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Monday, July 26, 2010

How to add color to a brush image

I learned this cool technique from Obsidian Dawn. I'm using PSCS3, but the steps may be the same for PSE.

1. Create a new transparent layer on top of the background layer.
2. Choose your brush.
3. Stamp the brush once using black as your foreground color.
4. Rename the layer to “black.”

You should now have a background layer and a black layer with the black brush image on it.

5. Duplicate the black layer layer and name the layer with whatever color you would like to use first.
6. With this new layer selected, click on the “fx” at the bottom left corner of the layers palette.
7. Choose “Color Overlay” from the menu and choose your color. Your image will change to the color you chose.

But wait, there's more!

8. Create a new layer above the black layer. Your colored layer will be on top of this one.
9. Select the colored layer, right click, and choose “Merge Down.” This makes the image keep the applied color instead of the black.
Note: When you merge down layers, the name of the combined layers changes to the name of the bottom layer. Rename your new layer back to your color choice.

10. To change the way that the color layer blends in with the black layer, select the color layer, click on the “fx” again, and choose “Blending Options.” Change the blending mode from “Normal” to “Color.” Notice how the color brightens up; preserving the luminosity of the original black image.
11. Repeat steps 5- 10 to add more colors (see my sample above).
12. Erase areas to let the individual colors show through.

Tip: Play around with the hue/saturation, lightness/darkness, and opacity of each layer (including the black one).

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