Tutorial 1

James Paterson crafts a unique collage that shows the passage of time and helps demonstrate some fundamental Photoshop layer skills

Make a colourful collage in one image that shows the passage of time

This simple technique is a creative way to show off an entire timelapse sequence in a single image. Perhaps you have a set of timelapse photos on your hard drive that could work for this, but if not then why not shoot a new sequence? It could be a great way to show the passing day in your garden or elsewhere. All you need to do is set up your camera on a tripod and engage the interval shooting setting. If your camera does not have this feature, then you can buy an extra cable release with an inbuilt interval timer. Or simply grab a seat next to your tripod and press the shutter every 20 minutes or so.

It’s a wonderful way to show the transition between night and day, but you can use the same technique for any sequence in which the subject changes over time, from melting ice cream, to the gentle ebbing of the tide.

Piecing together the shots is a quick and simple process in

Photoshop. We pick those that we want to use then load them into layers and use simple layer masks to create strips for each image.

If you’re new to layer masks then this will be a gentle introduction to one of