How To Add Custom Overlays On Facebook
0 Comments Adding texture to photographs was happening long before the invention of Photoshop and other editing programs. In the days of the darkroom, we would scratch negatives with pins, sand paper them, stain the photographic paper with fixer before exposing, layer two negatives on top of each other in the enlarger, or push our film ISO to increase grain. These days, with editing programs being our digital darkroom, we simply have yet another way of adding texture to photographs. What is a texture? In digital photography terms it’s simply another layer added to your photograph in an editing program, usually an image of some sort of textural surface, such as paper, wood, concrete, etc., but anything at all can be a texture. They can be photographed, scanned or even made in Photoshop. Some examples of textures.
A friend’s work bench, a close-up of my lamp shade, a mossy rock, fog from a smoke machine, and some very ugly carpet. Why use textures? With the right texture overlay, and application of it, you can add an extra level of depth and feeling to your photograph. You can use them for anything – from adding a vintage or grunge look to your photographs, to creating fine art pieces. One of the best uses is to rescue a photograph that just isn’t quite working. I’ve been told no texture overlay will save a terrible photograph. While this is true for the most part, sometimes it can transform an otherwise unusable image to something more promising.
If you’ve ever used a filter on a mobile phone app, you have probably already had textures added for you. Getting started You don’t need to create your own texture to get started. There are many pre-made, free textures available on the internet.
A quick Google search will bring up a bunch of free texture sites. But not all textures are created equally, or usable legally. You need to look for textures that are a decent size and resolution, a 200px/72dpi texture over a 3200 px/300dpi image probably isn’t going to work so well. You’ll also want to make sure the texture has the right copyright permissions. Sites like have many stock textures offered free by their artists for personal use.
These artists ask that you simply return the favor by sending them a link to the image you created using their work. Other sites like offer their images copyright free for personal and commercial use, as long as you aren’t reselling the texture images themselves. Creating your own textures Creating your own textures is as simple as taking a photograph. Why do that, when you can download free ones? Because it’s fun, your work is then completely all yours, and you can tailor your textures to suit your images. For example; if you’re photographing skateboarders at a skate park, you could also gather some shots of the concrete they skate on, or graffiti around the place to create original textures that work with, and possibly add to, the story of your subject matter. Textures can add a bit more of a story to your images.
The image above is of my daughter asleep after a day at the beach (many years ago) combined with texture of the water I took that day, to add to the story and memory of the day, and give the photo an extra dream like feel. Create a texture with your scanner Below is the first texture I created, one that I still use years later. It was created by scanning the bottom of an old baking tray. Scanning works well for textures of papers and other small flat surfaces. Paint in some colors, add Render Clouds Filter, some contrast, then some colour and vignette. Instead of a Render Clouds you could use the Blur Tool to swirl your colors around, or try some of the other filters in Photoshop to get different effects. I tested it out on what was originally a rather terrible photograph of this orchid. The texture, plus a few color adjustments and a warming photo filter, and it’s a whole different image.
While it does look a little like something you might see on your Facebook stream with a positive affirmation written across it in an awful font, it took me less than five minutes to do for this demonstration to show you how simple it can be to create a texture from scratch. Applying your texture It is really very easy to apply your texture. There are some here on dPS, but here is a quick guide to get you started. Click and drag your texture thumbnail in the Layers palette over onto your original image. Your texture becomes layer 1 in your original image’s Layer palette. Choose your level of transparency with the Opacity Slider and use Free Transform Tool to move the texture about. Turn it around, enlarge or stretch. See where it sits best.
Then it’s simply fine tuning the Opacity, maybe putting Eraser Tool on a low opacity and painting out unneeded parts of the texture. Alternatively use a to paint out some areas, as well as back in, if you accidentally paint out too much.
Have fun with it and experiment. Try a few different, add multiple textures, or add the same texture image a few times, perhaps with each layer having a slightly different hue.
There are no rules. Have you created a texture that you love? Share it and its use (your images) in the comments below.
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How To Add Custom Overlays On Facebook Account
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Some streamers have cool overlays. How do they do that?
Sarah Jacobsson Purewal/CNET Some Twitch streams stand out from the rest with snazzy graphics and overlays that add an air of professionalism. Well, you don't need to be a professional to look professional - adding an image or an overlay to your stream is easy. Step 1: Find/make an image First, you'll need to decide what type of image you want to add to your stream: A logo, or a standalone image that occupies one part of the screen; or an overlay, a border or a frame that covers the entire screen and surrounds your video game, webcam, and other sources. Logos are a little easier to create from scratch, because you don't need to work within the constraints of whatever game you'll be playing.
How To Add Custom Overlays On Facebook Profile
You can simply make an image using Adobe Photoshop or a free image editor like, without worrying about sizing or the game's interface. It's best to save your image in PNG format so any blank spots in the image will be transparent. Overlays get a little complicated because they usually surround and enhance the game's interface and are often tailored to specific games. Overlays occupy the entire screen and thus must have transparent elements (PNG format) so your game and video feed can show through. If you want to make your own overlay, it's smart to take a screenshot of the game you'll be playing so you can make sure everything lines up correctly. You'll also want to make sure your overlay has the same dimensions as the screen you'll be playing on.
Is a free tool with a drag-and-drop overlay maker, and sites like and offer free overlays. Step 2: Add the image to your scene Once you've finished making your logo, overlay, or other image that you want to superimpose on your Twitch stream, open Open Broadcaster Software and select the scene you want to add the image to. Click 'Browse' and choose your image. Sarah Jacobsson Purewal/CNET Right-click inside the Sources box and click Add Image. Name your image source and then click Browse.
To find the image you want to use on your computer. If you want the entire image to be semi-transparent, set the Opacity to a number lower than 100. When you're done tweaking the image settings, click OK. Step 3: Move, reorder, and resize the image Click Preview Stream to see what your stream currently looks like. You should see your image, as well as other sources that have been added to your stream. I decided to add a photo of my dog.
But it probably makes more sense to add a graphic that contains your Twitter username, or a cool-looking overlay. Sarah Jacobsson Purewal/CNET. There are two ways to move and resize your image. If you right-click the image name in the Sources box, you can change the Order (move the image above or below other sources on the screen) or tweak the Position/Size (fit the image to the screen, center, it, etc). You can also manually resize and move your image by clicking Edit Scene. Select the image in the Sources box and you will be able to manually drag it around the screen and resize it by dragging the edges.
If you resize your image incorrectly and you want to start over, right-click the image in the Sources box and go to Position/Size Reset Size. To exit the editing feature, click Edit Scene again.