6/7/20
This image of a hawk is more of a manipulation than a composite. It is a painted and stylized version of an image from Pixabay. I started out by removing the original background. I added a radial gradient fill for the background, and blurred it. I then added an oil paint filter (circular texture) and a dotted pattern overlay and adjusted the levels a bit to darken thing down a bit. I added a new blank layers and used an Aaron Blaise leaf brush to scatter some foliage around in a pleasing pattern, which I then reduced the opacity to about 70% and lowered the saturation of the layer with a HSL layer.
Now, back to the bird. I used a healing brush to clean up some light areas around the beak (on a separate layer, of course) and turned those two layers into a smart object. I put the SO through the camera raw filter to optimize the image. I then applied an oil paint filter to the bird. I flipped the bird horizontally in the scene. To add a bit more “pop”, I duplicated the SO and changed its blend mode to lighter color. The last thing I did was add a soft, dark vignette to emphasize the hawk even more, especially its eyes.
It sure is nice to have some warm weather and sunshine. Our state is opening back up a little, with lots of restrictions and social distancing with masks. Rumor has it the the Gov (that woman from Michigan) may even let the salons open up by the 15th. Good thing, I really, really need a pedicure! Stay well and keep safe.
All material and images © Marie Rediess, cREEations Photography & Design, Algonac, Mi.
No reproduction allowed without specific written permission.
