Here is a poem for all of you to enjoy..
In this post, I got creative...
Not only is the poem my creation, all of the images in the background are also mine
Photoshop is a pretty handy tool :)
Here is the main background image before
I brought the photo into Photoshop
I will list the effects I used
1) Watercolor
2) Paint Daubs
3) I passed over the image a
few times with white paint at 11% opacity...
I actually passed over the image 5 times,
just until I was satisfied that text would show
4) Finally I added lens flare
Here it is finished...So dreamy :)
Below is the photo I used for the footer of the background
Here I show it with the top part removed
Now, here it is with both watercolor and paint daubs effects
Sorry about the slight dirt in the photos in the area that has been removed
I only just replicated these images to show you some examples of how I
created the poem background...
Finally we have the seed
here is the original pencil drawing cleaned up a bit
Below is the seed darkened with no background
Here it is all coloured in with effects...I'm not sure which effects I used in Photoshop
but it was probably similar to the methods used in the other photos
The last thing I did when creating the background was to get creative with the placement of all the elements :)
Here is the background image sample 1
NOTE: these are just examples...not the originals
I didn't save all of the different steps from the originals
Here it is with the flower at the foot...sample 2
I wanted the seed(s) to look as though it was taking a journey...
the trick to that is perspective.
The handy part of Photoshop is that it enables you to place the same image multiple times and in multiple locations, as well as giving you the option to resize, rotate and even flip too :)
Notice how some of the seeds are far back, some close, some clear, fuzzy, backwards and upside down
This is how depth is created...
it's also a great way to visually enhance your subject by creating a focal point.
In this particular instance, I wanted the seed to be the only item on the page that was clear
besides text...
giving the title more importance by reflecting it's topic with imagery
The last part of the process is the actual poem...
I created a full page with no background in Photoshop, then, using the text tool
I wrote the entire poem.
I then saved the poem as a PNG (portable network graphics) file...
an image with no background has to be saved this way
Finally, I bring my finished background back into Photoshop,
then I drag the text in over top...I place it where I want it and then all I have to do is save it.
Now that the text has a background it can be saved a
JPEG / JPG (Joint Photographic Experts Group)
Once that is saved...you have a beautiful, professional looking piece of art.
If you have Photoshop at home, I encourage you to play around with it.
I am by no means an expert, let alone even slightly proficient with Photoshop...
yet I have made some nice looking pieces with it.
The possibilities are endless...give it a try :)
Until next time...be creative :)
