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Paperclipping 126 – Make a Subject Pop in Photoshop Elements

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This week’s episode has been released for the Paperclipping Members. If you’re not a member, you can watch a trailer of the tutorial by clicking on the video above.


In this in-depth video I show you step-by-step in Photoshop Elements how to…

  1. Isolate a subject in your photo so you can give it/him/her special attention.
  2. Boost the color of your subject while making everything else black and white.
  3. Make your subject stand out more by darkening your background and boosting the highlights in your subject.
  4. Make your subject stand out by blurring the background.
  5. Smooth the edges of your isolated subject so it doesn’t have that yucky “cut-out” look.

You’ll be able to do the above with your own Halloween zombies, their bloody sores, or with cute little girls at tea parties (below)–whatever you think needs special attention above its background. Check out this Before/After example where I left Blake’s sores and tongue a subtle red and brought him forward from his background, then see the layouts below for two examples:

before_after_zombie

To see what it takes to become a Paperclipping Member so you can watch episodes like this one, please visit the Membership Information Page.

Below are the layouts I featured in the episode…

The Making Of A Zombie

the_making_of_a_zombie
Journaling to Blake reads: Your makeup is on and you have no problem getting your act together, getting into character. I love how you love playing the part.

Girly Tea Time

girly_tea_time
Journaling to Trinity reads: I had such a fun day with you at this tea party. We looked at art on the street, shopped a cute gift shop and tried hats and teas. Fun girly day.

Want to try it? Once you do it you’ll want to do it all the time. It’s fun. Enjoy!

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  • Wow!!! This is just great!!

    I'll try to practice that soon although I have Photoshop CS2, but I'm sure it's not that different.

    Thanks!!!
  • mjgreer
    quick questions- what and where is the Option key? Is it a Mac thing or does the PC have it too?
  • I didn't realize that would be different on a pc too. I asked on twitter and i've got one person saying to try the 'alt' key. My option key also says 'alt' on it so hopefully that works for you. I'll let you know if I hear anything different.
  • mjgreer
    I zoom in and out with my scroll wheel, I find it much easier than clicking buttons. Here is how to do it in PSE6
    Go to Edit - Preferences - General - check the box "Zoom with scroll wheel" hit ok.
  • TereAzua
    Awesome tutorial.
    I got PS, and I feel so overwhelmed because i find it very difficult. The only thing I'm using it it for is to crop and add a little signature to my pictures :)
    I'll try t put this tutorial into action this weekend!

    LOVE the new look of your website!!!!!
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