Photoshop is the digital darkroom of every photographer.

It can do so much more than slim down celebrities. It has proved itself to be a great asset in business and marketing; not to forget, an essential tool for photographers.

And not just that but Photoshop can also be used to create works of art!

Photoshop art uses imaginative effects combined with photographic imagery to give a final output that is as extravagantly beautiful as it is artistic. Photoshop is loaded with so many filters that make it easier to transform an ordinary image into something incredibly original and magical.

Ben Willmore, a master of photoshop, has explored many aspects of the software’s artistic and creative elements, including a simple way to add a painterly feeling to a photograph by just using a stock Photoshop filter.

The first step in transforming the image is to make sure that you don’t permanently change the original file. Thus, it is always better to create smart object layers.

By making a photograph a smart object, the edits can easily be reversed and the changes become just an accessory to the layer. It’s something one can turn on and off. This frees an editor to experiment with the image without hampering the original file. As a result, it frees up the creative process.

Once the image becomes a smart object, one can play around with the filter gallery.

For his photographs, Ben Willmore prefers brush strokes that you’d find in a painting which don’t look overdone, so he tweaks the settings to get the right look. He also uses layer masks to create a distinction between the background and the subject and preserve the photorealism of his subject.

Check out the video below to watch the process in action:

[via CreativeLive][Cc: Irene Rudnyk]

What other tutorials would you want to learn? Please let us know in the comments section below!

Also, check out A Grid Of Mirrors That Might Revolutionize Studio Lighting Soon!