I was asked for a few tips and I figured I'd start a thread in case anyone else had tips or questions. I'm no expert but I'm happy to help if possible, and hopefully some of the real pros will post as well.
Ok first off I'm using Adobe Photoshop 7.0 so if your using something else this may not apply. I only use a few tools in PS but so far it seems to be enough to get me by.
First tip is changing the color of something, which you'll need to do on almost any project. This is the way I do it but there are many others.
The number one helper is the
Magnetic Lasso Tool (from left to right this is the third tool, by right clicking over any of the icons you get 3 options of the tool). With this I can trace points over any section I want to adjust, if I make a mistake I can
hold Ctrl &
hit Del and it will move back 1 point. By tracing back to the first point you will complete the section.
From there I go down to the color squares and choose the Foreground Color. I pick the color I want, usually a lighter tone.
Then I go the
Filter tab all the way at the top, the sixth from the left.
Go to
Artistic, Go to
Neon Glow.
You will get a preview window of the section. Choose a darker tone of the first color, and then adjust the
Glow Size and
Glow Brightness till it looks like what you wanted. I usually find that the
Glow Size to be in the negative with the
Glow Brightness in the positive. Watch the original image's shadows to make sure you do not invert the light and dark.
Before you deselect your section, now is a good time to add shine to your section if it's needed.
Go to
Filter,
Artistic,
Plastic Wrap. By adjusting the 3 levels you can get a nice shine on anything.
