Lesson E: Mini Project

Peachy In The Woods

You’ll need two images for this little exercise: “D E Object Selection.psd” (the image of Peachy from the previous lesson) and “E Trains_and_Peachy.psd.”

• Make the Peachy image active by clicking its tab.
• Activate the Move tool by clicking it in the Tools panel or by tapping the V key.

The next step, bringing Peachy to the scene in the woods, is slightly tricky. You must keep the mouse button depressed continuously while dragging up from the Peachy image to the other document’s tab, waiting for the other image to appear, and then dragging downward into its document window before releasing. In class, I phrase it, “drag upward, pause, downward, release.”

• With the Move tool, drag Peachy up to the tab for “E Trains_and_Peachy.psd,” positioning the cursor over that tab and keeping the mouse button pressed when that other image appears.
• When the destination image appears, continue dragging, but move downward onto the woodsy scene where you can release the mouse.

Although we used the “Move” tool, Peachy was actually copied from one document to the other. The Layers panel should show a new layer in the document to which we copied her.

• Rename that layer “Peachy” by double-clicking the current name.

We’ve reached a decision point. Although I think this photo-bomber Peachy is funny, we may wish to reduce her size so she appears to be on the ground nearer the rusted train. But if we changed our minds tomorrow and resized her again to her former large size, the result would be terrible. To reduce the size of an ordinary layer means we’re eliminating a great many pixels. To enlarge a relative few pixels to cover a large area would make a very “pixelated” result.

With a little forethought, we could convert the Peachy layer into a Smart Object. This protects and preserves the content. So if we one day reduce her size and then increase it the next, Photoshop really is using the full resolution Peachy each time. This allows us to restore her to her full size with perfect fidelity. Here, we see the result of reducing Peachy to 10% her initial size, then enlarging again to her original dimensions. Not good!

• Right-click near the name of the Peachy layer and choose Convert to Smart Object. Note the icon in the thumbnail to indicate this layer’s new nature.

We can now apply filters and transformations repeatedly with no ill effect on the actual image data. Those filters and transformations can be removed at any time. We have a couple of methods from which to choose for resizing her now. If the Move tool is active, note the checkbox in the Options Bar to Show Transform Controls. If enabled, you’ll have quick access to transformations simply by activating the Move tool and highlighting the layer you want to transform.

Some people dislike this because they accidentally transform things. They prefer the more conscious decision to activate Free Transform. The shortcut to do so is somewhat intuitive (and fast): ⌘-T/Ctrl-T (as in “Transform”). This invokes the same transform controls but only when needed.

With either method, when the desired transformation is completed, we press Enter on the keyboard to commit it. Personally, I’m in the Free Transform camp. It’s fast and I don’t accidentally rotate layers like I sometimes do showing those controls all the time.

• With the Move tool active, be sure that Show Transform Controls is disabled (unchecked).
• With the Peachy Smart Object highlighted, use the shortcut ⌘-T/Ctrl-T or, slower, choose Edit > Free Transform. There is now a box surrounding Peachy with control handles on it.
• Resize Peachy by dragging one of the control handles. Move Peachy by dragging with the cursor somewhere inside the box. Rotate Peachy by dragging with the cursor somewhere outside the box (but not too far outside). Resize her to about 20% of her original size (monitor the transformation specs in the Options Bar).
• Commit the transformation by pressing Enter, clicking the check mark (✓) in the Options Bar, or clicking well outside the transform box (wherever the cursor becomes a standard arrow).

A Quick Shadow

I located Peachy on the grass in the foreground. Right now it looks pretty fake because she isn’t casting a shadow. But I’ve found that even a quick-and-dirty shadow will often do. We’ll paint one below Peachy’s, eh, bottom. That is, on a layer below Peachy but above the Background.

• Zoom in by holding down the Z key and then dragging rightward over Peachy. Not too much! You might also choose View > 100%, then pan to where you put Peachy.
• Highlight the Background layer, then use the Layers panel menu to choose New Layer….
• Type in a name like “shadow” or “cheesy shadow” and click OK.
• Activate the Brush tool. Set the Hardness to 0% for the soft shadow we need, and set the Size to about the width of Peachy’s foot (for me, that was about 125 pixels).
• Set the colors to their defaults of black and white by tapping the D key. A quick look should discover that black is the Foreground color.

Remember, you’re about to paint behind Peachy, so don’t worry that the brush looks like it’s in front of her. Just be sure that the shadow layer is highlighted.

• Paint along the bottom of Peachy from toe to toe, perhaps going slightly below the centerline of her foot. Yes, the shadow looks way too dark.
• At the top of the Layers panel, lower the Opacity. I chose 45%.
• Unhappy with your painting? Press ⌘-Z/Ctrl-Z enough times to undo your work, then try again!