What am I doing wrong here? Bad composite attempt

[Coffee_Girl]

Sorry for being such a noob, I tried my hand for the first time with composite and it is horrible, can someone tell me how i can salvage this photo?


Why does it look so bad?

 

[IamSam]

Why does it look so bad?

The background.

can someone tell me how i can salvage this photo?

Just try a different background, one that is not so blurry or foggy.

 

[Coffee_Girl]

Ok yeah that's what I thought...i am so upset...there is just no way i can go back and remove the background as i accidentally merged the layers and saved it. Is it so ugly and terrible that I can post it without being a subject of ridicule? Or is it trash and probably just worth putting in my discard pile?

 

[IamSam]

i am so upset.

Don't be upset....it's just a composite.......not worth being upset about. Start over from the beginning!

there is just no way i can go back and remove the background as i accidentally merged the layers and saved it.

Let this be a hard lesson learned...........never merge layers. (well......at least not in a permanent way)

Is it so ugly and terrible that I can post it without being a subject of ridicule?

I wouldn't go that far! You just need to try again.

Or is it trash and probably just worth putting in my discard pile?

This is up to you. I personally think you would stand a better chance of creating a nicer composite if you were able to work with layers. Since this has been merged, just cut out the woman again and start new.

 

[polarwoc]

Ok yeah that's what I thought...i am so upset...there is just no way i can go back and remove the background as i accidentally merged the layers and saved it. Is it so ugly and terrible that I can post it without being a subject of ridicule? Or is it trash and probably just worth putting in my discard pile?

I think the image does not look too bad but it could have been better. It just looks like the girl is standing in front of a palace which is covered in a terrible desert dust storm. Good so far, but the desert storm did not affect the girl in any way.
If you want to merge layers, just merge all visible layers with CTRL+Shift+Alt+E and retain all layers as they are so you can revisit them if needed.
If the composite bothers you so much, just redo it and 9 times out of 10 you would be doing a much better work and you would be carrying lessons into all your future composites. If you do try, please post the new composite. All the best.

 

[Coffee_Girl]

Thank you

I think the image does not look too bad but it could have been better. It just looks like the girl is standing in front of a palace which is covered in a terrible desert dust storm. Good so far, but the desert storm did not affect the girl in any way.
If you want to merge layers, just merge all visible layers with CTRL+Shift+Alt+E and retain all layers as they are so you can revisit them if needed.
If the composite bothers you so much, just redo it and 9 times out of 10 you would be doing a much better work and you would be carrying lessons into all your future composites. If you do try, please post the new composite. All the best.

Thank you so much for the encouragement, i was really really upset lol. Actually I decided to trash the photo, there was just no saving it.

I just restored the old background and tweaked it a tiny bit. I am such a photoshop noob lol.