Photoshop Tutorials: Easy Watercolor Painting Effect
Learn Adobe Photoshop with Photoshop Tutorials at Photoshop Essentials.com
Step 4: Apply The "Cutout" Filter
The first thing we're going to do is simplify our image, and we can do that using Photoshop's "Cutout" filter. With "Layer 1" selected, go up to the Filter menu at the top of the screen, choose Artistic, and then choose Cutout.
When the Cutout filter's dialog box appears, set the Number of Levels to 4, Edge Simplicity to 4, and Edge Fidelity to 2:
Click OK when you're done to apply the settings and exit out of the dialog box.
Step 5: Change The Blend Mode Of "Layer 1" to "Luminosity"
With "Layer 1" still selected, go up to the Blend Mode options in the top left of the Layers palette. By default, layers are set to the "Normal" blend mode. Click on the down-pointing arrow to the right of the word "Normal" and select the Luminosity blend mode from the bottom of the list:
Your image should now look something like this:
Step 6: Turn On The Layer Above "Layer 1" And Select The Layer
Still in the Layers palette, click inside the empty square where the eyeball icon used to be on the layer directly above "Layer 1" ("Layer 1 copy") to turn that layer back on, so it's visible again inside the document. Turning a layer back on doesn't actually select the layer though, and we need to have it selected as well, so once you've turned the layer back on, click anywhere else on "Layer 1 copy" to select it so it's highlighted in blue:
Step 7: Apply The "Dry Brush" Filter
We're going to add some texture to our image at this point. With "Layer 1 copy" selected and visible once again inside the document, go back up to the Filter menu at the top of the screen, choose Artistic once again, and this time, choose Dry Brush. When the Dry Brush filter's dialog box appears, set the Brush Size to 10, the Brush Detail to 10, and the Texture option to 3:
Click OK when you're done to apply the filter and exit out of the dialog box.
Step 8: Change The Layer Blend Mode To "Screen"
With "Layer 1 copy" still selected, go up to the Blend Mode options once again in the top left of the Layers palette, click on the down-pointing arrow to the right of the word "Normal", and change the blend mode for the layer to Screen:
Your image should now look something like this:
