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How To Create Minimalistic Landscapes Using Blur Filters in Photoshop

 For at least 10 - 15 years I love creating abstract minimalistic landscapes such as beach and forest scenes in my post processing of photos using a range of Photoshop's blur filters.  Here's one of my latest images that features this (and other) techniques: The original photo was taken almost 15 years ago with a 7 megapixel Canon Camera, but I wanted to challenge myself and try to make more interesting image out of it.  Start I came across this image while browsing through my photo archive and kind of liked the scene with the woman enjoying standing in or close to the surf. Editing Steps 1. I expanded the image from its 4:3 ratio to a square format making the added part transparent. Then I selected the blue sky and erased it. As I knew I wanted to create an abstract image I searched for a cloudy sky and found a suitable photo in my library, that would make a more interesting sky than a bland blue one.   I positioned this sky a layer under the beach photo and go...
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Workflow - Vanishing World

Hello all -
today another insight into my workflow regarding foggy landscapes. The picture I chose dates back a few years and was taken on a very misty November morning.  I will show you how I

1. processed this in Lightroom
2. treated it in Photoshop

Before+after: Please move mouse over this picture!

Vanishing World
   


Lightroom

OK, this morning I came across this picture. Apart from being rather dull and overexposed  at first glance, I thought that it had some potential, that I wanted to bring to shine...




There isn't really much to see and it was clear from the start, that I had to later crop it, meaning to change into a square format.
Regardless, I started working on the uncropped picture.
Most of the time I use presets in Lightroom  - either the ones I developed myself over time or I use some of the various free ones, that you can find on the internet.
If I like the tones I then start manipulating the contrast, sharpness and all other features that need correcting in my opinion. I also cropped the image in Lightroom and exported the file to Photoshop.

List with sites where you can find LR presets: The-growing-list-of-free-lightroom-presets

Photoshop

I liked the tones and the enhanced contrast on the fence's poles, but felt something was missing in depth and light direction. This picture was also a welcome opportunity to check, whether my new Summer Haze Pack textures work with this low contrast conditions.

I chose a few textures that were similar in tone and began playing around. That means trying out different blending modes at different opacity settings.  

Layers Vanishing World

As you can see, I used three textures.
Because the picture still felt flat I used a layer mask on the Moss Garden - texture layer to change the light & brightness. Thus I was able to direct the viewers attention to the fence and the grass on the ground.
The Stone brushed - texture helped to recover/ enhance the foggy atmosphere of the picture.

Though there were a lot of crows flying around ,there unfortunaetly wasn't one around when I shot this, so I used a brush to add the one you see in this picture.

Finally I corrected the contrast and added a blue hue using curves.
I also intensified the gras' yellow with he Selective Colors tool.
That's all!

If you like working with textures my different packs might be of interest to you:

Texture Packs 


Have a nice weekend!!
Thanks for stopping by!

Dirk



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