Help with fading picture into the background

[dobeluvr]

I am pulling my hair out. I need help with fading a picture into the background. for instance on the right hand side of the page I want to make the picture soft(light but still visiable) and have the picture fade into a gradient background I can type on to make a nice webpage. I hope I explained this well enough and it's not as complicated to pull off as I'm making it.

Thank you all so much for your help!!! I'm going crazy here!!!!! :)
Erica

[Byron Gale]

Erica,

Here's one way to fade an image into a background.

http://www.pixentral.com/hosted/16RQMu4aV9ZRxvWiE4Y84QLr0Jh60_thumb.jpg (http://www.pixentral.com/show.php?picture=16RQMu4aV9ZRxvWiE4Y84QLr0Jh60)

I placed the image layer above a solid color layer, then placed a blank layer between.

On the middle blank layer, I painted with a Forground To Transparent gradient.

Then I selected the upper layer and clicked Layer > Group with Previous.

This uses the middle layer to "clip" the upper layer so that the upper layer is only visible where there is content on the middle layer.

Of course, you may have to try it a few times until you get things in the positions you want.

HTH,

Byron

[ken1]

Erica

Here are two methods:

A. 1.Open picture
2.Duplicate background layer, work on background copy layer
3.Set foreground chip (lower left) to white
4.Select gradient tool. Select foreground to transparent gradient.
5.Drag gradient horizontally and adjust opacity of layer as desired

B. Steps 1&2 as above
3.Gaussian blur 20+ (experiment)
4.Select>all, Edit>define pattern
5.Delete blurred layer (step #3)
6. Open blank layer at top of stack
7. Edit>fll layer with pattern. It should be the last one in the current
library
8. Use eraser tool to reveal the in-focus part of picture for
retention.

[Bayla]

Erica,

Check out THIS TUTORIAL (http://spraguelab.squarespace.com/blog/2007/3/17/photoshop-friday-2007-11-faded-photos.html) by Jessica Sprague.

Bayla

[John Bertram]

Erica,
Here's one way to fade an image into a background.
I placed the image layer above a solid color layer, then placed a blank layer between.
On the middle blank layer, I painted with a Forground To Transparent gradient.
Then I selected the upper layer and clicked Layer > Group with Previous.
This uses the middle layer to "clip" the upper layer so that the upper layer is only visible where there is content on the middle layer.
Of course, you may have to try it a few times until you get things in the positions you want.
HTH,
Byron

Byron --

Thanks for the above posting. I've been trying to figure this one out for a while -- how to in effect create an "opacity gradient", as opposed to simply affecting the opacity OF a gradient.

I've just done some tests using the workflow you describe, and want to suggest the following revision which seems to work even better:

Instead of creating a new layer and then applying a Foreground-to-Transparent gradient to that new layer, just have that particular gradient pre-selected, then use the "Create Adjustment Layer" button to create a gradient layer BELOW the layer with the image you want to affect. Then (as you describe) group that image layer with the new gradient adjustment layer below it.

The advantage to this route is you can now double-click the Layer Thumbnail icon of this Gradient Adjustment Layer, and use the Gradient Fill dialog which pops up (as well as the Gradient Editor window which you can then also access) to adjust and re-adjust every aspect of this "opacity gradient" to your heart's content, and see the effect in real time on the image layer above. Size, position, style, etc. can all be modified and re-modified until the fade-out effect on the image looks just right.

Give this a try and see if it works for you as well. Thanks again for the inspiration!

John Bertram
Toronto

[Byron Gale]

John,

I concur that clipping the image layer to a Gradient Adjustment Layer yields far greater flexibility. Nice write-up!!

Byron

[kzook]

John and Byron,

I just received PE7 for xmas and have not had any previous experience. I was trying to follow both your explainations for fading a picture but am not having very good luck. Any chance you can "dumb it down" a bit for me? thanks so much!