Blending multiple Images together

Well, i’ve created about half a dozen of my improved-series sigs...
but the quality of the newest ones i continue to do, i’m working HARD to keep them from degrading...

My question is, in the middle of blending images, stocks, renders, etc, what are some good tips?

From what i think i heard from Chaos theory and firewolf , positioing of layers is impprtant depending on what mode you use, ie screen, lighten...

also , i JUST finished another sig, and part of the backdrop is these two images, which i ended up not blending, but working around to make the image..




I’ve been reading tutorials, but...


They don’t apply to much of these...

lets backup....for the above two images i used, i was originally aiming for a method in which the purple one on the left, slowly transformed,(in COLOR, TOO)..to the one on the right....

the only way that I could do somethign liek that is a tween/GIF thing, ..and that’s not what my newer sigs are

How would one best blend those?

I hear that some images are unfit to be blended in the first place, ...how do you know when something just isn’t sig material?

Blending seems to vary a lot.

The easiest way to tell if something isn’t sig worth is the size. If the image is big then you know right off the bat it will be hard to work with. If the image takes up too much space in the sig space and if shrinking it decreases the appeal or quality of the image it’s probably not sig worthy.

If you just can’t get it to work, its probably not sig worthy. Working with rendered(pictures precut from a background) and stocks (wallpapers or whole images) also affect the decisions you make while in the creative process.

My biggest problem is knowing when to stop, making a signature too busy is just as bad if not worse then making just a bad sig.

Remember blending and layering is two different aspects. Blinding your main goal is to make a focal blend into the surrounding giving the illusion of completeness while layering affords small changes that give a little variation.

Layering or Blinding with the lightning would probably end in a mess.

Chaos Theory wrote: The easiest way to tell if something isn’t sig worth is the size. If the image is big then you know right off the bat it will be hard to work with. If the image takes up too much space in the sig space and if shrinking it decreases the appeal or quality of the image it’s probably not sig worthy.

If you just can’t get it to work, its probably not sig worthy. Working with rendered(pictures precut from a background) and stocks (wallpapers or whole images) also affect the decisions you make while in the creative process.

My biggest problem is knowing when to stop, making a signature too busy is just as bad if not worse then making just a bad sig.

Remember blending and layering is two different aspects. Blinding your main goal is to make a focal blend into the surrounding giving the illusion of completeness while layering affords small changes that give a little variation.

Layering or Blinding with the lightning would probably end in a mess.

i’ll try to kep that in mind..

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i’ll copy my ecent post from my sig topic that prob should go here

Tippership Commander wrote: hah, i see Marly is trying to relive the old purpose of this forum (b4 it became a sig place)

Tippership Commander wrote: my psd offer above stil stands..(if anyone wants to look at the PSD. s of my yet-unreleased imprived-series signatures, i’ll be glad to upload them )

as mentioned, once i get enough done, i’ll release my advanced sigs all at once
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k, i must have gotten REALLY lazy..
the latest attempt in my improved-series sigs...
wasn’t so good, ....it’s not quite like the rest of the batch, so ....i’m going to start again, for the 20h time or so....every so often i get it right

since i’ve got nothing to do with this sig...i’ll post it at the moment....

hah, most will probably easily see why i couldnt go any farther with it..

i dont know if it was the lighting*, or what...but mixing that epic super sonic picture with a epic space background didnt quite work...
although the spacebackground couldnt be edited at all, nearly..without killing everything

* (on a special note, id DID walk away from this one a more powerful editer with lighting. EXCLUDING super sonic , that whole pic, the lighting direction on the planet, the LAVA cracks AND the “Sun”'s ambiance(and i put created the sun there) was all me, so at least i got somethign out of it)

I do wonder what some of the other sig editers would have done at this deadend...

—
king boo , to answer your question about what’s a deadend about that one, I couldn’t get Super Sonic to fit right..From what i’vebeen learning, images need to have a flow , as mentioned by fiewolf to me.....

while i nailed the lighting on everything else(and my first created “sun” was not too bad, dare i say)...trying to add Super Sonic became a hassle..

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Tippership Commander wrote: Well, i’ve created about half a dozen of my improved-series sigs...
but the quality of the newest ones i continue to do, i’m working HARD to keep them from degrading...

My question is, in the middle of blending images, stocks, renders, etc, what are some good tips?

From what i think i heard from Chaos theory and firewolf , positioing of layers is impprtant depending on what mode you use, ie screen, lighten...

also , i JUST finished another sig, and part of the backdrop is these two images, which i ended up not blending, but working around to make the image..




I’ve been reading tutorials, but...


They don’t apply to much of these...

lets backup....for the above two images i used, i was originally aiming for a method in which the purple one on the left, slowly transformed,(in COLOR, TOO)..to the one on the right....

the only way that I could do somethign liek that is a tween/GIF thing, ..and that’s not what my newer sigs are

How would one best blend those?

I hear that some images are unfit to be blended in the first place, ...how do you know when something just isn’t sig material?

Blending seems to vary a lot.

Blending mask.
Position the images one on top of the other in your sig resized, stretched whatever you planed to do with them in the final image..basically have them unblended but in the areas they would be if they were blended together.

Now on the top most image..be it the purple or the red, select the layer mask option..which will look like a retangle with a circle inside of it in your layers tab/window at the bottom, where the bin, new layer ect buttons are.

Clicking this will bring up a new layer beside the layer you had highlited/selected. This new layer is a layer mask.

Now select a soft brush (a softedged round brush from the basic brushes selection) of appropriate size and make sure the colors are set to black and white (the default when photoshop starts).

Now on this new blending mask/layer mask layer, brush over the image with the soft brush to remove some of the image and reveal the image underneath. You can paint back on the top layer to add what was removed by switching the color from black to white or visa versa.

To make less or more of the image revealed/removed, adjust the brush opacity in the top bar under opacity near the top of the photoshop worspace.

Hope this helps..its how I blended this...

Thank you Firewolf.... I already did the image, but if i revisit it(and i might now), i’l lbe sure to try those tips....


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I am curious, how do you solve lighting dilemas? This was a failed sig that i just gave up on (tho i still have the files)

, and despite learning how to create the sun, and lighten the lava cracks......i feel that the light was the main fatal blow to this sig

Tippership Commander wrote: Thank you Firewolf.... I already did the image, but if i revisit it(and i might now), i’l lbe sure to try those tips....


— — — — — — — — — — — — — —

I am curious, how do you solve lighting dilemas? This was a failed sig that i just gave up on (tho i still have the files)

, and despite learning how to create the sun, and lighten the lava cracks......i feel that the light was the main fatal blow to this sig

New layer, fill it with black, set it to color dodge and then suing a soft brush of a small size, change the color to a similar color or select the color with the eye dropper tool and paint over the areas you want lighter.

Burning and dodges also give great contrast if you work with them.

Chaos Theory wrote: Burning and dodges also give great contrast if you work with them.

:nods:


i don’t think it’d work too well for Super Sonic...

i had to shrink him from an epic picture of him i found....the lighting was right, but when mixed with the background in that sig, it didnt work

...

>_>

maybe i will return to that sig

Alright just as a quick mock up here is an incomplete sonic sig using the Brushing that Wolfy talked of



Here is the same image using the Burn Dodge scenario



each have their advantages and you can combine the two as well

Chaos Theory wrote: Alright just as a quick mock up here is an incomplete sonic sig using the Brushing that Wolfy talked of



Here is the same image using the Burn Dodge scenario



each have their advantages and you can combine the two as well

thx.

=D

i’ve been using those tools to some good effect...although most images i use seem to already be good, lighting wise

hah, i thought super sonic in that sig above(the failed one) was allight by itself..

because he looks so good here, i guess not always the case...

http://fc09.deviantart.com/fs31/f/2008/233/f/6/Super_Sonic_by_MRi.jpg