2. Collecting Images.

The aim of this session is to begin to collect and assemble images for making photomontages and experiment with using filters to create images which might be used later as backgrounds.

1. Choose a Black and White portrait from the Source Images folder and use Image>Adjust>Brightness/Contrast to create a strong contrasty image making the background into solid black. Rename file by adding _BC at the end and Save that file to your Work in Progress folder.

2. Choose a colour photo from the Colour portraits folder and use Image>Adjust>Threshold to create a two tone image black and white version and rename it adding _Thresh to the end of the name and save this image to your Work in Progress folder.

3. On the tool box find the Rubber stamp tool. The tool is really a cloning tool. You can Alt Click on one part of a picture to select a starting point and then click on another part of the picture so that when you drag the mouse you are over painting with the original area you selected. If you have two images open you can copy one part of an image onto another. You can change the size of the line you draw by changing the brush size. Use Window>Show Brushes and select a new brush size from the box.

4. Reopen a portrait and use the rubber stamp tool to clean up the image. For instance, you can remove skin blemishes by Alt Clicking on an area of similar skin tone and then paint out the blemished area. Rename the file by adding _Clean to the name and save.

5. Use colour options in the image>adjust menu to change the colour balance of the image. Experiment with different colour changes and save several the different versions with a new name.

6. Select images from the Images folder and use filters to create possible backgrounds for your portrait. Rename and save these files.
Here are some suggestions for the types of filters to try:
For the silhouette image use image>adjust>threshold and move the slider bar to get a good balance between the black and white areas.
For the colour image use the filters in the ‘Artistic’ list like the palette knife and combine these effects with options in the ‘Blur’ list.
For the texture image use effects from the ‘Sketch’ ‘Stylize’ or ‘Texture’ lists.
For the form image use effects from the ‘Distort’ list such as the glass option.
Remember all these effects can be changed by using the slider bars and altering values in the preview window All these effects can be combined with each other
BUT REMEMBER USE SAVE AS TO SAVE A VERSION OF EACH NEW IMAGE AS YOU GO ALONG AND GIVE IT A NAME WHICH HELPS YOU IDENTIFY THE EFFECT.