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| Decide on a theme, and focus on that part of the image that emphasizes the theme.
This will give the design more impact. |
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A photo that is taken using definite techniques and is retouched correctly is more
attractive. When you print the photo, it can be thought of as a piece of art. In your design, use such a
photo as the basic material.
Select a photo, and choose a theme for your design. For a theme, you may decide what you want to emphasize or what
you want to appeal to with the photo. To make the image more rememberable, process the image by emphasizing an appealing
point such as the look of someone's piercing eyes, the feel of a cat's soft hair, or the feel of cold in a winter scene.
You must already know that an attractive photo has a theme of its own. When a photographer feels that someone's glance
is attractive, he or she might take the picture using composition or light that emphasizes the glance. In considering the
design, you are not creating an image that is far different from the theme of the original photo. For example, you cannot
emphasize a person's piercing eyes using a photo that has a small image of a person if the photo's theme is beautiful scenery.
First, ensure that the design harmonizes with the theme of the photo you intend to use. If you'd like to use several
photos, think about the design beforehand. After that, look for photos or take new photos that are in line with the theme.
In this way, the design possibilities are infinite.
In this sample, the method of emphasizing the theme of the design to provide highlights is introduced. |
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With ordinary photos, composition is an essential part of making
an attractive photo. In designing a photo, the priority is not "composition for an attractive photo" but "composition
for a theme." Image A was taken by a professional photographer, and the photo has an attractive enough
composition as is. If you are focusing on the theme, "expression of a mother and child," using the
photo as design material, you should trim away the unimportant parts in order to make a clear expression
because the original photo has too many other elements. Besides, it's best to brighten the periphery,
and emphasize the mother and child as in Image C.
Be careful of the resolution when you enlarge the image after trimming, as shown in the sample photo. |
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| A This attractive
photo is the original image. |
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B Trim away the
unimportant parts and enlarge the focused part to emphasize the expressions of the mother and
child. |
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C Brighten the
background to emphasize the mother and child. |
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| Next, for contrast, use the space in the background. Image D can
be used as a poster because it has an attractive image. The emphasis is on a girl facing forward. Add
a message to the image, and create the image so that the message appears to be coming from the girl.
Emphasize the girl and the message copy. Image E has an added message. In image F, the space to the
right of the girl has been enlarged. This design, with the larger space on the right, is more appealing. |
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| D This
is the original image. |
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E Arrange
the message as on a poster. |
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| F The
space to the right of the girl is enlarged. The message has more impact in combination with the
girl's image. |
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Any particular photo contains many elements. When combining several
photos, the attention each element receives decreases according to the number of the photos. Decide
on the overall theme, and emphasize the relevant parts while making the other parts less distinct.
In Photoshop, you can use a filter in many different ways to process an image. Use Photoshop to emphasize
the highlighted items.
For example, Image A gives the impression of the different expressions between the two people. In Image B, the other
areas are blurred to emphasize the girl in front. The view is arranged as if the photo were taken with the girl being the
main subject. (For method details, click here.) By using a filter
or adjustments in the other areas, Image C was processed to focus on the woman in back. Creating a texture or a color tone
different from the other part is one method of emphasis. |
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| A Are
they mother and child? Their expressions of contrast are impressive. |
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| B Blur
the other parts of the image to focus on the girl in front. |
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C Process
the textures and colors in the other parts to focus on the woman in back. |
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| Each photo has some parts that are light and some that are dark.
In a natural environment, all things are lit equally. However, in design, we can deliberately manipulate
the brightly lit parts and the shaded parts. When you lighten part of an image, as if the part were
spotlighted on stage, the effect is usually to emphasize that part and make it more important. |
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| A This
is the image of a shop window with equal lighting overall. |
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B If
only partly lit, the brightly lit part seems to be "saying" something. |
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| Next, change the intensity of light over distance. Image C has an
outdoor table and the inside of a building. Image D has a bright table in front and a dark background
as if the table were under intense light. You can easily see a clear contrast. In addition, a luminous
halo can be added to make it appear as if the photo were taken with back lighting. The image of the
table in front becomes much more distinct. |
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| C This
image gives the ambience of an open cafe in the afternoon. |
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D The
image of the outdoor table becomes more distinct. This image is more impressive. |
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| There are other methods of spotlighting by manipulating light and
shadow. To create a design with the theme of surprise, you may create unrealistic shadows or a shadow-free
image. Using the layer style function, you can create shadows to make an object appear to be floating.
If you're already aware of which types of light and shadow attract people's attention, you already
have hints for making highlights. |
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| E This
is an image of thick grass. This image has no major element. |
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F Copy
and paste part of the image on a different layer. Using the filter, change each texture, and
use the layer style function to create shadows to add a three-dimensional effect. The part of
the grass image attracts attention. (For
method details, click here.) |
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Finally, try making a difference in the colors of highlighted and
non-highlighted areas. As a simple method, put a highlighted part in color, and put a non-highlighted
area in monochrome or sepia. In Image A, the colors of the yellow parasols and red flowers are vivid.
In Image B, only the yellow parasols are in color, and the other areas are in sepia. The image of the
yellow parasols truly attracts attention. The image becomes a work of art. (For
method details, click here.)
It's not necessary to make such an extreme difference in colors, as in this case. However, you may apply this technique
extensively to the degree that you increase the saturation of the highlighted parts and decrease the saturation of the other
areas. |
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| A This
is a photo with vivid images. |
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B Change
the areas other than the yellow parasols to sepia. The image of the parasols becomes truly impressive. |
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Hue refers to colors such as red, blue, or green. If you change
the hue of an image, the impression of the image changes dramatically and you can create imaginary
scenes. For example, Image C has the image of colorful neon. In Image D, the hue is changed everywhere
except around the center tower. The red tower becomes more predominant because the colors of the images
of the other parts where the hues were changed becomes unrealistic.
Conversely, in some cases, it's better to change the hue of a highlighted part. For example, by changing the color
of a rose from red to blue, you make it the center of attention. |
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| C This
is a beautiful image of colorful neon. |
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D The
hues on the right and left sides have been changed. The colors of the changed parts become unrealistic,
and the center tower becomes predominant. |
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