At a Glance
Vanishing Point gives you considerable control over how it is applied. On the left side of the dialog box is a toolbox similar to that of the main one in Photoshop. These tools, however, are totally separate. An options bar is located at the top of the dialog box, and it bears a resemblance to the Photoshop's top Control palette as well.
Let's look at the Vanishing Point tools, which work somewhat like the selection, cloning, and healing brush tools you already use.
• Edit Plane: A plane is a geometric surface that you create with the Create Plane Tool. The Edit Plane Tool edits existing planes to help them better conform to the perspective of your image.
• Create Plane: Most of your Vanishing Point endeavors will begin here. Before you can apply Vanishing Point, you need to give Photoshop some information about the geometry of the image's surface. The Create Plane Tool draws this surface with an elastic like tool that creates a plane of four anchor points.
• Marquee: After creating a perspective plane, the Marquee Tool works just like the Rectangular Marquee Tool in Photoshop's main interface except that it selects objects in perspective. Another key difference is this tool does not allow you to add, intersect, or subtract from selections once they are created.
•Stamp: The Stamp Tool works just like the regular Clone Stamp Tool. Just Alt/Option-click an area of the image to sample it as a source and paint the sample on another area of the image. Like other Vanishing Point tools, your cloning maintains the perspective of your created plane.
• Brush: Brushing in Vanishing Point is just like using brushes outside the filter. However, the Vanishing Point Brush also has a Heal option that lets you perform functions similar to the Healing Brush.
• Transform: After making a selection with the Marquee Tool, use the Vanishing Point Transform Tool just as you would with the Free Transform function. Vanishing Point will ensure the selection remains true to the perspective plane you've already defined.
• Eyedropper: The Eyedropper Tool samples colors from within the Vanishing Point dialog box. This is mainly used when working with the Brush Tool so you don't have to exit Vanishing Point to choose a color.
• Hand and Zoom: The familiar Hand and Zoom Tools work the same in Vanishing Point as they do in Liquify and in the main Photoshop interface, for that matter. You can zoom in on a specific area of the image and navigate anywhere you need to go inside the zoom. The zoom options menu at the lower-left corner of the window lets you choose a zoom factor at which to display the image, or you can click the plus or minus icons to zoom in or out in specified increments.
Try It Out
Now that you've seen the interface, take a look at how to use Vanishing Point. You're going to add a window to a tower image.
1. Open "BrightTower.jpg" in Photoshop. One thing I like to do is create a new blank layer in
which to place the Vanishing Point results. Just click the Create
a new layer icon at the bottom of the Layers palette. Working
on a blank layer keeps the original intact should you need to revert
back to it, and it allows you to fine-tune changes later.
2. Next, with the new layer targeted, choose Filter > Vanishing Point (Alt/Option + Ctrl/Cmd + V). Here's where the fun begins! First, give Photoshop some information about the geometry of your image's surface. To do this, select the Create Plane Tool. To identify some clear lines of perspective, click on the corner of the tower to create a starting point for your plane. Then define the other corners of the perspective plane by clicking three more points on the sides of the wall to create a plane. Notice how a rubber band line follows you as you click. In essence, this creates a virtual drawing plane that simulates depth.
TIP: Press the X key to quickly zoom in on the image and better select your points. Release the X key to return to normal view.
3. With the perspective plane created, you need to enlarge it to fit the entire area of the image. Just choose the Edit Plane Tool, and click on the control points along the sides of the plane to extend it beyond the edges of the tower.
TIP: Once you create your perspective plane, it should be represented by a blue grid. Sometimes, however, you may find the color of your grid isn't always be blue—it may be red or yellow. This is Photoshop's way of telling you that you've created an impossible perspective, and the grid needs correction. Yellow means you're close to a proper perspective; red means you're way off.
4. Choose the Marquee Tool, and select a window on the brick wall. You won't see the grid of the perspective plane anymore but don't worry—it's still there. Notice how the marquee selection automatically conforms to the perspective grid you created.
5. The selections you create within Vanishing Point work very similarly to the way they work on a layer in Photoshop. Specifically, you can position the cursor inside the selection and hold the Alt/Option key to duplicate and move the selection. Use this method to duplicate the window and drag it to the left of the original window. Notice how Photoshop keeps the proper perspective even when moving the entire window. Try to match the bricks up with the perspective lines as close as possible. Holding the Shift key to constrain the movement to the proper plane will help with this.
6. When you're done, press Ctrl/Cmd + D to Deselect, and click OK to confirm your changes in Vanishing Point. This will bring you back to the Photoshop canvas. Notice the new layer you created before entering Vanishing Point holds all the changes just made, and your original photo remaines untouched. To learn another use for Vanishing Point, move on to the exercise titled "Photoshop's Vanishing Point - Part 2."
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