Adding Rain To A Photo With Photoshop ~ Photoshop Tutorial

Written by Steve Patterson. Most of us would prefer to avoid being caught in the rain if possible, especially if we have our cameras with us. But what if youre one of a large number of people who enjoy taking photos of weather? Even if weather photography isnt your main interest, theres no denying that rain adds a whole new dimension to your images. So how do you capture photos of rain without getting your camera all wet?

Easy! Wait till it stops raining, take the picture, then add the rain back in using Photoshop, which is exactly what were going to learn how to do.

This version of the tutorial is for Photoshop CS5 and earlier. Photoshop CS6 and CC (Creative Cloud) users will want to check out our fully updated Photoshop Weather Effects Rain tutorial.

Heres the photo Ill be working with for this effect:

The original image.

And heres the same image after adding the rain in Photoshop. Its really coming down out there!

Photoshop rain effect. Image copyright © 2008 Photoshop Essentials.com.

The final result.

Lets get started!

Step 1: Duplicate The Background Layer

The first thing we need to do for this effect is duplicate our Background layer. With our image open in Photoshop, we can see in the Layers palette that we currently have one layer, which is named Background. This layer contains our original image:

The Layers palette in Photoshop showing us the original image on the Background layer.

We need to create a copy of this layer, so lets use the quick keyboard shortcut, Ctrl+J (Win) / Command+J (Mac). Nothing will seem to have happened in the document window, but if we look again in our Layers palette, we can see that we now have two layers the original Background layer on the bottom, and a copy of it, which Photoshop has named Layer 1, above it:

Duplicate the Background layer by pressing Ctrl+J (Win) / Command+J (Mac).

Step 2: Add Some Extra Canvas Space Around The Image

The next thing were going to do is add some extra canvas space around the image. The reason is because were going to be using the Motion Blur filter on the image, and the Motion Blur filter tends to run into problems when dealing with edges, so were going to make things easier on it by giving it a little more space around the edges to work with. Youll see what I mean later on, but for now, lets add some extra canvas space. Before we do that though, lets reset our Foreground and Background colors in Photoshop by pressing D on the keyboard. This sets black as the Foreground color and white as the Background color. We can see this in the color swatches near the bottom of the Tools palette:

Reset the Foreground and Background colors.

Now lets add our canvas space. For that, well use the Crop Tool. Select it from the Tools palette, or simply press C on your keyboard:

Select the Crop Tool.

Then, with the Crop Tool selected, click and drag a selection around the entire image. If youre working with your image displaying inside a document window, press F on your keyboard to switch Photoshop to Full Screen Mode With Menu Bar, which will make things easier. Then just click outside the top left corner of the image and drag down below the bottom right corner.

When you release your mouse button, youll see little square handles all around the image. Hold down the Alt (Win) / Option (Mac) key and drag either the left or right handle outward to add space on both sides of the image. Holding down Alt or Option tells Photoshop to move the handles on both sides at once, which makes things easier for us. Add an extra inch or two on the sides. Then do the same thing for the top and bottom. Hold down Alt/Option and drag either the top or bottom handle to add the same amount of space above and below the image. Dont worry about adding too much space because well be cropping it away later anyway. For now, its better to add too much than not enough:

Drag the handles to add more canvas space around the image.

When youre done dragging out the handles, press Enter (Win) / Return (Mac), and Photoshop will fill the extra space with our current Background color which is white:

Photoshop fills the extra space with the current Background color.

Step 3: Add A New Blank Layer

We need to add a new blank layer to our document at this point, so with the top layer selected in the Layers palette (you can tell which layer is selected by which one is highlighted in blue), click on the New Layer icon at the bottom of the Layers palette:

Click on the New Layer icon to add a new blank layer.

Photoshop adds a new blank layer for us above our other two layers. Again, nothing appears to have happened to the image itself, and thats because our new layer is currently blank, but we can see the new layer at the top of the Layers palette. Photoshop names it Layer 2:

The new blank layer at the top of the Layers palette.

Step 4: Fill The New Layer With Black

Were going to fill the new layer with black. Since black is currently our Foreground color, we can use the easy keyboard shortcut Alt+Backspace (Win) / Option+Delete (Mac), which tells Photoshop to fill the layer with our Foreground color.

The image will now appear filled with solid black, temporarily hiding our photo from view.

Step 5: Add Noise To The Layer

Go up to the Filter menu at the top of the screen, choose Noise, and then choose Add Noise. This brings up Photoshops Add Noise filter dialog box. Drag the Amount slider to the right to add a lot of noise to your image. Theres no exact value to enter, just add a lot. Im going to drag my amount to around 150%. Also, make sure the Monochromatic option at the bottom is checked:

Add noise to the black-filled layer.

Click OK when youre done to apply the noise to the image and exit out of the dialog box.

Step 6: Apply The Gaussian Blur Filter To The Noise

We need to add a small amount of blurring to the noise, so go back up to the Filter menu and this time choose Blur and then Gaussian Blur. This brings up the Gaussian Blur filter dialog box. All we need is a slight amount of blurring, so enter a value of about 0.5 for the Radius value, then click OK to exit out of the dialog box:

Apply the Gaussian Blur filter to the noise.

Step 7: Add A Levels Adjustment Layer

Remember how I just finished telling you to add a lot of noise to the image? Well, now we have way too much, but were going to fix that using Levels. Were going to use an adjustment layer though so that we can go back and change the settings in Levels any time we want. We also want to make sure that our Levels adjustment layer is only affecting the noise layer and has no effect on any other layers, so to do that, hold down your Alt (Win) / Option key and click on the New Adjustment Layer icon at the bottom of the Layers palette:

Hold down Alt (Win) / Option (Mac) and click on the New Adjustment Layer icon.

Then drag your mouse up and select Levels from the list of adjustment layers:

Select Levels from the list.

Since we held down our Alt/Option key, Photoshop will pop up the New Layer dialog box before adding the adjustment layer. This is where we tell Photoshop that we only want this Levels adjustment layer to affect the layer below it, which will be the noise layer. To do that, click inside the checkbox to the left of where it says Use Previous Layer to Create Clipping Mask:

Photoshops New Layer dialog box.

Click OK in the top right corner to exit out of the dialog box, and Photoshop adds the Levels adjustment layer for us. It also brings up the Levels dialog box, which well look at next.

Step 8: Reduce The Amount Of Noise And Increase Its Contrast

Were going to use Levels to both reduce the amount of noise we have and to boost the contrast in the noise thats left over. With the Levels dialog box open, youll see a large graph in the top half. This is called a Histogram. We dont need to get into details about it here, but directly below the histogram, youll see three sliders a black one on the left, a white one on the right, and a gray one in the middle. Click on the black one on the left and begin dragging it towards the right.

As you do, youll start to see some of the noise disappearing in the image. Then click on the white one on the right and begin dragging it towards the left, which will increase the contrast in the noise thats left over:

Remove noise with the black slider on the left and increase the contrast with the slider on the right.

Dont worry about the gray slider in the middle. It will move on its own as you drag the black and white ones. You can use the screenshot above as a guide on how far to move the black and white sliders, or simply experiment on your own until your image looks less like a whole bunch of noise and more like a starry night:

Reduce the amount of noise in the image with the black slider, and increase contrast in the noise with the white slider.

Click OK in the top right of the Levels dialog box when youre done to exit out of it.

Step 9: Apply The Motion Blur Filter To The Noise

All of this noise thats left over in our image is going to become our rain. It doesnt look much like rain yet, but were going to help it out by applying the Motion Blur filter, which is going to give our rain some movement and direction. Before we can apply the filter to the noise though, we first need to select it in the Layers palette, since we currently have the Levels adjustment layer selected. Click on Layer 2 to select it:

Select the noise layer in the Layers palette.

Now that we have the correct layer selected, go back up to the Filter menu at the top of the screen, select Blur, and then select Motion Blur, which brings up the Motion Blur dialog box. You can set the direction that the rain is falling by adjusting the Angle option. Im going to set my angle to about 60°. Then enter a value of about 50 pixels for the Distance, although you may need to experiment a little with that value depending on the size of your image, but 50 pixels works well for a standard 4×6 photo:

Set the direction the rain will fall in the Angle option, then set the Distance to around 50 pixels.

Click OK to exit out of the dialog box.

Step 10: Re-Adjust The Black And White Sliders In Levels As Needed

Depending on how far you dragged your black and white sliders in the Levels dialog box earlier, your noise may have now disappeared completely in your image after applying the Motion Blur filter. To bring it back, simply re-adjust the sliders by double-clicking directly on the thumbnail for the Levels adjustment layer in the Layers palette:

Bring back the Levels dialog box by double-clicking on its thumbnail in the Layers palette.

This brings back the Levels dialog box, and since were using an adjustment layer, we can go back to re-adjust the sliders as often as we want without damaging our image. Youll probably need to drag the black slider back a little towards the left in order to bring your noise back into view, and you may want to drag the white slider a bit more to the left as well to add more contrast:

Drag both the black and white sliders more towards the left to bring the noise back into view in the image.

Again, you can use the screenshot above as a guide, but youre better off experimenting with the sliders while keeping an eye on your image. Once youve managed to bring the noise back, click OK to again exit out of the dialog box. Your image should now look something like this:

The motion blurred noise is now visible in the image.

If you look closely along the top and bottom edges of the image, youll see that things look a little strange, and thats because of the problem I mentioned at the beginning of the tutorial with the Motion Blur filter having trouble around edges. No worries though because we added extra space around the edges, so none of that problem area is going to affect our photo. In fact, well be cropping it away in the very next step.

Step 11: Crop Away The Extra Canvas Space

Now that weve applied our Motion Blur filter, we can crop away the extra canvas space we added earlier. To do that, right-click (Win) / Control-click (Mac) directly on the thumbnail for Layer 1 in the Layers palette:

Right-click (Win) / Control-click (Mac) on Layer 1s thumbnail in the Layers palette.

Layer 1 is the copy of our Background layer and it contains our original image before we added the extra canvas space. When you right-click (Win) or Control-click (Mac) on its thumbnail, youll see a selection appear inside the document which is the exact size of our original image:

A selection appears inside the document.

All we need to now is go up to the Image menu at the top of the screen and select Crop. Photoshop will crop the image around the selection, removing the extra canvas space and bringing our image back to the size it was when we started.

Once youve cropped the image, press Ctrl+D (Win) / Command+D (Mac) to remove the selection from the screen.

Step 12: Change The Blend Mode Of The Noise Layer To Screen

Were almost done. The only problem remaining is that the noise layer is still blocking our original image from view. To blend it in with the image and give us our rain effect, all we need to do is change the noise layers blend mode. Select the noise layer (Layer 2) in the Layers palette. Then go up to the top left corner of the Layers palette, click on the down-pointing arrow to the right of the word Normal, which is the default blend mode, and select Screen from the list:

Change the blend mode of the noise layer from Normal to Screen.

As soon as you change the blend mode, the original photo becomes visible in the document and our motion-blurred noise becomes the rain!

If you want to fine-tune the rain effect, simply double-click once again on the Levels adjustment layers thumbnail in the Layers palette to bring back the Levels dialog box and re-adjust the black and white sliders until youre happy with the rain effect. Click OK when youre done to exit out of it.

Here, once again, is my original image for comparison:

The original image for comparison.

And here is my final rain effect:

The final effect.

And thats how to add rain to a photo in Photoshop and avoid damaging your camera!

Download our tutorials as print-ready PDFs! Learning Photoshop has never been easier!

About K-Sora

Travelling is my life

Photoshop Tutorial