Photoshop makes it easy to create a single
image that contains different versions of the same original.
In this example, we'll borrow a page from Andy Warhol and
create four different monotone versions of a photograph,
combined into a single image.
Start with an image, just about any
image. We'll use PhotoSpin's image #0370029 by Robert Meyers.
Using Photoshop's File> Automate> Picture Package feature, we
can add four copies of the image to a single page. Uncheck the
"Flatten All layers" option.
Add a Posterize adjustment layer to the top of the Layer
palette, which applies the Posterize adjustment to all layers
below. (In this example, Posterize is set to Levels: 4.) Add
individual Hue/Saturation adjustment layers for each of the
four image layers. To restrict each Hue Saturation adjustment
layer to the image layer directly below, you simply
Option-click (Mac) or Alt-click (Windows) on the line between
the adjustment layer and the image layer in the Layers
palette. (This "clips" the adjustment layer to the layer
below.)
For each of the Hue/Saturation adjustment layers, click on the
Colorize box and select the color you want to use. In this
image, observe that the top sample shows blue and cyan, the
middle example has blue and magenta, and the bottom image
contains only blue.
If you choose to use a single color for
each panel of the image, think "60." You'll increase the
Lightness and Saturation sliders, then adjust the Hue slider
to multiples of 60:
Red: 0 (and 360)
Yellow: 60
Green: 120
Cyan: 180
Blue: 240
Magenta: 300
If you'd like, you can apply this same technique to an image
with a single image layer. Use four adjustment layers, each
with a layer mask restricting that adjustment to one quadrant
of the image. (This can substantially reduce file size.)
Best of all, it's easy to make simple changes to adjustment
layers and create different version of this artwork. Re-open
the adjustment layers and change the settings, keeping the
same basic artwork, altering only the arrangement of color or
the colors used. Give each a new name and consider it a new
piece of artwork.
And, when you think about it, this may
be the most Warhol-esque aspect of this entire project.