How to Use Textures and Photo Veils to Enhance an Image

It’s Friday, and for me, that usually means Fix It Friday time! Each Friday I Heart Faces shares a picture that you can edit any way you like, then link up at their site and go visit others to see how they edited the same image.

Here are my preliminary steps:

  • Level’s adjustment, pulling the black slider in a good bit to bring out some contrast.
  • B&W Gradient Map set to Luminosity, and lowered to about 40% opacity.
  • Flatten.

Then, to add light, color and hue to the picture, I decided to add a couple of photo veils from Love That Shot

  • Go to File, Open, navigate to my Textures folder, then to my Veils folder, and pick the veil I want.
  • Go to the Project bin and click on the picture I’m working on.
  • Activate my move tool (v on your keyboard) and then locate the veil in the project bin.
  • Drag the veil onto the picture and size to the image.
  • Change the layer blend mode to Overlay or Soft Light.
  • Reduce layer opacity to suit image.

pullingfromprojectbin

Below shows the two veils I used.

photoveils

After I added the photo veils, I decided I wanted a texture or two.

  • Navigate to my Textures folder, open the one I want.
  • Open Project Bin and click on the image I’m editing again.
  • Find the texture in the Project Bin and drag it onto the image, size to fit.
  • Change the blend mode to Overlay or Soft Light.
  • Repeated steps with another texture.
  • Used a soft, low opacity eraser brush to brush off some of the texture from the boy.
  • Note: I used one texture from Love That Shot and one texture from Shadowhouse Creations

texturepulledon

My last step was to add some soft pop and depth:

  • Duplicate layer, Filters, Blur, Gaussian Blur, radius 20.
  • Set layer blend mode to Soft Light and reduced layer opacity to suit.
  • Grabbed eraser brush, set to 30% brush opacity, and brushed off his face and some of foreground.
  • Flatten.

alllayers

Below is my Before/After comparison and a run down of what I used.

beforeafterFIF

About Amanda

I am passionate about helping others learn how to use their DSLR cameras and editing programs. More information about me can be found at my About page, or by visiting my personal blog.

Comments

  1. This turned out so nice Amanda…great job!!

  2. Love your edit Amanda!!
    Now, are veils like overlays? I’m not familiar.

  3. Amanda, I LOVE your edit and how you made the colors pop! Great choice of overlays and textures! 🙂

  4. What a beautiful blog you have, so much information…
    Love the edit!

  5. That is BEAUTIFUL!!!

  6. Absolutely incredible.

  7. Nice fix! I love the subtlety you applied. Many times this effect is overdone, but I think your application of this texture is excellent. Well Done!

  8. Hi, Amanda! I followed this tutorial for a photo we took today on a walk. I didn’t have veils or textures so I sort of made my own veil and used some digiscrap textures that I have. I’ll put the photo on my blog next week, I think, for Sweet Shot Tuesday. I love following your tutorials, btw!!

Trackbacks

  1. […] them each onto the image, changing the blend mode on one to Overlay and one to Soft Light. See this tutorial for texture […]

  2. […] If you need help with how to use textures, read through my tutorial on using textures and photo veils. […]

  3. […] How to Use Textures and Photo Veils (me) […]

  4. […] Adding an update – I have written two other texture tutorials which can be read HERE and HERE. […]

  5. The gift says:

    […] but then I have to go catch up with your brother!” I was pleasantly surprised as I (followed this tutorial at Everyday Elements and) edited the photo to see some water drops. […]

  6. […] Use Textures and Photo Veils to Enhance an Image […]

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