Create a horror illustration in Photoshop • Adobe Photoshop Tutorials

In this tutorial, I will show you how to create a dark and terrible work called The Mirror. We will turn the girl into a zombie, add blood, break the glass and perform color correction to create an eerie interesting scene.

Resources:

Step 1. Open two images with the model. I cropped the top of image 1 (to focus on the mirror). Separate the model 2 from the background and place it on the mirror, make sure that the size is large enough and completely hides the reflection in the mirror:

Add a Layer mask/ Layer mask to clear the outer part of the mirror and get the look that the girl is really in the mirror:

Step 2. The model in the mirror looks very saturated compared to the background, so I use the adjustment layer Hue / Saturation/ Hue / Saturation with Clipping mask/ Clipping Mask to fix this:

I used a new layer in mode Clipping mask/ Clipping Mask and brush with color No. 838575 to paint over the girl. Change Blend Mode to Chroma / Color with 50% Opacity

Step 3. As you can see, the light from the lamp comes from above and falls on the part of the arm that should be lighter than the rest.

Make two new layers with Clipping mask/ Clipping Mask, I used a brush with color # b2a5a0 on this area, and then changed the blending mode on the first layer to Overlap/ Overlay with 100% opacity and on Soft light/ Soft Light with 100% opacity on the second:

Step 4. Now we will make a shadow from the model in the mirror. First, I created a new layer under the layer with a girl. Use a black brush with a hardness of about 20% and paint the shadow of the model on the towel, lower the opacity to 50%

Then, using another layer (under the model layer) and a black brush, draw a shadow on the wall. Lower the opacity to 20%

Step 5. Now we see that the girl on the right (model 1) looks more saturated than the model in the mirror. Therefore, I duplicated the layer with the girl 1, selected the model (let’s call it model 1), copied it to a new layer. In principle, the selection may not be very accurate.

Add a Photo filter/ Photo filter with Clipping mask/ Clipping Mask for model 1:

You can use a black brush to erase unnecessary parts:

Step 6. In the following steps, we will make the model 2 look zombies. Create a new layer at the top. Use the tool Stamp / Clone tool to remove black eyes.

On a new layer, using a white brush, 9 pixels (depending on the size of your image), with 50% stiffness, paint over the center of the eyes. Change blending mode to Overlap/ Overlay, opacity 30%:

Step 7. Create a new layer using a soft brush with color # 4d3629, go over your lips. Set the mode to Soft light/ Soft Light, opacity 100%:

Create a new layer. I used brushwith 10% stiffness, color # 72473c to draw blood from the eyes and mouth. Set the blending mode to Hard light/ Hard Light, opacity 100%:

Step 8. Create a new layer using a seam brush, paint color # 4d3629 on the lips (you can choose the one you want).

We will add a layer style to make the seam look more realistic. Right click on this layer and select Layer settings/ Blending Options:

We have:

Step 9. To make the look more terrible, I added a new layer on top, set the mode Overlap/ Overlay and uploaded 50% gray:

Take the tool Dimmer/ Burn Tool with range Medium tones/ Midtones and Exposure/ Exposure about 30% to darken the areas on the eyes and around the eyes:

Step 10. To brighten up part of the hand even more, I use a new layer, a brush with color # e6e6e5 and a mode Soft light/ Soft Light with 50% Opacity:

Step 11. Create a broken mirror effect using a white brush number 984 from a set of broken glasses (on a new layer, of course). Lower the opacity of this layer to 40%. Then add Layer mask/ Layer mask and use a black brush to remove excess:

Step 12. Create a new layer in overlay mode. Overlap/ Overlay 100%, I used a brush with color # 800202 on the fingers. Then you can use Eraser / Erase (or add a layer mask) with a brush of about 40-50% hardness, small size to remove edges and get a similar look, like mine:

In order to draw the blood flowing from my finger, I create a new layer at the very top. Use any tool with which you are familiar to make a selection like this (I use Pen / Pen Tool to make the path, and then press Ctrl + Enter to get the selection), set Feathering/ Feather = 1 and fill it with color # 800202:

Apply effect Stamping/ Bevel and Emboss for this blood:

We have:

In order to add shadows and light to the blood, I create a new layer with Clipping mask/ Clipping Mask and settings as in step 9, use Clarifier/ Dodge and Dimmer/ Burn Tool with range Medium tones/ Midtones and Exposure / Exposure (40-50%):

You see how I used these tools in Normal/ Normal mode and mode Overlaps/ Overlay (result):

To make the blood look smoother at the bottom, I use a new layer (without clipping mask), I take FingerA medium sized / smudge tool with a little pressure and gently dragging:

Step 13. Add a splash of blood into the sink. Open the image and place it inside the sink. Add a Layer mask/ Layer mask to clear the exterior:

Duplicate this layer twice, convert and erase some parts to get a similar result:

At the same time, to each layer with a spray of blood, add layers Hue / Saturation/ Hue / Saturation (with Clipping Mask / Clipping Mask) to increase the red tone (to match the blood falling from above):

Step 14. Add a Photo filter/ Photo Filter to reduce the yellow tint of the image:

Step 15. Open the texture, change the size and blending mode to Soft light/ Soft Light, opacity 30%. Add a layer mask to erase and blur parts, as shown below:

Step 16. Add a layer Color balance/ Color Balance at the top, then with a brush, reduce the contrast on the model:
Mid Tones / Midtones: 11, 11, 3
Shadows / Shadows: -2, -8, 3
Light / Highlights: 14, 7, 13

Selective color correction/ Selective color:
Red / Reds: 42, 6, 100, 0
Yellow / Yellows: -11, -3, -39, 0
Magenta: 38, -55, 0, 0
White / Whites: -38, -41, 0, 0
Neutral / Neutrals: 8, 0, 0, 0

Photo filter/ Photo Filter:

Step 17. Create a new layer and use black and white. Radial gradient/ Gradient Radiant:

Change the mode to Soft light/ Soft Light 100%, add a layer mask to reduce the contrast on some parts, as shown in the screenshot:

Another layer, again Radial gradient/ Radiant gradient mode Soft light/ Soft light and layer mask:

Step 19. Layer Hue / Saturation/ Hue / Saturation:

Step 20. Final stage: After changing the lighting on the image, the light of the lamp should be slightly darker. To do this, I use a brush with color # 999371 on a new layer and paint over this area, and then change the mode to Multiplication/ Multipy 20%:

Final result:

Author: Jenny