Apr 27 2009

Adobe Photoshop Tip– Simple Transparent Desktop effect …without cheating

These shots are all over the internet right now: a person posts a digital photograph of their computer and the desktop picture displayed on the screen seems to mimic what is behind it so faithfully that it appears that the screen is actually transparent. There are several shots I’ve seen that are done so well that you’d swear that the photographer simply removed the LCD and top bezel of his PowerBook. But these people assure me that they have perfectly lined up these shots with no fakery…

and I believe them.. because I can do it and so can you.

Here’s how I did it.

Step 1: Setting the scene:

First I arranged my shot pretty much the way I wanted it composed for the final image. Below you’ll see an image of what I was going for:

You don’t need to take a picture of this step, I’m just illustrating the point.

I set the computer on the table along with all the tchotchkes that would later be visible on its desktop. I had my iPod docked behind my PowerBook, the lazy Susan with all my fine dining paraphernalia and my foofbag all set up. Then I mounted my camera on a sturdy tripod and framed up the shot in the LCD viewfinder. Once you start taking pictures for this effect, you cannot move the camera, the tripod or the lens (I moved my lens and as you see in the first pic, a few items don’t line up–learn from my mistakes).

After I got the shot framed up, I took the PowerBook out of the scene being careful not to move any of the other items on the table or the camera rig. Then I shot the first pic:

Yeah, pretty lame, I know.

Step 2: Put the PowerBook in the Action

Next, I returned the PowerBook to its previous position on the table and prepared to take its picture using the exact same settings as the picture I took without it. Why didn’t I just snap a pic while it was there before? Because, just like the camera and the tripod, once the PowerBook is in place, it must not move–not even a little. Okay, next slide!

Notice I connected the iPod dock connector cable to the PowerBook? I thought it would add a nice touch to the final image and, as long as I didn’t change the position of the cable where it passed behind the screen, it wouldn’t hurt the final product.

Step 3: Careful Maneuvering

In the next stage, I turned off the camera in order to safely access its memory card (you still cannot let the camera move at all) and insert it gently into the PC card adapter I have in my PowerBook (again, you cannot let the PowerBook move either). If you have the ability to do so and can stretch a cable from the camera to the Mac without moving either, you could connect your camera up directly ….I didn’t, but you could.

I opened the two shots I took in Photoshop (no, I’m not going to cheat). Focusing first on the “with PowerBook” shot, I went Select>All (Command-A) and then Edit>Copy (Command-C).

Then I switched my focus to the “without PowerBook” picture and went Edit>Paste (Command-V). Then I closed the “with PowerBook” shot …leaving it open would just tempt me to cheat.

I grabbed the Crop tool and, in the Options bar at the top of the screen, I set the Width and Height values to my screen dimensions as represented in pixels and a resolution of 72 pixels per inch. If you’re not sure of your screen dimensions, open the Displays control panel in the System Preferences and you’ll find it there.

Then I clicked and dragged the crop tool over the screen of my PowerBook in the picture.

Once a preliminary crop area is on the canvas, Photoshop changes the Options bar a bit to give you other features. I clicked the Perspective setting to the “on” position.

With that setting in place I am able to drag the corners of the crop to the corners of my pictured PowerBook screen like so:

Now when I hit the Return key, Photoshop is going to process the crop selection I have made an distort it into being an image the exact width, height and resolution of my screen — a perfect desktop image! Go ahead and hit Return and watch the magic happen…well actually there’s not much magic to watch, because, at best, you’re looking at a squared up view of your own PowerBook screen. You’ll need to delete the top layer to reveal the cropped and straightened “background.” Here’s what I got.

Next, I saved this image I’d made to my desktop as a JPEG and quit Photoshop and opened the System Preferences to the Desktop & Screen Saver control panel and clicked the Desktop tab. I dragged the image I’d made from the desktop to the little preview window in the control panel and, voila!

Step 4: The Final Shot

Then all I had to do was close all the windows on screen, eject the camera’s memory card from the PowerBook and place it in camera again. I powered up the camera and took the shot before I had any more opportunities to accidentally move something I shouldn’t.

Here’s that finished image again:

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By admin • Articles, Graphics Tips • 1 • Tags: adobe photoshop tip, BestStuff, bezel, camera rig, card, computer, digital photograph, fakery, fine dining, ipod, lazy susan, lcd viewfinder, panel, paraphernalia, Photoshop, place, position, PowerBook, shot, sturdy tripod, t line, tchotchkes, thepicture, tool, viewfinder, Width