Photo Editing Tutorial-Part 1

A Step By Step Tutorial with Screenshots provided of each step to help you along the way.


 Suggested Photoshop Brushes To Install. Some of These we wont be using just yet, but it never hurts to be prepared.

Shading Brushes

Hair Brushes 1

Hair Brushes 2

Skin Texture Brushes

Light Beams Brushes

Bokeh Brushes










1. In world you should rezz a prim and stretch it it make a wall. Remove the texture set it to blank. Now tint it bright green. Yes its ugly. But it serves a purpose.

This bright green background makes it easy for you to remove it in photoshop and choose an actual background to put behind your av.

You ask why not just take a pic with a background already behind you in world?
answer: because it will look like something circa 2007-2008 SL of those cheesy biker photography things you would see everywhere. Trust me it doesnt look the same.


2. Set your SL graphics settings to High or Ultra, but be sure you turn shadows off, lower draw distance, turn down the detail on trees, sky and terrain and turn off particles as those settings are not needed for this and it will reduce your lag and help with performance.

3. Set your snapshot size to something along the size of 4000x2095 to be sure its not low quality with jagged edges ect.

(CLICK the photo to englarge it)

4. Open up photoshop and open your snapshot. If your snapshot says its locked no worries just dupicate it and delete the original photo.

5.Now you are ready to remove the green background. You want to use the Eyedropper tool to click on the background and pick up the color of it.

6. Now you need to select the Magic Eraser Tool.

7. Click on the background of your snapshot.  You will be left with a mostly clear background.

 

8. To get the rest of the green background that it didnt remove the first time, you need to zoom in.

9. Choose a background for your photo. You can check stock images on Deviant Art, you can use websites that have various stock images ect that are free for download.Open up your background into photoshop and using the Rectangular Marquee Tool drag it over the image and go to Edit/Copy or Hit CTRL C.

10. Now go Back over to your snapshot and  EDIT/paste or CTRL V. Adjust the image size simple by dragging the corners then hit Apply. Now move the layer to under the snapshot layer.

11.You May choose to leave your background vivid and detailed, or you may choose to blur it a bit so the focus is mainly the av, To blur the background  go to Filter/Blur/Gaussian Blur. Now adjust the amount a tiny bit at a time.I chose to be subtle with the blurring.

 

12. Now you are ready for actual editing. Follow that in Part 2.