Colorwashing

Hi!

I wonder if anyone here could help me with some advices on how to make a colorwashing texture for a wall. Here in an example of what I'd like to get:

http://www.bubbleoffplumb.com/BOP-Colorwash02.shtml

The effect I am trying to get is not exactly the same as that picture, I am more going for a vertical striped colorwashing pattern.

I tried desaturating an image of a colorwashed wall to get a pattern and apply overlays of color over it but all I get is a rather dull image. The fact that I'm new to Photoshop doesn't help.

I searched for a tutorial. Lots of tutorials on brick or stone walls, nothing on colorwashing.

Any advise? Thanks.

If you're "desaturating an image ... to get a pattern and apply overlays of color over it", then try instead skipping the desaturation step so you can just directly replace it with an alternate color using the "Hue" or "Color" mode. I'm thinking particularly Hue mode actually (Color seems more like what you would do with an image already desaturated). This would nicely preserve the varying levels of saturation in your original image, while assigning them a whole new color... I mean hue.

By "mode" I mean a new layer's mode, or your paint-bucket tool's effect mode, or whatever you choose to use to color over it with.

You might want to experiment with gradient maps to. These will give you more control over the shading.

http://www.layersmagazine.com/using-gradient-maps.html

There is a lot of tutorials too numerous to list here http://www.webdesign.org/web/photoshop/tutorials/

Also there is another way to make certain effect.
which involves having a solid color then another layer with thicker wide paint brush of another tone to create multi tone.
Here is simple example to do skin tone you don't have to do entire zombie effect skin tone to get the effect you want but just do part of it then experiment with the texture tones and layers.
http://www.blendenzo.com/tutPSZombie.html

Thanks for the answer, FD.

A search on colorwash at the website you point to didn't bring up anything. There are probably tutorials out there which explain how to get the same effect but I don't know what keywords to use to find them.

Your second link looks interesting. I'll try that, thanks.

Thanks, Domino. I did play a bit with gradient maps and I had some interesting results. I couldn't figure out how to select my colors in place of the gradients already available. After your post I did a search on gradient maps and found one explaining the use of a Gradient editor, so I'm looking into it.

Thanks for the reply, Al. The reason I desaturate the image is because I want to substitute the original colors with my own. Obviously I am doing something wrong with the way I blend the colors I apply as the result is rather dull.

I am trying what you suggest. Another thing I am trying is using a brush to apply layers of color and remove part of it with a brush or by using the sponge tool. It gets pretty close to what I want but it needs some practice.

Closest thing I could find myself was the following that is similar
3D texture, Grunge, something about the sponge tool.
The texture resembles sponge effect which can be done even without the sponge tool but with using wider brush over solid peach background.
Also there is some drawing layer effects to you could use.
Use airbrush with various tones, then eraser brush on another level to remove and change what you want.
Then experiment with different effect or color tone features.
Good luck.