How to Turn Yourself to Stone in Affinity Photo

In this tutorial, you’ll learn how to turn yourself to stone in Affinity Photo. This effect is useful for creating realistic or surreal photo composites.

Before you begin the tutorial, go to the following links to download the images used in the tutorial.

• Man
• Stone
• Background

Step 1

First, go to File > Open and select the picture of the man.

Step 2

Second, press CTRL + J to duplicate the image. Turn off the original image.

Step 3

With the duplicated layer selected, go to the Toolbar and click Auto Levels.

Step 4

Next, click the Adjustments icon in the Layers Panel and select the Shadows/Highlights adjustment. Set the Shadows to 50 percent.

Step 5

In the Layers Panel, select the adjustment layer and the duplicated layer. Right click on the selection and click Merge Visible. Turn off the original layers in the Layers Panel.

Step 6

Next, grab the Selection Brush Tool from the Tools Panel. In the Context Toolbar, set the Mode to Add and check the Snap to Edges box. Take the brush and make a selection of the man’s head.

Step 7

Once you’ve selected the man’s head, press CTRL + J. Then Press CTRL + D to deselect.

Step 8

Select the new head layer. Press and hold the CTRL key, then click the thumbnail image of the man’s head in the head layer. Click the Adjustments icon in the Layers Panel and select the HSL adjustment drag the Saturation Shift slider all the way to the left to desaturate the image. In the Layers Panel, drag the HSL adjustment inside the head layer. Then, press CTRL + D to deselect.

Step 9

With the head layer selected, press CTRL + J to duplicate the layer. Turn off the original layer for now.

Step 10

Now, select the duplicated layer. Go to the Filters menu. Then, select Blur > Gaussian Blur. Set the Radius to 3 px.

Step 11

Go to File > Export. Select PNG and click Export. Label the file Head Displacement and save it.

Step 12

In the Layers Panel, delete the duplicate head layer and turn the original one back on.

Step 13

Select the head layer. Then, go to the Filters menu. Select Noise > Denoise. Set everything to 100%.

Step 14

After that, go to File > Open and select the stone texture image. Copy the image and paste it onto the document with the head. This is the texture we’ll use to turn yourself to stone.

Step 15

Go to the Transform Panel and turn on the Lock Aspect Ratio. Then, resize the image of the stones.

Step 16

With the textured layer selected, set the Blend Mode of this layer to Overlay.

Step 17

Now, go to the Filters menu. Select Distort > Displace. Make sure the Scale to Fit box is selected. Click on the Load Map from File option. Then, click the Head Displacement file. Set the Strength to 5 px.

Step 18

In the Layers Panel, make sure the textured layer is still selected. Press the CTRL key and click on the thumbnail of the head layer to reactivate the selection. Then, press CTRL + J. Turn off the textured layer in the Layer Panel and drag the head layer above the original textured layer. After that press CTRL + D to deselect.

Step 19

Select the head layer with the face. Next, click the Adjustments icon in the Layers Panel and select Curves adjustment. On the curve, place points in the areas you see on the screen.

Step 20

Now, select the textured head layer click the Mask Layer icon to add a mask to this layer.

Step 21

Grab the Paintbrush Tool from the Tools Panel. Make sure the mask layer is selected and that the black color is active in the Swatches Panel. Take the brush and go over the eyes so that the man’s actual eyes show through. Now, take the brush and go over the man’s nostrils to bring them through. After that, go over the middle lip line of the man’s mouth.

Step 22

In the Layers Panel, select the textured head layer, the Curves adjustment layer, and the other head layer. Then, press CTRL + G to group the layer together. Label the group Head.

Step 23

Go to File > Open and select the image of the rocks stacked on top of each other. Go to the Toolbar and select Auto Level. Then, press CTRL + J to duplicate the layer.

Step 24

With the duplicated layer selected, go to the Filters menu and click Distort > Displace. Select Load Map from Layers Beneath. Set the Strength to 3 px.

Step 25

After that, copy the head group and paste it onto the image with the rocks. Resize the image as you see it on the screen. Then, rotate the head slightly to the right about -6 degrees.

Step 26

Select the duplicated background layer. Then, click the Adjustments icon in the Layers Panel and click the Black and White adjustment. Set the Red to -2 percent, Yellow to -10 percent, and Magenta to 13 percent. Now, set the Blend Mode to Hue and lower the Opacity of this layer to 63 percent.

Step 27

Now, click the Adjustment icon and select the Curves adjustment. Make sure this adjustment is at the top of everything in the Layers Panel.

Step 28

In the Layers Panel, select the duplicated background layer. Now, grab the Selection Brush Tool from the Tools Panel. Take the brush and select the area that’s beneath the man’s head.

Step 29

Click the Adjustments icon in the Layers Panel. Select the Brightness/Contrast adjustment. Set the Brightness to -44 percent and the Contrast to -36 percent.

Step 30

With the Brightness/Contrast adjustments selected, go to the Filters menu. Then, select Blur > Gaussian Blur. Set the Radius to 5 px.

Step 31

In the Layers Panel, click the Adjustments icon in the Layers Panel and select the Levels Adjustment. Set the Black Levels to 5 percent.

Congrats, this tutorial is complete! You now know how to turn yourself to stone in Affinity Photo. For more Affinity Photo tutorials, check out this article on how to create a kaleidoscope effect.