Pop art is an iconic art style that transports us back in time.
All hail the pop art hero, Andy Warhol, and a shoutout to Roy Lichtenstein too.
Caroontify your portraits with this fun pop art style in only 10 steps in Photoshop.
Since part of this process involves coloring the image yourself, dont worry about existing colors.
This means everything is easily reversible without affecting the quality of the original image.
choose the image layer in the Layers panel, right-hit it, and chooseConvert to Smart Object.
Since well be using filters, a larger image wont be as effective.
If you want to crop your image, do that first using theCroptool (C).
To resize, go toImage>Image Sizeand set theResolutionto72.
If your image is landscape, set thewidthto1200.
If your image is in portrait orientation, set theheightto somewhere between870-1200.
Once resized, selectOK.
PressCtrl+0(Windows) orCmd+0(Mac) to fit your image to the canvas.
For portraits, we can use the Subject Select tool.
Select any selection tool from the toolbar, like theMagic Wandtool (W).
Then chooseSelect Subjectin the upper tweaks bar.
If you dont see this option, go toSelect>Subject.
The selection shows marching ants around your subject, but it may need refining.
hit the arrow next to Select Subject to choose betweenthe Adobe Cloud or equipment selection.
Select theLassotool (L).
On the Layers panel, with your subject layer selected, chooseAdd layer maskat the bottom of the panel.
This masks your subject so you might work non-destructively.
Right-poke the image layer and chooseDuplicate Layer.
Do this twice, so you have a total of three.
A new transparent layer will open under the selected layer.
choose the transparent layer.
In the toolbar, double-click theForegroundswatch to fire up the color picker.
TypeFFFFFFinto the hex code box, and clickOK.
Then use theFilltool (G) to fill the new layer with white.
Now it looks like your subject has a plain white background.
If you already used a black and white image, skip to step 6.
Select your main image layer and the Black & White adjustment layer by holdingShiftwhile selecting each one.
Right-click either of the layers and selectConvert to Smart Object.
Now those layers will merge into one smart object layer.
Go toFilter>Pixelate>Color Halftone.
Set theMax Radiusto6and set each of theChannelsto60.
Set the light end of the Levels spectrum to100.
This will brighten your image, but you could change the levels to your own preference.
snag the main image layer on the Layers panel, and chooseLinear Burnin the Blend Modes dropdown.
Step 9: Change the Exposure
Remember those hidden layers?
Click theeyeicon on the top layer, then grab the layer.
SelectCreate new fill or adjustment layer>Black & White.
Then go for the layer again and clickCreate new fill or adjustment layer>Exposure.
Toggle the sliders to see what suits your chosen photo the best.
Set the Blend Mode of your new layer toLinear Burn.
There are two different ways to add color to your portrait, both are very simple.
Remember the final hidden layer at the bottom?
Simply select theeyeicon on that layer to view it again.
Create a new layer and move it under your halftone portrait but above your bottom-most original image.
Hide the layers above by clicking theeyeicon on those layers.
Once youre happy, reveal the other layers again to see your pop art creation.
you’re free to hide or delete the original image layer at the bottom of the panel.
We think ours looks better without the Levels adjustment layer.
