Fading Images and Removing Hard Edges

[kerosity]

I'd like to use images on my website but I'd like them to slowly fade into the background, instead of having a hard edge where the image starts.

If you look at the link below, their first three images do this so perfectly.

http://mindvalleyacademy.com/store/total-transformation-training/

Are there any tutorials out there that show how to accomplish this? And/or any suggestions on a way a noobie can start doing this. =D

 

[IamSam]

Hi kerosity,

This faded effect is a simple layer mask with a radial gradient, set to reverse.

Open an image and duplicate.
Add a new layer between the original and the duplicate. Fill this layer with White.





Highlight the duplicate layer and add a layer mask by clicking the add layer mask icon located at the bottom left of the layers panel.



Select your Gradient Tool and set it on Radial Gradient. Set it on reverse. Make sure your foreground color is Black.
Make sure the layer mask is selected (white brackets will be around the mask)
Pull a gradient starting from the center outward.

 

[IamSam]

Oh yes, and save the final image as a .png file.

There are other ways to do this as well. With layer masking, you can use just about any of the selection tools along with feathering.

 

[zoe20]

awesome is the word. Thanks for it IanSam. BTW here's is my attempt i followed ur tutorial. Thanks a lot




PSD:

View attachment zoes_attempt.psd

 

[IamSam]

Looks great zoe!

Here's another way........

Add a layer mask.
Select your Rectangular Marquee Tool.
Set the tools feather to 50px.



Create a rectangle around your subject, stay close as the feather will be soft.



OK, here's a tricky part and it's in two parts.....

Part one: (option one)
The layer mask is white, you must invert your selection by hitting shift + command + I, or SELECT > INVERSE.
Your selection should look like this, with two sets of marching ants.



Now fill the selection with black.
Hit command + D to deselect.




Part two: (option two)
The layer mask is white.
Hit command + I to invert the layer mask, it should now be black.
Now fill your selection with white.
Hit command + D to deselect.

 

[kerosity]

Thanks! I'm going to try these later today.

It seems like in order to do this, you need to cut away a lot of the image though. What if the image is only like... 250px by 150px?

 

[IamSam]

...you need to cut away a lot of the image though....

Not really, you control how much of the image is affected by the effect and the size of the image should not matter.

What might matter is how close the subject of the image is to the border of the image. The closer they are, the more of the image will be affected.