Much to the dismay of vampire slayers everywhere vampires have hit the scene in a big way. From Twighlight to True Blood vampires are influencing their way into todays mainstream. Have you ever considered turning your clients into the vampire they’ve always wanted to be? You can if you learn how to create a porcelain skin vampire effect in Photoshop.

Are you offering specialty services to your clients? By presenting specialty post productions effects you are giving you clients options they aren’t likely to find with many photographers. Photoshop gives you the ability to create unlimited looks and effects that will blow your clients mind. Imagine creating this vampire look for one of your high school seniors. They will flip for it! Or what about a seductive vampiric boudoir photo for your female client or even a fun couple.

In this video walk through I am going to show you the exact steps I took to create this stunning vampire effect. The effect makes use of my porcelain skin tutorial so you may want to view that first. I also used Blood by Ron Deviney.

This effect can range up to challenging depending on your knowledge of using layer masks, masking and blend modes. This video is just a demonstration so it doesn’t give in depth detail of the steps. But I will follow up in the (near?) future with a full fledged tutorial.

This video is obviously edited for time. My actual working time was just over one hour. I am a bit of a drama queen so I went all out with my application. But you can choose the make the effect as subtle or as intense as you or your clients desire.

How to Create a Porcelain Skin Vampire Effect in Photoshop

Watch and learn. If you’d like to get a better idea of how i accomplished this click the download link to get the PSD file I used to create the effect.

If you’d like to re-create this effect you should know starting with the perfect photo is imperative for achieving the best results. Discuss specialty services with your customers before the shoot. Let them know what options are available to them. Once they’ve decided what they want you can properly prepare. Here are some tips to consider:

• Make sure to capture the right expression. Smiles and sunshine are perfect for the typical portrait but won’t work so well for this. Aim for sultry, moody, menacing or even sexy. Give your vampire some attitude!
  

• Pay close attention the mouth. You want to avoid too much smile, too much gums and you want to be sure to have ample top teeth showing. Perhaps get a full on shot as well as a slight or full profile shot so you will have a couple of options to work with.

• Wardrobe - Provide some vampiristic props or have your clients bring something they would like to wear. Black or red work extremely well.

• Background –  It goes without saying that the surroundings will add to the effect. You can choose a moody settings, shoot against a black backdrop or choose to add the background in post production. I chose to finish my portrait with a texture from my Depth and Warmth Texture Pack. Whichever you choose just be sure to plan ahead and you’ll be certain to exceed your clients expectations.

• Finally, just have fun with it. Invest in some fun props such as wigs, press on nails and glitter. Visit one of those Halloween shops just before they close for the season and see what kind of fun stuff you can come up with at super cheap prices.
  

Love this effect but don’t have the time or the inclination to offer this service to your customers? Outsource it! I’d love to work with you to provide this service for you. Use the contact form above to get in touch with me. Confused about something you saw in this video? Use the comments section below to ask your questions.