Group Created Tutorials

[roger_ele]

I had an idea that it might be fun and educational to write a tutorial as a group (whoever wants to participate). I reminded myself of this idea through involvement in this thread ...

http://www.retouchpro.com/forums/showthread.php?s=&threadid=6798

the subject of which regards creating water and reflections. Since this is something I have some ideas about but am not an expert- and it seems that may be the boat a lot of us are in by the responses, does anyone want to join me in working out an efficient system for doing water and reflections?

It could be worked out in a thread. Or in a tutorial that was 'in progress' and edited as ideas are worked out from the discussion thread attached to the tutorial.

Or everyone could tell me to just do it - and then I could beg for input on how to make it better .... it just seems that the idea of a tutorial is that the person teching it is kind of an expert ... which is contrary to my idea ... but some wonderful techniques and learning could be developed from the process for all ... the quandies of life!

Please don't be shy with your thoughts,

Thanks, Roger

[svsg]

Hi Roger,
From a casual look at the tutorial section, it doesn't seem easy to fit in group authored tutorial there currently.Moreover, the guidlines specify that the author must hold the copyrights for the picture. All of us cannot hold copyright for a given picture. IMO, threads can be started in the tutorial section for a specific topic.The first message in the thread must briefly introduce the task. In the next message(s), people suggest the steps involved, even if they don't know how to achieve it. For example, in the water problem, the steps could be making a water layer, making the boundary between the water and the the rest of the image, create flipped images, modify them, merge appropriately. Then in the subsequent messages, people can discuss each of the steps and arrive at the best possible way to do each of them. I think in a couple of weeks, the solution to the problem would be 90% refined. Later people can add minor improvements to the technique as time progresses.
Let us keep this thread for discusion of this idea and start dedicated threads for each tutorial idea.

Svsg

[winwintoo]

OK Roger, I'll play

This is a photo I took of the prairie landscape just before sunset earlier this week.

I'll attach the original here and then post what I did.

Margaret

[winwintoo]

I wanted to put a lake in the middle of the prairie so here's what I did.

1. duplicated the original image (I always do that so that I can go back to the original if I need to)

2. used the marquee tool to select all the sky down to the top edge of the road, copied this selection and pasted it to a new layer.

From here on, all the work is on this layer, Keep it's contents selected.

3. choose Edit>Transform>Flip Vertical

4. choose Edit>Free Transform and using the transform handle at the top, "squash" the contents of the layer until they "fit" over the highway in the original image.

5. move the layer so it looks like the sky is upside down and there is a dark "shoreline" visible.

6. choose Edit>Transform>Perspective and pull the lower right "handle" to achieve a pleasing effect. Hit return to apply the transforms.

Now it's time to apply some ripples. There are lots of filters that will give a watery look. I tried the "Distort" filters and liked the effect produced by the "ZigZag" filter.

After I created a ripple effect that I could live with, I adjusted the brightness and contrast to make the "lake" darker than the sky.

I almost forgot the most important step I did a Google search for "water reflection photoshop" and found this excellent tutorial

Here's what I ended up with:

Margaret

PS: feel free to roll, spindle and mutilate my explanation.....

[roger_ele]

svsg,

I may be wrong but I think the spirit of owning the copyright is to insure lack of infringement on someone elses copyright or to keep from implying ownership of the image created by someone else even when they have given permission for use. Really just respecting the idea of copyright.

It is the format of one author from the design of the tutorial system that creates this situation. If credit is given in the lead paragraph to the other people who contributed/co-authored and that they own their respective images, then that would be equivilent to multiple tutorials that each follow the rules combined into one tutorial. I hope I am not sounding like a defense attorney looking for a loop hole in the law, but I really don't think that this should be a problem.

I like your idea of breaking the problem down into discussable steps, it will make it easier to discuss and work out the most efficient/best solution for each step. Thanks.

[roger_ele]

Margaret,

Thanks for jumping in. I am thinking that this might be a good test thread for the process.

Your reflection is beautiful (read that a few times, it has a nice sound to it). I don't see how to improve on it, you could make a great tutorial from that if you wanted to. I would like to go a few steps further and create water where there is no sky as in this thread (you posted to it, but for the benefit of others who might not have seen it)

http://www.retouchpro.com/forums/showthread.php?s=&threadid=6798

My attempt was ok but I think it should get better before becoming a tutorial. I thought I had saved a version with all of the layers intact, but alas I had accidently saved it flattened. I can recreate it as needed though.

What do you think?

[svsg]

Roger,
I tend to agree with you on the tutorial/copyright part. let us wait for other opinions to see if we can shift this to the main tutorial section.

Margaret,
Excellent technique. But an important point that I like to bring to notice is this- Is this going to enable a newbie to do water and reflections on a photo that is quite unlike this one? You have described the "hows", but I think, "whys" should also be adequately addressed. This is going to be referred to by a lot of people as tutorial. So if 10 different experts submitted 10 different versions, it might be confusing. That is why I prefer a structured effort.
Till people agree upon an appropriate place for these tutorials, I think we can append our tutrials here. Then may be we can shift it. I found that I am pathetic at writing down my ideas, nevertheless here is a starting. Please add/delete/modify any of the following.
Svsg

[svsg]

Selection of the water surface

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Let us begin with the first step. selection:
1)Selection can be made starting from a place and covering the entire bottom area of the image or only on a specific portion somewhere in the middle of the image. Making arbitrary selection for water bodies in the middle of the image would need additional steps in the layer masks later, whereas a simple selection starting from a horizontal line and covering the entire lower portion of the image would be more straightforward.
2)Save this selection as a channel. You will need this selection frequently.
3)If you need to make transition from the water to the rest of the image to be smooth, you can feather the selection by an appropriate amount.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------

[winwintoo]

Originally posted by svsg
Margaret,
Excellent technique. But an important point that I like to bring to notice is this- Is this going to enable a newbie to do water and reflections on a photo that is quite unlike this one? You have described the "hows", but I think, "whys" should also be adequately addressed.
Svsg

I agree, the "whys" are important, but sadly, I don't have that information and unfortunately, my techique only works on an image where there is a horizontal line that can become the "shoreline"

But you have to admit that it's a good technique for anyone on the bald aqua-challenged prairie

Margaret

[svsg]

But you have to admit that it's a good technique for anyone on the bald aqua-challenged prairie

without a doubt...LOL!

[roger_ele]

Margaret,

I still think it is tutorial material if there isn't already a straight sky reflection tutorial, for those starting out who don't want to 'wade' through a more complicated tutorial, this would be good.

svsg,

I don't think we need a selection for the water layer. I am sure ther are many ways of doing this, but by grouping all layers that affect the look of the water with the water layer, and masking the water layer to only show water where the mask allows we have water that is infinitly variable as we go along.

The areas that we need to select are the seperate objects that will be flipped and become reflections. Just my thoughts on the easiest way to do it.

I have attached my latest try ... Everyone, is this it or does more need to be done?

Thanks,
Roger

[roger_ele]

This was my first try,

http://www.retouchpro.com/forums/attachment.php?s=&postid=58550

Roger

[svsg]

Roger, you are correct about selection, mask on the water layer achieves the same. Your second attempt is great. Only addition I would want to add is some kind of disturbance on the water surface.

Svsg