ACTIVITY #4: PHOTO COLLAGE

What You'll Need

To recreate the design above, you will need the following resources:

• Stock Image
• Background

1. Let's Get Started

First, open the photo that you want to work with. To open your photo,
go to File > Open, choose your photo, and click Open. Now, before we
get started, just check a couple of things:

1. Your photo should be in RGB Color mode, 8 Bits/Channel. To

check this, go to Image > Mode.
2. For best results, your photo size should be 3000–4000 px
wide/high. To check this, go to Image > Image Size.
3. Your photo should be the Background layer. If it is not, go
to Layer > New > Background from Layer.
2. How to Select the Subject
Step 1
In this section, we are going to make a selection of our subject and
then copy the subject to a separate layer. Choose the Quick Selection
Tool (W), and select the background of the photo. Use the Shift-
Alt buttons on your keyboard to add or subtract some areas from the
selection. After you've made a perfect selection, press Control-Shift-
I to invert the selection.

Step 2
Now go to Select > Modify > Smooth and set the Sample Radius to 5
px. Then, go to Select > Modify > Contract and set Contract By to 2
px. After that, go to Select > Modify > Feather and set the Feather
Radius to 2 px as shown below:
Step 3
Press Control-J on your keyboard to create a new layer using the
selection. Then, name this layer Subject.
3. How to Add the Background
In this section, we are going to add the background. Select
the Background layer, go to File > Place Embedded, select
the background from the link, and click Place. Then, set
the Width and Height of the layer to 70.62% as shown below, and
name this layer Background.
4. How to Make a Photo Collage
Step 1
In this section, we are going to make a photo collage. Select
the Subject layer, set the foreground color to #ff0000 , and choose
the Rectangle Tool (U). Then, click anywhere inside the canvas to
create a rectangle and set the Width and Height to 1200 px.
Step 2
Now choose the Move Tool (V), and click and drag anywhere inside
the canvas to position the rectangle as shown below:
Step 3
Press Control-T on your keyboard to transform this layer and set
the Angle of the layer to 15° as shown below:

Step 4
Now press Control-J on your keyboard to duplicate this layer and drag
it just below the Rectangle 1 layer in the Layers panel. Then, choose
the Move Tool (V) and click and drag anywhere inside the canvas to
position the rectangle as shown below:
Step 5
Press Control-T on your keyboard to transform this layer and set
the Angle of the layer to -30°.
Step 6
Now name this layer Rectangle 2.
Step 7
Now press Control-J on your keyboard to duplicate this layer and drag
it just below the Rectangle 2 layer in the Layers panel. Then, choose
the Move Tool (V) and click and drag anywhere inside the canvas to
position the rectangle as shown below:
Step 8
Press Control-T on your keyboard to transform this layer and set
the Angle of the layer to -30° as shown below:
Step 9
Now name this layer Rectangle 3.
Step 10
Press Control-J on your keyboard to duplicate this layer and drag it
just below the Rectangle 3 layer in the Layers panel. Then, choose
the Move Tool (V) and click and drag anywhere inside the canvas to
position the rectangle as shown below:
Step 11
Now name this layer Rectangle 4.
Step 12
Press Control-J on your keyboard to duplicate this layer and drag it
just below the Rectangle 4 layer in the Layers panel. Then, choose
the Move Tool (V) and click and drag anywhere inside the canvas to
position the rectangle as shown below:
Step 13
Press Control-T on your keyboard to transform this layer and set
the Angle of the layer to -15° as shown below:
Step 14
Now name this layer Rectangle 5.
Step 15
Press Control-J on your keyboard to duplicate this layer and drag it
just below the Rectangle 5 layer in the Layers panel. Then, choose
the Move Tool (V) and click and drag anywhere inside the canvas to
position the rectangle as shown below:
Step 16
Now press Control-T on your keyboard to transform this layer and set
the Angle of the layer to -60°:
Step 17
Name this layer Rectangle 6.
Step 18
Now press Control-J on your keyboard to duplicate this layer and drag
it just below the Rectangle 6 layer in the Layers panel. Then, choose
the Move Tool (V) and click and drag anywhere inside the canvas to
position the rectangle as shown below:
Step 19
Press Control-T on your keyboard to transform this layer and set
the Angle of the layer to 30°:
Step 20
Now name this layer Rectangle 7.
Step 21
Press Control-J on your keyboard to duplicate this layer and drag it
just below the Rectangle 7 layer in the Layers panel. Then, choose
the Move Tool (V) and click and drag anywhere inside the canvas to
position the rectangle as shown below:
Step 22
Now name this layer Rectangle 8.
Step 23
Select the Subject layer and drag it just above the Rectangle 1 layer in
the Layers panel. Then, press Control-Alt-G on your keyboard to
create a clipping mask. After that, name this layer R_1_Subject.
Step 24
Now press Control-J on your keyboard to duplicate this layer and drag
it just above the Rectangle 2 layer in the Layers panel. Then,
press Control-Alt-G to create a clipping mask and name this
layer R_2_Subject.
Step 25
Repeat this process to create clipping masks for the remaining
rectangle layers.
Step 26
Now Right-click on the Rectangle 1 layer, choose Blending Options,
and use the settings below:
Step 27
Repeat the previous step for all the remaining rectangle layers.

Step 28
Now you can rearrange the layers in the Layers panel or reposition
them using the Move Tool (V) to avoid slicing through the specific
areas of the subject. Then, rename the layers accordingly.
Step 29
Select the R_1_Subject layer and Shift-click on the Rectangle 8 layer
to select all layers between. Then, go to Layer > New > Group from
Layers to create a new group from the selected layers and name
it Photo Collage.
Step 30
Now press Control-A on your keyboard to make a selection of the
canvas. Choose the Move Tool (V), and click on Align Vertical
Center and then on Align Horizontal Center to align the layer group
both vertically and horizontally.

You Made It!

Congratulations, you have succeeded! You have learned how to make
a photo collage in Photoshop. Here is our final result: