Worn, Torn Photo Edges Effect In Photoshop
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Step 9: Duplicate The Layer
Now that we have our initial torn edges effect, we need to make a copy of the layer. With "Layer 1" selected in the Layers panel, press Ctrl+J (Win) / Command+J (Mac) to quickly duplicate it. We now have a copy of the layer, which Photoshop has appropriately named "Layer 1 copy", at the top of the Layers panel. Normally, we should be renaming layers to avoid seeing names like "Layer 1 copy", but since this effect is fairly simple and we have all the layers we need at this point, we'll leave them with their default names to save time:
Step 10: Turn The Top Layer Off
Click on the top layer's visibility icon (also known as the "eyeball") to temporarily turn the layer off and hide it from view in the document window so we can see the original "Layer 1" below it:
Step 11: Select "Layer 1"
With the top layer now hidden from view temporarily, click once again on "Layer 1" in the Layers panel to select it:
Step 12: Add A Color Overlay Layer Style
With "Layer 1" selected, click on the Layer Styles icon at the bottom of the Layers panel and choose Color Overlay from the list that appears:
This brings up Photoshop's Layer Style dialog box set to the Color Overlay options in the middle column. By default, Photoshop sets the color of the overlay to red, and your photo will suddenly be filled with red in the document window. To change the color, click on the color swatch:
Photoshop's Color Picker will appear. Choose a light gray from the Color Picker, then click OK to exit out of it. Your photo should now be filled with light gray in the document window:
Step 13: Add An Inner Glow Layer Style
Don't close out of the Layer Style dialog box just yet. We still have a couple more layer styles to add. Click directly on the words Inner Glow on the left side of the dialog box. Don't simply click inside the checkbox to the left of the words. We need to click directly on the words themselves to access the options for the Inner Glow style:
The Inner Glow options now appear in the center of the Layer Style dialog box. Even though the name of the style is Inner Glow, we're going to change the glow to a shadow so we can use it to darken the edges around the photo a little bit.
First, to change the style from a glow to a shadow, change the Blend Mode option at the top of the dialog box from Screen to Multiply. Then click on the small color swatch directly below the word "Noise" to change the color of the style. By default, it's set to yellow. When you click on the color swatch, Photoshop's Color Picker will appear, just as it did when we changed the color of the Color Overlay style a moment ago. Select black from the Color Picker, then click OK to exit out of it.
Lower the Opacity down to around 10% so the shadow is very subtle. Finally, increase the Size of the shadow to around 24 px (pixels):
Your image should now look similar to this:
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