It has been a while since I have done a tutorial so in time for the season, here is the How-to create a custom Jack-o-Lantern pattern in Photoshop or Photoshop Express. What could be scarier on your front porch than George Ford (of Addanac City fame) greeting all the kids in the neighborhood. I swear I would pick on someone else sometime but the rest of you don’t post enough pictures on the web.
Step 1
– Open a new document (I made mine about 8inx8in), paste your picture in the document and resize it so there is some white background showing.
– Using the brush tool, make a white border around the entire picture. I used a 10pt brush.
Step 2
– Color the background layer black.
Step 3
– Select Image>Mode>Grayscale
– You want to make sure the color is balanced. My original pic was too bright so you can adjust by going to Enhance>Adjust Lighting>Brightness/Contrast in Photoshop Express or Image>Adjustments>Brightness/Contrast in full Photoshop.
Step 4
– Select Filter>Adjustments>Posterize (Express) or Image>Adjustments>Posterize (Full). Choose 3 levels and select and it will give you a Black, White and Gray Image. If the outline that you did in Step 1 is full white, change it to 50% gray. You should get above. You will notice that it has bits of color all over the picture that you don’t want to have to carve so,
– Using your pen too set to black, white or gray color in the image to remove some of the dithering and random color spots.
Step 5
As you can see in the above pic I cleaned up the image to make it into cutable chunks. In the end you are going to want to shave off the skin of the gray area, cut the white area completely through, and leave the black area alone. Look at your white area. If there is danger of you cutting away detail of the gray you need to adjust your picture more. As you can see in the final template in the first image of this post, I added more gray area around the nose so I wouldn’t cut my nose to spite my face..haha
George was too scary to carve so instead I did Bearman.
Here is what it looks like unlit. It was my first time trying to use a dremel so I need to clean it up.
As you can see, in this one I only posterized to 2 colors (black and white). For the white, I pulled off the skin and the black I left alone. I then put two full holes in the eyes.
Here is the the final look when lit.
And in case you want to make your own Bearman Pumpkin…here is the template.
Now a pumpkin with George’s face on it IS scary… If I were to use my face, the kids would have heart attacks on the spot.
Cool tutorial! I will have to see if I can do George’s face now. Comic artists pumpkins! A new trend for the true comic geeks.
“[…]Comic artists pumpkins!”
What a great idea! *runs off to make a Jande-toon pumpkin*
The heck with George. We want to see Lorraine. Make sure to share what you come up with
A great way to make photo comics as well perhaps. Thanks for the photoshop tips. I shall have to take thorough notes.
The Jack-O-Lantern looks great. Why is it blinking?
I tried to make it a gif as if the light were flickering lime a candle but I really don’t know what I am doing haha
I think the Bearman-O-Lantern is way scarier than anything with my rugged visage. Although I am pretty frightening when I wake up in the morning. I like this a lot! 🙂
My goofy guy is warm and welcoming. Your mug is fitting for the wanted poster at the post office
They won’t hang my poster up anywhere other than the bathroom. It substitutes as a urinal cake to save money. 🙁
Well people like to aim for that face.
That’s why I tend to stay away from peeking in glory holes.
Oh, great tutorial, Bearman! I like this a lot! especially the Bearman pumpkin, though the flashing one looks a little like a drunken chef. lol
No one has ever Accused me of being a chef …. Now the other part well…
Hi Bearman, I’m a bit behind with all my blog reading as I’ve had some ongoing site problems that have driven me to max frustration. Love the Bearman pumpkin. Great work. I guess a George Ford pumpkin head would sure save having to buy treats for Halloween as it’d scare all the kids away!!!
BTW If you click my name you will notice…
Dare I say it???
a new URL. (Cringes in fear…)
Wait Wait before you fly over hear to rip my head from my shoulders & stuff t down my neck. The latest post on TM Comics explains. I was having major problemss (not caused by me) It’s been acting up for the last week or so. I was having trouble even getting that last post up. Just had to keep trying till it worked. Given up on self hosting…
Oh for the love of …… Bloody hell Tony, it’s like a friggin curse. I only yesterday added your TM Comic link to my blog because I was confident you were going to stay put. 🙁
That is what you get. Tony changes his blog, then his name. I think he is on the run from the internet police.
You know Tony those Occupy/Anonymous folks are taking down bad sites. Maybe they thought yours was one and attacked you.
Don’t forget to send me yet another 125×125 banner ad for the new site so I can add yet another one!!
I think you may be right. It was probably the Occupy Pub Alley comic that pushed them over the edge to take revenge. Why those rotten stinkin’ site hacking mongrel dogs…
I will send Super Broccoli Man to beat them up!!!
They will eat him alive.
Maybe I opened a Mummies tomb in a past life hence the curse…
Yeah, Tony, you’ve got me wondering if there’s like a massive internet manhunt going on for you. If there’s a substantial reward, I want in, doggone it!
Where’s Tony is the online version of Where’s Waldo.
Uh-Oh you’ve blown my cover George. Gotta run…
Now what’s another good new website url???
CrazyURLChanger.com
Does that say “if you DICK my name” or is it that the C & L are too close???
Hmm, a Halloloon Jack-o-lantern, that just might do the trick. Halloween has only halfheartedly taken off in Australia. Most people tell kids knocking on their doors at night asking for candy to “pi** off” Blahahahaa
“Pi off” 3.1415 See at least you are teaching kids something.
Actually it’s 3.1416 if you want to round it to 5 significant digits.
Show off.
I can recite the periodic table, too, if you wish.
But can you do it without looking at something. What is the symbol for Bearmanium?
BuM?
The 1st time I came across Halloween here was about 15 years ago. I had a bull terrier at the time & a bunch of little kids knocked on the door. They said “Trick or Treat” I asked what it was all about & getting it wrong the little girl from next door said “You gotta give us a treat or play a trick on us but just don’t let your dog out for the trick” I felt sorry for the poor little tykes & gave them “MY” large block of Cadbury Dairy Milk Chocolate.
But did they share?
No they took it all for themselves & left me chocolateless
No I meant with each other.
What a horror story!
A Bearman pumpkin? I can’t bear it!
I guess no kids will be coming around your house this Halloween.
I;m chopping off pieces of my pumpkin and handing them out to the kids. Waste not, want not, I always say. Unless I have something else to say.
Tell your wife to make me a pumpkin loaf. Got to be better than Susi’s Yogurt one.
Hey, my wife’s pumpkins belong to me, buddy.
http://www.facebook.com/photo.php?fbid=1240341419132&set=a.1240333618937.37264.1547216697&type=3&theater
She is the pumpkin…you are the loaf.
Maybe I need to produce a George costume since they won’t make any Casey Anthony ones that the world seems to be clamoring over.
I think you need to make a Hank Pumpkin this week.
I’ve been trying to make a Hank voodoo doll, but strange things keep happening to me.
I guess I should take the pins out of my George Voodoo doll.
Now THAT’S a face that will scare away trick-or-treaters!
…that way you can have all the candy to yourself. Brilliant!
hahah…so true. Wait, we are talking about George’s right??
I’m buying a 25 lb. bag of Skor and I’m cuttin’ the porch light off.
Oh, if only Ichabod Crane had had that stencil! Headless horsemen aren’t scary when they’re laughing their… well, you know… off!
George as the Headless Horseman. hah
excellent. A very cool pumpkin
Thank you.
That is really cool, I wish I was that talented, I just painted mine with the help of the neighbors kids.
That’s talent!!
you haven’t see the photos, lol.
I am horrible at carving pumpkins. I always want to do something ultra-cool, but then I go back to the standard triangle eyes and gap toothed version
It always works too.
Haha! thank you for sharing
Do I see a pawn in your future pumpkin drawings?
Pumpkin Pawn?
Very cool!
Good job.
Why does the whole face blink and not just the eyelids?
… I can’t do that in real life: it’s scary.
I peeled away the whole face so light shines through. For the eyes I drilled all the way through so they show up brighter.
Great idea…thanks for sharing. I’ve attempted to buy Photoshop a few times, but I get intimidated by all the choices. The Paint program on my computer just doesn’t cut it.
GIMP is a free photo manipulation software that is similar.
Photoshop Express is about $80
Full PS is about $500
Thanks for the tip…much appreciated.
That is so cool. Thank you.
My pleasure
I would try this but I haven’t been able to face a Jack-0-Lantern since the “Great Pumpkin War of 1962. Sometimes I still have nightmares.
How about defacing one?
I think there might be some kinda law against that but I will have to check it out. After all, Cool Hand Luke got arrested for cutting the heads off of parkin’ meters. We got punkins in Gatorhead but we ain’t got no parkin’ meters. I’ll have to check and get back with you on that.
So where do you put your parking money.
There ain’t much in Gatorhead but we have plenty of Free Parkin’.
Hey that’s George. Way cool.
Have a terrific day. 🙂
Thanks. If you put more of your pics online I can start making fun of you instead..haha
İlginç bi’ yaklaşım 😀
Just when my dremel breaks, dammit. Oh well. I substituted each step with a shot of whiskey instead. You should see my pumpkin!
Just be careful with the knife.
But if you don’t use any filters you can turn this into a 3 day job.
Which is always fun.
Well… maybe not as much fun as playing with a dremel tool… but then… what is, really?!
🙂
I make 3 day jobs…3 minutes… ok well not everything haha