Smoke bombs definitely top the charts when it comes to the list of things that can make your photography much more exciting. Seriously, who wouldn’t love the ability to add excitement to their photos with colors of their own choice.

The use of smoke bombs for photography has been on the rise in recent times, and for good reason. This small and safe pyrotechnique is not just fun to shoot with but also makes a whole lot of difference to your photos when used the right way.

As fun and rewarding working with smoke bombs are, there are a few things that you must be familiar with. We have prepared this extensive guide on how to use smoke bombs for photography that’ll help you out as you pull the pin on your first smoke bomb.

How to Use Smoke Bombs for Photography

1. Safety First

Smoke bombs are fireworks after all. Therefore, it is essential that you follow some guidelines for the safety of the model, yourself, and the people that are around you.

• Use the smoke bombs in an open space with proper ventilation
• Ensure that there are no inflammable objects around
  
• Always keep the smoke bomb pointed away from the body to prevent getting burnt from any accidental flares
  
• Avoid close contact with clothes as the dye can leave a stain on the fabric
  
• As the smoke bomb can get a little warm, hold it at the base to prevent any accidental burns
  
• While you’ll be able to breathe fine when using a smoke bomb, feel free to use a face mask in case you feel uncomfortable with the smoke

2. Wind and Smoke Bombs Don’t Go So Well

For quite obvious reasons, it is definitely a good idea to schedule your smoke bomb photography on a windy day. The breeze will easily blow the smoke away and dilute the effect of the smoke. If it’s windy, wait for the wind to settle or postpone the shoot if required.

To reduce the effect of wind on your smoke bomb photography session, plan your shoot in areas that have some sort of wind shelters like buildings, a tunnel, or a forest.

3. Get Multiple Smoke Bombs for Photography

Don’t make the mistake of getting yourself just a single smoke bomb for photography purposes just because it’s your first time. To be honest, the first few smoke bombs that you’ll use will probably end up getting wasted as you practice with them.

It’s also worth noting that each smoke bomb lasts for about 60-90 seconds depending on which one you get. You may or may not be able to get your shots during that window of time. So, it helps having a few extra smoke bombs in the inventory.

It also makes a whole lot of sense to get different colored ones as you can create more vibrant images that way.

4. Shoot Against Neutral Colored Backgrounds

If you want the colorful smoke to really stand out and become the focal point of the image, a great idea is to shoot in front of a background that’s free from any sort of distractions. Backgrounds that are plain and neutral colored work best.

It also helps if the color of the smoke bomb contrasts greatly with the color of the background.

But if you didn’t get the color that you would’ve wanted to use, there’s absolutely no need to worry. You can easily change the color of the smoke to your liking using the color replacement tool in Colorcinch. Here’s how.

Step 1: Upload the image to Colorcinch.

Step 2: Navigate to Edit – Replace Color. You can then choose your target and destination colors.

Step 3: Using the Color Picker in the From option, click on the smoke to grab its color. Then, using the Color Picker in the To option, choose your preferred color. This will instantly apply your preferred color to the smoke.

You can use the Slider to adjust the Color Range and exclude unnecessary regions using the Erase option.

Here’s a quick before/after for comparison.

5. Move the Smoke Bomb Around

The trick to getting the most voluptuous smoke is to move the smoke bomb around. Big movement at a medium pace creates the best results. You can either ask the model to move the smoke bomb around or have an assistant do it.

Big movements create a longer trail for the smoke to follow and medium speed gives the smoke enough time to billow and grow. Before you start taking the pictures, be sure to practice the movement with the model or the assistant.

6. Camera Settings for Photography Using Smoke Bombs

There are a few important things with regards to camera settings that you want to keep in mind when working with smoke bombs.

Shutter Speed

Since the smoke will be gushing out of the smoke bomb, be sure to use a fast shutter speed. Something in the range of 1/1000s will let you capture the crisp textures in the smoke while also having the model in sharp focus.

Using a slower shutter speed will make the smoke appear thin like a fog which is not something that we’d want.

Aperture

When taking portraits, we usually set our aperture to the widest setting like f/1.8. However, that might not be a good idea when you’re using a smoke bomb for photography.

That’s because your camera can focus on the thin layer of smoke that’s in front of the subject and result in a soft-looking image which is undesirable. Have the lens a few stops narrower instead to have a slightly greater depth of field.

7. Use Smoke Bombs With Flash

Using a flash in smoke bomb photography makes the image more dynamic. By doing so, you can not only add drama to the image but also create a clear separation between the subject and the smoke.

Results come out the best when the flash is placed at the sides. And be sure to avoid placing the flash at the back as it dilutes the effect of the smoke bomb considerably. Also, set the flash to a lower flash power as you can freeze the smoke and the subject better at low power.

To Sum It Up

Working with smoke bombs for photography is a fun and creative way to take your photography to the next level. As you must’ve noticed in the images above, the colors and textures they add to the image are just amazing.

If you’re someone who loves to have bright and vibrant elements in the images, we highly recommend that you use smoke bombs in some of your photos. They’ll definitely be a valuable addition to your portfolio.

The post How to Use Smoke Bombs for Photography: The Essential Guide appeared first on Photo to Cartoon – Cartoonize Yourself & Create Avatar Characters for Free.

Family photography is one of those special genres of photography that lets you capture treasurable moments in your camera. Whether you’re doing it for your client or for yourself, the results are sure to put a smile on the viewers’ faces; especially in the years to come.

Gone are the days when taking family photos meant having the family members take a seat in front of the camera, asking them to smile, and taking their photos. Family photographs make proper sense when they appear natural.

In this article, we’ll discuss everything you need to know on how you can take the perfect family photographs.

Camera Gear for Family Photography

Camera

An ideal camera for family photography should have a good mix of speed and resolution.

We say speed because a camera that has a good burst rate of at least 5-8 frames per second will be helpful to photograph active kids. With kids running around, you’ll be able to easily photograph some of their candid moments.

And even though a very high-resolution camera is not required, something around the range of 24 megapixels would be the best. This will allow you to capture detailed shots and even let you crop a bit if required.

Lens for Family Photography

Depending on the family size and the kind of shots you’re going for, you might want to consider taking along a good mix of lenses for family photoshoots.

A wide-angle lens, something in the range of 18-24mm would be ideal to take a group shot of a big joint family. It’d also come in handy to include their home in the background, and for indoor family photography as well.

A medium telephoto lens, in the range of 24-70mm and 85mm would be idle to photograph a smaller family together, and for portraits of individual family members.

For candid shots, you might need to shoot from a good distance so that the family members don’t get conscious about your presence. This is where the telephoto lens in the range of 70-200mm would come in handy.

Family Photography Lighting Techniques

If you’re planning to take some indoor shots, we highly recommend that you use an external flash. But don’t make the mistake of pointing it directly towards the subject. Instead, bounce the flash off the closest wall or ceiling for some excellent soft lighting.

Alternatively, if there’s a large window through which light can come through, you can ask the family members to pose close to it. Afterall, natural light is the best light.

As for photographing family outdoors, any time can be a good time. Find an area with shade and use flash with a light modifier such as a softbox for posed photos. For candid shots, you’ll need to make the most out of natural light.

With that said, the more preferred light would still be golden light. By photographing during the golden hour, you can create images with a soft and beautiful glow to them. Be sure to go through our guide to golden hour photography and make the most of the magic hour.

In case you cannot schedule your shoot during the evening, you can still take the help of Colorcinch’s overlays to add a golden touch to your flat-looking daytime shots. Simply follow these steps:

Step 1: Upload the image you took during noon to Colorcinch.

Step 2: Navigate to Overlays – Light Leaks.

Step 3: From the list of various light leaks, select one that suits your image the most to add a golden glow. Fine-tune the overlay by clicking on the Settings icon, and adjust the intensity using the Slider. Then click on Apply.

Step 4: To give an effect of the sun peeping through, navigate to Overlays – Sun Flare & Haze.

Step 5: Choose an appropriate overlay that suits your image. Fine-tune it by clicking on the Settings icon, and adjust the intensity using the Slider. Then click on Apply.

Once you add the golden hour effect by combining these two overlays, you can notice how beautiful your otherwise flat image appears. Here’s a before/after for comparison.

Family Photography: 5 Important Things to Consider

1. Scheduling the Shot

In family photography, it is very important to factor in the daily schedule of the youngest family member (babies and toddlers) when planning the day. Your day should start when they’re fully rested and well-fed.

There’s a high chance that your flow will be disrupted if the parents need to take a break to feed the child, or to put them to sleep.

2. Get the Safe Shots First

Before getting all creative during the family photo session, it’s best that you start off with the safe shots first. The idea is to try all the possible combinations by shuffling the family members around so that you get a variety of shots early on.

Start by including all the family members first, then gradually add and remove members as you shoot. For instance, once you’re done with the group photo, try just the dad with the kids, followed by just the mom with the kids, then photograph just the kids, and so on.

3. Include the Pet in the Family Photo

Pets are an invaluable part of the family. So, don’t make the mistake of excluding them from the family photo. Get the family members to play with the pet, caress them, or even run around if possible.

Photos with our four-legged friends in them are sure to carry an emotional value in the long run.

4. Take Dynamic Family Photos

Family photos should look dynamic and full of energy. Let the kids be who they are and ask the parents to play along. We all know how kids love running around or playing with their favorite toys. So why not incorporate that in the family photo?

Even ask everyone to jump around, make funny faces, or even laugh out loud. The energy that the family members give out in the process will really shine through the photo.

Set your camera to shoot continuous frames and use a fast shutter speed. Also, set the focus mode to continuous. Doing so will ensure that you get most of the frames in sharp focus. This is essential when everyone’s getting energetic.

5. Enough of Posing – Take Candid Family Photos

In the early stages of the family photography session, chances are high that you’ll be telling them what to do. But once everyone gets comfortable with the process, you should try leaving them on their own photograph them “stealthily” for candid photos.

Another good idea is to give them a break and tell them to do whatever they want while you continue photographing them without announcing it to them. Or, give them a game to play or a task to complete together, and photograph the moments while they do it.

To Sum it Up

The most important aspect of family photography is to be able to keep everyone engaged. While you will get maximum support from the father and the mom, it’s the children that you must be most concerned about.

Besides paying attention to the poses, lighting, and camera settings, see how you can make people smile. After all, that same smile will be treasured by your clients for years and years to come.

The post A Complete Guide to Family Photography: 5 Important Considerations appeared first on Photo to Cartoon – Cartoonize Yourself & Create Avatar Characters for Free.

Fireworks photography is a great way to freeze a moment that you’ll probably remember for the rest of your life. After all, it’s not that we get to see the spectacular shows every day.

But we must admit, as fun, as it is to watch fireworks shows, photographing them, is not everyone’s affair. You need to have some level of technical know-how, and loads of patience to take bedazzling photos of fireworks.

In this article, we’ll share a simple guide that’ll help you take some spectacular firework photos.

Fireworks Photography Gear

Since the lighting condition is a bit challenging when shooting fireworks, we need to be a bit picky when selecting our gears. Let’s see what we’d ideally like to work with.

1. Camera for Fireworks Photography

You can use any camera for photographing fireworks. You just need to make sure that the camera allows you to dial in the settings manually. Having a bulb mode is a big plus but not mandatory.

2. Which Lens to Use for Fireworks Photography?

The selection of lenses for fireworks photography basically depends on two factors:

• how far you are from the fireworks venue
• whether you want to isolate the fireworks or include any foreground

If the fireworks show is happening around your vicinity, then you’ll do fine with a wide-angle lens; something in the range of 16-24mm. But if you’re pretty far away, you’ll need to go a little telephoto; in the range of 24-70mm or even longer depending on the distance.

Similarly, if you plan to shoot the fireworks while including some foreground element (landscape or cityscapes) then carry a wide-angle lens with you. If you intend to isolate the fireworks, you’ll need to go longer; something in the range of 200mm.

3. Other Accessories for Fireworks Photography

Tripod

As you’ll see later, we need to set the camera to take long exposures photos for fireworks photography. And when we do so, even the slightest camera shake will render the image useless.

Get yourself a sturdy tripod with an adjustable head and that will make your life so much easier when taking fireworks photos.

Remote Shutter Release

Usually, we use the camera’s shutter release button to take the photo. But as we highlighted earlier it is quintessential that we minimize any kind of camera shake.

We may not realize it but when we press the shutter button, we introduce a bit of shake to it. An alternative is thus to use a remote shutter release (either wired or wireless) that’ll let us trigger the shutter without even touching the camera.

Camera Settings for Fireworks Photography

Aperture: To ensure that most of the scene is in focus, we need a greater depth of field. A good starting point is thus to start from f/8 and use an even higher f-number if required.

Shutter speed: Since fireworks are unpredictable, a good strategy is to set the camera to bulb mode. When you use this mode, you can start and stop the shutter at your will using the shutter release or by pressing the shutter release button.

But in case your camera does not have a bulb bode, set the shutter speed between 5-10 seconds and take the photo. If required, go up to 15 seconds.

ISO: Set the ISO to the camera’s native value which is ISO 100 for most of the cameras. This will ensure that the images are clean even in the darker regions of the photo.

How to Take Fireworks Photos

Here’s a simple step-by-step guide you can use to photograph fireworks.

Step 1: Compose your image by setting up your camera on a tripod

Step 2: Switch the lens over to manual focus mode, set it to focus at infinity, and leave it there for the rest of the show

Step 3: Dial in the camera settings and engage the shutter using the remote shutter release when you notice the fireworks being launched

Step 4: Once the firework has died off, press the shutter button on the remote shutter release again to close the shutter

Step 5: Review the image

When you review the image, if you find that the image is overexposed, you can increase the f-number (for instance, from f/8 to f/11). And if it is too dark, try reducing the f-number (for instance f/8 to f/5.6) or increasing the ISO.

You can also make subtle changes to the brightness of the fireworks using the highlights adjustment feature in Colorcinch. Here’s how you can do it:

Step 1: Upload the image to Colorcinch

Step 2: Navigate to Edit – Exposure

Step 3: To brighten the fireworks, push the Highlights slider to the right. Similarly, if you want to brighten the darker regions, push the Shadows slider to the right and then click on Apply

Here’s a before/after for your reference:

5 Tips for Fireworks Photography

Now that you know about the fundamentals of taking fireworks photographs, let’s have a look at 5 simple tips that will help you make your fireworks photography even better.

1. Reach the Venue EARLY

Finding the best vantage point is the key ingredient to taking fireworks photos that really pop. And for this, you’ll need to reach the site early – really early.

Depending on how popular the site is, you may even need to be there 1-2 hours early. Find a good spot where no one else will pop out of nowhere in your frame, or stumble on your setup accidentally.

Use the time you have in finding the best composition and setting up your camera.

2. Use an Interesting Foreground Element

Fireworks are fun for sure, however, photos of just the fireworks in action appear bland. People cannot connect with your image if you photograph just the fireworks going off.

A better idea thus is to compose your image in such a way that you include interesting foreground elements like the city’s skyline, some popular landmark, or even a landscape.

This way your fireworks photos will appear much more appealing.

3. Make the Most Out of the Early Bits of the Show

If you’re quick in taking photos of the fireworks early on, then chances are high that you would’ve already grabbed your best photos from the night.

As the fireworks show progresses, the accumulated smoke, unless blown away by a breeze, usually shows up in the photos. And as you might’ve guessed, they do not look good.

So, be sure to start photographing from early on.

4. Use Mirror Lock-up or Silent Shooting

Earlier, we discussed using a remote shutter to minimize camera shake. But there’s one more way DSLRs introduce camera shake when taking photos – through mirror slap.

In DSLRs, when we click the shutter button, the mirror first moves out of the way to let the light pass to the sensor. This movement causes a vibration that can blur the image during long exposures.

A very simple remedy is to go to your camera settings and enable the Mirror Lock-up function. This will introduce a slight delay between the mirror being raised and the sensor being exposed thereby nullifying the effect.

Mirrorless users don’t have to worry about this as the camera doesn’t have a mirror box. You can however enable Silent shooting mode that will trigger the sensor electronically and get rid of any vibration caused by the shutter movement.

5. Disable Stabilization

You read that right, disable any form of in-body or lens image stabilization. When you mount the camera on a tripod this isn’t necessary.

In fact, having the stabilization enabled while the camera is mounted on a tripod can introduce unwanted results. This is because the stabilizers try to compensate for vibrations that do not exist.

To Sum it Up

Fireworks photography is something that we can take as a form of refreshment. It is therefore important that you take a moment to actually enjoy the show.

Don’t stress yourself as it is not possible for anyone to photograph each and every firework that’s displayed. Mastering fireworks photography does require a bit of practice and a ton of patience.

So, don’t get frustrated rather too soon. Have fun!

The post Dazzling Fireworks Photography: Understanding the Essentials appeared first on Photo to Cartoon – Cartoonize Yourself & Create Avatar Characters for Free.

Nature is the best healer there is and nature photography is one of the best hobbies one can possibly have. Whether you’re a photographer or not, you can’t stop yourself from taking nature photos. This shows how we can’t cease ourselves from appreciating nature.

Nature photography isn’t only about photographing landscapes. It can include taking pictures of even the smallest belonging of nature.

Whether you photograph the grand vistas or a tiny insect, it can still be considered nature photography. The genre of nature photography is thus very broad.

Within this broad scope of photography, there are various other sub-genres that are magnificent in themselves. So, whether you’re a beginner or a seasoned pro, nature has everything for you to photograph.

Types of Nature Photography

1. Landscape Photography

Landscape photography is one of the most popular types of nature photography out there. This includes photographing the grand mountain vistas, the hills, rivers, lakes, and waterfalls amongst others.

2. Woodland Photography

As the name suggests, woodland photography is all about being inside a woodland to capture the vegetation and other natural elements there. Unlike in landscape photography, you get a very limited space here depending on the vegetation density.

3. Wildlife Photography

Another very popular type of photography within nature photography is wildlife photography. This includes taking photos of birds, animals, and insects in their natural habitat.

4. Macro Photography

Macro photography is about capturing small subjects in photographs that are near-to-life-size. This genre of photo requires specialized macro lenses that have the ability to focus very near and are very sharp.

While macro photography too has a wider scope, it wouldn’t be wrong to consider that a majority of the macro subjects tend to be natural elements like flowers and insects.

10 Handy Tips for Nature Photography

Now that you’re acquainted with the major types of nature photography, you know that there’s a lot you can photograph in nature. So, it is a good idea to prepare yourself for a couple of those genres whenever you’re planning to spend some time in nature.

Whether you’re a beginner or an enthusiast, keep these 10 nature photography tips handy to shoot some beautiful images of nature.

1. Choose the Right Lens for Nature Photography

Your choice of the lens makes a huge difference when taking nature pictures. Depending on what you’re planning to shoot, it’s important that you take the right lens with you. Here are some use cases:

2. Best Camera for Nature Photography

With every new iteration of cameras, manufacturers claim their cameras to be the best. But keep in mind that there is nothing such as the best camera.

Instead, when deciding to get a camera for nature photography, think of what you want to do with the results and get the right camera. These days, even the most basic cameras are feature-packed and should suffice for your everyday need.

You can refer to the graphic below and decide on what sort of camera you should get for taking nature photos.

3. Enhance Your Nature Photos with Filters

Filters are physical pieces of glasses that you put in front of the lens for a certain effect. Let’s have a look at the three most common filters used in nature photography.

Neutral Density (ND) Filter

They work like sunglasses for the camera and simply cut down the light intensity. They come in various strengths like 2-stop, 4-stop, or 10-stop ND filters where higher value represents higher strength. They’re useful when you want to take long-exposure images during the day.

If you’ve seen landscape photos with silky smooth water in rivers or waterfalls, or smooth clouds and ocean waves, they were taken using an ND filter.

Graduated Neutral Density (ND) Filter

A common challenge we face during landscape photography is the difference in light intensity between the sky and the landscape. The bright sky and the darker land result in a scene with a high dynamic range that is difficult for cameras to capture.

A simple solution is to make the sky a bit darker by using an ND filter that is only partially darkened at the top. Such a partially darkened ND filter is called a graduated ND filter.

Polarizer Filter

When photographing nature, reflections can be a real issue. The light reflecting off of the water surface or even the leaves can cause glare and reduce the contrast in the image.

A polarizer filter works by blocking the rays of light from the reflection thereby getting rid of it. The resulting image is thus clear and a bit punchier and saturated.

4. Select Your Aperture for Nature Photography Wisely

If you’re familiar with how aperture works, you should remember that a higher f-value will result in a greater area of the scene being in focus, and a lower f-value will have a smaller region of the scene in focus.

So, based on what kind of nature photography you’re doing, you’ll need to set your aperture accordingly. A narrower aperture (high f-value) like f-8, f-11, or f/13 is idle for genres like landscape photography or woodland photography where you want everything in sharp focus.

Also, since macro lenses have a very shallow depth of field, you must use a higher f-value for most parts of the subject to be in focus.

On the other hand, in cases where you want to isolate the subject from its surrounding, use a smaller f-value like f/2.8. If you have a lens with a long focal length like 200mm, then even a higher aperture like f/4 can isolate the subject beautifully.

5. Set the Correct Shutter Speed for Nature Photography

Like aperture, your choice of shutter speed also varies with the subject you’re dealing with.

When the scene is static, and there is minimal or no chance that your subject(s) will move, you can do away with using a slower shutter speed. For instance, your mountains are going nowhere, so even a slow shutter speed like 1s should be manageable considering that you use a tripod.

However, if the conditions are windy, you need to counter the movement of the waves, shaky branches, and leaves with a faster shutter speed like 1/125s or faster. Otherwise, they’ll appear blurry.

In the case of lively subjects like flying birds or a running leopard, go with a fast shutter speed of at least 1/1000s. Depending on the speed of their movement, you may need to go even faster.

6. Add a Human for Scale

When taking nature photos, it is sometimes a good idea to include a person in the frame to add a bit of human touch. This not only makes the viewer feel as if they’re there but also gives a sense of how grand nature actually is.

But, instead of having them pose facing towards the camera, make sure that you take a candid photo. It adds authenticity. And make sure to shoot wide to actually show how small we humans are in front of nature.

7. Shoot Moody Nature Photos

When photographing nature, a common mistake that beginners make is in shooting only in perfect conditions. However, when you go out to shoot when conditions are more than ideal, you’ll end up with some gorgeous moody images.

So, don’t wait for the sky to clear up and use the clouds to add mood to your photos. Foggy conditions also add so much value to the image. Similarly, if you get an opportunity to photograph birds in the rain, you’ll see how easily your photos will stand out from the rest.

If you already have a beautiful nature image that you have taken but want to add a certain mood to it, there’s a way you can do so in Colorcinch.

Using the various overlays available in Colorinch, you can add sun flare and haze, snowfall, rainfall, and even fog. Let’s see how it works. For demonstration purposes, let’s go ahead and add some fog to a boring landscape image.

Here’s how you can do it:

Step 1: Upload the image to Colorcinch

Step 2: Click on Overlays and then on Fog

Step 3: From the various fog overlays that are available, select the one that. best suits the image and adjust its intensity using the slider, then click on Apply

See how the image appears so lively after adding the fog effect. You can use the same method to add other overlays using Colorcinch easily.

8. Get Your Nature Photography Composition Right

While nature’s beauty can definitely mesmerize you, don’t make the mistake of framing everything in the center. Try out the various photography composition guides, shoot from different perspectives, and you’ll definitely land higher number of keepers.

When photographing nature, these basic composition techniques work brilliantly:

• Rule of thirds
• Leading lines
• Symmetry
• Contrast
• Use of layers

Be sure to go through our composition techniques guide and try out some of them for the best results.

9. Shoot in the Right Light

The best time to photograph nature and natural subjects is during the golden hour for sure. The light is soft, wraps around the landscape and the subjects beautifully, and it even adds a gentle glow to them.

However, if you’re looking to photograph some high-contrast nature photos, don’t be afraid to photograph during mid-day either.

10. PLAN Your Outing Carefully

Remember, when you’re out in nature, you are at her mercy. You have no control over what nature has for you so planning is pivotal.

Check the weather conditions, study the animal behavior, use tools like Google Earth, Photopills, or Photo Ephemeris to study the lighting and avoid any guesswork.

Also, don’t forget to dress properly, and carry the essentials, and some extra battery with you.

To Sum It Up

Nature photography can be one of the most rewarding genres of photography. And it doesn’t stop there.

Not only do you get jaw-dropping photos, but being in the arms of nature also helps you with your physical and mental fitness.

If you’re looking forward to getting started with photography, nature photography is one of the best ways to do so. Give it a shot and be sure to try out at least some of the tips that we discussed here.

The post 10 Nature Photography Tips to Improve Your Photos appeared first on Photo to Cartoon – Cartoonize Yourself & Create Avatar Characters for Free.

Before getting into the business of managing image files, you first have to answer the question: what is metadata in photos, and why’s it important? 

If a picture is worth a thousand words, the information associated with that picture is worth millions! Users can sort, organize, and better understand their photo collection because of the comprehensive information on digital photographs. Now, you might be looking for free images to cartoonize or use for your blog post or Instagram edits.  Before jumping into that, get a good grasp on metadata.  Here’s a step-by-step tutorial on finding and opening this data, as well as why you should.

What is Photo Metadata?

The information and precise characteristics of a single image file are referred to as photo metadata. Date produced, creator, file name, content, themes, and other details are frequently included. Users can utilize photo metadata to organize better, sort, and preserve picture files inside a system.

We can only get so much information from merely glancing at a photo without metadata. Consider the following picture: 

This image may be described as a shot of two children eating popsicles against a gray background.

Date generated, geographical location, creator (photographer), image title, pixels, camera kind, file format, and more are included in the metadata. It may seem insignificant at times, but if the picture’s title is “Kids Popsicles”, it is critical to comprehend it.

Let’s look at how to see all of the metadata in a photo file.

How to Access and Alter Image Metadata?

All users may view photo metadata, and it doesn’t require any additional software. There are several ways to find photo metadata on the two standard operating systems. Both techniques are given below.

For Windows: 

1. Choose the digital image file and right-click on it. 
2. Choose ‘Properties.’
3. Open the ‘Details’ tab located at the top of the popup window. 
4. Scroll down until you locate the metadata area you want in the resultant window.

You can see all sorts of different information for each image file depending on its category. In general, though, data such as type, name, and date will be visible.

Now let’s look at how this all pans out in Mac. 

For Mac: 

1. Locate and open the desired digital picture file using ‘Finder.’
2. Use your mouse or keyboard to highlight the file.
3. Press the command button. 
4. This will open a new window with the necessary information. Cycle through the many tabs at the top until you discover what you’re looking for.

Now that you know where to look for metadata in your photographs let’s look at how to update it when required.

Is it possible to edit metadata, and should you even do it?

People change the metadata of their digital photographs for a variety of reasons. Some do so due to a metadata processing mistake, resulting in files with the incorrect name, author, or date. 

Others may only need to delete metadata from their images. Others require metadata editing due to missing fields or unsatisfactory specifications. The data, for example, does not contain items like a title (which may be known only to the user). 

Before posting a photograph to a social networking platform, some users want to obscure essential data. Whatever the cause, you’ll probably need to change or add a few critical data points at some point. You’ll need to know what to do if this happens.

Fortunately, photos are one of the most straightforward file formats to alter metadata since they can be edited without any third-party software.

Follow these steps to update the metadata of a digital photo:

1. Find the image file you want to edit. 
2. Right-click on it and choose ‘Properties.’ 
3. Open the ‘Details’ tab located at the top of the popup window. 
4. Choose the category that needs to be altered (date, name, etc.) 
5. You’ll be able to insert the new information beneath the ‘Value’ tab (click and type)

Of course, there are a variety of reasons why manual editing isn’t the best option. A metadata editor is often used by individuals who require a significant number of modifications. 

Make sure the software you choose is appropriate for the sorts of picture files you work with and that it can handle the heavy editing activities you’ll be doing.

Let’s make sure you grasp the importance of picture metadata now that you know how and why to modify image metadata.

What’s the significance of metadata in image files?

Those who work with metadata regularly recognize how lucky they are that information is available in such huge numbers. This is especially true when it comes to photographs. 

Pictures are now nearly entirely digital, and even print photos are increasingly being converted to digital formats. Metadata is helpful in various ways, including as a link between systems that exchange vast amounts of picture files. 

Consider the transfer of tens of thousands or perhaps hundreds of thousands of picture files from one machine to another. The only way to arrange and comprehend the new files without metadata would be to open them manually.

Sorting and categorizing photos would be tough without metadata. I believe most people would agree that even a modest number of image files may quickly become crowded if they are not organized. There’s a risk of tragedy when the number of pictures is doubled. 

Metadata allows users to categorize photographs easily using particular data categories such as topic, size, date, and creator. As a result, the photos are easier to find and filter into more precise groupings. 

This is also very important for search engines.  Whether you have a personal finance blog or are building a personal brand, adding alt text in the metadata allows you to better educate Google and the search engines on exactly what your image is about and how it relates to the page that it is embedded on.

Final Thoughts 

I hope this article informs and inspires you to make the most out of the information that’s available to us. 

One of the most valuable techniques to get control over your photos is to use photo metadata. Understand how and why to use it to stay ahead of the curve.

Creating and maintaining metadata may be a costly endeavor. Editing and releasing data and metadata comes with a price. Their long-term stewardship and upkeep may be taxing as well. On the other hand, metadata is an investment that may not be optional in an era where information is vital to an organization’s chances of thriving. 

The post What is Metadata in Photos and Why is it Important? appeared first on Photo to Cartoon – Cartoonize Yourself & Create Avatar Characters for Free.

So you’ve fallen in love with Colorcinch, and you use the tool to enhance all of your images. 

(If you’re still new to editing with Colorcinch, check out these posts on getting started.) Why stop there?

Once you’ve edited your images with Colorcinch, you can bring them to life by turning them into interactive images. 

What is an interactive image?

An interactive image is an image that asks its viewer to engage with it by doing something. That action can come in many forms including: clicking around to explore what they see, giving an opinion on the image’s content, and choosing how they want to navigate through a series of images.

Why make an interactive image?

We come across a lot of good content online every day, but there’s rarely enough time to consume all of them. Thankfully, with Pocket, you don’t have to miss the amazing resources you come across. 

1. Interactive content gets twice as much engagement as static content. The obvious plus side here, whether you’re using your image to market a concept or just trying to show off your favorite photo, is that viewers spend more time on your image.

2. It’s a great way to spice up your social media, website, or blog. Insert interactive images on your digital platforms to grab your audience’s attention.

3. You can turn your images into ones as useful as they are beautiful, using them to educate your viewers on anything you think they should know. Here’s a simple example of an image turned into a resource on earthquake safety.

How to make an image interactive?

Okay, so you’ve chosen an image you’d like to enhance with interactivity, and you’re ready to make it happen. 

Let’s take a look at how to do that with Genially, a free all-in-one creation tool for making all kinds of interactive and animated content including interactive images, presentations, PowerPoint sliders, infographics, maps, and escape games. It allows you to insert content from standard images or text to more exciting options like social posts, live maps, and videos. 

For those of you who prefer learning from a video, here’s one that explains the process. (Otherwise, read on for a written explanation.)

Here are the six steps that will take your image to the next level:

1. Log in to Genially and click on the Create Genially button on the left bar menu. If you’re not registered, make sure you’ve signed up for a free account first.

2. Choose the Interactive Image option and click on Create Interactive Image. Select the Your Computer option and upload a photo from your device.

You’ll be taken to the Editor, where you can transform your static image into an interactive one.

3. To add interactive hotspots or buttons to your image, go to the left-hand menu of interactive elements and drag in buttons to the canvas workspace. Moreover, to use the same button several times, just drag it over once and then copy and paste it on the canvas several times. 

Scroll to the end of the interactive elements tab to find the “invisible area” option. 

4. Add content to your hotspots! Click on the one you’d like to edit and then select the hand icon that appears above it. Choose the Tooltip option for short texts or the Window option for longer texts, videos, etc. 

Content inserted as a tooltip will appear in a chat bubble when the viewer hovers their cursor over the corresponding hotspot. On the other hand, content inserted in a Window will appear when a viewer clicks on the hotspot.

5. A window will pop up where you can enter what you’d like to insert in that hotspot.

For text: Simply type away!

Images: Click on the insert image icon > Click on the grey box that appears to select an image from your device or click on the link symbol to paste a URL of an image found online > Click Insert and then Save.

Youtube video: Find a video on Youtube > Click on Share > Copy the video’s URL > Return to Genially where you have your insert window open > Click on the insert video icon that looks like a video camera > Paste the URL in the space that appears > Click Insert and then Save.

6. Once you’re done, you can publish your creation and access its sharing options by clicking on the All Set button in the upper-right corner.

And that’s it! Happy creating! We can’t wait to see your Colorcinch images full of life and interactivity.

The post Make Your Colorcinch Images Interactive with Genially appeared first on Photo to Cartoon – Cartoonize Yourself & Create Avatar Characters for Free.

You’ve long dreamed of learning to edit Instagram photos like a pro, so your images would resemble ones uploaded by your favorite celebs.

Right?

No worries! Here’s good news:

I’m about to turn your dreams into reality.

This guide covers the steps you could take to edit your Instagram pictures like a professional—even if you have zero editing experience.

Before You Start Editing Your Instagram Photos

Stay ahead of the curve and be aware of the latest Instagram trends and don’t just set out to edit random, low-quality images. You won’t love the result regardless of the efforts you put in.

So the first step to uploading a beautifully edited photo on Instagram is to take a clean shot.

Thankfully, you don’t need an expensive camera to capture lovely photographs.

Got an Android or iPhone?

Then you’ve got all you need to take excellent shots.

Here are 3 quick tips for capturing attractive photos using your mobile device:

1. Clean Your Phone’s Lens

Naturally, dirt from a greasy hand, wet pockets, or dusty surroundings could easily accumulate around your phone’s lens, making your images look blurry or faded.

So, it’s essential you check (and clean) your phone’s lens before taking your pictures. 

Soft material like a handkerchief should fix this issue in a few seconds.

2. Choose Natural Light

Don’t go around taking pictures with your phone’s flash on. Unlike natural light, the phone’s flash may alter specific colors and affect your images’ overall quality.

So to get a beautiful and clear image to use on Instagram, rely on natural light instead of your phone’s flash when taking your photographs.

This might mean that you’d have to take your photographs outdoors or take your indoor photos from an angle with rays from a natural light source.

3. Embrace Multiple Perspectives & Avoid Long-Range Shots

To get a clearer picture when taking photographs on a mobile phone, move closer to the subject rather than zooming in from afar. Doing this is one smart way to obtain high-quality images.

Photos that are captured from odd angles, orientation and multiple perspectives often end up unique and beautiful. 

Instead of standing opposite the subject while taking a shot, explore other angles to see which would turn out the best. And don’t forget to play around with negative space too.

Learn more ways to improve your photography skills.

How to Edit Your Instagram Photos Like a Pro

Once you’ve got a clean, high-quality shot, it’s time to add bits of freshness to your picture. 

Depending on the result you’ve pictured in mind, you could edit your images directly within the Instagram app or use an external tool to achieve extra sleekness.

Using the Built-in Editor to Edit Instagram Photos Like a Pro

1. Upload Your Photo

If you already have images on your Instagram page, then it means you know how to upload a photo on the app. So you can skip to the next step.

But, if you are entirely new to this feature of the app, then I’m going to walk you through the process quickly.

First, open the Instagram app on your mobile device.

Second, tap the (+) button on the upper right corner of your phone’s screen.

Third, locate the picture you’d like to transform from your phone’s gallery. 

Tap the picture to select it, then tap the arrow on the upper right corner to upload it.

Once your picture uploads successfully, it’s time to pick up your editing wand and do some magical enhancements.

2. Pick a Filter

Instagram has a series of filters. You’re free to try them all and see which would work best for your image.

The process of choosing a filter can easily become an endless loop. Because, sometimes, more than one filter might catch your attention, even though you know you are to pick just one—and then reserve the remaining for your future uploads.

If you ever fall into this situation, here are two foolproof tricks I always use to break the loop:

1. I scroll through my Instagram feed, find someone else’s edited picture I love, and then use the filter the person used (or one close to it).
2. I check my previous uploads, find a picture that got lots of attention (likes & comments), and then re-use the filter I used there.

These tricks help to cut down the time you’d naturally spend sorting through numerous filters that might all appear cool at the same time.

3. Enhance Your Image

Start your adjustments by playing around with Instagram’s lux feature.

This feature helps to automatically adjust the contrast and saturation of your image, thereby increasing its vibrancy, highlighting little vital details, and making it look more attractive generally.

To use this option, hit the magic wand on the top of your screen and then adjust the slider from left to right to enhance your image’s looks.

After tweaking the lux, navigate to the edit tab.

You can straighten your photo (if it’s slanted), reduce/increase its brightness, add shadows, sharpen your image, and make other adjustments.

There’s no general rule to follow here. 

Carefully move the different editing tools’ sliders and find the settings that’d help make your image look better. Just avoid overdoing things so your photo won’t appear overly edited and unnatural.

After enhancing your image as you desire, hit the blue arrow on the top of your screen to save your settings.

Now you’re done, you can go ahead and post your image publicly.

You can also try out Lightroom presets as an alternative to Instagram filters although you need to be more of a professional to know how to use Lightroom and its presets. In case you’re not familiar with it, check out this quick guide on how to install Lightroom Presets.

Using a Dedicated Photo-Editing Tool to Edit Instagram Photos Like a Pro

You can choose from several mobile and web-based tools to edit your Instagram photos.

In this guide, though, we shall go over the steps for editing Instagram photos like a pro using Colorcinch.

So let’s begin.

1. Upload Your Image

Open this page and click on the blue button.

Next, locate and select the Instagram image you’d like to edit.

2. Choose a Filter

Colorcinch has a load of stunning filters suitable for editing pictures for both business and personal needs.

We’ve previously reviewed loads of Colorcinch’s filters (and ones from other software), so you can read this guide to get some ideas.

When you find a filter that goes well with your image and perfectly fits your needs, move the slider from left to right to adjust the filter strength, and then hit APPLY.

3. Enhance Your Image

Colorcinch has all the basic editing features you’ll find in most editing apps and even on Instagram. 

To adjust the brightness, contrast, exposure, and other features of your picture, navigate to the edit tab, click on a photo enhancement option, and carefully move the sliders from left to right.

4. Download Your Image

After editing your Instagram image using Colorcinch, hit the arrow on the top of your screen, and then click on My Computer (to download the image to your mobile/desktop).

You can now proceed to upload your image on your Instagram page without editing it within the app.

Unleash Your Editing Prowess

Quality is crucial if you desire to obtain a pro-looking, irresistible photo at the end of the day.

So ensure your original image is of high resolution and quality. 

If you would prefer to upload a stock photo rather than use yours, ensure you download a high-resolution version of the picture.

Creativity is one vital ingredient for editing photos beautifully.

Let yours burst forth!

The post The Beginner’s Guide to Editing Instagram Photos (The Pro’s Way!) appeared first on Photo to Cartoon – Cartoonize Yourself & Create Avatar Characters for Free.

Have you ever used a character maker to create an avatar online?

If you’d like to try, then you’ve come to the right place. We’re going to take a look at making avatars and characters in this handy tutorial, and we’ll give you the lowdown on the subject, including:

• Why it’s a good idea to create a virtual version of yourself
• A step-by-step guide on how to use a free online character maker from start to your finished avatar
• How to save your avatar in different sizes and upload it to social media and Gravatar

What’s the Big Deal About Avatars Anyway?

“Aren’t avatars kind of old-fashioned now?”

I hear you, but the answer is that avatars and characters are very much alive and kicking!

Facebook’s avatar maker provided people with a bit of fun and distraction earlier this year, and you couldn’t go on your feed without seeing yet another one of your friends as an anime character!

Character makers aren’t just for kids. There are plenty of good reasons for you to use an avatar or character to represent you online, including:

• Safety – not everyone wants their photo out on the internet
• Personal branding with a little anonymity
• You’re camera shy
• It’s fun
• You can go for a different look and be as serious or as silly as you like!

How to use an Online Character Maker

Ok, so hopefully you’ve decided to have a go at creating a character online. Now we’re going to get to the fun stuff and actually use an avatar maker.

I’ll walk you through the steps, and best of all, it’s free to use so you don’t stand to lose anything if you don’t like your character.

There’s no image editing of an actual photo involved, so the steps are simple to follow.

If you do want to edit your avatar further once you have downloaded and saved it you can use a free image editor like Colorcinch to add some extra touches – like, do you want rounded edges on your avatar, or fancy adding some falling snow around your character?

Hey, you’ve got a blank canvas, so let your imagination roll!

Step 1: Open the character maker

Click here for the free online avatar maker

Step 2: Choose gender

Go to the Get Started panel and choose your gender:

Step 3: Choose face shape and skin color

The character maker will open up to the Face module:

Here you will find a selection of face shapes and skin tones to choose from.

Try different ones out to see which one you prefer.

If you can’t find the exact skin tone you want, you can customize it by clicking on the circle at the end of the square skin color blocks.

A color editor will open up in a small window, allowing you to choose the right color:

To change the color to a custom choice, click on the grab the handle at the top of the color range window on the right-hand side and drag it down to the hue you want.

I’ve chosen Incredible Hulk green for this step just to show you what’s possible! My actual avatar is going to be closer to my own skin tone.

To fine-tune the actual shade, click on the small black dot in the square window and pull it around the square window to get the shade you want:

When you are done, click the circle to apply to the image:

Step 4: Choose a mouth shape

Click on Mouth (next to Shape) and decide what mouth shape and color you’d like:

Step 5: Nose

Click on Nose, and decide what you want your schnozz to look like. Small and dainty, or big and bold – it’s your choice!

Step 6: Ears

Move along to Ears, and follow the same procedure:

Step 7: Eyes

Continue along the top menu to Eyes. The sub-menu will start with Eye Shape, so go to the choices and pick your peepers:

Step 8: Iris shape and color

Next along the sub-menu is Iris.

Have lots of fun here by giving yourself huge anime-style irises or stay subtle.

You can also change your iris color from this page by going down to the choices at the bottom and clicking on them or making a custom eye color as you could for skin tone:

Step 9: Eyebrow shape and color

Click on the Eyebrow sub-menu, and choose your brow shape and color. Go full-on evil villain or glam celebrity here:

Step 10: Glasses

Now you can add your glasses style, from academic-looking to some cool shades. Change the frame color if you wish as well. Or click the X if you don’t want any glasses:

Step 11: Hairstyle and color

Here, you get to be your own hairstylist. Go up to the main menu, and click on Hair. Choose from a range of styles suited to your gender, and add the color you want your locks to be by going down to the color swatches as you did before:

Step 12: Clothes

Go back to the main menu, and click on Clothes. Choose the style you prefer and the color too. Ok, so there isn’t a huge selection of clothing options, but there should be something to suit most people here:

Step 13: Background pattern and color

Last step now! On the main menu, click on Backs. You get a choice of background patterns and colors so you decided if you want to go subtle or psychedelic

You can also choose not to have a background for your avatar – just click on the X. You’re done! I like my new avatar, and it does resemble me (if it had a few more wrinkles, anyway!) so I think I’ll keep it for posterity.

Step 14: Download or share

Now you’ve made your avatar with the online character maker, you have a choice of what to do with it.

If you want to download it, go to the bottom of the avatar generator and click Download. You’ll get different size and file options to save your character to your computer for future use:

To share to social media, click on Share.

A new window with your creation will open up, giving you the choice of sharing to Facebook, Pinterest, Twitter, or Google +.

Just click on the icons of each social media platform you want to use, and follow the instructions:

If you are a user of Gravatar and want to add your character, click on the Gravatar option.

A window will open up for you to enter your details and for you to upload your new avatar to the site.

I also want to mention that there’s an option to randomize your avatar in this character maker.

Along the bottom of the generator, click the Random button, and see what it comes up with! This one’s a bit scary for me – I think I prefer the one I made…

Want to Take Things Further?

We mentioned using Colorcinch to add further effects to your avatar, but you could use it to cartoonize a photo of yourself instead.

The character maker and the cartoon maker in Colorcinch are two different things, although they may seem similar. The main differences are:

• The cartoon creator uses a photo to build the cartoon from
• You can edit your image before cartoonizing it – adjust the brightness, crop it, etc.
• There are a lot of different cartoon styles you can use
• You can adjust the strength of the cartoon filter

Conclusion

I hope you enjoyed this tutorial (I know I did!) and got something useful out of it.

Using an online character maker can help you and your kids preserve your privacy and safety on the internet as there are no real-life photos of you involved.

You can also choose how you want your avatar to look and what part of your personality you want to express.

Enjoy!

The post Avatar Maker: Create Awesome Avatar Characters Online appeared first on Photo to Cartoon – Cartoonize Yourself & Create Avatar Characters for Free.

In the before and after we can see the deer originally appearing darker than the sky.

By increasing the Shadows slider I could quickly brighten up the darker areas. This will help even out, or balance the overall brightness of the image.

As with the previous examples, I added a little bit of Contrast to help maintain the balance of the image.

Let’s move on to the final step – saving your image!

Saving Your Image:

Once you’re happy with your adjustments and have clicked on Apply, you can click on the Save drop-down menu and select the location in which you want to save your image.

Next, name your image, select the file type, (JPG, PNG, PDF), as well as the quality and file size.

Conclusion:

I hope you found this tutorial useful and can use some of these methods to help quickly brighten up your underexposed photos!

If you’re interested in checking out Colorcinch, we offer a Basic account, which is free to use, requires no registration, and provides access to numerous essential effects and features. Click here to start editing with Colorcinch Basic!

The post 3 Quick and Easy Ways to Brighten Photos appeared first on Photo to Cartoon – Cartoonize Yourself & Create Avatar Characters for Free.

Ever wondered how to turn a photo into a cartoon?

Maybe you’re a fan of graphic novels and comic strips. Or perhaps you’d like to cartoonize yourself, someone, or something!

If so, we have the lowdown on exactly how to do it. There are two main ways to cartoon yourself:

• The long way (using Photoshop)
• The quick and easy way (using our free cartoon maker)

We’re going to look at how to use both methods so you can decide which is best or easiest for you.

Although we’ll be looking at using Photoshop CC first to cartoonify an image, don’t worry – we’ll give you simple step-by-step instructions and images so you can follow along.

Let’s get started!

1. Using Photoshop CC to Cartoonize Yourself

“Why would I use Photoshop to cartoonize me when I can use a free cartoon maker?” I can hear you ask.

Good question!

Well, we would like to help you to learn new skills and different ways of doing things so that you can decide which method suits you (and your project) best.

If you don’t have the latest CC version of Photoshop, then this tutorial should still work for whatever version you’re running.

As is common with Photoshop, there are several ways of doing the same thing (which can be confusing – sometimes too much choice is not necessarily a good thing), depending on what kind of cartoon effect you’re going for.

What kind of photo should you choose for the best results?

One of yourself (or someone else) with a clean background is ideal.

If you don’t have a plain background on your image, don’t worry too much. You can cartoonize landscapes as well as people.

If you want to practice on a different photo, then you can download free stock images of people from places like Pexels, Unsplash or dozens of other sites to experiment with (that’s what I’m using for this tutorial).

Step 1: Open Photoshop

Once you have your chosen victim (sorry, subject!), open it in Photoshop CC or whatever version of Photoshop you’re using.

I chose this portrait by Olena Sergienko on Unsplash:

Step 2: Duplicate the Layers

Duplicate the layer by going to the Layers panel on the right-hand side of the screen and clicking the drop-down menu icon at the right-hand side of the Layers Panel (it looks like a square made of horizontal lines).

Click on Duplicate Layer from the menu that will appear:

Click OK in the window that will appear next:

Or, you can take the shortcut by pressing Cmd/Ctrl + J depending on whether you’re using Mac or Windows.

You’ll see the duplicate layer as Background Copy in the Layers Panel:

Make sure that the Background Copy is active – it should be a lighter shade of gray than the Background layer. If it’s not, click once on it to activate it.

Step 3: Add a High Pass Filter

Go to the Filter menu in the top menu bar and click Other in the drop-down.

Choose High Pass:

The image will look gray and weird at this point- but it’s meant to, so don’t freak out!

Adjust the slider in High Pass until you see an outline of your person.

Anything from a 3.0-8 radius is a good starting point, but you may need to play with the slider to get a clear outline.

Click OK when you are done:

Step 4: Duplicate the Background Copy Layer

Duplicate the layer by going to Duplicate Layer in the Layers drop-down again, or take the shortcut Ctrl/Cmd+J instead:

Step 5: Invert the Top Layer

Invert the top layer by pressing Ctrl/Cmd+I.

You won’t see much difference in the image at this point, but it’s an important part of the process:

Step 6: Change the Blending Mode

Next, you need to change the Blending Mode to Divide.

Go to the Layers Panel on the right-hand side of the screen where your background layers are.

There is a drop-down menu next to Opacity, which will currently show Normal as the default option.

Click this drop-down, and choose Divide from the list that appears:

Step 7: Merge the Layers

Now, we’re going to merge the top two layers. Don’t worry, it’s easier than it sounds!

Go to your Layers Panel.

The top Background Copy 2 layer will be light gray, to show it’s currently selected.

Hold Shift and then click on the Background Copy layer so that both top 2 layers are selected and light gray:

Next, press Ctrl/Cmd+E, which will merge the top 2 layers so that you now only have Background and Background Copy 2 left in the Layers Panel:

Step 8: Adjust the Levels

Open Levels by clicking Ctrl/Cmd+L – or go to Layers and create a Levels Adjustment Layer by clicking on the black and white circle at the bottom of the Layers Panel and choose Levels.

Slide the left-hand black slider towards the right until it reaches just inside the white area of the Histogram, then move the gray slider to the right until your image looks similar to the one I have:

Click OK when you’re done.

Step 9: Duplicate Layers and Change Layer Order

Click on the bottom Background layer in the Layers Panel so that it turns light gray.

Duplicate it by clicking Ctrl/Cmd+J so that you have Background Copy and Background Copy 2:

Click and drag the Background Copy layer to the top of the Layers Panel, so it is now on top of the Background Copy 2:

NOTE: You may have to click and drag a couple of times to get it up on top, as it never seems to work the first time for me (although it might for you).

Your photo will now look like it did before you started, but don’t worry – you’ve merely covered up the adjustments we made earlier with the background copy layer.

In the next few steps, we’ll bring it all together and the magic will happen.

Step 10: Add Surface Blur

This is the fun part, where you start to turn your photo into a cartoon!

Go to the top menu bar and click Filter – Blur – Surface Blur. 

Move the sliders around until you have a smooth look to the surface color and texture.

I used Radius 15 and Threshold 39, but you may have different settings.

Click OK when done:

Step 11: Change the Blending Mode

Final steps, yay!

Go to the Blending Mode drop-down in the Layers Panel again.

Change it from Normal to either Hard Light or Linear Light mode (depending on which look you prefer) and you’ll see your cartoonized image:

You can choose to adjust Opacity for a different look, and I dropped mine to 95%. Here’s a close-up look of the finished cartoon:

Drumroll please…

Don’t forget, if you mess up or get stuck then go back in the History Panel to a point where you were happy with the image. Find the History Panel by going to Window – History, and a panel will open up.

This panel shows every adjustment you made to the image, and you can go back to a specific one just by clicking on it, all the way back to when you first opened the image.

It’s like a time machine for Photoshop, and has often saved me from having to start over again from scratch when editing just by going back a few steps.
I hope you’re happy with the result, and now you know how to create a cartoon in Photoshop.

It was a lot of work though, wasn’t it? A lot of steps to follow and adjustments to make.

I know what you’re thinking:

“There must be an easier way!”

Luckily, there is!

Next, I’m going to show you how to use a free cartoon maker to get similar results but in much less time and with a lot less effort.

2. Using Colorcinch to Cartoonize Yourself

While image editing programs like Photoshop are great, they have a steep learning curve.

They also cost a lot – you can only get Photoshop and Lightroom on subscription now, and if you aren’t a power user then you’ll find it hard to get your money’s worth.

A handy alternative for turning photos into cartoons is an online cartoon maker like Colorcinch. It’s also free unless you decide to upgrade to a Plus platform, which unlocks a lot of extra features.

Here’s how we’re going to turn the same image into a cartoon using Colorcinch as a faster and easier alternative to Photoshop.

Step 1: Open Colorcinch

Open Colorcinch.

Step 2: Upload Your Image

Upload your chosen image, or use one of the sample photos.

For the sake of comparison between the two image-editing programs, I’m using exactly the same image as I did for Photoshop CC:

Step 3: The Control Panel

Down the left-hand side of the screen are all your essential editing controls:

• Image manager
• Edits
• Effects
• Filters
• Overlays
• Masks
• Text
• Draw
• Graphics
• Frames

Step 4: Find the Effects Menu

While we could get sidetracked by all the other cool effects and features, we’re here to make a cartoon out of a photo, so go to Effects.

You’ll see a list of categories in this module – Cartoonizer, Digital Art, Sketch, and Painting.

You know the one we want today, so go ahead and click on Cartoonizer.

Step 5: Choose Your Cartoon Style

All your cartoonizing choices are displayed down the left-hand side, and you get to see the effects of each one before you apply them.

Scroll down the list to find an effect you like.

Let’s have some fun with it!

Step 6: Apply the Cartoon Effect

I chose the first cartoon effect at the top of the list, and I have to admit it does look pretty darn good:

Step 7: Make Adjustments

If you just want a very quick cartoonized photo, then you can save and enjoy your new creation – and it only took a minute or two, if that!

However, if you want to further tweak your cartoonified image, then you can adjust the sliders in the effect’s Advanced Settings:

Click on the slider icon in the top-right corner of the effect thumbnail (next to the heart icon), and unleash your creativity here:

As you can see, I changed the Hue, Color Range, and Detail to achieve a totally different cartoon effect.

Step 8: Experiment and Enjoy!

That’s it – you’ve basically created a cartoon from a photo in a few simple steps, and without messing around with layers or blending modes like you did in Photoshop.

Here’s another cartoon variation or two created with Colorcinch for free:

(Warning – creating cool cartoons on here is addictive! I have just spent ages cartoonifying different images and tweaking them, and I’m supposed to be getting on and writing this article!):

Once you’ve finished cartoonizing your photos, save your work by clicking Apply.

Go to the top of the screen, and click Save. Choose to Save as Project (if you’re a Plus user) or to My Computer.

Upgrading to the Plus version of Colorcinch will give you access to many more professional image editing tools, effects and graphics, as well as more control over exporting and file size options.

This opens up a whole new world of image editing for you. Colorcinch is not just a clever way to create cartoons from photos – it’s a proper image editor. Like Photoshop, but simpler!

Conclusion

I hope you’ve enjoyed this tutorial on how to cartoonize yourself as much as I have!

If you followed along with both tutorials, which way of cartoonizing a photo did you prefer?

We’d love to know!

The post How to Cartoonize Yourself appeared first on Photo to Cartoon – Cartoonize Yourself & Create Avatar Characters for Free.