Change Your Hair With the Weather...using Photoshop

The seasons are changing once again.  In a few weeks it will officially be Autumn…my favorite season!  Autumn is the most beautiful of the seasons.  It seems even mother-nature is ready for a make-over by the time Fall rolls around.  The bright colors of the trees and leaves are simply breathtaking!

Well, if you would like to take a cue from mother-nature you may be interested in your own make-over.  Perhaps, a new outfit, a drastic hair cut or maybe even a new hair color?  Not ready to commit?  No worries, here is a quick tutorial on how to change your hair color using Photoshop.  It can be a fun idea for a scrapbook layout or maybe just to change the look of your SOC profile pic.

• Step 1: Open a copy of the desired image in Photoshop. (Be sure to use a copy and not the original)
• Step 2: Select the Polygonal Lasso Tool and set it to 15px feathered.

• Step 3: Draw a selection around the area of hair you would like to color.
  
• Step 4: Copy the selection and “Paste in Place” (Shift + Ctrl +V).  (This will drop the selection on a new layer in the exact same spot.) Rename this layer “Hairpiece.”
• Step 5: In the Adjustments Tab, click the Color Balance Icon. A new item will appear in the Layers Tab.

• Step 6:  Play with the colors until you have a shade you are happy with.

Did your entire picture change colors? Don’t worry that is supposed to happen.  We will fix that in the next step.

• Step 7:  Holding down the “Alt” key on your keyboard.  Click between the "Color Balance" layer and your “Hairpiece” layer (You will know you are in the right place when your cursor changes shape). This will attach the "Color Balance" layer to the hair piece selection, while the rest of your image goes back to the original color.

• Step 8: That’s it!  Save your image as a jpg or other image file and you are done!

*Tip: You can always re-adjust the color of your hair highlights by double clicking the black and white circle in the "Color Balance" layer.

Give it try! What color will you choose?

*Image is stock photography.