Photoshop - How to Turn a Color Photo Into a Sketch

Photoshop makes it easy to turn your color photos into sketched photos in just a few easy steps. Turning your photos into sketches gives your photos a real cool look. In this tutorial I will show you how to turn your photos into sketches. You can use any kind of photo. In this tutorial I will use a rose. You can use flowers, people, buildings, or whatever you want. The first part of this tutorial is written for beginners. I know how frustrated I was when I was trying to learn Photoshop and couldn’t understand what the tutorials were saying. So I have broken this tutorial down and explained it step by step for beginners. If you are not a beginner then please skip down to the Advanced Part of this tutorial.

How to Turn a Color Photo into a Sketch in Photoshop for Beginners

Open your Photoshop program. Next you will need to open the photo that you wish to use. Click on File > Open to locate the photo on your computer that you want to use. Once you have located your photo, click Open. Now you should see your photo in your Photoshop window.

Now you need to unlock your layer. To unlock the layer, double click the padlock in the layer panel beside your layer. A dialog box will open and you can change the name of that layer or leave it as it is. I named mine Layer 1. If you don’t see your Layers Panel, then click on Window > Layers at the top of your Photoshop window.

Now you need to duplicate your layer. Left click one time on your layer to highlight it. Now right click on the layer and click Duplicate Layer. The Duplicate Layer dialog box will appear. Type in a name for your layer if you want. I just left mine as it was. Click OK once you are finished with this box.

Now you need to Desaturate your layer. Click one time on your layer copy to highlight it. Click Image > Adjustments > Desaturate at the top of your window to desaturate your layer. You can also press Shift + CTRL + U to desaturate the layer. Now your Image will turn gray.