Challenge #152

[Grant]

I am so sorry for being late. I have had the Challenge ready to go up since
Tuesday and some how lost track of a day. This is Thursday is it not? :(

Pat Coggin has presented us with a house to decorate ... but a special
house .... please have fun.

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Since my hard disk failure I have had some wonder Challenges
suggestions submitted by a few people . I need more suggestions from more
people to be able to mix up the choices. Please send me *your*
suggestions for the Challenges. Part of what makes the Challenge great
is your input. Also please don't forget he Photo Challenge as
presently I have only one suggestion although it is a great one but I do
need more.


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http://www.cavesofice.org/~grant/Challenge/Challenges.html

Present and Past Challenges will remain Until tomorrow at 7:00 pm the then
the Present will be Past and new images will be posted.

* Important notice to all the new people in this forum. This is not a
close shop you are all invited to submit an image. If you don't think you
are good enough this is your first mistake, I think most have found that
working on the Challenge has improved their personal level. So young and
old, hot shots and cool dudes now is you time to post.
--
Grant

Home Pages: http://www.cavesofice.org/~grant/Challenge/index.html

Challenge Pages: http://www.cavesofice.org/~grant/Challenge/Challenges.html

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Creativity is so delicate a flower that praise tends to make it bloom, while
discouragement often nips it in the bud. Any of us will put out more and
better ideas if our efforts are appreciated.

Alexander Osborn (1888 - 1966)

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[Pauline]

Grant I wondered if you had your days confused or if you were skipping this week! One challenge entry done. Not too creative I'm afraid.

[Carbone]

Grant,

Check your e-mail, I sent your 4 challenge candidate pictures (I think they're rather large so you might wanna move them out of your inbox).

Ray

[Grant]

Ray they have arrived ... there are some great ones ... much thanks

[Wendy]

Ummm ...

Now that makes a very challenging selection :)


Wendy

[Grant]

The first images are now being posted and again they are all great.

Notes for viewing.

1). Clicking on the thumbnail will open a larger image.
2). Clicking on the larger image will advance you to the next larger image.
3). If you are using Internet Explorer F11 will toggle a full screen view

... gives the images a view they deserve.

Grant

[Pauline]

Wendy, I beat you!!! Got my first one done! :)

[Grant]

Wendy, I beat you!!! Got my first one done! :)


Pauline you beat everyone as your email was number one in my Challenge mail slot.

[Pauline]

:D Maybe that's because I was sitting here waiting for it since Thursday night? :D Or maybe it should just be posted on Friday's cause I work faster? Do I get a prize? :)

[Wendy]

Pauline ...

Yes you do get a prize ... you get the chance to do another entry :D :D


Wendy

[Pauline]

Oh darn. That's what I was afraid of! I really should do another one since that one wasn't really that creative. It was a bit challenging drawing those lines back in since most were done freehand since they aren't straight. I was really supposed to be doing something for a friend that just wasn't working right so I moved on to the challenge!

[Wendy]

Pauline ...

Now that is just what I do ... I turn to the Challenge for relaxation and just go with the flow :)

Wendy

[jayegirl]

I did my first Grant's challange. Just mailed it.

[billz]

Jaye it's terrific! I really like the silhouettes on the shade. Nicely done.

Bill Z

[raffy]

Hi,Grant-Happy New year!What is the e-mail address again for the challenge?Thanks!(Anybody?)

[NMarti]

Alice:
Here's the address

http://www.cavesofice.org/~grant/Challenge

[raffy]

Thanks,Nancy!I just sent it off to Grant.

[NMarti]

Okay - I'm having total brain drain here - maybe just too tired - but I can't figure out how to get the background out of the birdcage. I was actually working on this from another perspective before Grant posted this challenge and couldn't figure it out there either. I have a cage (in this case a trapper's cage) that is on a white background. I want to remove the white so it can be "set" in a forest. From there the cougar cub will be jumping from the cage in a message being designed for Big Cat Rescue. I know there's a way and I just can't remember how to do it. Please and thanks.

[Norm F]

Hi Nancy,

I think you can just select those area you want removed and get rid of them with your delete key.

[Wendy]

Hi Nancy ...

You may need to try several ways of selecting ... its not an easy one :(

Wendy

[NMarti]

Thanks Norm but there are so many areas of white because of the bars intersecting that it makes it extremely difficult. I see several people have done it in the challenge so I know it can be done but I'm having a mental block.

Wendy,
I'm needing to do basically what you did with the bear in the cage under the tree. My background would be a forest and the bear would be the cub with the door open and him coming out of the door.

[Wendy]

Hi Nancy ...

I started off selecting the background with the magic wand ... that got rid of a lot of it and then I tidied it up with the lasso.

Hope that helps

Wendy

[NMarti]

Wendy - okay, I went home (been staying at my daughter's this weekend dogsitting) and checked my books and notes. Duhhhhhh - move onto new image, magic eraser, tolerance adjustment and click away - got it!

Here is my finished product - maybe.... Still have to send to Carole for final approval.

http://www.pixentral.com/show.php?picture=1pCTq9Cxh4A4fwCtnaMtSrZDh8Wst0 (http://www.pixentral.com/show.php?picture=1pCTq9Cxh4A4fwCtnaMtSrZDh8Wst0)

[Wendy]

Hi Nancy ...

Oh that looks great ... I do love the way it is jumping out of the cage. Very nice indeed!! :)


Wendy

[raffy]

Hi,Nancy! I found an easy way to select the cage,thanks to an article by Sara Froelich in the latest PET newsletter.(Vol.2,no.8,pp.23-24)

-duplicate the cage image
-go to blur>smart blur>set to radius> 3,threshold> 25,quality> high,mode> edge only,click OK
-this will give you a black and white image
-soften the lines>gaussian blur>radius 1>OK
-select the magic wand>new selection>tolerance 32>uncheck contiguous>click on a black area
this should select all the black
-if some white areas are selected,remove them with the lasso tool
go to select>inverse and all the white lines should be selected
-save the selection if you want to reuse it
-since you only want the selection,if you're pasting into it,drag the copy layer to the trash can-this will leave you just the background layer,and the active selection
-now you can copy an image into it

When I did my challenge for Grant,the magic wand selected all the white,so I didn't have to inverse it.Sara used it to sharpen an image by then applyng a sharpening filter,but it's a great way to select thing like cages.Hope this helps!
Your cougar picture is wonderful!

[NMarti]

Thanks Alice - I will add that to my list of tutorials. I'll try it out on my next image as I have the breakout and the challenge done but am going to do another one with a full grown tiger in it.

[Wendy]

Hi everyone ...

I am so pleased that more and more people are taking part in the Challenge ... its good fun and a great way to learn.

I well remember the first entry I ever sent in ... That Challenge was a statue reading a book standing against a brick wall. I selected the statue, cut it out of the original layer, put it on its own layer then flipped it over. I then put a layer below the wall with a photo of some bookshelves ...

I was so pleased with myself ... and it spurred me on to try out other things :)


Wendy

[karen donnybrook]

Nancy, Love your "cat" photo - it is brilliant.

[NMarti]

Thanks Karen - it was a lot of fun to do.
Wendy - can we see???? One thing I found with the challenge is that it forces us to use what we have learned (and forgotten I learned it - as was my case) and be creative with it. Thanks Grant for hosting it.

[Wendy]

Hi Nancy ...

Do you mean the first one I ever did ??

Ah I have just been to find it :)

http://www.pixentral.com/show.php?picture=1C0FVQKFxjpDeftmNPPKZ9ZwPAowmr1

Nothing special but it was my first one Challenge 28 August 2003 :)


Wendy

[Daviskw]

Hello All

I have just started entering the challenges and am having a good time. But it seems to me that this challenge has brought the best entries in sometime. The images posted are all good and interesting and some or truly brilliant and beautiful.

I have always been nuts and bolts with no imagination … still that way…so I can appreciate the art involved and just stare with wonder.

I don’t want to pick any out for special praise because all are so good. This is a great site, so many ways to learn and enjoy.

Butch

[NMarti]

Wendy
That is really cool! It is too special - so creative - as are all of your images. That's what I like about this - the chance to see creativity at work and be inspired from so many different perspectives.

[Wendy]

Nancy ...

I hadn't even learned how to make a signature brush when I did that one :)

... and that selection took me days !!

I just looked and including this weeks entries I have now done 324 :eek:


Wendy

[NMarti]

Boy - I'm lucky to get every other one done, much less multiples of the same one :D

[Wendy]

Hi Nancy ...

I usually don't really have any ideas when I start doing on the Challenge what I normally do is start to cut out the image ... and then ideas just tend to come to me whilst I am doing it.

The other thing is that I do quite a lot of tutorials and sometimes a tutorial gives me an idea for an image. This weeks No 3 is a good example of that :) I saw the cut out cage and thought it looked slightly oriental

Wendy

[NMarti]

And I meant to post to tell you how wonderul that one is. I would not have seen a fan from that because I tend to spend more time looking at the whole image as opposed to the individual components.

I too stare at an image and it just "talks to me" as far as what to do with it. (no I'm not crazy - I promise) I can see a picture trying to convey a point. But - that said - I still have to get past looking at the whole and start considering the parts. Starting to use Elements has opened up a whole new world for me and I just can't get the ideas done fast enough so I'm starting to jot down the picture and what I want to do with it so I don't forget.

Is there 12 step recovery program for Elements somewhere - I need it!:D (I can almost see a response coming from Ray already)

[Wendy]

Nancy ...

Once you are hooked there is no way out :) :)

I do know what you mean about the image dictating what you do with it ... and I think that is often the best way.

My style is very photorealistic and I tend to create things that look like photos. Often people don't realise that I have created them and thats a great compliment but I think that I neeed to branch out a bit more.

So in the few weeks I have been experimenting playing more with textures and lighting ... nothing in that line this week or last ... but I'm trying to do more of that and actually finding it difficult to do. I suppose simply because it doesn't come naturally to me ..

... but I'm trying :)

Wendy

[Pauline]

Nancy, love the way your cat in the cage poster turned out. One little thing you might want to do is put a shadow under the cat to anchor it.

Wendy, your first challenge is superb! You had great ideas way back then!!

I am finding that I am truly enjoying "How to Cheat in photoshop". I spent all of last night reading it, and again tonight and one other day and I'm only just past 1/2 way through. I still have to do all the tutorials, but I just love the way he explains things and tells you want to watch for when creating a montage etc. It's a fabulous book and so different from all the others.

Butch, I felt exactly how you did when I saw the challenge for the first time. It took me a while to get brave enough to try it. Some images, I get an idea right away, others I stare blankly at and nothing comes. A lot of times I'll be laying in bed and think of something!! Or sometimes it just ends up being an experiment with filters, etc. that turns out cool. Regardless of how well you think you do or not, it's still fabulous to try it. It makes a big difference if you try it yourself and then look at what others came up with. Also remember that no one is critical and all ideas are great! You will learn so much just by doing it.

[raffy]

Hi,Nancy-I'm gad you will be able to try the tut.The smart blur gives some really interesting effects all on its own.

Wendy-that picture is superb!The idea to flip it and fill it is cool!

Hi,Pauline!Happy New year! Who is the author of that book,and can you apply it to Elements?

[Pauline]

Happy New Years to you too Alice. The author is Steve Caplin. His web site is www.howtocheatinphotoshop.com (http://www.howtocheatinphotoshop.com)

It really is for the big ps and there are probably things I might not be able to do, but I would definately recommend it if you want to do more than just fix up photos. It's very interesting and I'm learning a lot. The other cool thing is that for some of the tutorials he has put little pictures at the bottom of the page to show what others have done with the same picture. It's called the Friday challenge and each week he give a challenge. One example was a photo of a door from the inside of a room. The challenge was 'open the door' . You could do anything with it. Neat to see the idea of other. Similar to Grant's challenge idea, but with a twist since you are given something specific to do. Another example was to light a lamp. It teaches you about perspective and why things look wrong when you add them to your picture if they aren't the right perspective. Now to match stock bodies, heads, hands, etc. Lots of useful stuff that you can learn from and apply to your own work. It might not be for every body, but I'm really getting a lot out of it. Check out his website.

[NMarti]

Pauline,
Thanks - I will do that - don't know why I remembered text and forgot the cougar. Guess I just got in too big a hurry because she needed it today.

[raffy]

Thanks,Pauline-looks like a really interesting site!

[Pauline]

Nancy, that's why you always need another eye to look at your work, or to come back and look at it yourslef later. It's so easy to forget the little things but they really make or break a good montage (and that's what I'm learning in the Steve Caplin book.) Although lots of people wouldn't even notice, but think something is wrong and not know what. I'm really trying to train myself to look for these kinds of things to help me do better myself. I hope it doesn't make me appear too critical of others and they don't think I'm being too picky.

Alice it is a good site, but I have not spent too much time there as I spend so much here. I would like to get into doing the Friday challenges at some point though. Nothing makes you better at what you do than practicing and seeing the same work from others.

[NMarti]

Pauline -
I really do appreciate the criticism because it helps me to grow and learn. A second set of eyes is always better because they don't know yet what has been done and something will jump out at them that you - in your own mind - don't see because you made so many changes you lose track and focus on one or two major changes you made. I will work on that when I get back home tomorrow - the image is on my home computer and I'm on the laptop now.

[Wendy]

There were some excellent images this week and I was so impressed by them all ...

Alex ... Well you excelled with this weeks animation ... good work on reconstructing all the background and nice work on moving the cage to the new backgrounds in No 2 & 3

Alice ... Oh that did make me laugh. You have done well with putting Raffy in the cage ... very neat but he doesn't look too pleased

Anne ... That really has made a super effect ... did you make a gradient and apply it to the cage selection? and I love the fuzzy effect in No 2 that is very different.

Ben ... Very good effect .. how much of it is real and how much is photoshopped ?

Bill ... Like the way you have gilded the cage and the open door is a real master stroke. Very well done ... cool background too

Bob ... Very nice work on the cage in No 1 ... how did you do that ... it looks almost as though it is drawn. Certainly a good effect! and such a different image you have created in No 2 ... good use of the original image ... but No 3 has to be my favourite as it is such an original image and beautifully done !

Brian ... Now that is different ... clever idea, it is topical and funny

Butch ... Nice work on the underwater scene. Its a neat idea and you have done it really well! Nice touch with the bubbles ... how did you do those ?

Carol ... Oh now that is effective ... nice simple lines and beautifully done. Good work on the reflection!

Dave .. Cool use of colour and clever idea with the newspapers. Its very well done and amusing.

Donald ... Wow that is vibrant ... it looks amazing. Well done.

Elissa ... I really like the way you have kept the perspective of the original image ... its well done and makes it into a striking image.

Garry ... I have been looking at your entry for a while now and just can't work out how you have done it ... I can see motion blur in the background but how did you do the rest of it

Jaye ... Nice strong vibrant colours and the silhouettes are a great touch. I like it very much

Jodi ... Oh well your No 1 is beautiful ... the soft gentle colours are perfect for the image. I really like the open door and the footsteps leading away ... nice touch with the cross on the top No 2 is also good beautiful work on the seascape and those bubbles ... how did you do them ??

Juergen ... Good work on the selection its very crisp ... and what a background you made for it ... very nice indeed.

Karen ... Oh that is fun. I just love all the little touches ... the pigs, the wolf, the butterflies and that sky. Well done!!

Kevin ... Your image has an almost surreal quality about it .. it is good but I keep expecting the water to come gushing out ... Neat idea

Linda ... What a great pencil sketch .. how did you get that effect. It is so realistic .. nice page curl too.

Malcolm ... Really good work on your selection and I like the way you have used the gradient behind ... it makes it look like light is shinning out through the cage ..

Marilyn ... All of your images are really good this week. I really like the use of the multi coloured effects in No 1. No 2 is amazing .. that dark background throws the cage into the spotlight and I do like the contrast of the bird, the soft feathers and the leaves ... well done. Love the fantasy in No 3 .. it all works so well

Marylou ... Nice textures you have introduced into your image and a good little touch with the foreground grass. How did you do No 2 ... it very effective and complex.

Nancy ... Oh that is cute using cats in the windows :)The cage itself looks sort of sketched and I would love to know how you did it.

PatB ... The budgies look as if they are watching the cat very closely indeed ... its really effective and tells it own little story !

PatC ... What a good idea in No 1 ... it makes a really nice Christmas scene and nice work on that snow !! ... and good snowglobe in No 2.

Pauline ... Nice work on on the insertion in No 1, good attention to detail ... it must have taken you a while to do that. No 2 has a great distortion of the reflection ... its really effective !

Rita ... Oh I like the black & white look .. it has an almost japanese look. The trees pull your eye straight into the image ... I think that it is great !! ... and what a different feel you did in No 2 ... a much more soft and gentle look. Great gold on the cage ... how did you do that??

Robin ... OK I give up ... how did you do that superb background ?? ... Wow it looks just so good!!

Tab ... Clever theme and I love the way you have done it ...

Terry ... Nice use of the image in No 1 ... it has a wonderful painted look and I would really like to know how you did it ?? The windows look as though they are really lit up ... it is so good!!. ... and No 2 is so funny ... as soon as I saw the cat's paw I started to laugh. Good idea and so nicely done !! Great flames in No 3 and a really interesting pattern in No 4

Tom ... Nice work on your image. I especially like the gradient effect on the cage ... and so glad to find your trademark apple !!

Tony ... A nice fun theme ... well thought out and really well done. It just looks as though he is standing inside that cage... well done!!

Ward ... Well that a first ... a brick cage. Nice idea ... it looks good .. so how did you do it? I always look forward to your second image and this one did not disappoint me ... its a really good abstract use of the image with some great colour changes in there.

Wendy

[ktnoon60]

Thanks Wendy! The texture on number 1 was done with the texture filter on the final picture. Really liked you fan picture it had a very delicate feel to it.

Kt

[GaryK]

Wendy


Oh sure ..ask me a question now:p :p

Ill have to check and see if I remember:D

[Jodi Frye]

OMG, I 'just ' found this thread...thanks Wendy...ya know it's been a long while since I've done one. Felt kind of good to get back in the saddle again...at lease for a short while. I'm already breaking my resolution with a bunch of stuff going...grrrr...I'll never learn. I guess i have this inner fear that my life will pass me by without ever feeling like i accomplished anything of true value (imo). I have to concentrate on one thing...and I will...tomorrow.

[raffy]

Thanks,Wendy!No,he's not too happy being an incarcerated kitten,but he does have to cut his feather intake,before it gets him down.

[CarolLHB]

Jodi- you know that old saying? "Never do today what you can put off until tomorrow (after reading the forums and playing with PSE for a while)":D

Repeat when:
Laundry piles up
dishes in sink
family wanting to eat (again!)

[Daviskw]

Thank you Wendy as always generous in your comments

Here is how I did the bubbles. I was in a hurry and decided not to draw and clone bubbles so I just used a cloud brush set to white. Then I set the blend mode to Dissolve and boosted the contrast some.

Butch

[Wendy]

Hi Everyone ...

Thanks for all the information on how you did your images ... I find it interesting to know how things are done :)


Wendy

[Carbone]

Carol... that explains the state my desk is in actually... lol !!! :D :D

Ray

[Wendy]

Gary ...

I didn't know it was you ... your name is spelled wrong on the Challenge image.

I'd love to know how you did it :D :D


Wendy

[bwolford]

Wendy, I love the image of the angel trumpeter. Did you actually create that stained glass image yourself? Remarkable and well done.

Brice

[GaryK]

Wendy

When I went back to my image all I could find (other than the blur) was a very washed out layer. I think I might have done a diffused glow on the original photo, then added the blur layer (I'm not even sure if I blurred the whole layer or maybe tried to select the cage and just blurr the background) anyway, the blur was set to linear burn blend mode.

I have been trying to figure out a lot of the filters..just to see what they do, so I know what is available, as well as messing with blend modes.:D

[NMarti]

Wendy,
The cage just adopted that look when I used the move tool to put it on the background then set tolerance to 50% and used the magic eraser. It grabbed a lot of the highlights and left just the darker parts but, magically seemed to create a sketch-like effect. It cut out a lot of the lighter bars but I didn't mind because I liked the effect. Sometimes ya just stumble on things and it works.;)

[Tom M]

Thanks for the mention Wendy.
Liked your fan.

Jody, it has been said, that a lifetime is a wink of an eye.

[Wendy]

Hi Brice ...

The Angel Trumpeter (I guess you mean the one in my Gallery) is done using a Stained Glass Technique from this tut:

http://teamphotoshop.com/articles-The-Techniques-Make-your-own-stained-glass!-5,8,76a.html

You actually start off with a photograph (or in the Angel Trumpeter's case a painting). Its not too difficult to do but its very time consuming :)

Wendy