This wikiHow teaches you how to create a transparent "smudge" effect on photos with Photoshop. You can do this with both the Windows version and the Mac version of the program.
Steps
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Step 1. Open Photoshop
The icon of this app contains the letters "Ps" in blue on a black background.
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Step 2. Open an image in Photoshop
Choose the photo on which you want to apply the gradient effect. To do it:
- Click on File;
- Click on You open…;
- Choose a photo;
- Click on You open.
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Step 3. Click on the "Quick Select" tool
The icon for this key is a paintbrush with a dashed line next to it. You will find it in the toolbar on the far left.
Just press W to activate the tool
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Step 4. Select the whole photo
Click it once with the "Quick Selection" tool active, then press Ctrl + A (Windows) or ⌘ Command + A (Mac) to select the entire image. This way you can be sure that no section will be excluded from the blending operation.
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Step 5. Click on the Levels tab at the top
A drop-down menu will appear.
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Step 6. Select New
This is the first menu item Levels.
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Step 7. Click Create Cut Layer in the menu that appears
You should see the "Levels" window appear in the lower right corner of the screen.
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Step 8. Select the main layer of the image
Click on the item Level 1 in the "Levels" window.
If you see a layer named "Background" or "Background" below the main layer, select it first and hit the Delete key
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Step 9. Click on the "Opacity" menu
It is located in the upper right part of the "Levels" window. A selector should appear.
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Step 10. Reduce the opacity of the photo
Click and drag the selector to the left to reduce the opacity of the image, creating a gradient effect.
If the photo becomes too transparent, you can drag the selector to the right and adjust the gradient
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Step 11. Add another photo if you wish
If you want to blend the first photo onto another, follow these steps:
- Drag another photo into the main Photoshop window, then drop it;
- Click on the photo, then click on insert when asked;
- Click and drag the layer of the first photo as the first item in the "Layers" menu;
- Adjust the opacity of the first photo as you like.
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Step 12. Save your photo
Click on File, click on Save, enter a name, a save path, a file format, click on OK, then on OK again in the Photoshop window. The gradient photo (or series of photos) will be saved in the path you indicated.