Happy 4th of July to all Americans here and abroad!!! And I am back! My new computer rocks and the only thing I have left to do is add my extra fonts. I even have my backup system set up in case my CPU fries again.
We are still all sick with this virus, but still enjoying our holiday. My husband is smoking a brisket and we have fireworks planned for tonight (thank goodness we had rain the last days). We can't celebrate with our friends and family because risk of infection, but we are still going to have a wonderful day. :-)
Here is my newest free action, CoffeeShop Magic Sunset. This action will give you a faux sunset and looks great on portraits (think engagement and wedding) and landscapes. In this image I have applied it very dramatically, but you can tone it down and even erase out blue sky.
This is one of those enhancements that you won't want to use on every image. However, one of the reasons I love Photoshop and Photoshop Elements is because you can be as artistic as you want while editing your images. So why not have fun and add a sunset!
The free download links are at the bottom of this post.
Instructions for using CoffeeShop Magic Sunset (click on the images to make them larger):
1. Edit your image and then start the action. The action will automatically flatten the image for you.
2. Now you will have four layers; Background, Mask out blue sky, Sunset and Sunset Boost. This action is completely adjustable.
3. If you have blue sky on your photo it will make the sunset effect look really dirty. You can see in my image above that there was some blue sky, so I will get rid of that.
Simply click on the "Mask out blue sky" black layer mask to select it. This layer is just a black to white gradient map which turns your image B&W. However, I added a black layer mask so you can't see the effect until you paint white on the mask.
Select "B" for your brush, make sure your foreground color is white and your brush is soft, in normal blending mode, and 100% opacity (this can be adjusted if you want). Then gently brush out any blue sky in your image.
If you brush over other elements than the sky such as trees and buildings you will remove their color. If this happens, just change your brush to black and brush back over them to add color.
4. Next step is adjusting your sunset to taste. My sunset is very dramatic, but it can be toned down to taste.
Click on the Sunset layer. This is a pink to yellow gradient layer. Adjust the opacity of this layer to mute or increase the pink. Don't worry if it removes much of the yellow, you can add that back in Step 5.
5. Click on the Sunset Boost layer and adjust its opacity to taste. This will bring out the yellowish tones without adding any more pink.
Play with the Sunset and Sunset Boost layers until you get the desired look. I also included layer masks on all layers so you can mask out parts of the sunset effect. I love this action! It looks best on washed out skies, but if your sky is blue then just use the Mask out blue sky layer.
Download the free CoffeeShop Magic Sunset PS/PSE Action HERE.
Want all of my favorite CoffeeShop Actions or Design Elements in one simple download AND help support this blog? Just click here for my action pack or here for a download of some of my most popular design elements, storyboards, and textures. For complete info on installing all of my actions, click here.
