Ikkyblog

Miniature faking in Photoshop is a easy, and fun way to make an ordinary image look like a scale model. Simulating the shallow depth of field (the out of focus area of the picture) in Photoshop makes the scene appear much smaller than it really is. As most scale models are viewed from above, pictures taken at an angle looking down tend to have greater impact with this technique (think sporting events from the top seats). This rule is not implicit however, and I am going to demonstrate on a level viewed image. There are some very good examples of this technique here. Deviant Art Tilt Shift Examples

I am going to start with this image of a grave I took at the start of summer in a small mountain town near Buena Vista, CO.

To start, click on quick mask mode on your tool palette, or type Q on your keyboard to enter quick mask mode.

Now, choose the gradient tool, and choose reflected gradient as the gradient option.

Draw a vertical line with your gradient tool on your image, starting near where you want your focus. This may take a little playing around with after we apply the blur. If you are not happy with the focus point later, revisit this step.

Now, exit quick mask mode, by clicking on your tool palette or typing the Q button again. You should now have two areas showing selected, both outside of the area you want focused.

Now we will apply the blur, by going to Filter > Blur and selecting Lens Blur.

You can fiddle with the sliders here and see what looks best. I used radius:41, blade curvature:10, brightness:22 and threshold: 255.

You should now have your image, in miniature. If you are not happy with your point of focus, revisit the gradient step, and try moving it around a bit. Here is the finished picture.