Newbie looking for some direction

[hmpost]

I am new at Photoshop and looking for some direction on how to do something . I have a photograph that I took of a leaf that I want to put into a composite.
What I am trying to do is create an outline around the leaf so that when I put the build together the leaf shows the outline better. I have tried to use Effects>Stroke but it is not working well, so I looking to find out another way to achieve the effect.

The first image is the leaf as I have it. The second image is with a 2 px black line outside and blend mode is normal. The 3rd image is my first attempt of the final image. As you can see having a line/border around the leaf will provide more definition to the overall look.

Thanks

marshall

 

[hawkeye]

I appears that the leaf is isolated on it's own layer, all you need is Edit-Stroke.

 

[Babine]

Selected the leaves to a seperate layer, added Stroke using the reddish colour then sharped in Darken mode.
Maybe Outer Glow in a colour of choice might do?

 

[IamSam]

I feel you need to make a better selection of the leaf so you have a more clearly defined stroke around the leaf.

What I am trying to do is create an outline around the leaf so that when I put the build together the leaf shows the outline better.

Not sure if this is what you are asking about???

 

[JeffK]

Open the single leaf layer.
Then double click on the layer to bring up the layer styles dialog:



I used outer glow - click on the outer glow check box and then in the area next to the name to open a dialog box.
These are the settings I used:



*You can also play with the Stroke and its settings depending on your taste.

Then I brought the single leaf over to a new layer, duplicated and moved to create a row. Added a black background.

This is the final effect I ended up with:



Play with the settings to get the subtelty or hardness of an edge you're looking for.

BTW - Watch out for that repeating pattern in the middle of the leaf (see above). As it gets repeated across the row, it becomes very distracting. You can clean up the individual leaf before you duplicate it.
Less visible in your sample but it's there. Nature of the beast with these repeating patterns...

Hope this helps.

- Jeff

 

[JeffK]

Just another thought - if the idea is to separate the leaves from each other, why not give it some dimension by using a drop shadow instead of a stroke.
You can also find this in the layers panel:



Did quickly but here's where I ended up (also tried to break up that repeating pattern within the leaves themselves):



Try different things - it's a nice concept!

- Jeff

 

[hmpost]

I appears that the leaf is isolated on it's own layer, all you need is Edit-Stroke.

Thanks for getting back to me. I used the edit Stoke and what I get is like image 2. I will try increase the stroke to 8 and try multiply. Thanks

 

[hmpost]

Just another thought - if the idea is to separate the leaves from each other, why not give it some dimension by using a drop shadow instead of a stroke.
You can also find this in the layers panel:

View attachment 120472

Did quickly but here's where I ended up (also tried to break up that repeating pattern within the leaves themselves):

View attachment 120473

Try different things - it's a nice concept!

- Jeff

I started with the single leaf, then duplicated 10 layers. But I will try your suggestion. Just learning but somethings sometime don't click. Thanks

 

[JeffK]

I started with the single leaf, then duplicated 10 layers. But I will try your suggestion. Just learning but somethings sometime don't click. Thanks

Yep - duplicating and layering is the way to go. PS gives you many different ways to achieve similar results. Try different things until you to to where you want to be. Curiosity is your most important tool!