photoshop help

[eddy]

I can make things work, but I really don't know what I'm doing using photoshop. I'm planning on taking individual pictures of the family dressed up and pretending to sing carols. I then plan on inserting them into the background below and printing off for our family Christmas card this year.

My thoughts were to cut each person out of the photo I take and then put them in the picture and use the brush tool thing to erase their lower body so it looks like the are behind the gremlins. Am I thinking of this correctly or is there an easier/better way?

[meow]

eddy, will you be my dad?

[eddy]

eddy, will you be my dad?

yes.

[Tico Rick]

1. Have your gremlin layer be the background layer.
2. Put your family picture on a layer above the background layer.
3. Duplicate the gremlin layer, move this duplicate layer to the top, and then use the eraser tool to erase anything else above the carol books that needs to be erased for your family members to show through.

[AuthorTony]

Send it to retouchup.com and they'll do it for $10.

[MalkinIsMyHomeboy]

[eddy]

Thanks, Any chance you can dumb it down more, I kind of just push buttons in photoshop until I get what I'm trying for....? I'm going to have 5 separate pictures of the family members, do I add a new layer each time for those and then click Duplicate Layer?

[eddy]

Send it to retouchup.com and they'll do it for $10.

That is pretty cool and tempting, I wonder if they'd have issue using a picture from a movie that I just saved from a google search?

I figured if I started this now in photoshop, it would give me plenty of time for Christmas...

[Tico Rick]

If you're going to have 5 separate photos of your family members, copy and paste each photo onto your pre-existing gremlin photo. Each time you do this you'll automatically be creating a new layer. After you've done this, go to the bottom layer, which should be your gremlin photo, Duplicate Layer, and then drag this duplicate layer to the top of the layers. Then for each layer, you just erase the elements that you don't want to have. For the top layer (the duplicate) you'll want to erase most everything above the carol books. For each layer with a family member, you want to erase everything around the familly member, so that layer contains only the family member, with no background.

Hope that makes sense.

[eddy]

So when I put the duplicate layer on top, it will just show the original gremlins picture. When I use the eraser tool and erase the top part of the duplicate layer the pictures of the kids will magically appear? I think I have it.

Do you have any suggestions for taking the photos and then cutting out around the kids? My plan was to dress them up and stand in front of a solid color wall to make it easier to trim them out...

[PFiDC]

Yes.

Think of it like this:

Instead of a white background with a picture of gremlins on top of it you have a background that is the gremlin picture. Now you will take the picture of your family and paste it on top of the background. After that you will be copying the background (gremlins) and pasting it on top of your family. When you go to erase this top layer (gremlins) what will remain is your family and the original gremlin background. Since the background image and the new gremlin image are identical it will look seamless.

[eddy]

terrific. My grandma is going to be so confused when she gets her card.

[Tico Rick]

My plan was to dress them up and stand in front of a solid color wall to make it easier to trim them out...

This isn't essential, but it will make it a little easier to erase those areas.

[eddy]

I did a practice run with some photos and I have the layer cut, copy and erase thing down. Is there a way to change the appearance of the photoshopped photos so the lighting looks more like the picture or is that asking too much? Should I try and capture my pictures that I'm going to photoshop more in that nighttime environment with a light shining on them?

[eddy]

also, would it make more sense to take 5 separate pictures and cut them in or one of everyone? With it being crowded, I don't know if it would look funny to see 5 cutouts crammed next to each other...

[PFiDC]

You're worried about 5 cutouts looking funny in a picture of your family singing Christmas carols with gremlins?

As for the lighting, take the family picture and darken it a bit and then look at the gremlin picture and try to figure out where the lighting is coming from. Then just aim the lighting at the family picture in the same direction. Play with light colors, etc.

Does any of that make sense?

[PFiDC]

Looks like some yellow/white lighting coming from the hard left. Darker toward the top and bottom.

[eddy]

The Christmas cards turned out better than I could have expected. I can't stop laughing every time I look at them, thanks to all for the help!

[eddy]

Help Please. I have a gif in photoshop and when I post separate images in each frame on the timeline it all bleeds together in the end. What do I need to do so that it animates with each frame rather than everything together?