How to Create Dramatic Light in Your Fantasy Photo Manipulation

In this tutorial, you’ll learn how to add interesting light to your photo manipulations. Different ways of blending challenges objects such as semi-transparent fabric will be explained. Let’s get started!

Preview of Final Results

Tutorial Resources

• Library by Cats-go-moo-always
• Woman, hair and dress
• Mist Brushes by pelleron
• Sun Rays Brushes by pelleron
• Dust Texture by boxx2genetica
• Light Texture by stock-basicality

Step 1 – Preparing Background

Let’s start with creating new document in Photoshop. Go to File > New… Set its Width on 600px, Height on 900px and Resolution on 72Pixels/Inch. Press OK.

Grab the Paint Bucket Tool (G) and fill the background layer with dark blue color. I used #2b2b32.

Step 2 – Placing the Library

Download the stock photo of the library listed in the beginning of the tutorial and drag it into your photo manipulation. Place it on the top of all layers and name it LIBRARY. Press Ctrl + T to activate the Free Transform tool and change the photo on size of the document. Hold Shift while doing it to remain constant proportions. Press Enter on your keyboard after you’re done to apply the changes.

Step 3 – Lowering Saturation

Add new adjustment layer Hue/Saturation on the top of all layers and set the value Saturation on -40. To affect only LIBRARY and not the rest of the image create clipping mask from this adjustment layer by clicking on the square icon on the bottom part of the Hue/Saturation palette (see below).

Let’s take a look at the layer order so far.

Step 4 – Adding Floor

In following steps you’ll add photo of the woman to the bottom left corner. Because of that you don’t need to have floor placed there. But there would be some empty space in the bottom right corner. You’ll get rid of it in this step.Click on the layer LIBRARY. Grab the Lasso Tool (L) and select the floor (see picture below).

Press Ctrl+J to copy and paste the selection. Place this new layer on the top of all layers and name it FLOOR. Activate the Move Tool (V) and move it at the same place as on the following picture.

Step 5 – Saturation of the Floor

You need to lower the saturation of the floor same as you did it with the LIBRARY. Add new adjustment layer Hue/Saturation on the top of all layers and set the value Saturation on -40. Create clipping mask from this layer to affect only one layer below (= FLOOR).After you’re done your photo manipulation should look like the one shown below.

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