Halloween Photo Effects

It takes just a few seconds for the script to run, and here is the creepy result:

But if you’re the DIY type who would rather create your own Halloween photo effects, here are several more eerie examples.

If you ran the script on the jack-o-lantern, either close it without saving or use File > Save As to save it with a new name. Then open a fresh copy of the original, happy pumpkin. So that the original image will be preserved,  right-click on the Background layer in the Layers palette and duplicate it. Click the name of the new layer, and replace it with “Spooky.”

In the After window, you can see a vignette of darkness outside the circle. To get a sense of the various weird effects you can create, click the Randomize Parameters icon a few times.

You can adjust the sliders to create your own unique effect. The top four sliders control the darkness, blur, glow, and feathering; the Color Adjust sliders below control the hue, saturation and color. For this sinister red example, the settings are:

When your pumpkin looks good (or evil), click OK. And because these effects were created on their own layer, you can bring back the original image by clicking the Eye icon to hide the “Spooky” layer.

For the next effect, open the Moon image. Before applying effects, let’s increase the contrast between the moon’s surface and shadows. Go to Adjust > Smart Photo Fix, which again brings up a before-and-after view.

The settings shown here bring down the brightness, increase the amount of color, and sharpen the shadows. Click OK once you are happy with the results in the After window.

Then open up the Retro Lab again (Effects > Photo Effects > Retro Lab)

First, adjust the selection circle to fit the moon. Then use the settings shown here to bring out more red, wash out the color a bit, and increase the blur and feathering. Press OK to see the result: a full moon you wouldn’t want to encounter while walking alone down a dark street.

First, go to Effects > Photo Effects and select Infrared Film. Keep Preview on image checked, so that you can see adjustments in real time.

This effect also has a Randomize Parameters icon, which is fun to play with. Or adjust the sliders yourself, to make the house look séance-ready.

In this example, the above image is still a bit too bright. So use Adjust > Hue and Saturation > Hue/Saturation/Lightness and bring down the Lightness slider to around -52.

First, access the Instant Effects palette by going to View > Palettes > Instant Effects, or by pressing Shift + F2 on your keyboard. If you have the Learning Center open, you can go to Effects and select Instant Effects to open the palette.

At the top of the palette there is a Preview image, and underneath that is a dropdown menu. Select the Landscape category from the dropdown menu and double-click on the Contrast More effect.

Now the shadows are more pronounced. Now choose the Retro category from the dropdown list and double-click on the Retro Dark effect. The difference is subtle, but the overall effect is darker and more purple, with stronger glowing areas.

To switch to a glowing yellow effect, go to Adjust > Hue and Saturation > Colorize, and try these settings:

To add a lightning after-effect, activate the Picture Tube tool. In the Property bar, click the graphic to open the menu of available images. Choose Lightning.

Set the Scale to 220, the Step to 500, Placement and Selection mode as Random. Then just click in various spots on the image, to add random lightning bolts.