How to Create a Selfie Portrait in Photoshop | Adobe Creative Cloud

Mix real world treasures with digital elements to blend art forms and styles. Featured artist: Kathleen Martin. Check out more of her work here: https://www.behance.net/kathleenillustrated

Start from scratch, or download practice files [https://adobe.ly/32gCXZ4] for a head start. Steps below.

Stage Your Selfie:

1. Take a series of peaceful still shots or dynamic selfie poses against simple backgrounds.

Tip: A concrete wall or a wood fence in your yard can be the perfect backdrop. To catch a jumping pose, prop your phone on whatever is handy and set the timer. Once the countdown hits zero — jump. It may take some practice, but when you time it right, you will get a shot featuring that magical moment.

2. For a few of the photos, set your camera to shoot in black and white so you can have fun working with colorful backgrounds when you’re ready to edit.
3. Take a lot of pictures so you have plenty to choose from later.

Pro Tip: Light is your friend. If you want dramatic shadows, wait for a sunny day. For our portrait session, a cloudy day provides even, natural lighting. Try out different poses against different backgrounds to see how light and shadows affect your images.

Compose and Edit Your Selfie:

1. Open your favorite selfie in Photoshop.
2. Choose a selection tool, such as the Object Selection tool, then click Select Subject to separate your subject from the background.
3. Click to add a layer mask from the Layers panel (Photoshop will hide the background).

Tip: Try a new background: Drag one of the images to the open Photoshop document and move it below the selfie layer. Try a splash of color: Add a Solid Color Fill layer and experiment with blend modes to make the texture show through.

Assemble the Collage:

1. Gather the bits and pieces from your exploration and add them to the collage.
2. Open one of your texture images into your selfie document.
3. Use a selection tool, such as the Magic Wand, to isolate an object.
4. Choose the Lasso tool to isolate the texture even further. Choose Subtract from selection from the Options bar.
5. Click the Layer Mask icon at the bottom of the Layers panel.
6. Use Control+T (Windows) Command+T (macOS) to rotate and resize it.
7. Drag the layer to place it behind your main subject.
8. Fill your collage with a blend of textures and colors.

Tip: As you duplicate and rotate layers, the Duplicate Layer shortcut, Control+J (Windows) and Command+J (macOS), can make the process faster and easier. You can also turn on Auto-Select at the top then can click and drag layers around the canvas

Grab a Brush:

1. Add a new layer over the layer you want to accessorize.
2. Choose the Brush tool and set the size and color.
3. Paint, draw, or scribble your new design.
4. When you’re done, right-click on the layer and choose Create Clipping Mask so your color stays inside the lines.

Tip: For this piece, the Conte Crayon brush from Kyle’s Drawing Box made for a nice accent on the textured paper. You can click Get More Brushes from the flyout menu of the Brushes panel to find and install the MEGAPACK brush kit that contains this and many other great brushes.

5. Accentuate your composition by experimenting with layer blend modes; or, double-click a layer thumbnail to try different effects.
6. Try reusing the same elements in new ways for totally different results. If you post the results, tag them with @AdobeCreate so we can share in the Insta inspiration

That’s it!

To learn, more visit our companion tutorial: https://adobe.ly/32j3Rzx

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