I think I have discovered the ultimate combination of skills that will allow me to express myself artistically. The holy trinity of 3D art, photoshop madness and photography. I will be using photography for photo realistic textures and UV mapping, 3D for creating whatever the hell my brain comes up with during the day, and photoshop to fuse all those bits together. It is so much fun to sit and create a sci fi landscape from scratch by assembling a visual puzzle of parts and pieces, creating the missing bits and composing the final image. 3D will take time to master, but that is nothing comparing to the effort and time I have invested into studying Japanese calligraphy, so it should be fun. I have so many visions and ideas lined up that I am not sure I will be able to complete them all in one lifetime. I love fantasy and 3D so this will be the main theme for my artwork. I have plans to create a new photography service for those who crave for really unique images. It will be merging sci fi photoshop manipulation with 3D art and portrait photography. If you want a crazy portrait, then look no further. Today I was creating some sci fi structures, one of them you can see in the image below. The ship I created a few days ago in Zbrush and it is the same one as in this image here. Image was composited in photoshop. Anyone interested in private photoshop workshops via skype desktop sharing please contact me directly.

​My Youtube channel with free photoshop tutorials
Photography workshops in Tokyo - click for more details.
Hire a photographer in Tokyo
Buy original Chinese and Japanese calligraphy art
Check out my new portrait photography services in Tokyo website! 

This video tutorial is for lazy people like myself who cannot be bothered reading. I wrote an article on my other page, Portrait Photography Tokyo, that gives tips on how to crop photos in photoshop and you can read it here, though this video is probably covering it in greater depth. Cropping is nothing else but an attempt at fine tuning composition. If you shoot on a tripod, your composition should be spot on, but if you shoot quick and hand held things may get a bit misaligned. I create many composite images and photoshop manipulations so for me cropping is a second nature. Cropping is a fantastic exercise for improving your composition, and composition is one of the most important things in photography, or any type of art really. So take your time, bring some photos into photoshop and try different ways of cropping one image, you may be surprised what you can learn. In this video I am taking one image and showing you a few ways of cropping it, and explain in details why I cropped it this way or another, which brings you behind the scenes and lets you understand my thought flow. You can apply anything from this photoshop tutorial to your photography when you are out and shooting. Enjoy! Anyone interested in private photoshop workshops via skype desktop sharing please contact me directly. If you are looking for a portrait photographer in Tokyo, check out my services menu tab.

​My Youtube channel with free photoshop tutorials
Photography workshops in Tokyo - click for more details.
Hire a photographer in Tokyo
Buy original Chinese and Japanese calligraphy art
Check out my new portrait photography services in Tokyo website!

Here is my first 3D / photoshop manipulation art for the new project Tokyo 3017. I gave it a kinky title: "They have come!". I will be landing sci fi and alien ships all over the damn place. Ships will be rendered in 3D, and I expect them to become more detailed and crazy as the time goes. I will also be scouting Tokyo for perfect spots for landing or flying over my spaceships. 3D isn't easy and takes loads of time to learn and create art, but it is fun as hell and I am loving it! This image is based on my old photo that I took last year or so, it is a view from Shinjuku government building, they have two observation towers there. The view there is smashing so check it out when you are in Tokyo, I even shot this image of Mt. Fuji from there. The ships were made in Zbrush in 3D, well actually it is the same ship, just set in different perspectives. The only stock images I used were the helicopters. Lights, toning and compositing was done in photoshop. Together with the project I will be creating new videos, mostly on concept art, composition, compositing and photoshop manipulations, and possibly in the future on 3D art. You can see original images below. Anyone interested in private photoshop workshops via skype desktop sharing please contact me directly.

​My Youtube channel with free photoshop tutorials
Photography workshops in Tokyo - click for more details.
Hire a photographer in Tokyo
Buy original Chinese and Japanese calligraphy art
Check out my new portrait photography services in Tokyo website! 

First, by realistic I mean believable, ones that look like pictures and not a few images stitched hastily in photoshop. Composite photography and photoshop manipulations are a great fun, but they require patience, artistic sense, and knowledge of photoshop and other programs used for creating digital art. However there is more to it that this. So what are the key elements of great composite art or photoshop manipulations, then?  
1. vision
2. perspective
3. light
4. colors                                                                    
5. technical skills
6. database of images
7. patience
Optional but helpful (in my opinion essential):
8. pen pressure tablet
9. calibrated monitor

 You need to have a vision of what you wish to create, the scene, the story, the composition. Concept art and photoshop manipulations are all about expressing yourself through imagery that does not exist or never took a place. It is all about what you want to portray. Next, if the perspective, camera angle and focal length of the lens do not match,  it will be a very fake looking image and even though viewer may not be able to pin the issue down, the brain will notice that something is off. Now this is very much linked with the skills and knowledge of the software that you are using for creating composites, and the need for database of images. If you are impatient and want to create great art, then you can forget it. It is all about hard work and attention to details. The devil is in details, never forget that! If you want to have insane control use pen pressure tablet or drawing monitors like Cintiq by Wacom. A calibrated monitor will ensure quality in print. Also remember that all professionals use such monitors, so if you send any of your artwork or your folio to someone in hope of employment, then make sure your colors, contrast and black and white levels are spot on. If you would prefer private photoshop workshops via skype desktop sharing then contact me directly.

Programs used: Zbrush / photoshop CC 2015

​My Youtube channel with free photoshop tutorials
Photography workshops in Tokyo - click for more details.
Hire a photographer in Tokyo
Buy original Chinese and Japanese calligraphy art
Check out my new portrait photography services in Tokyo website! 

2D is too constrained, I am going 3D. After a long research and some trials with various software I have decided to begin my studies of Zbrush and Keyshot, two amazing programs for creating and rendering 3D art. Here is my first fully digital art and my first 3D model of a spaceship. Zbrush is a real jungle and the program is complicated and difficult like a school bus of frustrated women, but I am enjoying the creating process like a small kid a bar of chocolate that he was not supposed to eat. This also marks a beginning to a whole new project (and possibly some videos) whose current working title is "Tokyo 3017". That is right people, I will be landing my own spaceships all over Tokyo. The project will combine my photography art, photoshop manipulation and composite work, and 3D models. I may be throwing some cyborgs into the twist at some point. Hope you will enjoy it, and feel free to let me know what you think. 

My Youtube channel with free photoshop tutorials
Photography workshops in Tokyo - click for more details.
Hire a photographer in Tokyo
Buy original Chinese and Japanese calligraphy art
Check out my new portrait photography services in Tokyo website! 

Street photography is not easy. You have to be observant, patient but at the same time quick and precise if needed. You have to know your gear inside out to be able to act fast. You should have good understanding of human behavior and psychology, just like in portrait photography, although street photography is not all about capturing people. Running around like a rabid dog with your camera will probably not grant good results. Most of the time street photography is all about finding the picture with one element that is missing. Then all you do is wait for that element to appear. Things happen in patterns, so if you saw something you liked, but it was too late,there is a good chance it may happen again. When I visited Narita temple complex north of Tokyo, there was some sort of traditional event going on. I did not really care what it was, all I cared about was that it was a feast for a photographer. So I found myself a spot, with a small shrine framed by a massive branch, and small stone figurines lined up along the path, and the only missing element was someone passing. I saw a few people pass but they did not fit the scene, so I waited some more. And then I saw this guy, not only was he dressed to match the noren (banner) on that shrine, but he even turned his head towards the light in a perfect moment. Patience really pays off when it comes to street photography. If you are looking for a photographer in Tokyo to take you on street photography workshops, then feel free to contact me.

My Youtube channel with free photoshop tutorials
Photography workshops in Tokyo - click for more details.
Hire a photographer in Tokyo
Buy original Chinese and Japanese calligraphy art
Check out my new portrait photography services in Tokyo website! 

In this episode of free photoshop tutorials for beginners I will help you to understand layers and masks and how to use them in practice. The whole series is designed for photographers who either want to improve photoshop skills, or those of you who made the right decision of moving from Lightroom to Photoshop to do some proper photo editing. Photoshop layers and masks is what makes photoshop such a unique tool and what places it high above the abilities of Lightoroom. You can work non-destructively on your photos by stacking various effects as adjustment layers, on top of it you can fine tune those adjustments via blending, opacity and masks. Blending modes and opacity / fill are used for executing global shifts between layers, and masks are there for targeting certain areas of your image that you wish to fix or enhance. By the end of this video you will have a solid grasp on the basics of layers and masks and be aware of its massive potential. ​If you would prefer private photoshop workshops via skype desktop sharing then contact me directly.

​My Youtube channel with free photoshop tutorials
Photography workshops in Tokyo - click for more details.
Hire a photographer in Tokyo
Buy original Chinese and Japanese calligraphy art
Check out my new portrait photography services in Tokyo website! 

In this next photoshop tutorial for beginners I explain how to use vector tools on practical examples of photos. The most complex tool here is the pen tool, and it is also the most useful one. I coud not live without pen tool, it is an absolute life saver in editing of virtually any type of photos, but it is essential for making very precise selections in images portraying architecture, where there are many straight or curved lines and other selection tools simply fail. Pen tool is also amazing for editing portraiture and selecting body outline, or parts of the face, like eyes, lips, etc. I have a separate video on how to use pen tool in photoshop here. This part 4 of the photoshop tutorial series for photographers covers other tools such as color palette, pan tool, quick mask tool, and zoom tool. In next episode I will be discussing the basics of working with layers and masks, which lays at the very essence of photoshop workflow. If you would prefer private photoshop workshops via skype desktop sharing then contact me directly.

​My Youtube channel with free photoshop tutorials
Photography workshops in Tokyo - click for more details.
Hire a photographer in Tokyo
Buy original Chinese and Japanese calligraphy art
Check out my new portrait photography services in Tokyo website! 

This is especially true to street photography, but also in architecture, sports, and any other type of photography where things constantly evolve and happen all around you. You should make a habit of looking everywhere. If you stand in one spot and move only two steps, whole myriad of things changes: the perspective, angle, possibly light, shadows shift, time passes so new situations occur, reflections shift, people pass, and so on. You have to see everything to be able to capture that one thing worth photographing. There is a saying that goes "if you are good you will be lucky", but only via practice you can become better and better. Some of us are born with more natural talent than others, but every single professional will tell you the same thing - never stop studying, never stop trying more and more difficult things, never stop looking further than you think you should, never be satisfied with your current skill and knowledge. Be like water-  keep moving, and while you move, look around you, because the best photos happen usually where others do not look. 

My Youtube channel with free photoshop tutorials
Photography workshops in Tokyo - click for more details.
Hire a photographer in Tokyo
Buy original Chinese and Japanese calligraphy art
Check out my new portrait photography services in Tokyo website! 

If you follow my blog you know how much I love photoshop, and experimenting with the myriads of possibilities and ideas. I have often re-edit my older photos either for fun or just t create a new fresh look. But there are shots that literally ask me to do something extra with them. Some of those pictures not perfect for stand alone regular photos, but are perfect for composite images. I have lots of shots like this mainly warm up shots from photoshoots with models. 

Here is an old shot of my wife, I this I took it two years ago or so. I created a photoshop manipulation with it but my skills with photoshop are far more superior now that they were at the time I was editing this image for the first time and I decided to redo it from scratch. The idea was to transfer her into a sorceress placed in some magic surreal environment, with dominant warm red and orange tones, lots of contrast, and I wanted to blend the reality with cartoon-like elements. This image is partially hand-drawn in photoshop. and partially a composite.

Photography on its own is too limiting, for me it is only one of many tools and media that I will use to create visual art. If you enjoy photo editing and photo manipulation and you too think that photo editing is a form of art, then have a look at my private photoshop workshops page.

​My Youtube channel with free photoshop tutorials
Photography workshops in Tokyo - click for more details.
Hire a photographer in Tokyo
Buy original Chinese and Japanese calligraphy art
Check out my new portrait photography services in Tokyo website! 

Here is the third episode of photoshop tutorial for beginners that is aimed at photographers and explains basic photoshop tools and functions from a practical point of view based on actual photos. The idea is to help anyone who is getting started with photoshop and make this program appear a bit less intimidating. In this episode I am discussing the editing tools, which are: healing brushes, brush tools, clone stamp tools, history brushes, eraser, gradient tool, blur, sharpen and smudge tools, and lastly dodge, burn and sponge tools. This video is not meant to be in-depth tutorial on each of those tools, rather than a practical introduction that offers enough information for performing photo editing. Some of photoshop tools are more complex and some are more used than others so I will be creating separate videos on photoshop tools that I use the most in my day-to-day photoshop work. Next episode will cover vector tools and what I call complimentary tools, and then I will discuss how to work on layers and what are the most practical examples of using layer masks, then I will focus on editing an image from start to finish, and also show you how powerful is Adobe Camera RAW. If you would prefer private photoshop workshops via skype desktop sharing then contact me directly. 

​My Youtube channel with free photoshop tutorials
Photography workshops in Tokyo - click for more details.
Hire a photographer in Tokyo
Buy original Chinese and Japanese calligraphy art
Check out my new portrait photography services in Tokyo website! 

If you know how to take photos, now it is time to learn how to edit them properly. If you want to learn how to give your photos a unique look and fine polished magazine quality finish, then contact me and I will design workshops according to your level and needs. My focus is portrait and architecture, as well as composites and photoshop manipualtions. I teach via desktop sharing so you can see what I do on my screen in real time, stop me or ask questions at any moment. All levels of photoshop users are welcome.  See this link for more details,

Click here to view below image in non-compressed version in full HD​​

model: Lena