Photoshop CS4 Extended – Advanced Techniques

It will come as no surprise to Motionworks regulars that I’m a big fan of Brian Maffitt. Brian is a veteran trainer and someone that I have aspired to while developing my own presentation style. The foundations of my After Effects knowledge were built watching Brian’s Total After Effects series.

But Brian hasn’t hosted training for some time. So when he mentioned he had just finished recording a brand new Advanced Photoshop CS4 Extended training course I had mixed emotions; part of me was so glad to see Brian once again hosting tutorials, the other half thought “Why Photoshop? Why not After Effects?  But now, having watched the training, I must say I’m impressed. I had no idea Brian had such an in-depth knowledge of Photoshop.

In this detailed, real-world training, Brian walks step-by-step through a dramatic poster design he originally created for the Rockland County Choral Society.

1. Artistic Compositing

In this chapter Brian demonstrates how to take a stock image of a dancer and transform it into a flame-engulfed fire sprite. The project includes tips on choosing source material; a terrific technique using Channels to cleanly select hair; a wealth of workflow tips including managing layers using Smart Objects; a creative technique for taking an existing illustration and customizing it, then using the Liquify tool to wrap the texture around the sprite; and techniques for compositing the sprite with images of fire.

2. 3D Modeling in Photoshop

3D was introduced in Photoshop CS3 but until now there has been no detailed training available. In this chapter Brian dives deep into the 3D features of Photoshop CS4 to create a truly jaw-dropping golden chalice, complete with skull and crossbones. The chapter starts with a brief introduction to 3D in Photoshop and then explores creating a 3D mesh from grayscale; creating and modifying depth maps, including a handy technique for making a seamless fractal noise map; and modeling using the Curves tool (which has to be seen to be believed); merging 3D layers and combining 3D objects.

I have to say that although the results Brian creates using the Photoshop tools are impressive, they weren’t easy to create. Modelling with Curves is cool but I’d much prefer to use a simple lathe in Cinema 4D. Having said that, if you don’t have access to a fully featured 3D software application, it’s pretty cool to know that you can model in Photoshop.

3. Textures and Lights

This chapter starts with a handy technique for creating a seamless metal texture, then moves deep into all of the texturing and lighting settings. Brian demonstrates how to apply the metal texture to the chalice and finely tweak material and lighting settings. The last 3 sections focus on adding detail using bump map textures, with impressive results.

4. 32 Bits – Putting It Together

This final chapter covers how to combine the fire sprite and chalice with a title to build the final poster. Brian starts by demonstrating how to place the fire sprite between copies of the chalice to create a convincing composite, then moves into a thorough explanation of 32bit compositing, including why you would use it and how to use it as an artistic tool. The final two lessons include a cool 32-bit technique for building the poster type element using no less than 6 different Layer Styles; and some must-know tricks for reducing the bit-depth of the final poster for print output.

If you want to explore some of the lesser-known aspects of Photoshop CS4 Extended or if you’re looking to improve your general Photoshop workflow, then this is an excellent training resource. As a trainer Brian is not only highly skilled but is equally warm, friendly and passionate, making watching these lessons a pleasure. I always get the feeling that Brian has my best interests at heart and truly wants me as a viewer to get the most out of the software.

For more information about this training click here. For a free-guest pass to Total Training click here.  You can also subscribe to Total Training for $24.99 per month to access the entire library of titles including Photoshop CS4 Extended – Advanced Techniques. This subscription also gives you access to the lesson work files.