I started with one of my favorite surrealism backgrounds and added 4 doors. Upon further review, I removed 2 doors. I dug a hole using the Pen Tool for construction and the Gradient Tool for shading. Ctrl-F copies Layers in Photoshop, and I used that key combination to create the doors and three women. The Free Transform tool changed the sizes of the violins, women, and doors. The Elliptical Marquee Tool draws circles (such as the violins’ bubbles) when the shift key is held down while drawing. Here’s a big plus: holding the space bar down at the same time you draw the circle allows you to move the circle while creating. I used the Ctrl-F key to reproduce more bubbles once I created one, colored each bubble with the Edit >Stroke key, and changed their sizes with the Free Transform Tool. Once the image was complete, I Stamped Up and used Nik Collection’s Color Efex Cross Processing to shade the whole image. The outcome was a little too blue so I went back into Photoshop and used the Cyan slider in the Hue/Saturation Tool to ease back the blue. I had to crop the top of the background because the Cross Processing Tool made the original top too dark.
8 comments posted
Brad Becker
Alan, You've created another classic surreal image with doorways and portals and a very compelling handling of the violins suggesting they are breathing underwater. Even after removing 2 doors I feel like this may benefit from removing one of the women(with the woman coming up from the portal being the one I would consider removing). Posted: 04/03/2026 18:42:16
Alan Kaplan
Thank you for your feedback. We'll agree to disagree about removing the woman and the hole. Posted: 04/04/2026 02:21:37
Peggy Nugent
I think this is an exquisitely balanced composition, Alan. The size difference between the woman and the doorway adds to the surreal feeling for me. I really love how the background is colored in neutrals that complement the woman's jacket. The floating violins bring my eye up and around the image. Personally, I think having 3 women works well. I love the colored bubbles.
My only suggestion is that the woman seems to have a touch of a halo around her skirt and boots that could be removed. Maybe that's due to the # of pixels in what I'm viewing. Posted: 04/03/2026 20:26:06
Alan Kaplan
I always enjoy words like "exquisitely balanced composition." Thank you for those words and your other positive comments. I do not have a halo effect in my image. Different monitors have different results, I guess. Posted: 04/04/2026 02:25:41
Kirsti Näntö-Salonen
Hi Alan, thank you for sharing the dream! I love the way you constructed a three-dimensional world out of thin air with the masterful use of perspective. I think that this is a happy dream - maybe it is the expression and posture of the woman who looks so at ease, confident and interested, and the lovely warm and restful tones of the background, and the bubbling music in the air. Posted: 04/11/2026 18:39:19
Alan Kaplan
Thank you for your thoughtful feedback of my dreamscape. The restful tones come from Nik Collection's Color Efex Cross Processing tool which I discovered for this composite. I was looking for tones that I don't usually use. Sometimes you have to be lucky. :) Posted: 04/11/2026 18:48:30
Maria Mazo
Hi Alan,
I like how you've composed this image, with only three elements, you've created the feeling of a door opening to the sea, where violoncellos swim like bubbling fish. The perspective works very well, and the tonalities are very pleasant and beautifully blended. Posted: 04/14/2026 19:54:43
Alan Kaplan
I personally like the swimming cellos the best. Posted: 04/15/2026 01:28:19
