Top get things started, we will take a look at our in-game screenshots and things we can do to enhance them, yielding near photo-realistic effects.
For photo-realism, think as a photographer...
Personally, I try to be a minimalist when it comes to using screenshots. I think the most important thing to keep in-mind with your stock screenshots is lighting. A well-lit, dynamic image will make things much easier. Light and shading gives things a sense of depth, so look for a good balance before you begin. As Aquatium says in his recent sigs..."without darkness...there is no light." :smileywink: Also, keep the direction of the light, and the type of light (sunlight, artificial light, etc.) in mind when you start.
Condensing images...
Like Sykin noted in his tutorial, once you've chosen the shot you're going to use, it's a good idea to make the image smaller, taking alot of the pixellation out. This gives you a smoother, easier image to work with. Again, the idea is to get it ready before you really start working.
This is the image I will be using in this tutorial:
It has already been shrunk down in size. Notice there isn't much pixellation or unwanted graininess to get rid of.
Now...after all that, let's get started.
Once it's in photoshop, I duplicate the layer. We will need one for the background, and one for Dephect, the RSI.
Hide the lower layer, then use the rectangular marquee tool to isolate the RSI.
Select/Select Inverse and delete to cut away most of the background.
Use Image/adjustments/curve and lighten the picture slightly, just enough to define the RSI layer as you erase the excess away via lasso tool or eraser, etc.
Next, I cut out the RSI from the top layer. At times, it might be necessary to fill the bottom layer (background layer) with black, so you can make sure all the excess is erased.
ex. I used the blur tool with a soft brush to do this...
Now, make the lower layer visible.
Duplicate the layer twice. There should be 4 layers total:
RSI layer
Duplicate layer 2
Duplicate layer 1
Original layer
Use gausian blur at 1.5 px or so. This, like most things in your work is really is a matter of taste. I just figured it would be appropriate for this piece.
Use a large, soft-brush eraser to lightly fade the blurred effect on the ground, making it blur as it goes back into the distance.
This is how it should look at this point.
Now, merge the two background layers. This will give you the ability to adjust the general lighting/atmosphere of the picture without the two layers clashing, and giving you ugly shading differences. Now that we have the desired camera focus effect, the exposure can be adjusted if need be. I tend to use curves to bring an image out a bit, if it seems a little too dull. It also has a great effect with adding definition to things in the background.
More to come...next, I will be expanding on layers and how they can relate in terms of lighting blends (i.e. screen, color dodge, linear dodge, etc.)
I hope this makes some sense at least, and helps out... :smileysurprised:
Message Edited by Pyraci on 02-03-200609:33 AM
, ill get round to some guides eventually too 
Very useful tutorial indeed.
