There’s a new update to Photoshop CC and it’s got lots of cool little things and changes. Here are a few of my recent videos that showcase the changes and enhancements.
See my latest videos….
Continue reading My new videos about the latest update of Adobe photoshop CC
Astropad with iPad Pro and Apple Pencil
I have been using the full version of Adobe Photoshop CC on my iPad Pro using Apple Pencil via the Astropad App for the past few days. The application that helps me to operate Adobe Photoshop CC on my iPad Pro is Astropad. Astropad costs $19.99 and for this very LOW price I am able to work on ANY project using my Adobe Photoshop CC full version on my iPad Pro from ANYWHERE at my home or studio.
Today I tried digital painting in Adobe Photoshop CC on my iPad Pro using the Mixer Brush Tool and Apple Pencil (a pressure sensitive stylus). I am extremely pleased with how Astropad performs. No lag! My brush strokes remans same (real-time), I don’t need to change anything in my technique. I want to point out that all the colors displayed on in Adobe Photoshop CC using Astropad are absolutely the same to my eyes.
Another BIG plus with Astropad is that I don’t need to look at my monitor during my painting. So the digital painting experience using iPad Pro and Apple Pencil in combination with the full version of Adobe Photoshop CC is ABSOLUTELY identical to traditional painting using canvas, paper and your favorite brush or pencil (My iPad Pro and Apple Pencil review is posted here) .
Now when I travel I will not take with me my medium Wacom Intuos tablet because I always travel with my iPad Pro. My iPad Pro has all my favorite mobile applications like Adobe Photoshop Sketch, Adobe Photoshop Fix, Adobe Photoshop Mix and many more Adobe mobile apps. So why would I need to carry my Wacom tablet with me anymore? I don’t.
My favorite and primary tool in my digital painting is the Mixer Brush Tool in Adobe Photoshop CC.
I have two styles in my digital painting:
Painting for Photographers (you don’t need to have any painting experience)
Painting from Scratch (you need to have painting experience or you need to be willing to learn how to paint 🙂 )
For the last few days I have received many questions about my favorite technique using the Mixer Brush Tool (digital painting for photographers)
My favorite technique:
Favorite Brush: Per Stroke Brightness Variance
Preset: Custom
Load Brush after Each Stoke ( clean brush after each stroke)
ParticleShop is a brush plugin for Adobe Photoshop.
I was introduced to ParticleShop the brush plugin for Adobe Photoshop at Photoshop World 2015. I liked the demo and I decided to buy and try this plugin ( You can download the trial version to try first).
First of all I want to point out that if you are looking for a great painting plugin this in NOT your plugin. I can’t imagine using this plugin for my type of painting. My primary and one and only application for my all digital painting work is Adobe Photoshop CC and most of the time I am using the Mixer Brush Tool. Also I am using Adobe Sketch ( Adobe mobile drawing application) as well. So if you will ask me what is the best application for a digital painting I will answer: The ONE and ONLY Adobe Photoshop CC.
I am not using any third party plugins. As an Adobe Creative Cloud subscriber the main and primary reason for me to use ParticleShop plugin is that this plugin is works with the newest version of Adobe Photoshop CC 2015 and the one one license you purchase will be installed for Adobe Photoshop CC and Adobe Lightroom as well.
The ParticleShop plugin is a great plugin for any type of artistic retouching. It’s amazing with hair and high fashion retouching, and if you like to apply any effects to your image you’ll probably like it. Because ParticleShop is the brush plugin for Adobe Photoshop you have access to all powerful Adobe Photoshop futures, including layers and if combine the plugin with other Photoshop features you will create a very powerful image. With the ParticleShop plugin you have control over your image, you can control the brush strokes: light, color, and angle. You can apply multiple brush(es) effects in one image. Combine, change the color, and opacity of the brush. You can apply brush strokes effects and return to Photoshop and apply the layer mask, duplicate the layer and continue your workflow using Adobe Photoshop. If after that you want to return to ParticleShop you can do it at any time.
I like the plugin and will use it for sure with my design and art workflow.
I have only two complaints about the Starter Pack Options:
1: I wish I had at least two different types of each default brushes.
You can buy additional brush packs for $29.99 each but I am not sure I will spend $29.99 for each brush pack (each plugin has 11 brushes and so it would be 11 packs) just after I spent $49.99 for the plugin. If I would have at least two different combinations of each brush as a Starter Pack Options I would feel much better.
2: I had trouble making some of my brushes big enough for my image ( 6016 x 4016 ) even after I made the Brush size by Maximum = 750 ( Starter Pack Options)
Before
After
Step by step tutorial how to convert your photo into a drawing using Adobe Lightroom CC:
1: Open your image in the Develop module ( I am using Adobe Stock image #57908828
2: Click on the Black & White Tab
3: Apply the following setting
4: Using Tone Curve apply following setting
5: Apply the following Black & White Setting
Samsung 64GB EVO Class 10 Micro SDXC up to 48MB/s with Adapter (MB-MP64DA/AM)
Download Adobe Lightroom
Click on + icon
Click on Camera Roll icon
Choose your first ( and it will be our background ) image
Resize your image
Adjust > Exposure ( move exposure’s slider all way to the left to apply the Night Time Effect to our background layer)
Click on the second layer icon and add your second image
Click on Cut Out icon. Now we need to remove the Moon’s background.
Resize the Moon’s size
Adjust > Exposure ( move exposure’s slide to the left to make the moon darker )
Holding the Moon Layers move this layer over our Background layer
Now we have another “empty” layer. Click on the “empty” layer and chose the robot image
Cut Out > Remove Robot’s image background
Adjust > Exposure > Move Exposure slider to the left to make robot image absolutely dark
Holding Robot Layer icon move this layer over our First layer
Click on Looks icon > Natural + look
Adjust > Saturation > Move slider to the left
Send to Photoshop > Your image is Stored in your Creative Cloud Photoshop Folder
Open your Photoshop Mix image in Photoshop
Adobe Paper Texture Pro
Chose any paper texture you like to work with > Image > Adjustment > Vibrance
Make Layer opacity = 67% > Gradient Tool ( with opacity = 18% )
Apply mask to highlight the moon and robot
Adjustment Layers > Exposure
Terminator ( inspired by Terminator Genisys Movie )
Inspired by Ex Machina. Created with Adobe Photoshop CC 2015 & Wacom
Duomo di Milano with Adobe Creative Cloud & Mobile
Last week I was in Paris and Milan. I was visiting Louvre in Paris and the Leonardo Da Vinci exhibit in Milan. As usual people from around the world were attending those museums. But what surprised and made me sad was that many of people were not interested in art in general. They were standing in a line for tickets in Louvre about 1-2 hours and what they were interested in more was a selfie. I am a big fan of social media but I truly believe when you are next to the Mona Lisa you must (at least) have one quick (one second) look at the Mona Lisa and after that you can turn your back to the most beautiful peace of art to take a selfie. I can understand three languages and I heard from the people around me: “I have my selfie for Facebook or Instagram. Now we can go” AND THEY DID NOT EVEN LOOK AT THE MONA LISA AT ALL!!! People who came to museum to see art were very upset, they had trouble to get close to the art to see it because of all the people with phones.
It was the same in Milan. At the Leonardo da Vinci exhibit they do not allow you to take any pictures of the art and signs were posted everywhere, but it did not help. People were sneaking photos of the art and did not care that they were damaging it with their camera’s flash.
OK if you want to use your phone you can use it in a good way using an Adobe app. Using Adobe Shape CCor Adobe Color CC, you can capture the art you want to and after that you can create illustrations, for example a coloring book/page for your children to educate them.
You can create your own art from the shape you created with Adobe Shape CC using Adobe Photoshop or illustrator. With Adobe mobile apps we have new ways to use our smartphones and I really hope that people will stop turning their back to the art to have a selfie and will start using their smartphones to create something what will last forever.
