I've been absent from this site for a while, so I thought I'd jump back in with a simple yet effective Photoshop tutorial.

This tutorial assumes you know how to create a basic selection and understand layers - but that's really it. I will be using Photoshop CS2 on Windows XP.

I call this effect, for lack of a better term, a "motion zoom". This effect adds a blur that creates a zoom focused on a selected item in a picture.

I have attached the photo I will be using called "skateboard.jpg". I find that the best pictures for this effect are ones with a busy background. Solid colors or plain backgrounds limit the effect.

So, open up "skateboard.jpg" into Photoshop.

-- Double click on the layer called "Background" to make it available to edit. I renamed it to "Zoom Background". You may do so if you wish.

-- Next, select your "lasso" tool (L) and select around the skateboarder like so:

-- Now we will prepare the image for the effect.

-- We need to stick Mr. Selection onto its own layer. So go to your menu bar and select: LAYER -> NEW -> LAYER VIA COPY (or use the keyboard shortcut: CTRL + J)

You will now have two layers. Your selection by itself and the original image:

-- Now we apply the cool effect. Click on the bottom layer ("Zoom Background") to select it, go up to your menu bar and select: FILTER -> BLUR -> RADIAL BLUR.

-- Make your blur settings identical to the image below:

• Amount: 70
• Blur Method: Zoom
• Quality: Good

* Note: You can click in the "Blur Center" window and move the center of the zoom around. This can be used if you decide to use a picture where your selected part is in a corner or something like that.

-- Click "OK" and you now see the skateboarder framed in a very cool looking zoom.

-- We are going to fine tune it a bit. Select your blur tool - the icon that looks like a water drop - or hit the "R" key. (If you don't see it, click and hold your mouse over the highlighted tool - after hitting R - and you will see it pop up as a sub-menu choice.

-- Select the top layer (Layer 1) and make sure your blur brush is a small size. To adjust this on the fly hit your bracket keys: "[" or "]".

-- Blur the outside edge of the skateboarder and he will blend into the zoom layer very smoothly.

-- Your finished product should look something like this (I cropped mine a bit for effect):

* If you want, select the bottom layer and play around with it to increase the effect. You can de-saturate it so the skateboarder pops out in color, or mess with the colors to give it a psychedelic look.

And that's it. A simple yet effective effect!