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Photoshop Tutorials: The Mirror Effect Part 1


Have you ever wondered about that mirror effect thing done in a professional way without using apps for smartphones? Well in this tutorial, we are going to teach you how to make that mirror effect neatly and properly. Do not worry about other applications because as long as you have Photoshop, you are more than safe. So let’s begin.


Step 1: Edit the Background Layer

When you open an image in Photoshop, it automatically translates to it being the Background Layer. It is the layer which is locked and it is treated differently than other layers in Photoshop. It has its own rules about what and what not to do with it. One rule of the background layer is that you won’t be able to move it around the document so what we need to do to change it is to Double Click it in the Layers Panel. It then automatically changes to Layer 0 and you will notice that there is no lock in the side of that layer anymore.

Step 2: Add more canvas space or resize the photo

Now that we can move the image freely inside the canvas, you now need more space for the half of the mirror image to fit.

Add space in canvas:

  1. Click on Image > Canvas size
  2. This opens a new prompt. Before doing anything else, tick on the Relative options to let Photoshop know that we want to start increasing size from our current canvas.
  3. Add 70-100% in the width option only because we just want to add few spaces on the side of the canvas.
  4. Hit on Okay to close the dialog box.

You now have extra space on your image without resizing your image. Another option is to resize the image. Press on Ctrl + T/ Command + T and hold down Shift to maintain proper proportions of the image. You have two (2) choices but I prefer adding space so you won’t result to a small image.

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