Table of Contents

Vintage And Aging Photo Effects Using Adobe Photoshop

Tom Clayton
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What We’ll Be Creating

Vintage Photo Effects Tutorial

Preparation

Before we jump right into all the good stuff, you first need a photo or image to start with. I’ll be using the image below, a photo with a street view in America.

Vintage Photo Effects Tutorial

Removing The Color & Adding Some Texture

Open up your photo in photoshop, right click on your background layer and select “Duplicate Layer” from the menu. Rename the duplicated layer “Original Copy”.

Vintage Photo Effects Tutorial

With your duplicated layer selected go to “Image > Adjustments > Desaturate” (Shift + Ctrl + U) then add some texture by going to “Filter > Texture > Grain”, use the settings below.

Vintage Photo Effects Tutorial

Now add the noise filter “Filter > Noise > Add Noise”, again use the settings below.

Vintage Photo Effects Tutorial

You should have something like this.

Vintage Photo Effects Tutorial

Tinting The Image

Most old photographs appear to have a brownish colored tint to them, so to try and replicate this we’ll just simply add a block of color. Make sure your duplicated layer is selected then click the “New Adjustments Layer” icon.

Vintage Photo Effects Tutorial

Once you’ve clicked the “New Adjustments Layer” icon select “Hue/Saturation” from the menu.

Vintage Photo Effects Tutorial

Once selected add the following settings into the “Hue/Saturation” Panel.

Vintage Photo Effects Tutorial

Create a new layer above your hue/saturation adjustment layer then label this new layer “Brown Border”. Select the “Paint Bucket Tool” (G) then fill your layer with the color #9c4210. Now select the “Eraser tool” (E). In the Brush palette select a soft-edged brush of a size of roughly 300. Erase most of the middle section from the colored layer. Fade the eeffect by setting the opacity of this layer to 30-40%.

Vintage Photo Effects Tutorial

Enhancing The Photo’s Lightness

To make the image seem more faded create a new layer above your “Brown Border” layer then simply fill (G) the new layer with the color white #ffffff. Once you’ve filled the layer with the color white rename the layer then set the opacity to around 20%.

Vintage Photo Effects Tutorial

Were now going to make the image look cloudy, create a new layer underneath your white fill layer then rename this layer “Clouds Layer”. Set your foreground color to #995f38 and background color to #ffffff, then go to “Filter > Render > Clouds”.

Vintage Photo Effects Tutorial

Now go to “Filter > Blur > Motion Blur”, use the settings below.

Vintage Photo Effects Tutorial

Change the blend mode of your “Clouds Layer” to “Hard Light” then set opacity to around 38-40%. You should have something like this.

Vintage Photo Effects Tutorial

Grunge Effects

Download some grunge brushes from your favorite photoshop brush resource, any grunge brush set should do the job, then with the color white randomly add some grunge marks to the image.

Vintage Photo Effects Tutorial

Incorporate Wrinkled Paper

In the next following steps I’ll be showing you how to make your own wrinkled paper texture, feel free to use a scanned image of wrinkled paper or a stock photo.

Create a new layer at the top of your stack then label this layer “Paper”. Reset your background and foreground colors to black and white (D) then select the “Gradient Tool” (G) with the following settings.

Wrinkled Paper Effect

Once you’ve applied the settings randomly drag numerous gradients over the canvas. You will have a completely different set of wrinkles every time you do this so don’t worry if your image looks nothing like mine.

Wrinkled Paper Effect

Now go to “Filter > Stylize > Emboss”.

Wrinkled Paper Effect

Wrinkled Paper Effect

Set your “Paper Layers” blend mode to “Hard Light”, you should have something like this.

Vintage Photo Effects Tutorial

Burning The Edges

Select all of your canvas by press “Ctrl + A” then go to “Edit > Copy Merged” (Ctrl + Shift + C). Now go to “Edit > Paste” (Ctrl + V), rename your new pasted layer to “Complete”. Hide all your layers apart from your “Complete Layer” then select the “Eraser Tool” (E) then with a soft noisy brush remove the edges from around the photo.

Vintage Photo Effects Tutorial

Now select the “Burn Tool” (O) and burn around the edges of your “Complete Layer”.

Vintage Photo Effects Tutorial

Finally un-hide all your hidden layers, you should be left with something like this.

Vintage Photo Effects Tutorial

Conclusion

Thanks for taking the time to try this tutorial, I’ll look forward to your results & comments.

Vintage Photo Effects Tutorial

If you liked it then please promote it by retweeting, digging and sharing. Thank You.

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27 thoughts on “Vintage And Aging Photo Effects Using Adobe Photoshop”

  1. its very nice tutorial i will try it, but u have a mistake in particular this line “then simply fill (G) the new layer with the color white #000000.” white color code is “#ffffff” may be it happen by mistake
    Thanks

    Reply
  2. I like the tutorial and the simplicity of creating this effect. The only thing is that I might lower the opacity of the wrinkled paper layer because it doesn’t seem to fit at full opacity like you have it.

    Reply
  3. Amazing Tutorial!
    I’m a beginner but this helped and inspired me a lot!
    I’ve only got some problems to include the JQuery Scripts to the page 🙁
    Well i’ll just learned HTML/CSS not JQUERY ^^
    Anyway thank you very much and sry for my bad English I’m from Germany 🙂

    Reply
  4. hi! thanks you for your sharing this kind of idea. this is a good experience and i enjoy to make like this. more sharing from you!.^_^

    Reply
  5. Very nice and useful information. Why not write a book about this particular subject. For today’s economic variation and be short of of opportunities, it actually will be a very hot topic. Thanks a lot

    Reply
  6. This is my first time i visit here. I found so many interesting stuff in your blog especially its discussion. From the tons of comments on your articles, I guess I am not the only one having all the enjoyment here keep up the good work

    Reply

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