How to Give a Airbrushed Look to a Photo in Photoshop CS4

The "airbrushed" look is sometimes used in modeling photos to produce a specific effect. Airbrushed photos appear slightly painted with soft, smooth tones. This can be done in Photoshop CS4 with ease, using a duplicate layer and a mild surface blur. Use the airbrush effect gently if you want your photo to appear realistic – setting the radius and threshold too high will result in an unrealistic looking image.

Instructions

1. • 1
     Open the image you want to work with in Photoshop. Click on the Lasso tool on the sidebar menu.
   • 2
     Trace the area to which you want to apply the effect. In this situation, you'll generally trace the person's face and body.
   • 3
     Click on "Layer" then select "Duplicate Layer."
   • 4
     Click on "Filter" then select "Surface Blur." Lower the radius level to somewhere between five and 10, depending on your preferences, and then lower the threshold to somewhere between 10 and 20, depending on how airbrushed you want the picture to look.
   • 5
     Make any other edits you want to the image, and then click on "File" then "Save As" to save the image.