Q: Actually, I already know all about textures and I'm ready to dive in. Got any more detailed advice on how to make fine art images?


A: Alright, here we go!



~ I shouldn't have to tell you this, but you can't use textures and fine art processing to turn a bad image into a good one! You MUST start with a good foundation if you want to create a stunning final image. True, sometimes an image that doesn't catch your eye at first may have potential when processed as a fine art image, but that takes lots experience. 99% of the images that I process as fine art were already "keepers" before I thought about making them into fine art...


~ Make an action that helps you load your textures. Click the little dialog button so you can pick a different texture with the same action. (Tutorial videos on how to make actions are coming soon!)


~ It is obviously a good idea to keep the original, high-resolution texture file somewhere safe, preferably in TWO safe places. Then I'd recommend re-sizing the texture to the resolution that you're going to usually use it at, maybe 8, 10 or 12 megapixels, and save it to a NEW folder that is as easy to access as possible. For the kind of purpose that these texture files are going to serve, I'd say that you could save it as a JPG 9 and still not notice any difference at all. Other than your textures will LOAD faster, which is the whole point of re-sizing and compressing them...


~ Frequently use more than one texture on an image, and don't be afraid to rotate, flip, transform etc. to get something different every time. The textures in my portfolio are here because I use them consistently; they work well on many different images...


~ You can use textures to COVER distracting parts of a photo, sometimes. THIS photo for example used to have a distracting highlight on the front of the brick wall, so I added THIS texture to mask it...


~ Most of the time, a texture will NOT look good over a portrait with smooth skin, and you'll need to tweak the texture so that the subject's skin looks nice again. You have two options for the first step: Either mask the texture, or clone in a different part of the texture that is more smooth.


~ Secondly, if you've masked a part of a texture, over skin for example, often it will be very obvious that you've erased something. The best ways to avoid this is to use curves / color balancing to re-create any special hues that you've lost.


~ Of course lastly, the absolute best advice I can give is to take a WORKSHOP given by one of the true masters of fine art photography, such as Jesh De Rox, Scott Robert, and others...

Q: Actually, I already know all about textures and I'm ready to dive in. Got any more detailed advice on how to make fine art images?


A: Alright, here we go!



~ I shouldn't have to tell you this, but you can't use textures and fine art processing to turn a bad image into a good one! You MUST start with a good foundation if you want to create a stunning final image. True, sometimes an image that doesn't catch your eye at first may have potential when processed as a fine art image, but that takes lots experience. 99% of the images that I process as fine art were already "keepers" before I thought about making them into fine art...


~ Make an action that helps you load your textures. Click the little dialog button so you can pick a different texture with the same action. (Tutorial videos on how to make actions are coming soon!)


~ It is obviously a good idea to keep the original, high-resolution texture file somewhere safe, preferably in TWO safe places. Then I'd recommend re-sizing the texture to the resolution that you're going to usually use it at, maybe 8, 10 or 12 megapixels, and save it to a NEW folder that is as easy to access as possible. For the kind of purpose that these texture files are going to serve, I'd say that you could save it as a JPG 9 and still not notice any difference at all. Other than your textures will LOAD faster, which is the whole point of re-sizing and compressing them...


~ Frequently use more than one texture on an image, and don't be afraid to rotate, flip, transform etc. to get something different every time. The textures in my portfolio are here because I use them consistently; they work well on many different images...


~ You can use textures to COVER distracting parts of a photo, sometimes. THIS photo for example used to have a distracting highlight on the front of the brick wall, so I added THIS texture to mask it...


~ Most of the time, a texture will NOT look good over a portrait with smooth skin, and you'll need to tweak the texture so that the subject's skin looks nice again. You have two options for the first step: Either mask the texture, or clone in a different part of the texture that is more smooth.


~ Secondly, if you've masked a part of a texture, over skin for example, often it will be very obvious that you've erased something. The best ways to avoid this is to use curves / color balancing to re-create any special hues that you've lost.


~ Of course lastly, the absolute best advice I can give is to take a WORKSHOP given by one of the true masters of fine art photography, such as Jesh De Rox, Scott Robert, and others...