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Surreal collages. Dan King's surreal collages. How to create a new file in Photoshop

My name is Dan King and I am a photographer based in Syracuse, New York, and I love to combine my photos to create something surreal that cannot (easily) exist in the real world.

I started getting into photography about a year ago. I borrowed a Canon DSLR from my parents, and quickly realized that I needed my own, as I used it almost every day. Soon, I purchased a Sony a6000 and started photographing everything ... including a tray of raw Christmas cookies. Later, looking at the relatively boring cookie shot, I was trying to figure out how to make it interesting? I thought, "now, if I could take a picture of myself and use Photoshop to place myself on that tray instead of cookies." I put the camera on a tripod, lay down on the floor and took a picture, and then worked in Photoshop. The results can be seen below!

I am inspired by all surrealist artists and photographers, including my favorite, Robert Gonsalves. I am a big lover of nature and landscape photography and also love to create interesting scenes that interact with the nature and landscapes around me.

The collage paintings created by the Ukrainian artist and designer Aleksey Kondakov seem to illustrate the famous film quote by Semyon Semyonich Gorbunkov “ Istanbul is a city of contrasts". The artist chose his own place of residence only as a place of action for his picturesque fantasy: the characters of classic paintings of old salon painting in his collages turn out to be participants in everyday scenes of modern Kiev. And, although surrealism, irony and paradoxes reign in Kondakov's works, at the same time, they glow with kindness, sympathy and love.

It is no accident that the title of the article mentions such a painting style as verism. Verism - (Italian verismo from vero - true, true) - a trend in the Italian artistic culture of the last third of the 19th century, which arose initially in literature and music, then spread to the visual arts. The principles of verism were formed mainly under the influence of French naturalism, based on the works of E. Zola, G. Flaubert and G. de Maupassant. The verists in their work reflected the life realities of modern Italian society, everyday life and psychology of ordinary people. True, the verists did not see the social possibility of eliminating social injustice; in their work, moods of pessimism or melodrama prevailed. The Kiev artist Alexei Kondakov can be attributed to the verists, with the exception of the positive mood that his paintings create.

Connecting different cultures, between which hundreds of years and thousands of differences, the works of Alexei Kondakov seem to make a loop of time. The famous heroes of Caravaggio, William Bouguereau, Francesco Ayets, Nicolo Renieri and other classics of painting are placed by the artist in the modern everyday atmosphere of the city. The Virgin Mary rides with the Baby in the Kiev metro, at the Arsenalnaya station in the passage a minstrel sings (where a man used to play the accordion), Nymphs seduce Satyr in a tram, the young Bacchus drinks wine with his companions under the bridge, and the young maiden, together with the angels, sells to Demeevsky cherry market.

Each such picture-collage is a diptych: the original of an old canvas is combined with the not always attractive realities of our time for heightened contrast. Actually, therefore, the author's project was initially called “ Everyday life of the gods", And later shortened to the name" 2 reality". A series of works under this title has already gained popularity among Internet users around the world.

The first painting, which marked the beginning of the entire series, was "Nymphs Serving Young Dionysus Wine, Fruits and Flowers" (1670) by Caesar van Everdingen. Seeing her, " I thought that now, like people many centuries ago, we gather in companies and drink , - says the Kiev designer. - Only the entourage has changed. »The heroes of Everdingen in an amazing way convey the drive of the youth group, which organically fit into the evening surroundings of the bridge near Osokorki.

Classic images taken from paintings of salon painting, where the laws of ideal, perfect beauty reign, emphasize the contrast with our imperfect modern world. But, thanks to this very contrast, divinity in Kondakov's works acquires a slightly different meaning. For example, the Virgin Mary with a baby in her arms (from the 1893 painting "Innocence" by William Bouguereau), once on the staircase, becomes like an ordinary mother with a child. And, despite the everyday background of mailboxes, warmth and kindness still emanate from this work.

Many works of the creative author are dedicated to sellers of all kinds of food. Because he does not contemplate the world from Olympus, but lives in its realities: he goes to the market, rides the tram, goes down the subway, buys flowers in the passage. And everywhere he meets new subjects for creativity.
The ancient god Zeus is depicted by Alexei as a seller at a meat counter, another ancient heroine, surrounded by cherubs, sells waffle sticks by the road. (A reference to William Bouguereau's "Offensive").

Like London professor Henry Higgins from Bernard Shaw's Pygmalion, the artist transforms a street flower girl into a beautiful goddess.

A special place in his work is kiev metro, sellers in stalls of underground passages of the subway, as well as their evening visitors. In Greek mythology, the gods often descended to Earth to help mortals. However, they took on human form and it was impossible to recognize them. In Alexei, the gods descend to help us know ourselves and the world around us. This is the amazing power of art.

Some call Kondakov's collages "poeticization of trash." To which the author replies: “ Yes, indeed, we live with it all. While there are people who go to thrash eateries. Perhaps their children will later go there too. Or, on the contrary, they will move to trendy lounge bars. But while we live in such a reality, and it must be accepted ».

In order to avoid speculation, we add that not only Kiev turned out to be a location for Lesha Kondakov's surrealistic works. This series was continued by the collages he created after visiting Italy. Naples became another creative platform for his artistic experiments. Here are some examples of work from his Neapolitan project Napoli-Project

Work of the Belgian artist "Trapped"

Slabbink loves to experiment with different styles. An avid collector of magazines and books from the 50s and 70s, the artist takes full advantage of the muted tones and rich texture of advertising images and illustrations from the period. His goal is to create powerful and at the same time simple works, the constant element of which is humor. Slabbink is a true master of collages: new meanings and interpretations are born in a combination of completely dissimilar elements.

Collage "Seafood". Slabbink loves to experiment with different styles.

“Announcements from that period carry something special. There is something so naive about them that makes them attractive for post-processing. Comparing these kinds of images with modern photographs can provoke interesting and even unexpected effects. I see characters in advertisements as actors. I, like the director of a new surrealist play, can give them a new life, ”says the artist.

"The cloud catcher". Sammy slabbink

Australian artist and photographer Justine Khamara, like Sammy Slabbink, is practicing a real intervention in the photographic environment, changing the perception of modern photography. The artist's works are quite tangible photographic sculptures and

This tutorial will show you how to make a collage from multiple images. Some of the steps may seem daunting, but in general anyone can do the job. You can get such an image by going through all the steps of this lesson:

So let's get started!

Step 1

In Photoshop, create a new image (Ctrl + N) with a size of 1300 x 900 px. The background must be black. Load the Ocean image and use the Rectangular Marquee Tool to insert part of the image. We name the layer "Ocean":

Duplicate the "Ocean" layer (Ctrl + J), and reduce the noise with the filter Filter - Noise - Reduce Noise (Filter - Noise - Reduce Noise). Set the parameters as in the screenshot:

This action made the ocean smoother and more calm.

Duplicate the "Ocean" layer again and drag it to the very top. Change the blending mode to Lightening the base (Color doge).

The next step is to create a new Levels adjustment layer. This can be done through a special menu in the layers panel or through Layers - New Adjustment Layer - Levels (Layer - New Adjustment Layer - Levels). In the window that opens, check the box Use previous layer as Clipping Mask (Use previous layer as clipping mask). Color correction can be done according to the settings shown below:

The result should be the following:

A large, soft brush will help hide the top edges of the ocean.

At this stage, you should get the following:

Step 2

Now load the sky image. Place the image with a rectangular selection area as shown in the screenshot:

Wipe the bottom edge with a soft brush.

Add another adjustment layer Black & White (Black & White) In the window that opens, check the Use previous layer as clipping mask (Use previous layer as clipping mask). Color correction is shown in the following screenshot:

At the moment, the image looks like this:

Step 3

The next step is to load the "Building" image. The Quick selection tool will help you paste the image where you want it.

Use a soft brush to remove the bottom and left edges of the building, making them softer.

The wiping of the left edge should resemble the look of the building hidden behind the clouds:

Create a Black & White adjustment layer with the clipping mask checked.

This is how the mask layer should be on the Levels layer.

This is how the image should look at this stage:

The building should fit into the big picture realistically. You can hide it a little more:

Step 4

Next, you need to add a splash of water. To do this, load the "Wave" image. As before, use the Rectangular Marquee Tool to correctly insert the wave into the document. The size, shape and position can be adjusted with the Transform tool (Ctrl + T):

Hide the extra elements with a large soft brush:

This is how the image looks at this stage:

Step 5

All layers related to the building must be grouped and a copy of the group must be created. To duplicate a group, right-click on it and select Duplicate group. Now we need to display the group. Press Ctrl + T, right-click and select Flip Horisontal.

Now let's add the "Girl" image. Let's name the layer "Girl".

The Erase tool will help you fit the girl into the picture. To do this, you need to wipe some edges:

On a new empty layer called “Glow”, create a glow around the girl with soft white.

Now let's add some splashes of water where the girl's legs are. To do this, you need to copy the appropriate part from the wave image. Next, you need to transform it and reduce the transparency so that everything is harmoniously combined with each other.

For the girl layer, add a Levels adjustment layer with the clipping mask checked

Today you will learn how to create artistic manipulation from photographs, how to combine images and edit them in a “non-destructive” way, which will allow you to correct an image or apply an effect without affecting the original image. For this tutorial, you will need Photoshop CS5 or higher.

Final result:

Note: Some images are missing from the tutorial source. In the archive you will find an alternative version of the materials for completing the lesson.

1. Create a new file in Photoshop

Create a new document in Photoshop using these settings:

Width (Width): 2500px
Height (Height): 1700px
Resolution (Resolution): 300 ppi
Color Mode (Color Mode): RGB color - 8 bit

2. Add background image and remove logos

Let's start with a background image. Download the ocean image and open it. Press the key combination Ctrl / Command + A to select the entire image. Then copy it (Ctrl / Command + C) and paste (Ctrl / Command + V) into our work.

As you can see, the image is too big, so you need to resize it. To do this, we will use the tool Free Transform Tool (Free transformation). Remember this tool as we will use it in the next steps of this tutorial. Go to the menu Edit > Free Transform (Edit\u003e Transform\u003e Free Transform) (or press Ctrl / Command + T).

Now press Ctrl / Command + 0 to see the entire selection and hold down the Shift key and drag the bottom right corner of the sky image until it fits the width of our canvas.

Once the width is the same, apply a transform to place the image in our work as shown below:

You should have something like this:

Now that we've placed the image, we'll need to get rid of the logos. Select tool Quick Selection Tool (Quick Selection) (or press the W key) and make a rough selection around the bottom logo.

Now let Photoshop do the hard work for you, press Shift + F5, in preferences select Content- Aware (Content Aware) and click OK.

Now let's use the tool Clone Stamp Tool (Stamp) to erase the top logo. Select it (or press the S key) and right-click anywhere in the image to open the brush settings window. Set the brush size to 500 pixels and the hardness to 0%.

Now we will add a vignette and also use Lens Correction (Lens Correction) for the background layer. Go to Filter\u003e Lens Correction (Filter\u003e Lens Correction), then go to the tab Custom (Custom), set the value Amount (Blackout effect) by -25, Remove Distortion (Remove Distortion) by +25, Horizontal Perspective (Horizontal perspective) by -10.

Your image should now look like this:

3. Change the background color

In this step, we will add several adjustment layers by clicking on the icon (Create a new adjustment layer or fill layer), as shown in the image below:

Using this technique add an adjustment layer Curves (Curves) by clicking on the icon Create new fill or adjustment layer > Curves(Create a New Adjustment Layer or Fill Layer\u003e Curves) and change the RGB line as shown below.

We do not want the sky to be brighter than the ocean, so we need to work on the layer mask of the adjustment layer. Click on the layer mask of the adjustment layer. Curves (Curves), select a soft black brush (Opacity 100%, Hardness 0-50%) and paint over the sky to hide the effect of the adjustment layer. Take a look at the tips below:

Press the D key on your keyboard to set the default foreground and background color to black and white
When painting on a layer mask, black will remove the adjustment layer effect and white will bring it back again
If you make a mistake while working on the layer mask, you just need to select white and paint over the desired area to bring everything back.
You can quickly switch between foreground and background colors by pressing the X key
To hide the layer mask, hold down the Shift key and click on it. Do the same if you want to turn on the visibility of the layer mask again.

Now let's change the sky a little. Add an adjustment layer Exposure (Exposure) and set the value Exposure (Exposure) at -0.20, Offset(Shift) by -0.15 and Gamma Correction (Gamma Correction) by 0.9.

Now the image looks kind of weird, doesn't it? This is due to the fact that the effect of the adjustment layer also affects the ocean, and we just don't need it. So click on the layer mask of the adjustment layer. Exposure (Exposure) and paint over the ocean with black. Brush settings: Opacity 100%, Hardness 0-50%.

You should get something like this:

Now we will add a few more adjustment layers to the sky, so we will have to paint the ocean with black on all the layer masks. Add an adjustment layer Brightness / Contrast (Brightness / Contrast), set Brightness(Brightness) at +10, then do not forget to hide the effect of the adjustment layer in the ocean area on the layer mask.

Add an adjustment layer Gradient Map (Gradient map) and change the colors of the gradient (click on the gradient) as shown in the image below. Set the blending mode of this layer to Color (Chroma) and reduce Opacity (Opacity) up to 35%.

Add an adjustment layer Photo Filter (Photo Filter), select the yellow filter and change the blending mode of this layer to Color (Chroma) by lowering the Opacity to 30%. Don't forget to hide the Ocean Adjustment Layer effect with black.

If you've hidden the effect with a layer mask on all three adjustment layers, then your image should look something like this:

Before moving on to the next step, let's clean up our work area a bit. Select all the layers we've created so far and press Ctrl / Command + G to group them. Name the group Background.

4. Add the turtle to the ocean

Open the turtle image in Photoshop and using the tool Quick Selection Tool (Quick Selection) (W), select it. Don't worry about the bottom of the turtle when selecting it, we'll hide it later. A few tips:

Copy and paste the turtle into our work and use the tool Free Transform Tool (Free Transform) (Ctrl / Command + T) to increase the size slightly (see image below). Now use the tool Move Tool (Move) (V) to place the turtle in the ocean. Use the Shift + Alt key combination to scale evenly from the center.

Now the fun begins! Create a Layer Mask for the turtle layer and use a soft black brush ( opacity 100%, hardness from 0 to 50%) hide the bottom of the turtle.

Now the border between the turtle and the ocean doesn't look very good. To fix this, lower the opacity of our brush to about 30% and use black and white to make the border more realistic.

The most important thing here is not to rush to get a good result. You will see my result below, but don't worry if yours looks a little different.

Now let's do some color adjustments. First, let's add an adjustment layer Gradient Map Adjustment Layer (Gradient map). Select the first gradient from the second row and apply this layer as a clipping mask to the turtle layer (see images below).

Translator's note: If you have a different gradient loaded, then click on the arrow and selectR eset gradients (Restore gradients)

Translator's note: By clicking on this icon, you will apply the gradient map layer as a clipping mask to the turtle layer. Change the Blend Mode of this layer toColor (Chroma) and reduceOpacity (Opacity) layer up to 15%.

Add an adjustment layer Curves (Curves) and apply it as Clipping Mask to the turtle layer. Set the curves as shown in the picture below, and then on the layer mask (settings for the brush - remove the effect from the curves everywhere except the shell.

Your turtle should now look like this:

Add an adjustment layer Color Balance (Color Balance) (the adjustment layer settings are shown below) and this time we want the effect of the adjustment layer to be only on the turtle, we will erase it from the shell with a black brush ( opacity 100%, hardness 50%).

And don't forget to apply this layer as a Clipping Mask.

Your turtle should now look like this:

And to complete this step, just like last time, merge all these layers (select them and press the key combination Ctrl / Command + G) into a group and name it "Turtle".

5. Add a hanging picture frame

Now we will start adding small elements to our work. We'll start by adding the rope that holds the painting, also the dove that sits in the painting, and smoke coming out of the painting.

Let's start with the picture frame. Open and select it in any way convenient for you (tool Quick Selection Tool (Quick Selection) and Tool Pen Tool (Pen) is great for this) and then insert it into our work.

Resize the frame with the tool Free Transform Tool (Free transformation). Use Shift to scale evenly.

Before applying the resizing, rotate the frame 90º and position it where you want it.

6. Add the old man image to the hanging frame

Open the old man image, press Ctrl / Command + A to select the entire image, copy and paste it into our work.

Now we need to resize it. Take advantage of Free Transform Tool (Free Transform) and hold down the Shift + Alt / Option keys and resize the image to fit the frame. Place the old man over the frame.

After that place the old man layer under the frame layer.

Now resize the old man image again with the tool Free Transform Tool (Free transformation). Make sure the top and bottom of the old man layer are touching the inner borders of the frame layer.

The last thing we need to do is flip this layer horizontally. To do this go to Edit > Transform > Flip Horizontal (Edit\u003e Transform\u003e Flip Horizontal).

Your image should now look like this:

7. Add the ropes that hold the painting

Open the rope image in Photoshop and select it, for this hold down the Ctrl / Command key and click on the layer thumbnail. After that, copy and paste the rope into our work.

The rope is long, so we'll have to resize it. As before, use the tool Free Transform Tool (Free Transform) (Ctrl / Command + T), if you do not see the whole rope, then press the key combination Ctrl / Command + 0. Then resize.

Now place the rope on the left side of our image and place the rope layer under the frame and old man layers.

Duplicate the rope layer, select it and press Ctrl / Command + J. After that, move the new rope layer to the right.

Once you're done with the ropes, your work should look like this:

8. Add the dove that sits in the picture

Open the pigeon image, select it with the tool Quick Selection Tool (Quick Selection) (use the tips I gave earlier to get a better selection).

Copy and paste it into our project and, as usual, resize it with the tool Free Transform Tool (Free Transform) (Ctrl / Command + T).

Place the dove on the frame and make sure the dove layer is above all the others.

Now we will add a pigeon shadow to the frame.

Create a new layer by clicking on the icon Create a new layer (Create New Layer) (you can also press Ctrl / Command + Alt / Option + Shift + N to create a new layer). Then rename it "Shadow" and place it under the dove layer.

Now draw the shadow of the dove using the below images as an example :

Translator's note: 1 screen - Paint this area with black using a hard brush.Opacity (Opacity): 100%,Hardness (Hardness): 50%.

Screen 2 - Paint this area with black using a soft brush.Opacity (Opacity): 50%,Hardness (Hardness): 0%.

9. Add the smoke that comes out of the picture

Let's add some smoke to our work. Open the smoke image in Photoshop and desaturate it before we can copy and paste it. Press the keyboard shortcut Ctrl / Command + Shift + U to desaturate the smoke, and then copy the entire image into our project.

Now resize the smoke with the tool Free Transform Tool (Free Transform) (Ctrl / Command + T) and place it next to the painting (see image below).

Translator's note: 1 screen - As usual, hold down the keyShift and by clicking on the corner of the frame, drag it to resize.

Screen 2 - Place the smoke image here.

Now change the blending mode of this layer to Screen (Screen) and you're done! Remember, we are trying to make the smoke come out of the man's mouth, so if you fail, you can move the smoke (even resize if you like) until you are satisfied with the result.

After adding smoke, your image should look like this:

Now you need to combine all the created layers into a new group. Select all layers and press Ctrl / Command + G and rename the group to "Picture".

10. Add a girl with balloons

Open the girl image and select her using the tool Quick Selection Tool (Quick Selection) (W) or, if you like, the tool Pen Tool (Feather) (P).

Translator's note: Select the girl using a selection tool convenient for you. I used the toolSelection Tool (Quick Selection) and it worked great.

Now copy and paste the girl into our project and resize her using the tool Free Transform Tool (Free Transform) (Ctrl / Command + T). After that, mirror the girl by going to Edit\u003e Transform\u003e Flip Horizontal (Edit\u003e Transform\u003e Flip Horizontally) and place it on the turtle's head.

Now let's add the girl's shadow to the turtle's head. Create a new layer by clicking on the icon Create a new layer(Create a New Layer) or press Ctrl / Command + Alt / Option + Shift + N.

Rename the new layer “Shadow” and place it under the girl's layer.

Take a hard brush to paint the girl's shadow, use the image below as a guide:

Translator's note: Paint in this area with black using a hard brush.Opacity (Opacity): 100%,Hardness (Hardness): 100%.

Now let's use Gaussian Blur Filter\u003e Blur\u003e Gaussian Blur (Filter\u003e Blur\u003e Gaussian Blur) and set the blur radius to 3.5px.

Your image should now look like this:

Let's change the girl's hairstyle a little. Select tool Smudge Tool (Finger) and, holding down the left mouse button, draw out the hair (see image below):

Translator's note: on the screenSize (Size): 1 pixel;Strength (Intensity): 90%.

Your result will probably look a little different, but don't worry about that. This is how I got it:

Your image should now look something like this:

Before moving on to the next step, combine the girl and her shadow into one group (Ctrl / Command + G) and name her "Right Girl".

11. Adding balloons

Let's add balloons to our scene. Open three balls and using the tool Selection Tool (Quick Selection) (W), select them. Then copy them and paste them into our work.

Resize the balls with the tool Free Transform Tool (Free Transform) (Ctrl / Command + T). Hold down the Shift key while resizing to maintain the proportions of the ball. Place them above the girl as shown in the image below:

Now we will slightly change the angle of inclination of the second and third balls. Use the tool again Free Transform Tool (Free Transform) (Ctrl / Command + T) and change the values Rotate(Rotation angle) as shown in the picture below:

The balloons should now look something like this:

To complete this step, combine the balloons into one group and name it "Balloons".

12. Add ribbons that hold the balloons

Let's start this step by creating a new group called "Ribbons". Place it between the Right Girl group and the Picture group. Leave the group open because we'll be using it later.

To create a new group, just click on the icon Create a new group (Create a new group).

Now open the image with the ribbon and using the tool Quick Selection Tool (Quick Selection) select the red ribbon (we will only use this).

Insert it into our work and resize it with the tool Free Transform Tool (Free Transform) (Ctrl / Command + T). Place the ribbon in our girl's hand.

Now use the tool again Free Transform Tool (Free Transform), then right-click on the ribbon and select Warp (Deformation).

Our goal now is to bend the ribbon in such a way that it looks like the girl is actually holding the balloon. Below in the screenshot you will see how to do this:

Now go back to the ribbon image, copy and paste it again into our work. Resize it and place it in the same spot where you placed the first ribbon.

With a tool Free Transform Tool (Free Transform) Increase the height of the ribbon. Pull on the top of the frame to increase the height. See the image below:

Now let's do the same as we did with the first tape. Right click on the ribbon, select Warp (Warp) and make it look like the girl is holding a balloon.

With two ribbons added, your image should look like this:

Now add a third ribbon and repeat all the same steps as we did with the previous ribbons. Go back to the ribbon image again, copy and paste it one last time, resize it and place it in the same place as the other ribbons.

Here you will also need to increase the height of the tape using Free Transform Tool (Free transformation).

In mode Free transform (Free Transform) right click on the ribbon and select Warp (Deformation). Make it appear as if the ribbon is holding the ball.

If you created the "Ribbons" group at the beginning and placed all the ribbons in it, then you should have something like this:

13. Add the hand that holds the balloon

Open the image with the hand, select it with the tool Quick Selection Tool (Quick selection) (W).

Insert it into our work and go to Edit > Transform > Flip Horizontal (Edit\u003e Transform\u003e Flip Horizontal).

Now resize the hand with the tool Free transform (Free Transform) and place it in the upper right corner of our image.

Draw a shadow using the image below as an example.

Translator's note: Paint a shadow in this area with black using a hard brush.Opacity (Opacity) 100%,Hardness (Hardness) 100%.

Open the "Balloons" group and, while holding down the Ctrl / Command key, click on the thumbnail of the second balloon (the one that is close at hand). This is necessary so that when using Gaussian Blur (Gaussian blur) our shadow did not go beyond the boundaries of the ball.

Now add the effect Gaussian Blur (Gaussian Blur) by going to Filter > Blur > Gaussian Blur (Filter\u003e Blur\u003e

Your image should now look like this:

There is a small defect on the arm that needs to be removed. Select tool Spot Healing Brush Tool (Spot Healing Brush) (J) and remove the defect using a Hard Brush.

When removing the defect, your image should look something like this:

To finish this step, as usual, combine all the created layers into one group. Name it "Hand".

14. Add a window

Open images with window and with tool Pen Tool (Pen) (P) create an outline.

Then right-click inside the outline and select Make selection (Select area).

Install Feather Radius (Feather Radius) 0 px and click OK.

Copy and paste the window into our work. Resize it with the tool Free Transform Tool (Free Transform) and place it in the upper left of the work.

Now select the tool Rectangular Marquee Tool (Rectangular Region) (M) and create a rectangular selection inside the window as shown in the image below. Remember that if you hold down the Shift key while selecting, you will end up with a square, not a rectangle, so you only need to hold down the Shift key after you create the first selection and start selecting the next fragment.

After you have selected everything except the window frame go to Select\u003e Save Selection (Selection\u003e Keep Selection) and name your selection "Window Frame".

Now open the landscape image, press Ctrl / Command + A to select the entire image, then copy and paste it into our work. Change it with a tool Free transform (Free transform) and place on the window.

Once you have placed the background, go to the menu Select\u003e Load Selection (Selection\u003e Load Selection) and select the "Window Frame" we saved earlier.

When you select "Window Frame" you will have an active selection, then click on the icon Add layer mask (Add a layer mask), thereby we will hide unnecessary parts of the background.

With the window and background added behind it, your image should now look like this:

Now let's add an adjustment layer Black and white (Black and white). In this adjustment layer, select the green filter and apply it as a clipping mask, then reduce Opacity (Opacity) layer up to about 30%.

Your image should now look something like this:

Now go back to the window layer (in my case, this is layer 16), double-click on the layer thumbnail to open the parameter window Layer Style (Layer style).

We will now add Drop Shadow (Shadow), Outer Glow (Outer glow) and Inner Glow (Inner glow) to our image. Set the same settings for each style as shown in the pictures below.

We're done with the window, your image should now look something like this:

Now merge (Ctrl / Command + G) all these layers into a group and name it "Window".

15. Add a ladder

Open the staircase and select it using Pen Tool (Feather) (P). First, create an outline of the entire staircase, and then between the steps and other details.

Translator's note: You do not have to highlight this detail.

After you have created the path, right-click on the stairs and select Make selection (Select Region) as we did earlier in this tutorial. Leave the Feather Radius at 0 px and click OK. Then copy and paste the ladder into our work. Then use the tool Free transform (Free Transform) to resize the ladder and place it on the end of the turtle, as shown in the image below:

Now create a new group called "Ladder" and place the ladder layer inside the group.

16. Add the girl who climbs the stairs

Open the image with the second girl and select her using the tool Quick Selection Tool (Quick selection) (W). Don't worry about her hair, we'll fix it later.

Now copy and paste the girl into our work and using the tool Free Transform Tool (Free transform), resize it and place it on the stairs.

Now we will work with the hair, as we did with the other girl before. Select tool Smudge Tool (Finger), set the brush size to 1px, and Strength (Intensity) 90% and start pulling hair as shown below:

Your image should now look something like this:

To finish this step, create a group for the girl layer and name it "Left Girl".

17. Add an elephant and place it on the turtle

Open the elephant image and select it with the tool Pen Tool (Feather) (P).

Then right click and select Make selection (Select area). Leave the Feather Radius at 0 px and hit OK. Now copy and paste the elephant into our work. Resize the elephant with the tool Free Transform Tool (Free transformation). You should end up with something like this:

Now let's use the tool Puppet Warp Tool (Puppet Warp) to make it look like an elephant is grabbing one of the balloons with its trunk. To do this, select the elephant layer and go to Edit\u003e Puppet Warp (Editing\u003e Puppet Warp).

Take a look at the image below and add some anchor points. To add an anchor point, you just need to click on the grid at the desired location.

Translator's note: Create seven anchor points on the elephant.

Open the group with balloons. Create a Layer Mask for the layer with the elephant, then hold down the Ctrl / Command key and click on the thumbnail of the balloon layer that is capturing the elephant.

Now delete the part of the elephant's trunk in black (see the image below for an example). You can use any brush for this.

Your image should now look like this:

Now create a new layer (as before), name it "Shadow" and place it below the elephant layer.

If you deselected the ball, then select it again. Open the group of balloons and, while holding down the Ctrl / Command key, click on the thumbnail of the balloon that the elephant grabbed.

After that, paint the shadow of the elephant's trunk on the balloon, as shown in the image below:

Translator's note: Draw a shadow in this area using a hard brush. InstallOpacity (Opacity) 100% andHardness (Hardness) 50%.

We will now add Gaussian blur (Gaussian Blur) to make the shadow more realistic. Go to Filter\u003e Blur\u003e Gaussian Blur (Filter\u003e Blur\u003e Gaussian Blur) and set the blur radius to 5 pixels.

To finish this step as usual, merge the elephant layer and its shadow into one group and name it "Elephant".

18.Adding the horse holding the ladder

Open the horse image and select it with the tool Quick Selection Tool (Quick selection) (W).

Translator's note: Don't worry about the mane, we'll fix it later.

Copy and paste the horse into our artwork, resize it with the tool Free Transform Tool (Free Transform) (Ctrl / Command + T) and place it next to the stairs.

Now add an adjustment layer Color balance (Color Balance) and apply the settings shown in the illustration below.

Don't forget to apply this layer as a clipping mask to the horse layer, as we want to apply the effect to it.

Add an adjustment layer Level(Levels) and move the arrow slightly in the middle to the right (0.95). Also apply this layer as Clipping Mask.

Your horse should now look like this:

Now we need to make the horse hold the ladder, so we will play with the tool again. Puppet Warp Tool (Puppet warp).

Go to Edit > Puppet Warp (Edit\u003e Puppet Warp) and create 6 anchor points on the horse (see image below).

Follow the arrows in the image above and move the horse's front legs closer to the stairs. You should end up with something like this:

Now let's fix the mane. We will do the same as we did with the girls' hair. Select the tool again Smudge Tool (Finger) and draw out the horse's mane.

Translator's note: Set the brush size to 1 pixel, andStrength (Intensity) 90%.

Now add the horse shadow to the turtle as before, create a new layer and name it "Shadow". Place it under the horse layer.

Now open the turtle group and hold down Ctrl / Command and click on the turtle layer thumbnail. After that paint the shadow with a hard brush as shown in the image below.

Translator's note: in the screenshot Opacity (Opacity) 100%,Hardness (Hardness) 50 ~ 100%.

After go to Filter\u003e Blur\u003e Gaussian Blur (Filter\u003e Blur\u003e Gaussian Blur) and set the blur radius to about 3px.

Your image should now look like this:

And to complete this step, you need to place the "Horse" group under the "Ladder" group.

19. Add a shadow from the stairs

After we drew the horse shadow, I realized that we forgot (well, I forgot) to add a shadow for the stairs. So open the Ladder group again.

Add a new layer, name it "Shadow" and place it under the stairs layer. After that paint a shadow as shown below.

Translator's note: Opacity (Opacity) 100%,Hardness (Hardness) 50 ~ 100%.

Then apply to the shadow layer Gaussian Blur (Filter\u003e Blur\u003e Gaussian Blur) (Filter\u003e Blur\u003e Gaussian Blur) and set the blur radius to 3 pixels.

Your work should look like the image below. And now we are ready to move on.

20. Add buildings to the elephant

Open a city image and select buildings using the tool Quick Selection Tool (Quick selection) (W). Don't worry about the bottom as it won't be visible.

Translator's note: You can also select buildings with the toolPen Tool (Pen).

Copy and paste buildings into our work, resize with Free Transform Tool (Free Transform) (Ctrl / Command + T) and place them on the back of the elephant.

Create a new group for this layer, name it "Skyline" and place it under the "Elephant" group.

Your work should now look like this:

21. Add mountains

Open the mountain image and select it using the tool Quick Selection Tool (Quick selection) (W). Don't worry about the bottom edge, we'll erase it later.

Copy and paste the mountains into our work and resize with the tool Free Transform Tool (Free transformation). After that, place the mountains on the back of the elephant as follows:

Now let's work on the edges of the mountains. Create a Layer Mask for this layer and erase the edges using the image below as an example:

Your mountains should look something like this:

And your work should look like this:

The mountains are too blue right now, so let's fix that. Add an adjustment layer Color balance (Color balance). Set the same parameters as shown in the image below, and do not forget to apply this layer as a clipping mask to the layer with mountains.

Now combine these two layers into one group. Name it "Mountain".

22. Add a patrol helicopter

Open the helicopter image. We're going to use a different method to select it, so first make a random selection of the sky with the tool Quick Selection Tool (Quick selection), for example:

Now go to the menu Select\u003e Similar (Select\u003e Similar Shades) and Photoshop will select whatever it thinks is similar to the selection you created.

We want to select the helicopter, not the sky, so we invert the selection by pressing Ctrl / Command + Shift + I.

Now use the tool Quick Selection Tool (Quick Selection) to add those areas of the helicopter that were not selected.

Once you're done, copy and paste it into our project. Now mirror the helicopter, go to Edit > Transform > Flip Horizontal (Edit\u003e Transform\u003e Flip Horizontal).

Then resize the helicopter with the tool Free Transform Tool (Free Transform) and place it next to the buildings we just added.

Download the Light Beams brushes and unzip the archive anywhere on your computer. After that select the tool Brush Tool (Brush) and right-click somewhere in our work. Then click on the arrow (see picture below), select Load Brushes (Download brushes) and locate the "SS-light-beams.abr" file you just downloaded on your computer.

Once you've loaded the brushes, select the one shown in the image below. Reduce the brush size to 417 px.

We cannot draw rays on the helicopter layer, since we cannot change them later. So create a new layer, name it "Light Beam" and place it above the helicopter layer.

Before painting, select white (press D first, then X), set Opacity (Opacity) brush to about 75% and then paint the rays as shown below:

Translator's note: Select the desired brush, then draw rays that will shine down from the nose of the helicopter.

Your image should now look like this:

And to finish this step, combine these layers into one group. Name it "Helicopter".

23. Add roots to the elephant's legs

Open an image with a tree and a tool Quick Selection Tool (Quick Selection) (W) Roughly select the roots of the tree.

Copy and paste the root into our artwork and add an adjustment layer Color balance (Color balance). Set the values \u200b\u200bbelow.

Don't forget to apply this layer as a Clipping Mask.

Resize the root and place it on one of the elephant's right legs.

Now duplicate the root layer and its adjustment layer three times. Select these layers and drag to the icon Create a new layer (Create a new layer).

You should end up with something like this:

Now select each of the duplicate roots you created and place them on the other legs of the elephant. You can resize them if you like, but you don't need to rotate them.

You don't need to tweak the settings for the adjustment layer again Color balance (Color balance) when changing the position of the root, since it is anchored to the layer with the root.

We need to make sure that the root layers that are above the elephant's right legs are on top of the rest of the layers. Therefore, change the position of the layers if you need.

This time you need to drag the root layer and its adjustment layer Color balance (Color balance).

Your work should now look like this:

First, let's work with the root of the right front leg. Create a Layer Mask for this layer and hide part of the root with black, as shown below:

Translator's note: in the screenshotOpacity (Opacity) 25 ~ 75%,Hardness (Hardness) 0 ~ 50%.

The result should be something like this:

Now go to the elephant's left front leg. Create a Layer Mask for the root layer and repeat the same as for the first leg (see image below):

Translator's note: in the screenshotOpacity (Opacity) 25 ~ 75%,Hardness (Hardness) 0 ~ 50%.

The front legs should now look like this:

The legs on the left side of the elephant are a little darker than on the right, so add a new layer above the root layer, which is above the left front leg of the elephant and paint a shadow.

Select the root layer and create a new layer above it. In this case, this layer should be immediately applied as a clipping mask to the layer with the root. But check it out anyway.

Translator's note: in the screenshotOpacity (Opacity) 10%,Hardness (Hardness) 0 ~ 50%. Paint the roots in this area with a dark color.

And here is the final result of the front legs.

We will do the same with the hind legs. Just remember to add a new layer above the root layer to darken it.

Here is the final result of the hind legs:

This is what my roots layer looks like.

Your image should now look like this:

Now merge all these layers into a group and name it “Roots”.

Now the elephant's legs are visible under the roots, you need to fix this. Open the "Elephant" group again and click on the elephant's layer mask to select it (which we created in step 17).

Now erase the elephant's legs following the instructions in the image below:

Translator's note: in the screenshotOpacity (Opacity) 100%,Hardness (Hardness) 75 ~ 100%.

Your image should now look like this:

We're almost there! We just need to add shadows to the roots and then we will begin the final stage of our manipulations.

Now go back to the "Elephant" group and create a new layer above the "Shadow" layer that we created in step 17. Name the new layer "Root Shadow".

Open up the "Turtle" group again and hold down Ctrl / Command and click on the turtle layer thumbnail.

Now paint the shadow of the roots using a hard brush.

Translator's note: in the screenshotOpacity (Opacity) 100%,Hardness (Hardness) 100%.

Then add Gaussian blur (Gaussian Blur) to make the shadow more realistic. To do this go to Filter\u003e Blur\u003e Gaussian Blur(Filter\u003e Blur\u003e

Lower the opacity of this layer to about 40%.

And now we are done with all the images and are now ready to start the final adjustments.

24. Final adjustment

To start making final adjustments, you need to create a new layer and position it above the rest of the layers.

In the image below you will see my work on a gray layer after I have finished working with the tools. Dodge / Burn Tool (Dodge / Dimmer). You don't need to do this, but if you want to see how you got it, just change the gray layer's blend mode to Normal (Usual).

And here is my result:

We're almost done. Now press the key combination Ctrl / Command + Shift + Alt / Option + E to merge all the previously created layers into one. Don't worry, your layers won't be deleted.

Now change the Blend Mode of this new layer to Lighten (Light Replacement) and lower the Opacity to about 35%.

Now let's add a dreamy effect to our work. Go to Filter > Blur > Gaussian Blur (Filter\u003e Blur\u003e Gaussian Blur) and set the blur radius to about 10px.

With a dreamy effect:

There are still two adjustments left! Add an adjustment layer Selective Color (Selective color correction) and set the same settings as below. Colors that are not in the image have not been changed.

This is how working with an adjustment layer looks like. Selective Color (Selective color correction):

And to complete everything, you need to merge all the layers again, to do this, again select the topmost layer and press the key combination Ctrl / Command + Shift + Alt / Option + E.