[5] Adjusting the line art.

I thought that Alice and Humpty Dumpty in the foreground weren’t standing out enough, so I make the line art bolder.

 

Alice

① I create another layer in the Alice folder, fill it with the line art color, then create a selection area on the line art and delete the outside.

See part three for details on this step.

 

② I place this layer underneath the folder, then blur it by going to the [Filter] menu > [Blur] > [Gaussian blur]. Then I move this layer into the original folder.

 

Humpty Dumpty

I make the lines bolder in the same way as for Alice.

 

[2] Adjustments to foreground elements

In order to make Alice the focal point, I’ll slightly blur the elements in the foreground.

 

I’ll start by slightly blurring the queen card in the foreground.

① I hide all the layers except the cards.

 

② I right click and created a merged copy of the layers with [Merge visible to new layer].

 

③ I make a selection area of the Q card only, then go to the [Selection] menu > [Invert selected area].

 

④ I delete everything inside the selection area so that only the Q card remains.

 

⑤ I display all the hidden layers again, then blur the layer I made and reduce the opacity.

 

I use the same process to blur Humpty Dumpty. I also move all the Humpty Dumpty layers into a single folder.

 

[3] Adjustments to the background

I add some more blue to the background.

 

I select the top folder, then go to the [Layer] menu > [New Correction Layer] > [Color balance], and adjust the overall colors.

I increase overall harmony of the illustration by strengthening the blue in the shadows as it is Alice’s main color, and by using a more yellow shade for highlights to make it look like there is a yellow light over the whole piece.

 

I want the illustration to look like Wonderland, so I will add some texture.

This is a brush that I often use for effects.

I made it by scanning an image of gravel. It is useful for a surprising variety of things, such as water textures.

 

[4] Adding effects

I imagine this scene happening as Alice drinks the potion that makes her get larger, so I‘ll add some magical effects.

I’ll use a small droplet brush that I’ve used before for bloodstains and other liquid effects.

 

I add the effect on a [Glow dodge] layer, then copy and blur the layer.

 

I check the balance of the whole illustration, then I’m done.