So you thought you had to be an accomplished illustrator to make your own comic book character? Not so! As Nathan Duff explains, all you need is a camera, some Photoshop know-how and a little imagination.
DEEP ETCH
Go to www.australianphotography.com and download the start images. In Photoshop go to ‘File > Open’ and choose the image ‘Super_Hero.png’. To save you time we’ve already separated our caped crusader from his background, but if you’re working on one of your own images you’ll have to use the selection tools to cut out your character. (We used the ‘Quick Selection Tool’ (W) and the ‘Lasso Tool’ (L) for the tricky bits.)
DUPLICATE LAYER
In the Layers panel duplicate the main layer. You can do this with the keyboard shortcut ‘Ctrl-J’ (‘Command-J’, Mac) or by dragging the layer onto the ‘Create a new layer’ icon.
UNSHARP MASK
In this step I want to define the edges and details of the image to make it look more like an illustration. In the main menu go to ‘Filter > Sharpen > Unsharp Mask’. Increase the amount to 200% and the ‘Radius’ to 2.0 pixels. Leave the ‘Threshold’ at 0. You can see the effect on the image by toggling the preview checkbox on and off...
ALSO IN THIS ISSUE: How to add rich textures and old-school colour effects to your images; Top 10 Photoshop Tips; Studio Lighting Special; Profile - Josh Holko; Sony Alpha NEX-7
