How to Make Your Face Hidden Within Any Picture Using Pixlr or Photoshop

Everyone likes to take pictures and and feel like a photographer. Photographers like to edit their photos with cool effects to make creative and amazing new photos. Therefore everyone likes to edit photos to make creative and amazing new pictures!

The following instructions will teach anyone and everyone how to make a face 'hide' within any object or texture. It may sound complex, but in 6 simple steps you can have cool new images perfect for the Halloween season.

Preparation:
- 1 mugshot/portrait of the face you want to hide
- 1 background/texture that you want to hide the face in
- photo editing program of your choice (these instructions will be for photoshop owners and pixlr for those without photoshop)

Throughout this tutorial I will be using terminology frequently used within editing programs, other tutorials, and the design world. I will list the words you need to know below with their description to help you. I will also place the definitions in the steps they apply to.
- canvas: the canvas is the area that you will be working in. When you start working on a project chances are you will open several pictures. Instead of referring to each picture in individual files the programs create 1 canvas and opens all of the pictures into that one location.
- layer: these are the individual pieces of your canvas. Each photo will be 1 layer. Layers will appear in the order they are listed. The best way to look at a layer is to compare it to a cake. When you look at a chocolate cake you see the frosting and fun designs but underneath you know there are other layers of ingredients. You may only see the finished outside but each layer within is necessary to arrive at your final project.
- mask: masking is a term used when you hide aspects of the canvas. Imagine a mask that you would wear on Halloween. It will cover up the areas you don't want to be seen.

Helpful tip: name your pictures something you will remember if you come back to them later. img203_a2.jpg is not a good name because you will never remember what it is. Use descriptive words or numbers like dates, names, scenery, etc.

Helpful tip: While following the instructions when you see a bold word those are the actual words you will see in your program. The best part of this project is feeling accomplished and proud of the picture you will be creating. Being frustrated at the instructions will never help you feel accomplished and I wanted to remove this aspect so you can enjoy your work.

At the end of this tutorial I will post several photos that I made using these simple steps to show the many different possibilities you can have just by changing the pictures and adjusting locations.

Note to those without Photoshop: pixlr is a very powerful program with many of the same features as photoshop. Just because you don't have photoshop doesn't mean you can't have fun editing photos. It is a great program for those that like to manipulate photos as a hobby and I highly recommend it! To use pixlr visit this link PIXLR .

Note: I recommend using Google images for the background images and textures. CLICK HERE to go directly to Google images with textures already loaded. Use your own pictures for the faces for more fun. If you use someone's photos please ask for permission first.

Once you have selected both of your images that you will be using open the program that you will be using. Once you have opened the program open both photos. Do not worry about opening the pictures in any certain order. I will show you how to change the order if needs be.

Instruction for Photoshop:
1. Open the program on your computer.
2. Go to 'file' and 'open' the first picture from the location it is saved in. (see image 1)
3. Go to 'file' and 'place' the second picture in your document. (see image 2)
4. Look at your layers panel located to the right and make sure both images are open. (see image 3)

Instruction for pixlr:
1. Open pixlr in your browser.
2. Go to 'file' and 'open' the first picture from the location it is saved in. (see image 4)
3. Go to 'layer' and 'open image as layer' and open your second picture in your document. (see image 5)
4. Look at your layers panel located to the right and make sure both images are open. (see image 6)

Helpful tip: if you are not seeing one of the pictures double check the location you saved them and start from step 2.

A very important step is to make sure that your pictures are in the correct order on your canvas. You want the face to be on the top layer or above the texture/background. This will allow your face to be seen through your texture/background. If your images are already in the correct order you can skip this step or use it as a reference. For those that need to change the order follow the steps below.

Instruction for Photoshop:
1. Make sure both images are open. (see step one for help)
2. Unlock the first layer by double clicking on the word 'background' . A dialogue box will open and click 'enter' . This will rename the layer from background to layer 0. (see images 1-3)
3. Grab (click and hold) the image that your face is in and drag it above the other image in your layers panel. It should be the uppermost layer. When dragging you should see a thick bold line displaying what layer the image will now be in.

Instruction for pixlr:
1. Make sure both images are open. (see step one for help)
2. Unlock the first layer by double clicking the image of the lock next to the word background . This will rename the layer from background to layer 0. (see images 4 & 5)
3. Grab (click and hold) the image that your face is in and drag it above the other image in your layers panel. It should be the uppermost layer. When dragging you should see a thick bold line displaying what layer the image will now be in.

Helpful tip: by double clicking the layer name you can rename it to stay organized.

The next part of your project is the most crucial aspect of the whole process.

The first step is to add the layer mask to the image that has your 'face' you would like to hide. By creating the layer mask you can easily change and edit which parts of the face you want to be hidden. By using the mask you don't have to be afraid of deleting or ruining parts of the original picture if you make a mistake or just want to make adjustments.

Instruction for Photoshop:
1. Locate your layers panel on the right. At the very bottom there is a white circle surrounded by a gray box (it should be the third image from the left). This is the layer mask button. (see image 1)
2. Make sure that your first layer is selected (the layer with your face image) and then click the layer mask button .
3. A white box will appear next to the image in your selected layer. (see image 2)

Instruction for pixlr:
1. Locate the layers panel on the right. At the very bottom there is a gray circle surrounded by a white box (it should the the second image from the left). This is the layer mask button. (see image 3)
2. Make sure that your first layer is selected (the layer with your face image) and then click the layer mask button.
3. A white box will appear next to the image in your selected layer. (see image 4)

Helpful tip: if you accidentally placed the layer mask on the wrong layer you can always undo your last action by going to 'edit' and then clicking 'undo layer mask' (it will just say 'undo' in pixlr).

The second step to selecting just the face will incorporate using the brush tool to 'paint' over the parts of the picture you don't want to be seen at all. By using the brush tool you can easily change what you want to be seen. Make sure that you are careful when painting around the face. Although you can always fix a mistake it is always easier to do it right the first time.

Instruction for Photoshop:
1. Make sure that the layer mask box is selected (the white box next to the layer). (see image 1)
2. Locate your brush tool in your tool panel located on the left of your screen and click on it. (see image 2)
3. Locate the brush tool settings right above your canvas and edit them to match your needs (you can change the size for painting large areas or small detail work). (see image 3)
4. Make sure that you are painting with the color black . You can look to see what color you are painting with by looking at the bottom left corner of your screen. Double click the color square to open the color picker and choose black. (see image 4 & 5)
5. Start painting around the face you want to be seen. You will start to see the background/texture image
start to appear. (see image 6)
6. Quickly double check to make sure that only the face is left from the original picture.

Instruction for pixlr:
1. Make sure that the layer mask box is selected (it will be surrounded by a thin red line). (see image 7)
2. Locate your brush tool in your tool panel located on the left of your screen and click on it (it is just to the right of the pencil and right above the paint bucket). (see image 8)
3. Locate the brush tool settings right above your canvas and edit them to match your needs (you can change the size for painting large areas or small detail work). (see image 9)
4. Paint over the entire canvas until your picture with the face is visible. (see image 10)
5. Locate the eraser tool (it is just left of the paint bucket). (see image 11)
6. Erase everything except for the face . You will start to see the background again. (see image 12 & 13)

Helpful tip: if you accidentally paint or erase parts of the image you didn't mean to you can always fix it. In photoshop just paint with the color white and it will 'remove' what you accidentally masked. In pixlr you can just switch between the brush and eraser to get the results you want.

This is the final step of selecting just the face. In order for the face to be subtly hidden it is best for the face to be grayscale. You can choose to keep the colors if you would like but I find that the image looks much more sharp and clean when you rely on the colors of the background/texture to give emphasis to the features of the face.

Instruction for Photoshop:
1. Make sure that the first layer with your face is selected.
2. Go to the very top of your screen and select the 'layer' tab. (see image 1)
3. Find and click on the 'new adjustment layer'. (see image 1)
4. Find and click 'black and white'. (see image 2)
5. When the dialogue box opens hit 'enter' on your keyboard. A new will be added right above your face
layer named 'black and white'. (see image 3)
6. Go to your layers panel and hide the background image by clicking on the 'eye'. (see image 4)
7. Right click on the 'black and white' layer (on the words) and click on 'merge visible'. (see image 5)
8. Go back to the layers panel and 'unhide' the background by clicking on the empty box where the 'eye' once was. (see image 6)
9. Your face is now in black and white. (see image 7)

Instruction for pixlr:
1. Make sure that the first layer with your face is selected.
2. Go to the very top of your screen and select the 'adjustment' tab. (see image 1)
3. Find and click on 'desaturate'.  Your image will now be black and white. (see image 1 & 2)

Helpful tip: always remember that you can 'undo' your steps if you accidentally click on the wrong options.

We are very near to completion. As you can see we have made great changes to your original photos. Before we get to the final touches we have one step left. In order for the face to look like it is 'hidden' within the texture or background we need to change the way the color is displayed. By changing the mode of the layer with to overlay we are using the background/texture as the defining colors leaving the outlines of the original image and some minor highlights. You now have a face that is 'hiding'.

Instruction for Photoshop:
1. Make sure that you have the correct layer selected by clicking on the layer with your face in it. (see image 1)
2. Locate the pull down bar above the layer with the word 'normal' in it. (see image 1)
3. Click on the pull down bar and select the word 'overlay' . (see image 2)
4. Watch your face 'hide' in its surroundings. (see image 3)

Instruction for pixlr:
1. Make sure that you have the correct layer selected by clicking on the layer with your face in it. (see image 4)
2. Locate the pull down bar below your layers labeled 'mode' and click on it (if you don't see it click on the bottom left box in the layers window. This will toggle the mode bar on and off). (see image 4)
3. Scroll down the list until you find the word 'overlay' and click on it . (see image 5)
4. Watch your face 'hide' in its surroundings. (see image 6)

Fun tip: you can experiment with other modes in either program to get interesting and different results. Pick one that fascinates you and go with it. It doesn't change or alter any of the steps in any way. It is just a matter of preference and you should enjoy what you make it look like, right?

You are now done...if you want to be! Feel free to grab the move arrow and move the face to wherever you would like on the background. You can find the move arrow at the top of your tools panel (both programs) and it is the black arrow with a compass next to it. With the arrow tool you can use the texture and background to create cool and creepy effects just by placing the face in different positions. Congratulations! You are done!

I hope you have enjoyed this project and I hope that it was easy to follow and understand. I love to create fun pictures and projects that people love and have no idea how I made them. In the next step I will show you several examples of how you can use these instructions to create cool and unique pictures. Thanks for reading!

Note: the face in the lightning was made in photoshop while the face in the upper-left corner was made in pixlr.

Helpful tip : When creating your projects you can change the rotation of the images to further exploit the interesting arrangements you can make by moving the picture.

Helpful tip : try masking different objects or features for even creepier results. (see image with the peeling paint with two eyes and mouth below)