Photoshop Challenge

      We were given a large amount of freedom with this project, the only limitations were that our edits needed to convey the various skills we had developed through our photoshop tutorials

      Initially I attempted to go with the example's nature theme, not expanding my creativity very far. I tried to create the illusion that flowers were growing out of his head. I spent a whole class period on this concept, but I ended up abandoning it, as I wasn't exactly feeling that it was my best work.

      I sat there for a bit trying to think of something new when I heard someone say the word space. it felt so right, abstract and full of possibilities.

      I started by adding in images of our solar system's planets by selection layers to remove the images' backgrounds. I attempted to place them in a way that represented a crown, or as if the planets were revolving around the man. By tucking some planets behind his head using the erase tools, I hoped to add depth, making it more clear they were not side by side. I think I probably should have made the planet farther back have a slightly darker overlay. 

     I thought that the space theme looked somewhat unnatural against a stark white background, so I added a image of some stars and worked to blend it in. I placed a masked layer of the man ( but not the background ) above the stars. I placed the image at the top of the screen. I then took a large, low opacity brush, and worked to make a semi natural uneven fade.

     I decided that I wanted to add the sun, but in a different, and more significant way than the planets. I added a selection layer of the sun behind the man as if he was the horizon it was rising over. I amped up the brightness and added a dark overlay over the rest of the composition. With a strong light source I decided to give the planets a shadow that would hit the mans face and hair.

     Lastly I decided to give his suit jacket the appearance of a galaxy through the use of layer masks and opacity.

     All in all I think my final piece turned out pretty well. I feel that it conveys a strong sense of power and significance in a way that feels impactful. The only major thing I would change is making more of a sense of depth and movement within the planets. If I hadn't been short on time, I was planning on adding some soft small white line curves to get this across. But I think it looks good enough with out the addition.