Close Menu
PSD VaultPSD Vault
  • VIP Area
  • Photoshop Basics
  • Photo Effect
  • Text Effect
  • Premium Tuts
  • Resources
  • Drawing
  • Inspiration
  • Web Graphics
  • Abstract
  • Freebies
  • Advertise
  • Get in Touch
  • About PSD Vault
Facebook Instagram Pinterest YouTube TikTok
Facebook Instagram Pinterest YouTube TikTok RSS
PSD VaultPSD Vault
  • VIP Area
    • Sign Up
    • Log In
  • Photoshop Basics
  • AI
  • Photoshop Error Fixes
  • Video Tutorial
  • Photo Effect
  • Text Effect
  • Premium Tuts
  • Drawing
  • Opinion
PSD VaultPSD Vault
Home»Photo Effect»How to Create Stunning Cityscape Portraits in Photoshop
Photo Effect

How to Create Stunning Cityscape Portraits in Photoshop

By James QuJuly 1, 20255 Mins Read
Facebook Twitter Pinterest LinkedIn Tumblr Email
Share
Facebook Twitter LinkedIn Pinterest Email

In this tutorial, I will show you how to make a portrait with city elements in Photoshop. This is a intermediate level difficulty tutorial and can be a bit tricky to complete, but why not have a try!

The PSD file of this tutorial is available via the PSD Vault VIP members area.

Note: The Photoshop tutorial is done in Photoshop CC – therefore some screenshot may have slighting different layout as in the earlier version. Some brushes are exclusive to Photoshop CS6 or above.

Here is a preview of the final effect I have for this tutorial: (click to enlarge)

Portrait with City Elements

PSD Vault VIP Membership

You can download the PSD File for this tutorial via the VIP Members Area for only $6.95/Month (or less)! You will not only get this PSD File, but also 250+ other PSD Files + Extra Goodies + Exclusive Photoshop tutorials there. Signup now and get exclusive!

To complete this tutorial, you will need the following stocks:

Model

City Stock 1 by Allendra3

City Stock 2 by ChrisBeckerArt

City Stock 3 by fl8us-stock

Splatter Brushes

Cloud Brushes (Download a few from the list)

Step 1

Create a new document sized 907px*1380px with white background. Load the model into Photoshop. Cut out the model and paste it to our document:

1 paste

Use a cloud brush you downloaded as eraser, go through the hair, shoulder region of the model as shown below:

1 erase 2

Also use a soft eraser to remove the bottom right part of the model – we will place a few elements inside this later on:

1 erase

Step 2

Apply the following adjustment layers as clipping masks for the model layer created in the previous step:

Black and White

2 bw

On the layer mask of the black and white adjustment layer, use the splatter brush as eraser, remove some parts around the face and fingers as shown below:

2 bw mask
2 bw mask 2

Curves

2 curves

And here is the effect so far:

2 effect

Create a new layer below the model layer, use the cloud brush to paint some cloudy effect as shown below:

2 cloud

Step 3

Load the “City Stock 1” image into Photoshop, select the red building from the image:

3 sel

Copy and paste the building below the in between the model layer and the cloud layer, resize it to fit our canvas size. Reduce its layer opacity to around 80%:

3 paste

Use the Splatter Brush as eraser, remove some parts of the city building as shown below:

3 erase

Apply the following image adjustment layers as clip masks for this building layer:

Black and White

3 bw

Levels

3 lvs

Curves

3 curves

Here is the effect so far:

3 effect

Step 4

Load the “City Stock 2” into Photoshop and select the following building:

4 build

Copy and paste the building into the following area of our canvas, use free transform tool and eraser tool to fit the building into the model’s body shape:

4 paste

Apply the following adjustment layers to this building layer:

Black and white

4 bw

Levels

4 lvs

and here is the effect so far:

4 effect

Step 5

Load the “City Stock 3” image into Photoshop, select the road part with the direction sign:

5 road

Copy and paste the selection to our document and put it below the model layer, use the free transform to adjust its shape:

5 paste

Apply the following image adjustments to this road layer:

Black and White

5 bw

Levels

5 lvs

Curves

5 curves

and you will have the following effect:

5 effect

Step 6

We will be adding a couple traffic lights and street signs to our image. Go to “City stock 1” and select the following traffic light:

6 sel traf

Copy and paste the selection to our document, re-size and place it over to the city street:

6 paste

Apply the following image adjustments to this traffic light:

Curves

6 curves

Levels

6 lvs

and here is the effect:

6 effect

Go to “City stock 3” image and select the following street lamp and advertisement:

6 sel 2

Copy and paste it to our document and apply the following image adjustments:

Black and white

6 bw 2

Levels

6 lvs 2

Attach this element to the model as shown below:

6 effect 2

Step 7

We’re almost done! To finalise this photo manipulation, I added a couple of image adjustment layers on top to give it some colour:

Selective Color

7 reds
7 whites
7 neu
7 blacks

Vibrance

7 vib

and here is my final effect: (click to enlarge)

city-man-flatten

Additional Tips for Photoshop Beginners:

  1. Start with Layers: Use separate layers for each city element to keep your work non-destructive and easy to edit.
  2. Master Blending Modes: Experiment with “Overlay” or “Soft Light” for seamless integration of city textures.
  3. Use Adjustment Layers: Adjust brightness/contrast or hue/saturation to match lighting between portrait and city elements.
  4. Practice Masking: Refine edges with layer masks for cleaner blends, especially around hair or intricate details.
  5. Explore Free Resources: Use free stock images from sites like Unsplash to practice adding city elements.

That’s it for this tutorial! Hope you enjoy it and find it useful! If you have any questions about the steps, please contact me or leave a comment below. I will try my best to answer them.

Till next time, have a great day!

city element portrait
Share. Facebook Twitter Pinterest LinkedIn Tumblr Email
James Qu
  • Website

James is a seasoned Photoshop expert with over 25 years of experience, mastering the software since its 5.0 version. As the driving force behind PSD Vault, he authors the majority of its in-depth tutorials and insightful articles.

Related Posts

How to Create Epic War Scene in Photoshop

June 30, 2025

Create Fiery Dragon Ravaging Mountain Village Scene in Photoshop

June 27, 2025

How to Create Rainy Night Scene in Photoshop

June 21, 2025

2 Comments

  1. John on July 31, 2016 1:10 AM

    Nice use of black and white adjustment. Curious why not layer blends, perhaps in combination with adjustment layers? As a middle school art teacher always looking for ways to let students expand their knowledge, technique, and curiosity. Tutorial reminds me a little of Tim Maars and his compositions.

  2. bennyqibal art on August 8, 2016 8:09 PM

    The selective color realy great..

Leave A Reply

You must be logged in to post a comment.

Don't Miss

Why Learning Non-Destructive Editing is a Must for Every Photoshop Beginner

July 5, 2025

Mastering Sky Replacement in Photoshop: A Comprehensive Guide

July 4, 2025

How to Effectively Change Hair Colour in Photoshop

July 2, 2025

For Beginners

Basics

Mastering Sky Replacement in Photoshop: A Comprehensive Guide

By Lana WilsonJuly 4, 20256 Mins Read

How to Effectively Change Hair Colour in Photoshop

July 2, 2025

How to Use “Find Distractions” Feature in Photoshop for Easy Photo Clean-up

June 28, 2025

Photoshop June 2025 Update: Master New Features in Version 26.8

June 21, 2025

You May Also Like

Photo Effect

How to Create Epic War Scene in Photoshop

By James QuJune 30, 20255 Mins Read
Photo Effect

Create Fiery Dragon Ravaging Mountain Village Scene in Photoshop

By James QuJune 27, 20254 Mins Read
Photo Effect

How to Create Rainy Night Scene in Photoshop

By Lana WilsonJune 21, 20253 Mins Read
Facebook X (Twitter) Instagram Pinterest
  • About Us
  • Get in Touch
  • Advertise
  • VIP Area
  • Privacy Policy
  • Terms & Conditions
© 2025 PSD Vault. All Right Reserved.

Type above and press Enter to search. Press Esc to cancel.

Manage Consent
To provide the best experiences, we use technologies like cookies to store and/or access device information. Consenting to these technologies will allow us to process data such as browsing behavior or unique IDs on this site. Not consenting or withdrawing consent, may adversely affect certain features and functions.
Functional Always active
The technical storage or access is strictly necessary for the legitimate purpose of enabling the use of a specific service explicitly requested by the subscriber or user, or for the sole purpose of carrying out the transmission of a communication over an electronic communications network.
Preferences
The technical storage or access is necessary for the legitimate purpose of storing preferences that are not requested by the subscriber or user.
Statistics
The technical storage or access that is used exclusively for statistical purposes. The technical storage or access that is used exclusively for anonymous statistical purposes. Without a subpoena, voluntary compliance on the part of your Internet Service Provider, or additional records from a third party, information stored or retrieved for this purpose alone cannot usually be used to identify you.
Marketing
The technical storage or access is required to create user profiles to send advertising, or to track the user on a website or across several websites for similar marketing purposes.
Manage options Manage services Manage {vendor_count} vendors Read more about these purposes
View preferences
{title} {title} {title}