This is the second digital challenge issued by Cindy from our Yahoo group. The challenge this time deals with layers. We have to create an ATC with at least 12 layers (which I did). This is what I started with:



After creating an image with 12 layers (I eliminated a couple), I ended up with the following finished project:



I called this piece My Favorite Things because this particular collage contains elements that I love: da Vinci's Vetruvian Man, an image from the Pre-Raphaelites, swirls, architecture, a mask (of course), lace, flowers, and leaves. The background was painted by me and textured with gel medium and ephemera. I do kind of like how this turned out even though these are not the usual colors I work in.

I have been doing a digital workshop with Cynthia Powell from The Latest Trends in Mixed Media yahoo group. We have worked through 4 tutorials at this point and on the last one she challenged us to come up with a digital ATC. We had to use the techniques learned in the tutorials PLUS use one we hadn't learned from the tutorial. So here are some of the things I did. For the first layer (the background) I used a solid color of white. I tried black, blue, magenta, purple, etc. and found that the white background highlighted the layers the best. For the next layer, I used a piece that I had created in a class with Karen O'Brien.

The next three layers were 3 different masks which I tried to find with colors that went with the background I was using. I then used a sheet of music for the next layer. I varied the opacity with each of these last 4 layers.

The 7th layer was the image of the masked lady. This I had to extract from the original image. After placing her on the O'Brien background I decided I needed to add touches of color from the background on her dress. To do this I had to use the adjust color option under the Enhance menu. From there I chose replace color and then highlighted her dress with varying shades of green, blue, and magenta.

The last layer was the text iteself. Originally the text was in white but it was just too stark so I "greyed" it down. After moving the text box around, I placed it where it is presently.

Whew, after saving all of this I saved in the Photoshop Elements 6 format (.psd) and resaved as a jpeg file for posting on the web. This is the finished product.



I would like to send a special thanks to Cynthia Powell for her most excellent tutorials on using PSE 6.0. If you have any questions or comments, please post in the comment section below.

I have a piece of mixed media jewelry being published in Jewelry Beyond Time which will be available for purchase in Summer 2009. This is the second book published by Cynthia Powell, Stephanie Chavez, and Sherre Hulbert featuring projects from easy to complex. For more details about when the book will be available and where you can buy it from, please visit: http://thelatesttrendsinmixedmediaart.com/.