Photoshop Fun: Giving photos a vintage look

Written by Jamie Chambers

The vintage, or retro, look is in, partly because there are many apps and filters available to help you modify your everyday photos. However, you can get that look in your yearbook, and do it more professionally, since Photoshop can help you make precise adjustments.

In only a few simple steps, you can change the colors and add textures to your photos, giving them a cool, vintage effect.

1. Open an image to adjust.

 

2. Since older images seem to have less definition, first adjust the contrast of the photo. Go to Image > Adjustments > Levels. Move the middle slider to the left.

 

3. Adjust the color. Go to Layer > New Layer. Several options are available. For this exercise, make the gradient colors Blue to Yellow. Then change the opacity of the Gradient Map layer to 30%.

 

4. Add some texture to the image. Open a background texture. In this example, a texture with scratches is used. Add a top layer of this background to your file. Adjust the Blending Mode to Darken and the Opacity to 20%.

 

Try different color gradients and textures to make your own unique retro photos!

 

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Jamie Chambers

Jamie Chambers faced two career path choices in college, and lucky for Walsworth he chose art over accounting. He has been a creative influence for Walsworth for 17 years, currently as Design & Creative Concepting Supervisor in the Marketing Department. For 10 years, as an artist and supervisor for the Creative Services Department, Jamie traveled to workshops to collaborate with yearbook staffs to develop their covers and theme packages.