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+ Basic Knowledge of Photoshop Required +
Before we start, it's easy enough to hit the sharpen filter in photoshop to sharpen your image. However, it also brings out the pixelation that happens from re-sizing your image. It can look great if done right, but it can also backfire. In an effort to sharpen my images without actually using the Sharpen filter, I discovered a method that worked well enough. However, I will say this. Lighting is everything. If your lighting doesn't work, then your screencaps are going to suffer from it. Depending on the effect you choose, the lighting can add to the mood and feel of your story. The original image isn't too bad. I could use it as is, however for the purpose of this tutorial, I will go ahead and sharpen my image just a bit more. I use Gadwin Printscreen to take my caps. It's free and is available from here. This is a fairly straight forward and simple method of making your images 'pop'. Three basic steps: 1. Duplicate Original, select 'Screen' blend mode and set opacity to 40. 2. Duplicate original layer, select 'Overlay' blend mode and set opacity to 50. 3. Merge all layers before saving your work. The next method adds a little twist. I love using coloured lights. I think they add such a wide range of 'mood' to the image that can often reflect a character's current state of mind or situation. For this particular scene, the characters have not only discovered something important but their lives are in danger if they are found at the location. I wanted to really slam home the fact that their lives are on a knife's edge, both physically, mentally and emotionally. I used a slightly different method to sharpen my image. 1. Duplicate original, select "colour dodge" blend mode and set to opacity 15. 2. Duplicate original, select "screen" blend mode and set to opacity 25. Our image is subtly sharpened now. (Keep in mind, in game, I did use a coloured light to enhance what I was going to add to it post-processing.) Next I wanted to add a 'dreamlike' quality to the image. I selected 'Diffuse Glow' and played around with the sliders until I was happy enough with my result. This all depends on your image so play around and see what you get. I wanted to add more "white" to the man's face so I added a new layer called 'Brush Layer'. On this layer, I used a medium round brush (35, 45) set to an opacity of about 10% with the airbrush turned on. (Blend mode normal, opacity 100). I then carefully painted around the area of the faces I wanted to highlight the "glow effect". The last step, I added another layer called "Gradient" and selected the colour red. I filled in the gradient from the top left of the image to the bottom right. I set this to 'soft light' blend mode with an opacity of '50'. Because the in-game image already had that reddish lighting, the gradient layer amplified it slightly to give the effect that an alarm may have been triggered off-screen. The most important thing is to play around with all the different blend modes and see what you can come up with. |
May 3 2008, 02:08:27 UTC 4 years ago
May 3 2008, 02:13:14 UTC 4 years ago
May 3 2008, 03:24:08 UTC 4 years ago
May 3 2008, 16:08:34 UTC 4 years ago
May 3 2008, 14:12:19 UTC 4 years ago
I wish more people would post something like this!
As much as I light to experiment with different lights directly in game (you never get the perfect shadow just editing), Photoshop layering is kind of addictive... I must say I tend to over process my images, but I really can't seem to stop.
May 3 2008, 16:11:51 UTC 4 years ago
I am going to revert back to my old Enayla defaults for future tutorials though. I noticed they seem to really catch the ingame lights better than the ones I was using. And they seem to do better during image editing too!
Once I play around a bit more with different colours, hopefully I can try and write more although my knowledge at best is very basic. Somehow, larger images don't want to work as well as icons.
May 3 2008, 20:32:18 UTC 4 years ago
But I know I need to do it. Thank you so, so much. Whenever I get into Photoshop, it's like staring at the controls for a star ship. While holding a license to drive a tricycle.
Copied and saved everything here. Again, thank you.
May 4 2008, 07:35:13 UTC 4 years ago
You're very welcome. I know the feeling. I felt the same when I first got photoshop. I still don't know a lot, only the basics. I know enough to do whatever I need with image manipulation.
May 5 2008, 16:01:35 UTC 4 years ago
Just poking in and commenting
There really aren't many tutorials out there for photoshop/etc involving The Sims 2 that don't rinse and repeat the Sims2Community method. I have a precise method I follow for WoS, but it isn't anything terribly impressive and it's so random that I've had trouble putting it to tutorial form.It was very nice of you to take the time to do this. I, too, abuse layers like no one's business. A normal WoS screen can have five layers at minimum, hahaha. I have to tweak ones with differing lighting, too. I think that's the most time-consuming part of doing pictures.
May 6 2008, 04:40:26 UTC 4 years ago