Get smart with still-life

Use Smart Objects to make creative collages you can edit forever

Smart Objects are Photoshop layers that allow you to run filters, make image adjustments or change size and shape – but if you want to later increase or reduce a particular effect or adjustment you’ve applied – or even remove it completely – you can do so without any impact on the quality of the image.

Let’s give it a go... Open the Fork.png image into Photoshop CC. Press Ctrl/Cmd+C to copy it and Ctrl/ Cmd+W to close it. Now go to File > New and create a white, A4-sized document. Press Ctrl/Cmd+V to paste in the fork on a new layer, then click on the Background layer to make it active. Press D to reset the colours, and go to Filter > Render > Fibers. Click Randomize a few times to get a texture you like, then click OK to fill the layer. In the Layers panel, right-click on the layer name and select Convert To Smart Object. Press Ctrl/Cmd+U to open the Hue/Saturation palette; after ticking the Colorize box, move the sliders to get a colour you like. Now go to Filter > Blur > Gaussian Blur and add around 30px to blur the detail. Add a vignette via the FX tab under Filter > Camera Raw Filter. The three changes will appear under the layer as Smart Filters; any of these settings can be changed at any time. 1

Convert the fork layer to a Smart Object as well, and press Ctrl/Cmd+L to open the Levels dialog. Adjust contrast with the sliders and click OK, then press Ctrl/ Cmd+U to open Hue/Saturation. With Colorize ticked, mix up a colour you like for the fork and click OK.

To add a shadow, double-click to the right of the layer’s name and click Drop Shadow in the Layer Style palette. Adjust the shadow with the Distance, Spread and Size sliders, and click OK.

To add a second fork, click on the main fork layer and press Ctrl/Cmd+J. To change its size and position, press Ctrl/Cmd+T and adjust the handles around the Transform bounding box. Adjust the colour and drop-shadow to taste, and if you wish, add some Gaussian blur to give a sense of depth. Add a third fork in the same way. 2