Victorian Ghost Children Halloween Photograph Editing Tutorial
Halloween Photo Editing Tutorial for Kids Victorian Ghosts
There's nothing scarier than Victorian-era melancholy kids in ghost form. It's a fun way to catch ghosts on camera! This amazing photo shoot is one of my favorite projects that I have done with my kids.
That lace umbrella and pocket watch... these guys know how to make a spooky look in a casual setting. This hilarious post has been updated from the 2012 post. I won a contest with this photo editing edition and won our first iPad.
If you look at these photos, you can almost hear the laughter of children echoing in the forest. Their sad faces were reminiscent of the past.
These photos are scary enough with their monotony and are the perfect Halloween decorations!
Tools for this shoot:
Camera
Tripod
victoria's kids
victorian era props
Computer/laptop for editing
Photo editing software (Photoshop, Pixlr, etc.)
The first thing we did was shoot 376 frames. Well, let's go back. I explain to my kids what I want to do... 10 year old, 8 year old and 4 year old on the boat... amazing. I have the best children.
Phase One: Costumes!
Dress up the children in the "old days". The simpler the better.
The guys were wearing bow ties, which I glued for this shoot and pinned to their shirts with hair clips. Boys have vests, this is their standard church attire. And can you believe that I have this dress for my daughter in the closet? Simple school dress and dark gray tights.
Next we find some accessories. Old keys, vintage pocket watch and lace umbrellas.
Step 2: photo session
Then we walked around the neighborhood... with me in a hoodie and yoga pants. I visited a beautiful lookout... and a small cemetery a mile away. across the street from us. (yes we go there, my kids are cool ... and we with 1 car)
Once you've chosen a location, mount your camera on a tripod and don't bump into it. Get the kids in the frame and take some shots.
Next, leave the camera on the tripod in an appropriate place so the children stand behind the camera to get out of the frame. Take background photos only.
** DON'T SMILE! **
Halloween photoshoot is the best!
The best thing about this photo shoot is that I don't need all my kids to smile at once! I just told them to look boring... and we got some great photos!
Step 3. Edit your photo.
At this point, reward your kids with treats and movies! They deserve it!
I'm taking pictures right now. I've been using it since high school... I think that's when cavemen first discovered Photoshop for PC. In any case. I decided to give pixlr a try... and I loved it! It's free... so a super bonus! And it works pretty much the same way Photoshop does, so it didn't take me long to get the hang of it. So, if you've always wanted to have a good photo editing software, give it a try!
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The upload process is simple and you can view both photos side by side.
Then copy the person image and paste it directly on top of the regular background image.
Now you have 2 layers. So, to the top layer (the one with the people) choose this little carrot: turn layer settings on or off
The OPACITY panel opens. This is the most interesting. Use the slider to make people look like ghosts! Every picture is different. For some I increased the opacity to 60%, for others only to 73%...
So you want to look at the levels and make sure they're as aligned as possible. Not always super perfect, but gives a double vintage look!
Then he explained the pictures... You can also create a sepia tone or an old photo effect.
Thus, the image looks like a regular photo:
And this is a simple background photo:
For this ghost image:
And then change the tone to sepia:
Repeat as many times as you have photos! We've changed a lot of photos! We print them within 1 hour from Walmart, make postcards for family and friends, and decorate hallway walls!
It helps if you have an antique frame embellished... it's awful! I love how they add terror to our Halloween decor.
These photos are a happy reminder of that time, as they were taken in 2012 and 9 years have passed! I love seeing my horrible little kids as scary memories from their childhood when we lived in North Carolina.
If you can find the family's tombstone and take a picture of it, it will be an interesting family history lesson. It would be great if your name was on the tombstone.
Amazing, isn't it!? These guys are hardcore, they walk the neighborhood for miles, dress amazingly and let me take pictures of them just for this fun shoot.
I really have the best kids. And actually, I really wanted to do this shot again and shoot it again. Maybe I'll find a scary alley or an abandoned house! What do you think?
Enjoy and share! Or... save it for later!
Check out this awesome video montage! This is my son, when he was about 5 years old, he was raised by my husband.
