Romantic Flower Photography with Topaz

Flower and botanical photography is very popular and it is easy to create romantic flower photography. It’s exciting to find new blossoms and colors to photograph and it’s a subject matter that can be found in every region and area of the world! I love photographing flowers because they are a great subject matter to practice depth of field with, they are all so very different in colors and shape, and they are versatile for making art with! Romantic flower photography is easy in this easy and quick tutorial! We’ll learn how to turn those images and snapshots into surreal, dreamy photographs with Topaz Simplify and Topaz Texture Effects premade effects.

Don’t have Simplify or Texture Effects? Give them a try for free for 30 days!

1. Open Photoshop

Go ahead and open Photoshop (or any of our Compatible Host Editors). The first thing you’ll need to do is open your image! Command + O is the fastest way to browse your files and to open an image but you can always use whichever method you prefer.

Open Photoshop

You may notice some differences in our workspaces. I’ve got mine set-up with customized windows and all the things I need for photography edits, graphic design creation, and more. The set-up that automatically pops up for you is totally fine and will work perfectly for this tutorial.

The first thing to do when editing any image is to Duplicate your Background Layer. You’ll want to do this every time to keep an unedited version of your image that you can revert back to whenever you like.

There are a number of different ways to duplicate a layer in Photoshop. You can do it from the menu (Layer > Duplicate Layer), by right clicking on the layer itself and then selecting Duplicate Layer, or, my favorite way, grab the layer by clicking on it with your mouse or stylus and drag it to the New Layer Icon.

Duplicate Layer

2. Simplify

We’ll be making super simple and soft images today. The first step is to open Simplify as a plugin with your host editor.

To open Simplify in Photoshop go to Filter > Topaz Labs > Topaz Simplify…

Open Simplify

Simplify will open up in a new window. To easily and quickly make our effect today, we will be using the preinstalled Collections and Presets that come with Simplify. You can see these menus on the left hand side of the screen.

I really love the BuzSim Collection and the Painting Collection! Select a Collection and the Presets will update to show all the available effects within that collection. You can always hover over an effect to see a preview or select it to see it on your image in the preview window.

Hover Preview

You can always go through all of the effect categories and preset effects individually by using the preview window. But to be more efficient, you can see all of the presets at once by by selecting the Grid View button.

Grid View Button

Grid View

Explore all the effects to find one that works well with your vision and image. Do you want soft and romantic blending or a more graphic treatment? There’s an effect for either vision you may have!

I chose BuzSim V. It simplified the details in the rose, blended the colors, and made the image bright and cheerful.  

Once you find the perfect premade effect for you, select OK. You will now be returned to Photoshop.

When you are back in Photoshop, rename your layer to the program you used and the effect you chose. This will help you remember what you did if you ever need to know!

You can easily do this by double clicking on the text next to the image in the Layers Panel.

3. Texture Effects

Before opening Texture Effects, you’ll want to Duplicate your Simplify Layer. If you need a reminder on how to achieve this, revisit Step 1. Once you have duplicated your layer, go ahead and open Texture Effects as a plugin.

To open Texture Effects in Photoshop go to Filter > Topaz Labs > Topaz Texture Effects…

Open Texture Effects

Texture Effects will open up in a new window. To easily and quickly make our effect today, we will be using the preinstalled effects that come with Texture Effects. You can see the menu and effects on the right hand side of the screen.

Texture Effects

To browse Collections simply use the drop down menu in the upper right hand corner of the program. I think the Soft Grunge Collection is perfect for this flower! You can always select All Effects to see all of the effects in Texture Effects!

You’ll notice that the preview thumbnails will update. You can click a thumbnail to view a preview.

I really like the effect Mixed Berries.

The effect is a little much on the subject matter for my taste. If you feel this way too then don’t worry! Texture Effects features Masking!

To edit the effect, simply click on the adjustment slider icon.

A new panel will open and you can see all of the adjustments that were made to create the effect. You can always turn these on and off, delete adjustments, and add adjustments.

TIP: If you’d like to learn more about making effects in Texture Effects, check out this tutorial!

I just want to mask out the effect on the flower but keep it on the back ground. To edit the Overall Masking, open the Overall Masking Panel. It is located in the bottom right of the screen! Select the arrow to expand the panel.

Open Masking

The Spot Mask is a pretty good option for me! The default soft edges of the mask blend the effect away nicely.

Spot Masking

To move the mask, select it with your mouse or stylus on the image and relocate it. You can use the handles to resize and reshape the mask as well.

Resize Masking

TIP: If Spot Masking isn’t giving you the results you like, try Brush Masking!

Once you are happy with the effect you have selected and completed your masking work, select OK in the bottom right hand corner to return to Photoshop.

When you are back in Photoshop, rename your layer.

Rename Layer

Before making any final permanent adjustments to your image, save your layered PSD file. I like to use my keyboard and press Shift + Command + S to Save As quickly.

Now you can Crop, Resize, or make any other adjustment for the final output. Then Save As again to save a different version or different file type.

In just a few short steps, we took this image from simple and beautiful to dreamy and surreal.

Gallery

Simplify BuzSim V and Texture Effects Mixed Berries

Simplify Soft Features and Texture Effects Steal Glaze

Simplify BuzSim and Texture Effects Dreamy Gauze

Simplify Watercolor and Texture Effects Lots of Light

Simplify BuzSim Black and White II and Texture Effects Dreaming in Color

How Did You Do?

We’d love to see your images! You can share them with us on social media! We have Facebook, Twitter, YouTube, and Instagram. We also offer free Webinars if you’d like to learn more and we have a great Discussion Forum!

About Jodi L. Robbins

Jodi is currently the Art Director of Topaz Labs. She has been an artist and photographer for over 15 years, starting with black and white film photography and alternative processing. After completing her BFA in Studio Art from Southern Methodist University and her Masters in Photography from Savannah College of Art and Design, she worked in product photography for companies such as Heritage Auctions, Neiman Marcus, and the Dallas Cowboys.