To make the collage, I first decided on a few images that
would set the mood so to speak. Open a good size blank image to use as a canvas. I
made sure I increased the colors of each image to 16 million, then I began to cut and
paste them to my canvas AS NEW LAYERS (important part)! |
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When you add an image as a new layer you can edit that part of your collage individually, like I did above. I added the flowers and then I added them again but on this second layer I edited the image by selecting IMAGE/MIRROR and then IMAGE/ROTATE. You can also select the Move Tool (four headed arrow) and move the image to a different place on the canvas. Next I added my second image as a new layer. As you can see, it completely covered my first two layers. To get the lower layers to show through I went to the layer control panel, and adjusted the opacity to about 20% so the flowers would show through. |
| Just continue to keep adding each image as a new layer. At this stage, notice how one of my butterfly images' background overlaps the other image. What I did to eliminate this was first, make the overlapping image the ACTIVE LAYER by selecting it in the Layer Control Panel. Then I took the lasso tool and made a free-hand selection around the butterfly (as close as I could get it. Then I choose SELECTION/INVERT and with the background color selected as white (I don't know if that matters), I deleted then choose SELECTION/SELECT NONE. Now you are free to change the opacity of the layers as you wish without that overlapping edge of the background. |  |
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Keep adding images and editing them until you reach the desired effect. Remember that if you need to edit a particular image, just go to the Layer Control Panel and select that image's layer then make any changes you need to make - just as if it was a single image with no other attatched layers. Apply any effects to it, crop it, move it, color it.... Each image remains an individual until you select LAYERS/MERGE or until you save it in any file format other than a PSP file. This is the advantage of making a collage with layers. One thing you may have noticed is that my canvas is also a layer. I did this in case I wanted to add a little background color or texture. I would just flood fill the background with the color or pattern and then change the opacity of it until I reach the desired effect. The other positive with working with layers is that if you decide that you want one particular image to be more in the foreground all you have to do is click and hold your left mouse button on it in the Layer Control Panel and drag it to the position order you want it to be. The higher on the list = the more in the foreground it will be. |
See the collage I did with my nephew here.