I have been a big fan of the out of bounds effect ever since I first saw it a couple of years ago. I initially tried to create it simply by following various static and video tutorials.

I have a list of 47 tutorials that I followed, but I never succeeded in getting the effect. I now know that steps were left out, or the tutorial presumed that I knew where to create a layer or a layer mask, or I was using a more recent version that had renamed or relocated some tools that I needed…..

or…….

or……

or……..

This past weekend I thought I would sit down and use my list of tutorials to try to accomplish the effect again. With 21 months of serious experience using Photoshop, I believe I have a greater understanding of Photoshop, its tools, layers, and masks. I was right, having accomplished the…

Twenty one years ago, when I was 25 – yeh I see the smoke coming out of your ears as you do the maths – a good friend from University was killed in an air crash. She was lively, fun and when we graduated – in the middle of a deep recession – she was one of the few people I knew (I was the other one) who didn’t carry on and do a Masters Degree (no chance of a job so I may as well get another qualification) or just take one look at the job market and do law. Never one to conform, was Sharon, she started to design and make jewellery, instead. I signed on as a temp with a firm of contract cleaners – not quite in the same league. You can see who had the get up and go there can’t you, phnark, but I…