Want to create a jaw-dropping fantasy scene? This tutorial shows you how to build an intense battle between a sea creature and a pirate warrior using Photoshop‘s most powerful tools.
You’ll learn professional photo manipulation techniques that work for any complex composite. Plus, I’ll share workflow tips that speed up your process while maintaining quality.
Before we start, you’ll need Photoshop CS3 or newer. Grab all the free resources listed below and import the custom brushes so they’re ready when needed.
What You’ll Need
Custom Brushes:
- Bubble Brush by frostbo
- Splash Brush by frostbo
- Blood Brush by Project-GimpBC
- Palms Brush by Rawox
- Light Brush by redheadstock
- Lightning Brush by redheadstock
Stock Images:
Sky, underwater scenes, mill, various sea creatures, boat elements, character stock photos, and texture overlays. All sources are credited in the original resource list.
Download everything before starting. Trust me, it’s frustrating to hunt for assets mid-project.
Set Up Your Canvas
Create a new document with Ctrl + N. Set dimensions to 2000 x 1500 pixels and click OK.
This size gives you enough resolution for detailed work without slowing down your computer. You can always scale up later if needed for print projects.
Build the Sky Foundation
Open your sky image. Select everything with Ctrl + A, then copy with Ctrl + C.
Switch back to your main document and paste with Ctrl + V. Here’s a crucial step many beginners skip: right-click the pasted layer and choose “Convert To Smart Object.”
Why smart objects matter? They protect your original image from destructive edits. You can transform, warp, and adjust without permanently damaging pixels. Plus, filters stay editable.
Use Free Transform (Ctrl + T) to position the sky across your canvas. Drag corners while holding Shift to maintain proportions.
Add the Underwater Element
Open your underwater stock image. Select all, copy, and paste into your main document.
Convert to a smart object immediately. Make this your workflow habit for every pasted element. Position this layer below where you want your water line to appear.
Now comes the blending magic.
Create Seamless Water Transitions
Add a layer mask by going to Layer > Layer Mask > Reveal All.
Select the Gradient Tool by pressing G. Make sure your foreground color is black and background is white. Click and drag from the top of your underwater layer downward.
This creates a smooth fade from transparent to opaque. The gradient approach beats hard selections because it looks natural. No one wants to see an obvious line where water meets sky.
Position the Mill Structure
Open your mill image. Use the Pen Tool (P) to carefully trace around the mill structure.
The Pen Tool takes practice. But it’s worth mastering for clean selections. Click to create anchor points, and drag to create curves. Close the path by clicking your starting point.
Right-click inside the path and choose “Make Selection.” Copy and paste the mill into your main scene. Position it where you want using Free Transform.
Darken the Mill Realistically
Create a Curves Adjustment Layer (Layer > New Adjustment Layer > Curves). Drag the curve line downward to darken.
But wait. This darkens your entire scene. That’s not what we want.
Here’s the fix: hold Alt and click between the Curves layer and the mill layer. You’ll see the cursor change to a clipping icon. Click once.
Now the darkening only affects the mill. This technique is called clipping, and it’s incredibly powerful. You can stack multiple adjustment layers and clip them all to one object. Each adjustment stays contained to that specific element.
Master the Clipping Technique
Clipping layers is essential for complex composites. Instead of masking every adjustment individually, you clip them to the base layer.
Think of it like a stack. The bottom layer defines the shape. Everything clipped above respects that shape automatically. You can add Hue/Saturation, Curves, Color Balance, and more without creating dozens of masks.
This workflow saves massive amounts of time. Plus, you can easily toggle adjustments on and off to compare before and after effects.
Add Sea Creatures
Open your creature stock images. Select each creature using your preferred method. The Pen Tool works great for clean edges, but Quick Selection Tool works faster for organic shapes.
Copy and paste each creature as a smart object. Position them throughout your underwater section.
Scale creatures to create depth. Larger creatures appear closer, smaller ones seem farther away. This simple trick adds dimension to your scene.
Blend Creatures with Color Adjustments
Each pasted element arrives with its own lighting and color temperature. That’s why composites look fake.
Fix this by adding Hue/Saturation adjustment layers clipped to each creature. Shift the hue slightly to match your overall color scheme. Reduce saturation for background elements to push them back visually.
Add Curves adjustments to match brightness levels. Objects underwater should be darker and less saturated than surface elements.
Build the Pirate Character
Open your character stock photo. Make a careful selection and paste into your scene.
Position the character in the boat or on a structure. Make sure the perspective feels correct. A character looking down should sit higher in the frame than underwater creatures.
Clip adjustment layers to match lighting. If your sky is warm and golden, add a warm color overlay to the character. Cool underwater lighting calls for blue-tinted adjustments.
Add Dynamic Water Splashes
This is where those custom brushes shine. Create a new layer above your water line.
Select the Splash Brush. Adjust brush size with the bracket keys [ and ]. Click and paint splashes around your action areas. Vary the size and opacity for realistic randomness.
Real water splashes aren’t uniform. Some drops are tiny, others are large. Mix brush sizes and layer multiple splashes with different opacities.
Create Blood Effects
Violence in your scene needs convincing blood. Create a new layer and select the Blood Brush.
Choose a dark red color. Not bright red—that looks cartoonish. Mix red with dark brown for realistic blood tones.
Paint blood spatters around wounds or impacts. Use lower opacity for blood trails in water. Blood diffuses quickly underwater, creating clouds rather than streams.
Layer multiple blood elements with varying opacity. Start with a base layer at full opacity, then add lighter wisps at 30-50% opacity.
Add Atmospheric Lighting
Underwater scenes need light rays piercing through water. Create a new layer and select the Light Brush.
Choose a light cyan or blue-white color. Paint gentle beams streaming down from the surface. Reduce layer opacity to 30-40% for subtle effect.
Change the blend mode to Screen or Linear Dodge. These blend modes make light appear to glow naturally. Experiment with both to see which looks better in your scene.
Integrate Lightning Effects
Dramatic scenes demand dramatic lighting. Add a new layer above your sky.
Select the Lightning Brush. Choose white or light blue. Paint lightning bolts across your sky. Keep them random and irregular—nature isn’t symmetrical.
Set this layer to Screen blend mode. Reduce opacity until the lightning looks integrated rather than pasted on top.
Add a subtle Outer Glow layer style to make lightning bolts emit light. Set the glow color to match your lightning color.
Build Depth with Foreground Elements
Empty foreground space feels flat. Add visual interest by placing elements in front of your main action.
Paste palm leaves, seaweed, or rope elements in the foreground. Make these elements slightly out of focus using Gaussian Blur (Filter > Blur > Gaussian Blur).
Set blur radius to 2-4 pixels. This mimics camera depth of field and pushes these elements forward visually.
Reduce opacity to 60-70% for ghosted foreground elements. They add depth without blocking your main subjects.
Create Water Surface Texture
Your water line needs texture to feel real. Add a new layer at your water surface level.
Use the Bubble Brush to paint small bubbles along the waterline. Vary size and opacity. Real water has foam, bubbles, and texture where elements break the surface.
Paint white or light cyan bubbles at 40-60% opacity. Too opaque looks fake, too transparent disappears. Find the sweet spot.
Add Final Color Grading
Unified color grading makes all elements feel like they belong together. Add a Gradient Map adjustment layer at the top of your layer stack.
Choose colors that match your mood. Warm orange-to-blue gradients create sunset drama. Cool blue-to-cyan gradients feel mysterious and deep.
Set the Gradient Map to Soft Light blend mode at 30-50% opacity. This tints everything subtly without destroying your careful color work.
Enhance Contrast Globally
Add a final Curves adjustment at the very top. Create an S-curve by lifting highlights and dropping shadows slightly.
This punchy contrast makes your image pop. Don’t overdo it—subtle adjustments often work better than dramatic changes.
Compare before and after by toggling the Curves layer visibility. If the difference feels too strong, reduce the Curves layer opacity.
Polish with Sharpening
Flatten your image or create a stamped visible layer (Ctrl + Alt + Shift + E). This creates a merged copy of everything visible while preserving your layers below.
Go to Filter > Sharpen > Unsharp Mask. Set Amount to 80-120%, Radius to 1-1.5 pixels, and Threshold to 0.
Sharpening brings back crisp edges that sometimes get lost during compositing. It makes your final image look professional and finished.
Save Your Work Properly
Save your layered PSD file first. Always maintain an editable version with all layers intact.
Then flatten the image (Layer > Flatten Image) and save as JPEG for sharing. Use maximum quality settings to preserve detail.
For portfolio work, also save as PNG for web use. PNG maintains better quality than JPEG at the cost of larger file size.
Final Thoughts on Complex Composites
This pirate battle scene demonstrates core photo manipulation principles that apply to any composite project. Smart objects protect your source images. Clipping masks keep adjustments organized. Custom brushes add realistic details impossible to achieve otherwise.
The most important lesson? Work methodically in layers. Never commit to permanent changes until you’re absolutely certain. Photoshop’s non-destructive workflow exists for a reason.
Your first attempt might take hours. That’s normal. Each composite teaches you new techniques and speeds up your workflow. Keep practicing with different scenes and subjects.
Complex fantasy scenes require patience, but the results speak for themselves. Start with this tutorial, then experiment with your own creative visions.