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Create a Magic Crystal Ball

Fabio on Jun 21st 2008 with 131 comments

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Last week I was working on a project where I needed to create a sort of lightning effect like that
Tesla Coil. I spent a couple of hours in Photoshop playing around with some filters to create the
effect. So In this tutorial, I will show you how to create a Magic Crystal Ball with some nice
light effects and textures happening.

Final Image Preview

Before we get started, let’s take a look at the image we’ll be creating. As always, the layered
Photoshop file is available via our Psdtuts+ Plus membership. Also, I’ve got some tutorials I’m
working on that aren’t about lighting effects that you’ll see soon.
Step 1

Create a new document, I used 1900px by 1200px. Fill the background layer with black. Then
with the Ellipse Tool (U) create a circle. You can fill it with a dark gray, but the color won’t
matter because we will apply a Layer Style to this object shortly.
Step 2

To add the Layer Style, go to Layer > Layer Style. First, select Inner Glow and use: white for
the color, Color Dodge for the Blend Mode, and 70% for the opacity.

The second Layer Style will be Gradient Overlay, use Linear for the Style, and keep Normal
for the Blend Mode. Now the colors will be #12232c and #313444. The last Layer Style will be
Stroke, which should be set: 2px for the Size, 60% for the Opacity, and for the color use
#a395cf. Feel free to change the colors and test new variations.
Step 3

Create another circle using the Ellipse Tool (U). The best thing is to create a Path with the
ellipse tool. Adjust the shape the way you want. Then create a selection from the Path Palette.
This circle will be the top reflection on the ball.
Step 4

Create a new layer and rename it to "reflection top." Then select the Gradient Tool (G). Use
white for the color on both ends. Change the opacity though, one will be 100%, while the other
will be 50%. Select Radial for the Style. Then create a radial gradient, as in the image below.
For the Opacity use 70% Tip: Make sure that the 100% is the center of the gradient.

Step 5

Lets create a reflection at the bottom of the sphere. To do that, create a selection from the circle
layer, which is the first one we already created. Create a new layer, and rename it to "Bottom
reflection."
Select the Gradient Tool (G), and use the same settings as in the previous step. This time lets set
the Opacity to 100% and 0%. Now create the gradient. Also, change the Layer’s Opacity to
50%. Use the image below for reference. Tip: You can resize this layer to make it slightly
smaller so you can move it 1 pixel up.
Step 6

Create a new layer, and rename it to "lights 1." Make sure you have black and white for the
background and foreground colors. Then go to Filter > Render > Clouds. After, go to Filter >
Sketch > Chrome. Use 3 for the Detail and 10 for the smoothness. Then rescale the layer,
make it much smaller so the details will be smaller too.
Step 7

Create a marquee selection from the "ball layer," and go to Filter > Distort > Spherize. Use
100% for the Amount and Normal for the Mode. Then go to Filter > Brush Strokes >
Sprayed Strokes. Use a Stroke length of 17 and Spray Radius of 7.
Step 8

Now lets add some color to the crystal ball. With the "lights 1" layer selected, go to Layer >
Layer Style. Then change the Fill Opacity to 60%. After, select the Gradient Overlay, use the
Violet, Green, and Orange preset for the colors. For the Gradient Style use Radial. Align the
radial to the ball, so the orange will be the center of the gradient, and then go to the Violet.
Step 9

To create the lighting effects inside the ball we will use the Difference Clouds Filter. So create
a new layer, and rename it to "rays." Then go to Filter > Render > Clouds. Then go to Filter >
Render > Difference Clouds.

Next we rescale the layer to the same height as the ball. You may notice that with the difference
clouds filter we have created the lightning, but they are black. Also, you can define the thickness
of the lightning when you scale the layer.
Step 10

To change the color of the lightning from black to white is simple, go to Image > Adjustments
> Invert. However, to get the effect right you will have to change the levels as well. So go to
Image > Adjustments > Levels. Use for the Input Levels 0, 1.00, and 70. Then change the
Blend Mode to Color Dodge.

There are 2 more things to do here. First, we create a Layer Mask, so the lights will be only
inside the ball. Then with the Eraser Tool (E), select a medium brush, a regular one, but with a
hardness of 0% and 10% opacity. Then erase some parts of edges 1-4. Also, you can change
the opacity of "Reflection Top" and "Reflection Bottom," so they will be more visible.
Step 11

To create more Rays, you can either duplicate the layer or repeat steps Steps 9 and 10. I
duplicated it, but the best thing to do is to repeat the previous steps. Also, you can apply the
Spherize Filter. Tip: Change the Opacity of the layers to give more depth to the effect.
Step 12

Here, we will create a layer to adjust the colors. We need to make the ball a bit darker. So just
add a new layer, and create a marquee selection of the original ball. After, fill it with Black.

Add a Layer Style. Change the Fill Opacity to 0% and select Gradient Overlay. Use Multiply
for the Blend Mode, 90% Opacity, and set it to Linear. For the colors use Black and a dark
gray. Tip: This layer will be beneath the other light layers.
Step 13

Lets create a nice texture in the ball. Create a new layer on top of the others, but beneath the
"Reflection Bottom and Top layers." Rename it to "texture."

Now go Filter > Render > Clouds. Then resize the layer, and make it a bit bigger than the ball.
Finally, go to Filter > Distort >Wave. For the Number of Generators use 5, the Wavelength
use Min. 10 Max 320, Amplitude Min 5 Max 35, and the rest keep the same.
Step 14

Go to Filter > Brush Strokes > Spatter. Use a Spray Radius 15 and Smoothness 2. Next we
create a marquee selection from the "ball" layer, and go to Filter > Distort > Spherize again.
Use 100% for the amount.
Step 15

Let’s adjust the layer next. Change the Blend Mode to Screen, the opacity to 50%, and the fill
opacity to 50% as well. If you don’t want to show the texture that much, just reduce the opacity.

Step 16

Select the Ellipse Tool (U). Then click on Shape Layers. This will create a layer in the shape of
the foreground color. Now create an ellipse, as in the image below. After, go to Filter > Blur >
Gaussian Blur. Then use 90 pixels for the Radius. This layer will be the spot of light for the
ball.

Tip: This layer has to be beneath all the other layers, even the "ball" layer.
Step 17
Now lets create another ellipse, as we did in the previous step. This time let’s use black. Also,
instead of creating a light spot, let’s create a shadow.

Step 18

Next we add a glow light at the top of the ball. Again, repeat step 16, but for the Gaussian Blur
use Radius of 70 pixels. Notice that this layer will be on top of the others.
Step 19

Let’s adjust the colors. Create a Gradient Fill layer. To do that, go to Layer > New Fill Layer
> Gradient. For the colors use #223158 and #b8641c. For the style use Radial, and set the
angle 115º. After, change the Blend Mode to Overlay.

Tip: You can position the gradient by clicking and holding the mouse button. Also, move the
mouse while the Gradient Fill dialog box window is open.
Step 20

Create a new layer on top of the others. Then fill it with black, and go to Filter > Render > Lens
Flare. Use 60% Brightness and 50-300mm Zoom.

Adjust the levels of this layer. Go to Image > Adjustments > Levels. Then change the Input
Levels to 7, 1, and 210. Now change the Blend Mode to Screen, and rescale the layer, use the
image below as a reference.
Conclusion

In this tutorial, we learned a light effect that is created by using the clouds and difference
clouds filter. You can add more layers to create different effects inside the ball, or duplicate
some layers to create more reflections, like the Caustic effect I created on the final image.

You could use the Spherize filter. Also, you can change the Gradient Overlay colors in one
layer only, and change the other colors separately, thereby creating a totally new effect. It’s all
about playing now; Have fun!

Age Progression - Photoshop Tutorials

Disclaimer:

None of the given Photoshop Tutorials are written by me. They are all taken from various
sources on the Internet and I compiled some of them for you. Hope you understand. More are in
the line.
Here’s a little tutorial showing you how I basically go about aging a woman’s face in Photoshop.

Preface

I've been asked several times by different members to post a tutorial on how I age-progress a person. So,
here it is!

Men and women age a little bit differently but since I've only aged female celebrities thus far, I'll just focus
on women for this tutorial. I’ll be using the image of Katie Holmes that I did for a past W1K contest, as an
example.

Step 1: Choosing an Appropriate Photo

When deciding to age-progress a celebrity’s face, I try to select a picture that is touched-up as little as
possible.
I find that candid shots, or any shots that have not been taken in a studio, work best because the resulting
harsh lighting reveals more of the skin’s details i.e. slight bags under the eyes and faint wrinkles. The
appearance of such details makes it all that much easier to visualize how your subject will age.
Visualizing what the end result will look like brings you one step closer to aging her face realistically.
In Katie’s case, we can see very faint horizontal lines on her forehead, fairly obvious lines under her eyes
and lines bracketing her mouth.

Step 2: Collecting Reference Material

Reference material is key in my method of aging. Keeping Katie’s face in mind, I scoured the Web,
looking for faces of old women who either resemble Katie and/or share the same facial expression. Here,
Katie is smiling with her face positioned at a 3/4 angle so I tried to gather as many pictures of old women
who are smiling in the same manner or close to that. I then opened up the picture of Katie in Photoshop
and pasted the found images around her face on a separate layer, spread out to provide easy visual
access.
Another kind of reference I like to use but is usually hard to find, is pictures of the subject’s parents. I
managed to find a couple of reference pictures of Katie’s mother online and they really helped me to
decide whether or not to give Katie a double chin. Since her mom has quite a bit of mass under her chin, I
decided I would apply that to Katie too.

Step 3: Thinning Brows

Now the fun begins! The first thing I like to do is to thin out the subject’s eyebrows and eyelashes. The
older people get, the thinner their hair gets - either because hair falls out and/or because it dries out as it
greys.
So to achieve this, I like to use the Clone Stamp tool at 100% with a relatively small brush size depending
on the size and resolution of the image. I sampled the surrounding skin to thin and reduce the number of
hairs.

Step 4: Mold the Face

Next, I like to add the basic sags to the skin. I do this in the Liquify mode. I tried to create sagging effects
to the cheeks, jowls and the cliff just above the eyes by using the Push tool. For the eyes, I tried to be
subtle; otherwise she may end up looking somewhat ghoulish.
From what I’ve learned about the aging process, I know that while bones cease to grow, and in fact
shrink, cartilage does continue to grow. As a result, the end of a nose may appear larger as a person
grows older. So while I was still in the Liquify mode, I used the Push tool to extend the length of the nose
slightly. Then I used the Bloat tool to also enlarge it slightly, being careful not lose the essential quality or
character of the nose. Go too far and it may not look like Katie anymore.

Step 5: The Aforementioned Double Chin

Based on her mother’s pictures, I then added a fairly massive double chin. I initially used the Airbrush tool
with some fairly broad strokes, sampling the colors that were already in the area of her neck. I then
worked in the details with a finer brush size. Also, keep in mind that I was also using the other reference
photos of older women to guide me.

Step 6: Wrinkle Up the Eyes

For me, the most important parts to get right are the eyes. They can make or break the project. Done
wrong and the picture may no longer be identifiable as one of Katie Holmes anymore. I sought out the fine
lines around the eyes and I tried to imagine how they would progress into wrinkles. I then extended them
in length and width accordingly. Referencing the pictures of old women helped a lot with this step.
I used a combination of the Stamp tool and Brush tool. I wish I could explain my technique at this point in
a more clinical manner but mostly I relied on my artistic instincts. I emphasized the wrinkles around the
eyes by widening and deepening the lines slightly and increasing the contrast by darkening the recesses
and lightening the edges. Also, I extended wrinkles to the cheekbone areas. I then applied the same
technique to the wrinkles around the mouth and to the forehead.

Step 6: Reducing the Lips

In this step, I work on the lips. As people grow older, the outline of the lips tends to recede. Using the
Stamp tool, I sampled the skin surrounding the lips and thinned them out.

While I was at it, I also added a few vertical wrinkles above the lips to give her a bit of a "prune" effect.
We just want a hint of that, so don’t carve out deep lines; deep lines would only be necessary if she was
puckering her lips.

Step 7: Planning Out More Wrinkles

Here, on a separate layer, I faintly outlined or sketched, with a relatively thin brush size, areas that I may
or may not add more lines and wrinkles to. It’s easy to get carried away with the addition of wrinkles. So, I
stopped, took a step back and assessed where to take to image. For me, it's essential and a great test to
see what best works.

Step 8: Touching Up the Wrinkles

Based on the previous step, I added wrinkles where I thought they were needed most.

Overall, I found that the wrinkles and lines seemed a little flat in comparison to the rest of Katie’s features.
They needed more definition so that they could pop out more. So, I highlighted the raised edges of the
individual lines with the Brush tool and with a lighter skin tone.

Step 9: Hairy Lips

Facial hair becomes an issue with most women as they age. For some strange reason they lose it in the
brow area and grow it back around the mouth area. I didn’t want Katie to be the exception so with a very
fine brush size and the Brush tool, I added hairs to her upper lip.
I tried to make it as subtle as possible. Hairs too thick or dark would draw the viewer’s attention straight to
her mustache and I didn’t want that. I also added more wrinkles to the area below the corners of her
mouth.

Step 10: Refining the Neck

I decided that the neck was too smooth for a woman of 75 years of age. So I added finer wrinkles to that
area. Also, I added more mass and weight to her jowls with the airbrush by increasing the value of the
tones in those areas thus creating more contrast between surface planes.

Step 11: Adding Age Spots

A key component to effective aging of a face is the addition of age spots.

So at this point, I sampled one of the darker skin tones on her face, and on a separate layer that was set
to Multiply and 30% opacity, I brushed them in and tried to create irregular shapes (there IS no perfect
age spot). You can add as many as you like; the amount varies from person to person. I decided to be
conservative with Katie.

Step 12: More Refinements

I took a little break from it and came back to it later to possibly get a better perspective on it. When I
looked at it, at this point, I decided that certain areas needed refining and added detail. This is the beauty
of working with a high-resolution file; I can zoom in real close and deal with a wrinkle up-close and
personal.
Unless their teeth were subjected to regular whitening, most people’s teeth yellow with age. Gums also
recede, showing less gum and more bone. And so with that in mind, I sampled a yellowish-brown color
and on a new layer that was set to Multiply and 30% opacity and painted that color to the teeth with the
Brush tool. Her gums didn’t show to begin with, so receding the gums here wasn’t necessary.

Step 13: Preparing the Hair

The finishing touch here is greying the hair. I began by creating a mask defining the area of the hair. I
used the brush for this and tried my best to define as many loose strands of hair that I could.
With this mask as a selection, I then created a Hue/Saturation adjustment layer and reduced the
saturation to –63.

I then created a new adjustment layer based on the same mask and adjusted the Brightness/Contrast to
brightness +9 and contrast –36. As a result, I found that the darker areas were too pale and caused a loss
of depth and so to adjust that, I then selected the mask and scratched out the darker areas with a 5px
brush size at 50% opacity so that they could show through from the original image.

Step 14: Hair Raising

The next step was to raise the hairline and thin out the hair. Hair loss is common with both sexes.
I sampled the area at the top of the forehead and extended the skin area above the original hairline.

Step 15: Greying the Hair

A lot of details of the hair were lost in the previous step so with a thin brush size at 80 percent opacity I
drew in fine grey hairs, sparsely laid out.

Patiently, slowly, stroke by stroke I added more and more hairs until I was happy with the amount of grey I
had added.

Step 16: Finishing Touches

Finally, I took a step back, refined a few wrinkles here and there ET VOILA!
I hope this tutorial was insightful. It may not be the most technically detailed tutorial but it gives you a
good idea of the process I go through to get the job done. Hopefully, it will help you create your own
trophy-winning images for future Fountain of Age contests!

oloring Effects
July 10th, 2007 in Photo Edit, Tutorials by kailoon
Today we will have a photo edit tutorial and sure, it is simple and easy to follow as usual. I think
you may see this in many music album CD cover and some artist poster or wallpaper. Ok, let’s
start then.

This is the photo that I found in Google image.

If you wish to use mine, just download here.

Step 1

Open the image in PS.

Step 2

Go to the bottom of the layers palette and click on the Hue/Saturation option. Set the setting as
below:

Step 3

After that, you may get this:

Step 4
Create a new layer and set it to Soft Light Blend mode. Choose a 48px hard brush and paint
the new layer as shown below. You can choose the colors you like.

Step 5

Go to Filter > Blur > Gaussian Blur > 90 pixels.

Step 6

Yup, you’re done! It’s easy and now you can edit your photo yourself easily. Thanks!
Tips:

 The lower the saturation will decrease the color more.

 So, the lower the saturation will increase the visibility of the painted color.


 In this tutorial, we’ll manipulate a picture so it looks like a woman burning in flames. The
idea behind this manipulation was to create a nice looking illustration, only by using
simple techniques and tools such as the Brush tool and Warp command. I hope you enjoy
the tutorial and try it with your own stock imagery.
 Want access to the full PSD files and downloadable copies of every tutorial, including
this one? Join Psdtuts+ PLUS for just $9/month. You can view the final image preview
above or view a larger version here.


 Step 1

 For this project, I used two nice images that suits for the manipulation; image1, image2. I
would like to thank the author of this two great pictures, which is thiquinho and huibidos
from sxc.hu. And before we continue with the steps, I need to inform you that this tutorial
is written using Photoshop CS3.



 Step 2

 Let’s start with image1, open and duplicate this image by using the Image > Duplicate
command from the menu bar. In the Duplicate Image dialog box, you can name it
anything you like, but to follow this tutorial reference, name it "PassionFire" and hit OK.
By doing this, we kept the original image. Be sure to save.



 Step 3

 With the "PassionFire" image active, duplicate the "background" layer. Set the
foreground and background color to black and white by pressing D on the keyboard.
Click the "background" layer again and fill it with the foreground color ~ which is set to
black. See the images below.



 Step 4

 Reactivate "Layer 1," then press Command + Shift + U to apply desaturate command.
Now invert the color by pressing Command + I. Your image should look like a film’s
negative now.



 Step 5

 Duplicate "Layer 1," then apply the find edges filter from Filter > Stylized > Find Edges.
Next, invert the color by pressing Command + I and change the Blending Mode to Hard
light. There, your image now has contrast white line and a very dark background.



 Step 6

 To give the white line more contrast, duplicate the "Layer 1" copy then change the
Blending Mode to Screen.


 Step 7

 Now we move to the second image. Drag image2 into "PassionFire" document image
window using the Move tool. If the Paste profile mismatch dialog appears, just click OK
to fix it.



 Step 8

 The fire image from "image2" should be in "Layer 2" now. Change its Blending Mode to
screen, this will hide all the black colors in "Layer 2." If done right, your image should be
similar to the one below.


 Step 9

 Duplicate "Layer 2" by pressing Command + J. Make sure you use the Screen Blending
mode, same as the original "Layer 2." Next, make "Layer 2" become invisible by hiding
it from the layers panel.


 Step 10

 Click the "Layer 2 copy" to make it active, then use the Free Transform command ( Edit
> Free Transform) to rotate and resize the fire image like shown below. Don’t forget to
press Enter when you’re done transforming.


 Step 11

 Still in the same layer, now use the warp command (Edit > Transform > Warp) to bend
the fire image – so it following the hair flow. Press Enter when done. See the example
below as a reference.


 Step 12

 If you feel the result is not quite good enough, simply use the Liquify filter to fix it. I
assume you already know how to use the liquify filter; the Forward Warp tool and Twirl
Clockwise tool is the only tool I used to get this result (see image below).


 Step 13

 Duplicate the "Layer 2" copy, then use the Free Transform command to resize and rotate
the fire image in the current layer. Don’t forget to reposition the fire image too. Once you
get this composition (see image below), hit Enter.



 Step 14

 Repeat the previous process to get the hair covered with fire. Just duplicate and modify
the layer until you get all the hair part covered. If needed, use the Liquify Filter again.
The end result of this process should look like the image below, notice how many layers
are used.



 Step 15

 Okay, now activate "Layer 2" and make it visible again. Then Change the Blending Mode
to Vivid Light. This step will colorize only the white line in the layer below it.



 Step 16

 Still in "Layer 2," apply the Free Transform command to resize and rotate the fire image
like shown below. The purpose is to cover up the girl’s body and hair with the fire
texture. Press Enter when you’re done transforming.


 Step 17

 We’re gonna blur the fire image in "Layer 2," To do so, apply the Gaussian Blur filter
from the Filter > Blur > Gaussian Blur menu. Fill the Radius around 10 to 15 pixels, then
 click OK when done. Blurring the fire image will cause its texture to blend smoother with
the layer below it.


 Step 18

 Now add a layer mask to "Layer 2." Then use a soft round Brush tool with Opacity at
100%. Set the brush size according to your need, then just mask until the fire outside
becoming hidden. See the process below.



 Step 19

 Sure we will remove the white line shown in the image (marked in red rectangle below).
First, add a new blank layer below "Layer 2." Then simply paint it with black using the
soft round brush tool.



 Step 20

 Now go to the top most layer (mine is: "Layer 2 copy 6"), add two adjustment layers
which is Hue/Saturation and Brightness/Contrast. Careful not to change the layer
adjustment order, or the color effect will be wrong. Below you can see the setting I used
to complete this step, also pay attention to the adjustment layer order.

 By adding a Hue/Saturation adjustment layer, we unify all colors. The

Brightness/Contrast adjustment layer brings more color contrast and makes sure the
image color’s looks like real fire.



 Step 21

 I’m sure you notice the fire sparks effect. I create it using the Brush tool with this simple
setting. No special brush needed, but if you have one that will be useful then feel free to
use it. Below you can see all the settings I used within the Brush palette, of course you
can change the setting as you like. Just make sure the brush spatter enough and vary the
size.



 Step 22

 Now to use the modified brush, create a new blank layer below the adjustment layers
( mine is named "Layer 4"). Choose 50% gray from the swatches palette, then you can
start creating the fire sparks. Remember not to be monotone, resize the brush size if
needed. I start using a big sized brush, then reduce it to smaller size (you can change
brush size faster by pressing the bracket keys on the keyboard ).

 If you’re not sure how to do this steps, just imagine where and how the fire sparks will
flow if it was real fire. For me, imagining stuff is very helpful.



 Step 23

 To make it more interesting, create a new layer and change the Blending Mode to Screen.
Then use a normal soft round brush (not the one we modified earlier), with an Opacity of
50%. Just click in the part of body, neck, and hair. I’m not sure how to explain this, but
you can see the difference between the above and below images.



 Conclusion

 And that’s all of it! Hope you learned something new and had fun. You can view the final
image below or view a larger version here.


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