Sky Overlay Tutorial
How to apply Sky Overlays in Photoshop
This tutorial will show you step by step how to apply a Sky Overlay to your image.
To follow this sky overlay tutorial, you’ll need Photoshop. I use Creative Cloud.
Before you begin, be sure to ‘Extract’ the zip file your Sky Overlays came in. If the file is zipped, Photoshop won’t be able to read the file data of the Sky Overlays within and may give you an error message.
If your file is already unzipped, then you’re all set!
Step 1.
Open the image you wish to edit in Photoshop and go to File > Place Embedded (or File>Place)
Step 2.
Choose the Sky Overlay you wish to apply and click ‘Place’ to add it to your image. Stretch the overlay to fit your photo if needed. Hit the check mark button at the top of your screen when you’re finished.
Step 3.
Place the sky in ‘Multiply’ blend mode and use your Move Tool to drag it up or down until you are happy with the placement on your image.
Step 4.
Add a layer mask to the Sky Layer (to do this, hit the icon at the bottom of your layers panel that looks like a rectangle with a circle inside) and then paint with a black brush onto the photo to remove the sky effect from any areas of the photo that you don’t want it to appear.
Tip: If you use a large soft-edged brush set to about 20% opacity, you can make a few passes with your brush along the horizon to gradually fade the edge of the sky and make it look natural.
Prefer a video tutorial?
If you’re brand new to Sky Overlays, or if you’re a visual learner and would prefer to watch these steps in video form, this post is a great place to start.
It explains more about what Sky Overlays are, allows you to watch a video tutorial on the process, and has a free Sky Overlay you can download!
Learn How to Edit in Photoshop
Interested in learning more about editing in Photoshop? If so, I’d love to invite you to join me for my online Photoshop course, The Photoshop Fanatic.
The Photoshop Fanatic is an easy-to-follow, go-at-your-own-pace course that starts from the very beginning of Photoshop– with a walk-through introduction and explanation of the various tools, layers, and filters in the program, showing you exactly how to use them, and then building on that knowledge to show you how to achieve full, in-depth edits with ease.
