curves, Color Balance, Selective Color, Channel Mixer, etc. – to assure that your picture leaps off the surface and into the eye of the beholder. Sometimes, though, you’ll want to push the envelope and journey beyond ordinary reality into the world of art and artists.

(Above) Figure 1: Salvador Dali’s “Persistence of Memory” and the simulated version. (Below) Figure 2: The Photoshop simulation of the “Persistence of Memory.”

There are numerous techniques in Photoshop that perform the kind of visual pyrotechnics needed to transform the appearance of an ordinary photograph into an artistic masterpiece. Furthermore, combinations of techniques can produce an infinite number of options to create virtually any surface texture or lighting condition. For example, look at Figure 1, a scanned reproduction of Salvador Dali’s famous painting, “The Persistence of Memory.” Created in the early 1930s, this painting has become an icon for the dreamlike hyperrealism of the style known as surrealism. Figure 2 is a modern simulation of the original painting executed from scratch entirely in Photoshop. Using a multitude of techniques, such as selections, fills, gradients, strokes, layers, color adjustments, composites and distortion, lighting and rendering filters, the image emerges as a modern day version of a surrealist classic.

INSTANT ART
Producing a simulation of this kind requires a thorough knowledge of the tools and operations of the software, a fair amount of experimentation and a super helping of elbow grease. There are several artistic techniques, however, that can readily be applied to transform an image into an artistic creation. Photoshop’s Filter Gallery contains a variety of special effect filters that can be applied with variable strength and considerable control (see Figure 3). Accessed from the Filters menu, the Filter Gallery is one of Photoshop’s self-contained interfaces that is built into the program. When first opened, the image window displays the original version of the current picture. Choose a category of filters by clicking on a folder. Click on the arrow to the left of a folder to display all of the filters contained within the folder. Choose one of the filters to immediately apply the default, then adjust the settings in the control panel to refine the effect.

Figure 3: Photoshop’s Filter Gallery interface, showing two different categories of artistic effects.

Figure 4: Applying several filters in groups can create interesting effects.

For more creative options and to generate unique visual effects, you can apply artistic filters in groups as shown in Figure 4. Start by applying a single filter. Its name appears in the filter list under the control panel. Click on the duplicate filter icon at the bottom of the image window, and you’ll see a second, similar label in the list. Click the label to select it, choose another filter from the filter list and then adjust the settings. As you perform this task, the image changes in the preview window so that you can adjust the controls for absolute precision. Be patient, though. Depending on the size and resolution of the image, the preview may take a moment to resolve.

Applying several artistic effects to multiple layers can simulate the actual process of painting. For example, you can apply the Underpainting filter to isolate the general shapes of the image, then paint Daubs or the Palette Knife to add texture and finally apply the Poster Edges filter to restore detail. Additional layers can be blended together with blend modes or variable opacities. It’s easy to experiment with different filter effects and produce multiple versions of the same image.

CONTROL NOTES
This is a good place to inform you about a few bumps in the road you may encounter when using the Filter Gallery. The first consideration is the size and resolution of the image. Many of the settings in the control panel are based on pixel dimensions. The width of an edge, the size of a simulated brush or the intensity of sharpness, for example, is based on the number of pixels being affected. Images with larger sizes and higher resolutions need larger settings. If you are working on a large-format image that’s going to be printed at the highest quality, the filter may be inadequate to produce the kind of results you envisioned. The solution is to apply the filter several times. (Tip: To apply a filter a second time, press Command (Mac) Control (Win) +F.)

Secondly, these features are referred to in “Photoshop-ese” as destructive filters. They are named this way for a reason. If you’re not careful, they can radically and irretrievably alter your original image beyond recognition. I advise you to take a few basic precautions before applying these filters. If you are working on a layered document, duplicate the layer that you are applying the filter, or if the document is flattened, duplicate the background layer. Then you can always go back to your original image if at some point during the editing process you decide you don’t like the results.

Figure 5: Converting layers to Smart Objects and applying Smart Filters keeps the process dynamic.

SMARTEN UP
Better yet, apply any of the filters in the Filter Gallery as a Smart Filter (see Figure 5). A Smart Filter will enable you to change the settings, fade the effect, mask all or part of it or discard the filter completely if you decide it’s not what you want. To apply a Smart Filter, convert the target layer into a Smart Object. Choose Convert to Smart Object from the Layer Palette Options menu, then apply the filter and click OK. The name of the filter you chose automatically will appear in the Layers palette as a Smart Filter. Click the icons on the left to reveal the filter’s controls again and readjust the settings. Click the icon on the right to reveal the Fade Filter dialog box to diminish strength of the filter effect on the layer. Click on the visibility icon to conceal or reveal the effect of the smart filter. The filter mask works like a layer mask. If you want to isolate the filter’s effect to a specific region of the image, paint the filter mask with black to conceal the effect or a shade of gray to partially conceal it.

It’s worth experimenting with the artistic and sketch filters and their controls. The way they affect the image will depend on the colors within the image itself and, with some of the filters, the foreground and background colors specified in the Tools palette. Try applying the filters to multiple consecutive layers and then superimposing the layers with the blend modes. That is how the dramatic impressionist effect in Figure 6 was achieved.

Artistic filters can be a lot of fun. They can open doors that totally transform your picture from a photograph into what looks like hand-made art work. I must add that simply applying a filter to an image is usually not enough to make it convincing. There usually is a very “canned” look to images that are so easily transformed. Instead, I encourage you to experiment with multiple techniques and utilize Photoshop’s other powerful features to create the best possible image and a unique work of art.

Figure 6: This impressionist effect was achieved with multiple layers and Smart Filters.