Photoshop Tutorial How to Create a Digital Portrait from a Photo

Hi. This is Marty from Blue Lightning TV.
I'm going to show you how to create a digital portrait from a standard photo and how to
replace the photo without having to redo the effects. This is an update to a tutorial I
did on an earlier version of Photoshop.  Open a photo you'd like to use, I downloaded this one from Shutterstock.Com.

To add effects to the photo non-destructively, convert it
into a Smart Object. To do this, click the icon at the upper, right of the Layers panel
and click "Convert to Smart Object".  Go to Image and Image Size. To ensure that your results will be the same as mine, make the Resolution: 150 pixels per inch and the Height:
850 pixels.

The Width will automatically update itself to another amount because the width
and the height are linked. Then, click OK. To fit the photo back onto your canvas, press
Ctrl or Cmd + 0. For the best results, the subject should be on a white background.

If
your subject isn't on a white background, we need to make a selection around the subject
and then cut it out. For this example, I'll use the Quick Selection Tool. I'll make the
Size: 15 pixels and drag the tool over the subject. The selection doesn't have to be
perfect.

If you want to see it as a quick mask, press "Q". Press "Q" again to revert
it back into a selection.  Press Ctrl or Cmd + J to cut your subject from its background and copy it to its own layer.  Make a new layer below it.

To do this, Ctrl-click or Cmd-click on the New Layer icon. We'll fill the empty layer with white and since white is the background color, press Ctrl or Cmd + Delete. Merge these layers by clicking on the thumbnail of your subject to make the layer active and pressing Ctrl or Cmd + E. Make this layer into a Smart Object  and go to Filter, Pixelate and Mosaic.

Make the Cell Size: 15 pixels square and click OK.  Go to Filter, Noise and Median.  Make the Radius 5 pixels.  This modifies the square mosaics into round shapes.

Go to Filter and Filter Gallery.  Open the "Stylize" folder and click "Glowing Edges". I'll make the Edge Width: 1, the Edge Brightness: 15 and the
Smoothness: 15, however, feel free to experiment with the amounts to get the combination you
like. To replace the photo with another without having to redo all the effects, double-click
on a Smart Object to open the source photo.

Open the new photo and go to Image and Image
Size. Make the Resolution: 150 pixels per inch and Height: 850 pixels. Then, click OK.  Press "v" to open your Move Tool and drag it onto the tab of the .Psb file, which is
the Smart Object.

Without releasing your mouse or pen, press and hold Shift as you drag it
down onto the image. Then, release.  Go back to the Smart Object tab and click the small "x" to close it.  When you see this warning, click "Yes" to accept it.

Click back on the tab of your portrait to open it and your new photo will automatically update itself with
all the effects. To crop it, open your Rectangular Marquee Tool and drag a rectangle over you image.  Go to Image and Crop. Then, deselect it.

This is Marty from Blue Lightning TV.
Thanks for watching!.