Photoshop - Overlay and Soft Light Blending Modes

Want to create some really neat special effects and give texture to a photo?
I used a photograph of a sunflower field and Photoshop's layer Blend Modes to create this photo.
Simply add a layer with a texture above your image layer. Then, change the textured layer's blend mode to Overlay, Soft Light or Hard Light to get the effect as shown on the left.
Want to see my video on how I did this and learn a little more about blending modes?
Check out my step by step tutorial.
overlay_blend_mode

Photoshop - How to add a simple border

A border around a photograph can make all the difference in the world.
Here's a hint about borders.
If want want to draw attention to something inside the photograph, match the border color to that area. Note how the light yellow draws attention to the straw hat in my example.


Let's see how easy it is to create a border.

• Open your photograph. In the layers palette make sure that if it's a background image you rename the layer so you can edit it.
• Go to Layers > Style > Stroke
  
• Change Position to Inside
  
• Adjust the size and color of the stroke/border you want.

Here is my movie showing how it's done and how to customize the border to match an object inside the photograph.

Free Retro look photograph

Film cameras are all but gone. However, you can still create that neat retro look for free.
Here I've uploaded one of my favorite photographs shortly after we adopted my son Jim. The look on my son's and husband's faces is priceless.
MakeRetro.com let me upload my photo, and choose between 4 awesome retro looks. You don't even need to create an account. Just upload your photo, select a retro style, then download your finished photo.
It couldn't be any easier!
http://makeretro.com/

Keep your software updated and safe for free

Is your software up to date? If not, your computer could be at risk.
Secunia Personal Software Inspector is a FREE tool to find out-dated software and plug-ins then let you know where to go to update them.

PC World says “Secunia PSI won't do away with the need to run a good antivirus program and firewall on your PC. But it provides a solid layer of free protection that no PC should do without”.

I'm way over due for my video of the month.
I like this video because of 2 reasons.
I love slow motion. It's amazing what you miss in life unless you see something in slow motion.
Combine that with a large dose of cuteness and you get the following. Enjoy!

Photoshop - Coloring a black and white photograph

My mom and dad's wedding photographs were taken in black and white. My mom had always told me how beautiful the yellow flowers were and that my dad had on a stunning blue suit. You can imagine her surprise when I scanned in the old photograph and added the color that wasn't there before!

Let me show you how easy it really is.

• Open your black and white photo and copy it to a new layer
  
• Under Image > Mode > change it to RGB if it isn't already
• Select your foreground color then select a soft edged brush
• In the options palette for the brush change Mode to Color
  
• Change the opacity of the brush down from 100% (try 70-80% to start)
• Start painting in color - adjust the size of the brush as needed
  
• If you overpaint into an area you didn't want, just use the sponge tool set to desaturate to remove the extra color

Want to watch my example? Click my movie below. Enjoy!

Free Photoshop Filter from Adobe Labs

Photoshop has enough filters for hours of entertainment. However, there will never be enough filters for me to play with in Photoshop.
Here's an interesting and best of all FREE filter from Adobe Labs called Pixel Bender. Some of the effects were just weird but I found that it can create some very interesting art.
To download the plug-in click here, or watch the video to see if it might be something you'd like to try.