| In this tutorial you will learn how to convert a photo to an oil painting on a canvas. This works best for landscape photos, but can be effective on portraits.
Step 1: Open the image you wish to apply this technique to, I'm going to be using this image of Uluru (Ayres Rock). 
Step 2: Go to IMAGE>ADJUSTMENTS>HUE/SATURATION When the dialogue appears, increase the saturation to 25 or 50, depending on brightness of the image, and click ok. This may be skipped if the image you've choosen is already bright. 
Step 3: Now go under the filter menu, select DISTORT>GLASS. Use the settings in the image below. 
Do not click OK yet, still more to do first. With those settings inputted, click the New Effect Layer button, which is at the bottom of the filter dialogue, next to the trash can button. 
Step 4: After clicking the New Effect Layer, go to ARTISTIC>PAINT DAUBS. Settings for this are in the following image. With those settings put in, once again click the New Effect Layer button. 
Step 5: Now go to BRUSH STROKES>ANGLED STROKES, settings for this are in the image below. Yes, you got it, click the New Effect Layer button again. 
Step 6: Here is where we will start to make it look like it's on a canvas, still in the Filter Dialogue, go to TEXTURE>TEXTURIZER. Guess what? yeah thats right, the settings are in the image below. With those settings entered, you can now press OK. 
You should now have something that looks something like this. 
Step 7: Duplicate this layer by pressing Control-J (Mac: Command-J). Then Shift-Control-U (Mac: Shift-Command-U) to desaturate the layer (remove all colour). 
Should look like this. 
Step 8: With the new layer selected (the desaturated layer) go to FILTER>STYLIZE>EMBOSS, when the dialogue appears, use the settings shown in the image below. 
For the finishing touch, with the freshly embossed layer selected still, got to the Layers palette and lower the layers opacity to around 40%. It should look somewhat like mine below. 
Thats it, you now have turned your photo into an Oil Painting on a Canvas. If you wish, you could go further and add a frame aroudn it. |