Using Photoshop's Rendering Option for Textured and Gradient Backgrounds.

This How-To demonstrates how to emulate the style and composition of Robert Mapplethorpe's flowers.

I played around with the flowers and the lighting, so that was a good way to educate myself—Robert Mapplethorpe

Black and white orchid on a dark background. Photo by Matthew Bamberg

Robert Mapplethorpe was fond of orchids and calla lilies. He almost always included the entire flower in the frame, not cropping a bit of it out. Many of his images of these flowers had solid or slightly textured backgrounds. As in the photo above, many of Mapplethorpe’s flowers were photographed in black-and-white.

Creating Rendered Clouds in Photoshop

Rendered clouds overlay on top of a swingset and its reflection in the Salton Sea of California. Photo by Matthew Bamberg

Rendering clouds in Photoshop fascinates me. The effect adds texture to your frame. Since they are gray and ominous-looking, they can make an entire frame look threatening. Here’s how to do it:

1. Make your foreground black and your background dark gray.

2. Choose Filter > Render > Clouds.

3. Choose Filter > Blur > Surface Blur, adjusting the radius and threshold to your liking.

4. Repeat as necessary for uniformity by choosing Filter > Surface Blur.