Water tutorial: Requested by Gemma Bright.
Example of effect
This is a pretty long tutorial to what I normally do, but it took a lot to get the right look. If you know of a better way please let me know, would save a lot of work. ^__^;


Okay you have the character you want to have in a water picture.
Create a new layer that you will start to create your water

On this new layer use the pencil tool to not only colour around the character but also over the parts of the character that will be in the water.
Don't worry about being a little messy at this stage, it doesn't have to be perfect.
When this is done select the flat colour, this is where things get a little complicated.
 

Make sure your colours are set to black and white.
Go in to the filters and select clouds (filter>render>clouds)
 

Now go Image>Adjustments>colour balance (or press Ctrl+B)
Use these settings to change the colour.
Shadows:    -5    0   +33
Midtones:  -79   -14  +21
Highlights: -39  -24  +46

Now to use ocean ripple, Filter>Distort>Ocean Ripple

And you want:-
Ripple size 6
Ripple Magnitude 17

Next Filter>Blur> Motion blur
Keep it horizontal and between 10 and 20, depends on the size of your image and what looks right to you

Change the water layer to 'Hard Light' and lower the opacity slightly


Create a new layer and place it right at the bottom, fill this with a dark green.
Follow these steps on this layer:
~Filters>distort> add noise
~Filters>blur> motion blur
~Filters>blur>Gaussian blur


 

Select the layer with your character on and using the 'Blur tool' blur the areas that are under the water.
This works better with objects that are further under the water, see my example at the top of the page.

'Blur Tool'
 

Use the 'Blur tool' now on the water layer and blur the edges around the character

Create a new layer, put it right at the top, now the fun part. 'Sparkles!!'

 Using white and changing your brush to 'dissolve', go round the edge of your character and create some ripples. It looks a little messy but it wont for long.
 

Now blur this layer.
Filters>blur>Gaussian blur

 
Create another new layer on top of this. (Nearly done now)
Okay depending on which version of Photoshop you have, select a brush that sort of looks like a sparkle. Change the opacity of your brush to 100 and start creating those sparkly parts ^^
Gaussian blur this a little and your done!

'Example of brush used'

All work shown here is copyrighted to Emma Goodman, unless otherwise stated.

 

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