another one

[grammom]

Another before and after using the smudge technique. Before--
http://www.pixentral.com/hosted/1Hb1XtyL6l1brNwN2nHuJ8P4Tb3pX0_thumb.jpg (http://www.pixentral.com/show.php?picture=1Hb1XtyL6l1brNwN2nHuJ8P4Tb3pX0)
After--
http://www.pixentral.com/hosted/1TQaXM4uKfC4xXeFggfQBjYat8gPKc_thumb.jpg (http://www.pixentral.com/show.php?picture=1TQaXM4uKfC4xXeFggfQBjYat8gPKc)

[Diana]

That is a very nice dreamy effect. I like the framing you did on it, too.

Diana

[uniqcrafts]

Nice effect, it looks better close up.

[PJSmith]

Love it! A great improvement and neat mood.

[Rusty]

That's really nice.

I'm going to have to revisit the Smudge Tool. I played with it while attempting to learn what all the Tools did but never achieved anything that nice.

Rusty

[julievive]

wow i like it very much :D

[nkeevers]

Very pretty! I like the effect and the frame suits it.

[JuliaM]

Love the "after" pic! Great job with the cropping and border. :)

JuliaM

[Vesta]

Another before and after using the smudge technique. Before--
http://www.pixentral.com/hosted/1Hb1XtyL6l1brNwN2nHuJ8P4Tb3pX0_thumb.jpg (http://www.pixentral.com/show.php?picture=1Hb1XtyL6l1brNwN2nHuJ8P4Tb3pX0)
After--
http://www.pixentral.com/hosted/1TQaXM4uKfC4xXeFggfQBjYat8gPKc_thumb.jpg (http://www.pixentral.com/show.php?picture=1TQaXM4uKfC4xXeFggfQBjYat8gPKc)
Hi Grammom,

I am so taken by your smudge effect... infact all that you have in you gallery. Have you done any tutorials on the smudge technique in another thread? I sure would love to learn about this. Any pointers would be appreciated. I'll go play. Thanks

Vesta

[grammom]

Vesta, thank you so much. I peeked at your gallery and you have some wonderful artwork in there already! Smudging should be easy for you to pick up.
I will say it's an ongoing learning experience and the best way to learn is to just try new things. For this picture, I tried using a filter to give me a little darker outline before I started smudging. I hadn't tried that before. I also tried adding a texture to this photo. I really liked the effect it gave.
I'm working on another picture of my granddaughter and I'm still experimenting with new things. I will say--make all of your normal adjustments to the photo before you begin and it seems to work best if you add a little extra saturation. Experiment with brushes--blending modes for them and I like to use the dodge and burn tools a lot.
Here is a link to the thread that mentions the video I watched about smudging. I hope you give it a try. I look forward to seeing your work!
http://www.photoshopelementsuser.com/forum/showthread.php?t=24612&highlight=smudging