Wandering Alone

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Overview: The image above is a surreal composite create from five different images. It demonstrates color matching techniques as well as the inclusion of details in order to make it seem more real. If you look closely you can notice that each shadow is angled in sufferance to the sun, there are foot prints behind the wanderer, and each piece has been color matched so that they blend together easier.

 Process: This project took about four hours to create, but a portion of that time was due to researching the different processes and tips on how to improve them. The impetus behind the image's creation was seeing landscape creations similar to this with warped dimensions. To achieve this effect I used the perspective warp utility and created ninety degree angles. After doing this the sky did not match so I created a protruding gradient from each side and then used the mixing brush tool to blend them all together. With the background created I then used the pen tool to pull the model and each cactus from two separate images, carrying the selection from one file to another. However, the colors did not match so I then had to create a levels adjustment layer. This allowed me to directly draw values from the background in order to dictate a highlight and shadow tone. This levels adjustment was later added to the clouds and sunlight as well. Next I added the footprints by pulling them from another image using the quick selection tool, decreasing their opacity, and adding a Gaussian blur via the filters menu in order to make them less noticeable. The final step was the shadows. For each shadow I first copied the subject in question to a new layer. In that layer I then set the exposure almost at the minimum value, flipped the image horizontally, and rotated it ninety degrees. To make the shadow blend better with the landscape all that was done was reducing the opacity and adding another Gaussian blur.

 For the future: If I decide to create a process like this again, I would like to use a different background. The plain desert was good for a first foray into landscape manipulation, but overall is bland. Instead I would use something with more features such as a town, city, harbor, mountain range, etc. This would make it more appealing to the viewer and draw more attention to the image. I would also use a different model because the parka does make sense within the desert setting.

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