author: Xtro

introduction:

Sadly, it comes to us all sooner or later. Even more sadly for me, in my case it came way too soon. That's why I've gone to the trouble of writing this tutorial; to help out those guys (and in some certain cases I know - girls) who want to improve their image, albeit digitally. But who cares? I hear some you say, it's what is on the inside that counts. Too true, I heartily agree, but remember this: In 200 years time when we're all dead and gone, what's going to be left of you for your great-great-grandchildren to admire?

requirements:

Adobe Photoshop 6 or higher

target result:

step 1 Ok, let's get started. Open up photoshop. It's a good idea if you follow this tutorial with this photo first: step 2 Yeah, I know, tough-looking, cool guy, Homer Simpson head and beer gut. But not for much longer! What's important to remember when manipulating photographs is 'little by little'. Never make drastic changes in one stroke; this always results in bad results that can easily be seen by the casual observer. We are going to manipulate this image but slowly, using lots and lots of subtle strokes that are going to blend into the image. Now unfortunately, this means we are going to have to do a hell of a lot more work. I always find it easier to work without thinking too much on the final image. I concentrate on the task at hand and when I've had enough I save it and go and watch the Simpsons. Let's start with the beer gut. Press Z and zoom in on that belly. Oh dear, lots of work here. step 3 The two main tools that we will be using here are the liquify tool and the clone stamp. Let's start with liquify, as this works better with large (and in my case, very large) areas. To open up Liquify, simply click Filters->Liquify. Now this screen should pop up: step 4 On the left we have the various tools, and on the right, an area to modify those tools, depending on the job. (Quick note: To move our image around, simply press and hold the Space bar. You'll see that the cursor turns into a hand.) step 5 Right, first we have to focus on those areas we don't want to change. The shorts, for example, and the sand. This is where the mask comes in. Click the ninth tool down on the left. If you roll the cursor over it a note pops up to tell us the tool name. In this case it's the freeze tool. Ok, click it and change the brush settings. I have chosen 31 for size, because I just want to block out all the major areas at the moment, 100 for brush density, which basically gives us a hard edged brush, and 100 for brush presure. Ok, now 'paint' around that fat belly: step 6 Good, now let's change the brush size and carefully 'paint' right to the edge of that gut. One point: we're not actually painting on the image so don't worry! This is just a mask. You should end up with something like this: step 7 Use the zoom tool to get close in and do a good job. Right, that's our mask. Now for some fun; the pucker tool. It's the fourth tool down. Before we can use it we have to change the brush settings. Always remember when working on images 'softly, softly, little by little'. no one paints with bricks in the real world (well, that is probably not true), but with fine, horsehair brushes. Use very short strokes of your brush with a very low presure. Here are the settings I have used: - Brush size: 109 - Brush density: 34 - Brush pressure: 13 - Brush rate: 34 Have a few goes and always remember Crtl+Z to undo the last stroke. You'll find it is better to click the image without moving. Notice how the image inside the brush circle goes toward the centre. More slowly or quickly depending on your settings. step 8 See how our mask has frozen the sand and shorts? Now we are moving to try and move some excess fat a bit higher up. Click the top most tool. This actually allows us the move parts of the image. Pay special note of the settings and try to move that belly up, and the edges of the body, in: step 9 Click ok to return to photoshop. Now we have to clean up the top of the shorts and get rid of that line of fat! For this we will be using the clone stamp. Press 'S' on the keyboard. Now we should set up the clone brush: step 10 Choose a smallish, soft brush. Now we must Alt-click a piece we want to copy. This gives us a reference point to clone from. For best results choose a place close to where you want to change: step 11 For the top of the shorts I used a harder edged brush, and then the blur tool (R). Cloning is a lot of trial and error, so don't let your fingers stray from the Crtl+Z keys. The result is a very subtle effect, and we might not notice it if we don't compare to the original. This is precisely what we are looking for. If you can't notice the effect of photo manipulation, you're on the right track. step 12 Ok, on to the head. Adding hair to a baldy. Zoom in on that bald head: step 13 You'll notice that the pixels are blurred, so if we paint in hairs it won't look real. So let's try another way. Select the paint brush, press 'Q' to activate a mask, and paint the bald bits: step 14 Right, hit 'Q' again. This turns the mask into a selection. WATCH OUT! Because we have masked the head, that is the only thing not selected. Go to Select->Inverse. Now, that's better: step 15 Now we are going to use the Levels command. Press Crtl+L to bring up the levels window: step 16 Can you see what we have done? By moving the black triangle to the right, we have made the shadows darker. The middle triangle controls the midtones. Don't move the white, as this controls the highlights. You can see that the hair is now too red. To solve this, change the channel drop down menu to Red. Now move the midtone triangle slightly to the right again: final result Better, but now we have to use the clone stamp and blur tools to blend it in better:

practice this tutorial: beer gut and baldness removal practice contest!

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