Help with background lighting

[Vafann]

Thank you! That is actually more like what I had in mind, I think I would have to keep more of the head/hair though. How did you do that?

 

[Paul]

To be honest i was a little lazy and used the magic wand instead of my usual weapon of choice the PEN TOOL. By using the wand it as taken out some of the hair also.
All i did was make two copies of your original, use the top layer and pen tool the head and shoulders out of it, make a copy, still in the second copy now open the FILTERS drop down and click on the sucker marked as RENDER, use the LIGHTING EFFECT within that drop down, and place the x over the centre of your face, make the GLOW as big or small as you wish, then do a couple of layer passes, with differing colours to achieve the desired look.
Click on the upper most layer the one you cut out with the PEN TOOL, and it will over lay the original copy but leave the new GLOW effect behind your head, i also always use the BLUR tool around cut edges just to soften them slightly.
Hope that's what you wanted?

 

[Paul]

With hair

 

[Vafann]

OH yes!! Thank you very much! I´ll try to do that, I don´t think I can do it with the pen tool though, I just can´t get that thing to work, I´don´t understand it at all, but I´ll try. The next thing I´m going to try to do with that picture is to try to get snakes to come out all over the head like medusa type hair haha. That will be most certainly be a pain in the backside ...

oh, and it looks great with the hair. Thank again!! / Vafann

 

[Paul]

I ain't got that much spare time now, but this is an idea, maybe?

 

[Vafann]

HAHAHAHAHA!!! Bad hair day??? Yeah, but it gives me some idea of what I might have to do. Thanks again!