HOW TO MERGE LAYERS IN PHOTOSHOP CC SKIN
HOW TO MERGE LAYERS IN PHOTOSHOP CC FREE

Right-click on the duplicate layer's mask thumbnail (Layer 1 copy) and choose Delete Layer Mask. Turn off the visibility of the original dancer layer (Layer 1) by clicking on its Eye icon. With the subject layer active, press Command-J (PC: Ctrl-J) to duplicate it. Fortunately, since she was captured on a white background, there's a marvelous trick for dealing with her hair. STEP FOUR: Even though the dancer was captured on a white background, producing an accurate selection of her hair is extremely challenging. Set the Output To menu to Layer Mask, and click OK.

Try not to shift the edge any farther than necessary as this may result in loss of too much edge.

Move the Shift Edge slider left until all fringing is eliminated. Drag the Feather slider to 0.8 px to add a touch of softness to the edge. In the Layers panel, activate the mask for the dancer layer (Layer 1).

HOW TO MERGE LAYERS IN PHOTOSHOP CC SKIN

STEP THREE: Let's refine the clothing and skin edges of the dancer so they exhibit believable softness and show no evidence of fringing. Use the Crop tool (C) to eliminate excess black. Press Option-Delete (PC: Alt-Backspace) to fill the new layer with the Foreground color (black). Press D to set the default Foreground and Background colors. This creates a new layer below the active one. While pressing Command (PC: Ctrl), click the Create a New Layer icon at the base of the Layers panel. Press Enter to commit the transformation. Now hover just outside the bounding box and rotate the powder so the fragmented blast on the right side looks like it's exploding from her abdomen. While pressing Option-Shift (PC: Alt-Shift), grab a corner handle and scale the powder down slightly.

HOW TO MERGE LAYERS IN PHOTOSHOP CC FREE

Press Command-T (PC: Ctrl-T) to activate Free Transform. In the Layers panel, click the lock icon next to the Background layer to unlock it. The exploding powder is a little too big and will benefit from a little rotation. While pressing Shift, drag the dancer into the exploding powder photo. STEP TWO: Open the exploding powder image, and activate the Move tool (V). Click the Add Layer Mask icon (circle in a square) at the base of the Layers panel to turn the selection into a mask. In skin and clothing regions where the Quick Selection tool creates a bumpy or errant selection, activate the Polygonal Lasso tool (nested under the Lasso tool in the Toolbox), click the Add to Selection or Subtract from Selection icons in the Options Bar, and clean up the bumps. We'll deal with the hair in a later step. Don't worry about selecting fine hair details or patches of hair where the backdrop is visible. To eliminate areas where the selection spills beyond the edges, hold Option (PC: Alt) and paint the selection away. Use the Left and Right Bracket keys to resize the tool as necessary to select smaller regions. Activate the Quick Selection tool (W) and paint over the subject to produce a rough selection. STEP ONE: Open the image of the leaping dancer. To accomplish this, we'll need to extract the dancer, balance the tones and colors, blend the powder into the edges of the dancer using a custom brush, and add punch to the overall scene. Our goal is to blend the leaping dancer with the prismatic powder so it appears as though she is actually inside the explosion. This level of enthusiasm is key to crafting a composite that stops viewers in their tracks and elicits an emotional response. When I finally stumbled across the images we'll use, I was so captivated by the brilliant colors and dynamic shapes that I couldn't wait to begin exploring the possibilities. While hunting for the images used in this issue's tutorial, I encountered dozens of stock photos that sparked ideas. If you're unable to capture your own assets, stock image sites are treasure chests for images, as well as inspiration. Creating a compelling photo composite is as much about finding the right assets as it is about the process of blending them together.

How to merge layers in photoshop cc