How To: Fake a Light Leak

Hey! So I had a few questions about how I created the look in the photos in my last post, and while those were just as action I was trying out and thought the look was neat, I decided I would show you guys how to create the look that's a little more realistic than in those photos.

I'm sure you've seen photos such as these:

that look really rad and retro? Those are called light leaks, and in the film world (more commonly known to happen in toy cameras) it occurs when outside light is able to "leak" in through the camera and onto the film which causes it to over-expose. Some people don't like it and while I don't use it often in my photos, I personally love the way it looks...and I'm going to show you how to create the same effect in photoshop!

It's actually fairly easy if you understand layers and blend modes in photoshop. If you don't, then take a look at these tutorials I found that explain layers and blend modes a little better.

Here's my original image (SOOC) and what it'll look like when I'm finished:

Now, obviously you want to go ahead and edit your image the way you want it first, then create a new layer and use your gradient tool with the red as the foreground and the black as the background to create the layer you see below. Set your blend mode to lighten and leave your opacity at 100%

Next, create a new layer with the orange/yellow as the foreground (keeping the black as the background) and, using the gradient tool again, create a thinner gradient. Set that blend mode to lighten as well. You'll notice that the orange is probably a little extra bright, so you'll want to set the opacity lower than 100% (I used 36% in this photo).

Here is a quick throwdown of what each layer should look like:

If you've done it correctly, your image should look a little like this:

Definitely play around with colors, gradients (heck, even throw in some free hand if you want!) and blend modes to come up with something completely unique to you! I would love to see what you come up with - shoot me a comment below if you give it a shot! Have fun!