Today we are going to learn how to take a photograph, make it look like a painting, and then make it an icon. It's a long tutorial, so you might want to go get a drink first. 8^) Before we start though, I need to say that my PS kept crashing while I did this tutorial. (New computer coming soon.) So, some of the screen shots are reproductions, and I lost one screenshot totally, but I think the tutorial is still easy to follow. You will probably need to play with the settings for your own image and for your own taste. This is how I did this one, but you may have done it differently. It's always good to play with the filters and settings to see what effects you get with each particular image.

We are going to start with this:

Then turn it into this:

And then make this:

You ready? Ok, let's go! First thing to do is open original image, which is the first pic above. It will be called background.

Duplicate the background layer by dragging it to the new layer button on the bottom of the layers palette. It's the one that looks like a dog-earred sheet of paper. A duplicate layer will pop up above the background layer. Name it layer1, or whatever you'd like.

With layer 1 active, go to Image > Adjustments > Brightness and Contrast. Set the brightness to -2, and the contrast to +20. We want it to be very contrasty to help our following steps show up better.

Then, still on layer 1 go to Filter > Brush strokes > Cross hatch then make the settings say stroke length 6, sharpness 6, strength 1. Now it should look something like this.

Now duplicate layer 1 name it layer 2, or some such.

Make sure layer 2 is active, then go to Filter > Brush strokes > Spatter, with the settings Raduis 2, Smoothness 9 to get it to look something like this:

Next we will learn about one of my favorite keystroke tricks that I've not taught yet in any previous tutorial. It is very handy! Make a new layer and name it layer 3, or something handy. Make sure the background layer, layer one and layer two are all turned on. We are going to merge the exisiting layers and stamp the merged layers into layer 3. With layer three active, stamp visible. The keystroke is Alt + ctrl + shift + e. (This is handy because you still have your original first three layers, in case you decide to go back and change something later on, or if you end up duplicating one of those layers for some reason. Of if you end up changing opacities on the layers ... lots of good reasons to do it like this, and easy enough to delete them at the end before saving to make your final icon weigh less.)

With layer 3 active, go to Image > Adjustments > Gradient map, click the drop down arrow to select the black and white gradient, say OK, then set the layer at 50% opacity. The gradient map mutes some of the colors, makes it look more like a watercolor, IMO. Now it looks like this:

Still on layer 3, go to Filter > Artistic > Underpainting with these settings: Brush size 0, Coverage 1, Texture sandstone, Scaling 96%, Relief 0, Light source top right, (since that is where the light is on our original pic) and opacity 41%. This is to add some texture, like a painting would have. This is the lost screenshot step. No pic here.

On layer 3 still, go to Filter > Artistic > Watercolor, settings Detail 14, Shadow intensity 0, Texture 1, Soft light, Opacity 10%. This step helps it look even more like a water color. The differences are subtle, but there.

Now it is time to duplicate layer 3, call it layer 4, I am so original! Set layer 4 to screen, with opacity on 20%. This lightens the overall pic, and gives more detail to the darker areas.

At this point, the painting portion is complete. I saved it as a .psd, then duplicated the image to make the icon.

Here is the history palette, if your curious.

Page 2 --> Making it into an icon.

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