How to Create a Painted Animal Portrait Effect in Adobe Photoshop (2023)

Pet portraits are a great way to add a creative touch to a photo of your beloved furry companion. Creating a hand painted portrait can seem intimidating and the kind of project only a talented artist should attempt. But Photoshop Smudge Brush makes the process so easy that even a beginner can achieve amazing results. In this tutorial, I'll walk you through the process of retouching a photo to suit a pet portrait, and then show you how to turn it into a hand-painted masterpiece. It's easy and fun!

This tutorial is part of a larger guide for the course:Creative photographic effects in Adobe Photoshop.

1.prepare a photo

Simply turning a photograph into a painted portrait often yields mediocre results. Because photos often contain the natural chaos of the real world, while painted images often depict an idealized version of reality.

This division between realism and idealism is subtle but important. The paintings are intentional: each brushstroke is placed for a specific reason. Photos show how the world really is, picturesque or not.

The best results from any photo-to-paint process must take this into account. Therefore, the original photo almost always needs to be edited a bit before the painting process begins.

Step 1

Start usingDownload attachmentlink to restore the original image,Animals-3.jpg. Open the file inPhotoshopand note that there are a number of things that don't fit into an idealized, painted version of this pup. The handles hanging from the frame and even the chair leg distract from focus.

Step 2.

Use oPolygonal Lasso Tool (L)to create a rough selection around the chair leg. then go toEdit > Filland set theSatisfiedAContent sensitive.

BeatACCORDINGLYand Photoshop fills the selected pixels with new pixels from the background to remove the chair from the image.

Use the same process to remove the streaks from the top of the photo as well. When you're done, use to clear all selectionsSelect > Deselect (Ctrl-D).

step 3

Use oSpot Healing Brush Tool (J)for removing stains and small blemishes that can be distracting when soiled. Our photo has some spots on the nose that can be cleaned.

Level 4

Add a new layer namedblack eyeand use thosePaintbrush Tool (B)to gently darken the outside of the eyeballs. It may seem troubling now, but the end result will be worth it.

step 5

Use oPen Tool (P)to draw a crescent shape for an iris. Use a light brown color for the fill (#c07c3e). The shape will eventually soften during the blending process, so don't worry too much about getting the shape perfectly right.

step 6

We use a combination oflayer stylesto give a more natural look to the shape of the iris.double clickIseye shapelayer and add the following style settings.

add oneinner shadowstyle with these settings:

• Use global lightis unchecked
• Store:-79
• Size:10 Pixel
  

add oneinner glowstyle with these settings:

• Opacity:53%
• Those:Center
• Suffocation:15%
• Size:8 Pixel
  

add oneOverlay-Musterstyle with these settings:

• Mix-Modus: Seem
• opacity: 48%
• Standard:stains
• Scale:Sixty-five%
  

Then finally add adrop shadowLayer style with these settings:

• Mix-Modus: Body
• Kor: #d79356
  
• deactivateUse global light
• Store:-119
• Distance:4 Pixel
• Size:4 Pixel
  

The end result should be an iris that looks a lot more realistic.

step 7

Use oMove tool (V)and hold theAlternativeto drag a copy of the iris shape to another eye.

step 8

Paintings often contain more saturated colors than photographs. GoLayer > New Adjustment Layer > Vibrance. ChooseintensityA+88to give the photo a deeper color saturation.

step 9

The nose could use an extra shade of pink. GoLayer > New Adjustment Layer > Hue/Saturation. Check aKorbox and use this setting:

• hue: 359
• saturation: 33
• ease: -13
  

step 10

Click on the cover thumbnail for thecolor saturationCustomization layer to guide you. then go toEdit > Filland chooseNegroFor theSatisfiedto fill the mask with black and hide the color effect.

step 11

Lead toPaintbrush Tool (B)jdouble clickIschip de cor de closeup. Set the color toBranco.The right mouse buttonto get thatContext brush box.ChooseRound smoothPreset brushes and customize brushesSizeA40 Pixelit's himtoughnessA50%.

Now use the brush to paint the color effect back onto the dog's nose. Be sure to keep pointing to thecolor saturationadjustment layerlayer mask. to reduce itopacityto the adjustment level68%.

step 12

Now let's highlight the blue color of the matte. Add newcolor saturationadjustment layer. change thatFarbkanaldrop down menu forBluesand make the following settings:

• hue: -29
• saturation: +60
• ease: +21
  

step 13

Select all levels by walking toSelect > All Layers (Alt-Control-A)and turn them all into one smart objectLayer > Smart Objects > Convert to Smart Objects. Change the layer name toRetouch animal portrait.

step 14

The dithering process works best when the finer details of the image are removed first. GoFilter > Blur > Smart Blurand use these settings.

• Radio: 2,0
• Border: 50,0
• Quality: Alt
  

step 15

OrFilter > Blendand use thoseinflation tool. Adjust the brush size so that it's slightly larger than the dog's eye and click a few times to gently enlarge the eyeball. Do this for both eyes.

step 16

The nose looks slightly crooked at this point. When I was still incondenserwindow, use theFerramenta Forward Distortion (W)to adjust the nose shape and make the nose fold more vertical.

2.mix basics

Now that the photo is retouched and ready to be turned into a painting, we need to define thatwipe toolto blur the pixels properly. The smudge brush has an interesting quirk in that it tends to ignore low transparency settings on layers. Some see this as a bug, but we'll use it as a function to create the painting effect.

Step 1

Reduce Photo LayeropacityA15%. That should make it barely visible. Then add a new layer above the called photoBasic Blur.

step 2

Choosewipe tool.If you don't see it, hold down the mouse buttonblur tooluntil you reach the Tools dropdown menu and select thewipe toolfrom there. NOoptions bar, open thisbrush selectiondrop down menu and click on the gear icon near the top right corner. ChooseLöffel mfrom the list.

If prompted, chooseattachAdd brushes to your list or preset brushes.

step 3

NOpreset brushScroll down the panel near the bottom of the list where the new brushes have been added. ChooseMace Oil Cakebrush and adjustSizeA36 Pixel. baldto brushpanel, activecreate dynamicsand make the following settings.

• size variation control: The pen pressure (if you are using a pressure-sensitive graphics tablet; otherwise ignore this setting)
• Angle Jitter Control: Start address
  

wrap thetransferProperty and make the following settings.

Power Fluctuation Control: The pen pressure (if you are using a pressure-sensitive graphics tablet; otherwise ignore this setting)

Level 4

Here is the real magic of this technique. Use ofwipe toolwith himTry all layersEnabling means the tool will extract pixel information from the layer below, even if that layer is barely visible. The tool ignores the opacity setting and "sees" it as fully opaque.

So running the brush across the image creates smudged brushstrokes that pull color from the pixels in the photo without actually painting over the photo!

So follow the natural course of the coat to capture the dog's main features. Pay attention to natural contours and do not rub them.

step 5

Add a new layer namedbackground staindirectly above the photo plane. This is the layer to paint all non-focus areas of the painting.

The only difference when painting the background area is the brush size. It should be significantly larger to create brushstrokes with less detail. I suggest oneSizesomewhere inbetween200 Pixelj250 Pixel.

step 6

Continue with the feathered color for the background elements. Along the edges of key strokes, be sure to stroke toward the edge, not away, or you might accidentally smudge the original strokes.

3.Detailed blending work

Now that the basic stain painting is complete, it's time to turn your attention to the finer details. This really helps the piece feel like a painting and not just a filter job. Some of the features like the nose and eyes require some attention to refine the details.

Step 1

hide thatbasic blurjbackground stainlayers. Add a new layer above it calledstain details. Set the photo layeropacitybis75%. Choosewipe tool FortalezaA75%and reduce theSizeone20 Pixel. Then carefully trace the finer details of the nose to create a sharper blurred version.

step 2

turn offTry all layersoption and obligationPaint with your fingersPossibility. This feature puts the ink on the screen first and then smudges it. Set the ink color to onNegro, reduce the brushSizeA10 Pixeland tighten the dark areas around the iris. Change the color to a bright orange.#a86f2dand add a light area to the iris shape near the bottom left corner.

step 3

turn offPaint with your fingersoption and obligationTry all layersPossibility. Reduce brushSizebis5 Pixeland use short strokes emanating from the pupil to create texture in the iris area.

Level 4

Use oPaint with your fingersOption again to add some white specular reflection points in front of the bright iris area. These little sparks give the impression that the eyes are moist and alive.

Make sure to complete both eyes using the same techniques. Pay attention to the direction of the light so that the eyes appear illuminated by the same light source.

step 5

In order to give the fur a more realistic fur texture, we will create our own brush for this purpose. GoFile > Newand create a document with aanchovon100 PixelIt is aHeightvon100 Pixelem300 ppp.

Use oRound smoothpreset brush with aSizevon5 Pixelto create multiple small dots in a compact but random pattern.

OrEdit > Define Brush Presetand name the brushHairbrush. This brush preset is now available at the bottom of yourpreset brushLibrary. The brush file can be closed without saving.

step 6

Go back to the main project file and thewipe tool. Use the newly created oneHairbrushthrough the tip Reduce theSizeone25 Pixel. ChooseFortalezaA75%. wrap theTry all layersFold check boxOut ofIsPaint with your fingersPossibility. Add a new layerskin spot, and gently rub the transition areas to create the appearance of fine strands of hair.

When coloring fur you may find that the tip of the brush needs to be rotated to get a better angle. The easiest way to do this isthe right mouse buttonto open thecontext brushTable and use thoseRotations-Widget.

step 7

Then create a new layer forsingle strands. Use oRound smoothbrush tip with aSizevon4 Pixel, disable theTry all layersoption and enable itPaint with your fingersPossibility. ChooseFortalezaA95%and the ink color to a light gray#dfdbd8. Using very quick and gentle movements, pull individual strands for whiskers, eyebrows and even a few strands for ears.

4.finishing touches

The primary painting step is complete at this point. You're almost done! All that's left is a handful of finishing effects. These are not mandatory but add the finishing touch to an already great piece!

Step 1

Add a new layer namedBrancodirectly above the photo plane. Use theEdit > Fillcommand to fill it with white.

step 2

Add another new layer to the top of the layer stackstained edge. Use osoft oil paintbrush tip again withSizeadapted to150 Pixel, it's himTry all layerscompromised option. Make sure you turn those offPaint with your fingersPossibility. Continue to blur the transition between the painted area and the white background.

The result should be a wraparound edge that looks much smoother and painterly.

step 3

Create a merged layer by holding down the buttonAlternativekey when walkingLayer > Fade Visible. Rename the resulting layershortcut. ChooseFusionsmodusAdim lightEnhance the colors and reduce theopacityA50%to weaken the effect a bit.

Level 4

Add a new layer namedBodyabout itmergedCapacity Use oEdit > FillCommand again, but dial50 % grausinceSatisfiedMenu. Then switch levelsFusionsmodusAcollectand the gray fill is completely invisible.

step 5

OrFilter > Filter Galleryand open thetextureFile. Choosetexturingfilter and use the following settings:

• texture: Body
• Climb:132%
• Relief:4
• Luz:Over
  

This gives the painting a subtle canvas texture and enhances the illusion that the piece is a real painting and not a leaked photo.

step 6

The canvas should be an off-white color to make it look more realistic.double clickabout itBodylayer to open thelayer styleAdd a dialogcolor overlaystyle with the following settings.

• Blending mode:Multiply
• Kor:#fff9e8
  

and here is the final effect!

Want more?

Did you enjoy this project and are you looking forward to learning more creative photo painting techniques in Photoshop? This project is just one of several covered in thecreative photo effectsof course here on Tuts+. Watch the full course to learn about the oil paint filter, the blend brush tool, and even how to create your own custom paint swatch.

As a final treat, here's a time-lapse video of this pet portrait project, for your enjoyment!