Dreamlike HDR tone mapped image tutorial
If you have ever opened a magazine like Cosmopolitan or Glamour, you have seen this effect. The skin is really soft and edges seem to be glowing. Now, the problem with the traditional way of creating this effect is that you loose the edge. Traditionally this effect is accomplished by duplicating the layer and applying a Gaussian Blur to the new layer in Overlay Blending Mode. Now that we have Photoshop CS5 we don’t have to do that. We can actually use HDR tone mapping in a single image to preserve the edges of the image. If you are thinking that HDR is only for a composition of images and not for single images you are right, however, the HDR tone mapping is available to single images in CS5. Take a look at my tutorial on how to accomplish the dream effect with HDR tone mapping and start taking your model images to the next level.
The steps are extremely simple:
1. Open up an image in Photoshop (better if you are using a RAW file as opposed to a JPG).
2. Create a Smart Object with your image.
3. Duplicate your Smart Object and then simply rasterize the copy.
4. Double click on your smart object to modify that particular instance of your image.
5. Go to LAYER > ADJUSTMENTS > HDR TONE MAPPING
6. Select one of the presets depending on the desired effect. I ussed surreal.
7. Save and Close that Smart Object.
8. Back in your original image move the HDR Tone Mapped Layer to the top and change the blending mode to Overlay.
9. Apply a Gaussian Blur to the Layer.
10. Adjust the amount of effect by reducing or increasing the opacity of the layer.
Simple, yet powerful. That is always the best way to do things. Do you want double points? Perhaps you could try to create an action with this steps and that way you can call the action directly in a group of images from Adobe Bridge.
In any event here is the video tutorial:
