Create hilarious caricatures from your friends’ photos

Create hilarious caricatures from your friends’ photos

Transform ordinary portraits into playful cartoon characters with exaggerated features and toy-like qualities. This technique combines precise selection methods with creative distortion tools to create caricature-style effects that maintain realistic detail and strong subject resemblance.

The process works best with high-resolution photos featuring good lighting and subjects with shorter hairstyles for easier background removal.

Watch the Video

Video by Spoon Graphics. Any links or downloads mentioned by the creator are available only on YouTube

Essential Tips for Cartoon Portrait Effects

These key techniques will help you achieve convincing cartoon transformations while maintaining image quality:

  • Use the Pen tool for precise subject clipping, then apply the Channels method to capture fine hair details against clean backgrounds
  • Scale the body down rather than scaling the head up to preserve image resolution and avoid quality loss
  • Enlarge eyes by copying them to separate layers, scaling them up, and blending edges with soft layer masks
  • Apply the Liquify filter strategically: use the Pucker tool on noses, Bloat tool on mouths, and Warp tool to enhance facial expressions
  • Create a toy-like finish with dodge and burn techniques on a 50% gray Overlay layer, plus High Pass filtering for skin smoothing

More Tutorials about Cartoon Effects

Explore additional methods for transforming photos into stylized cartoon artwork.

Photoshop photo to cartoon effect
In the world of digital photography, adding a unique touch to your images can truly make them stand out. One such way to achieve this is by applying a cartoon effect to your photos using Photoshop. This technique is surprisingly simple and can breathe new life into even the most ordinary of images. By following a few straightforward steps, you can transform your photos into vibrant, works of art. The process involves a combination of adjusting the levels, applying filters, and fine-tuning the d
Cartoon effect using Photoshop filters
Playing with Photoshop filters can be incredibly fun and lead to the creation of impressive photo effects. In this quick video tutorial, PSD Box demonstrates how to create a cool cartoon or painting effect using various Photoshop filters. You'll learn how to transform your images into vibrant, cartoon-like artworks by applying different filters and adjustments. The tutorial covers essential techniques, such as using the Poster Edges filter to outline the details and the Oil Paint filter to give
How to turn a photo into a cartoon in Photoshop
Welcome to this new Photo to Cartoon Effect "cartoonize yourself" Photoshop Tutorial. Through this tutorial, and with the power of smart objects you will learn how to cartoonize photos in photoshop and convert almost any photo into a caricature cartoon effect using some filters and smart objects in photoshop. After finishing this tutorial, you will be able to drag your picture into the PSD file and turn any photo to cartoon effect with a couple clicks. watch the tutorial and cartoonize yourself
How to Make a Comic Book Cartoon Effect From a Photo in Photoshop
The author provides a step-by-step guide on how to transform a regular photo into a comic book-style cartoon effect using Adobe Photoshop. They explain the process of applying various filters and techniques to achieve the desired look. The tutorial starts by discussing the importance of selecting the right photo for the comic book effect. The author suggests choosing an image with a clear subject and good contrast. They then guide the reader through the process of applying filters and adjustmen
How to Create Colorful Cartoon Doodles on Model Photos in Photoshop
Cartoon-style illustrations layered over photography create a unique visual fusion that bridges reality and artistic expression. This playful approach transforms ordinary portraits into vibrant, graphic compositions that feel both contemporary and whimsical. The technique combines traditional drawing skills with digital painting tools to create outlined shapes, bold colors, and stylized details that complement the photographic base. The result is an eye-catching style that works perfectly for c

Get tutorials & freebies delivered to you.

Subscribe to the Photoshop Roadmap newsletter, a weekly roundup of new tutorials, insights and quality downloads, trusted by 6500+ readers.

You might also like

Basic Photoshop techniques you really need to learn

Photoshop hasn’t changed as much as it looks. New features come and go, but the same core techniques keep showing up in real work. If you skip them, everything feels harder than it should. This post focuses on those basics, not as isolated tricks, but as skills you’ll...

How to Use Select Subject for Background Removal and Edge Refinement

Background removal becomes effortless when you know how to use the right tools. AI-powered selection can instantly isolate subjects from their backgrounds, but the real skill lies in refining those selections to create professional results. This guide covers the complete workflow from initial selection to edge refinement, plus creative techniques...

How to Wrap Text Around Any Shape in Photoshop

Creating text that flows naturally around irregular shapes transforms static layouts into dynamic, professional designs. This technique works particularly well for posters, magazine layouts, and editorial designs where text needs to integrate seamlessly with complex subjects rather than simply sitting in rigid rectangular boxes. The process combines selection tools, path...

How to Edit Text in Images Using Generative Fill

Changing text within existing images has traditionally required complex masking and reconstruction techniques. Modern AI-powered tools now make it possible to seamlessly replace words and phrases in photographs while maintaining realistic typography, lighting, and perspective that matches the original scene. This technique works particularly well for signs, storefronts, billboards, and...

How to Remove Dust and Sensor Spots Using Photoshop Tools

Dust spots and sensor particles are inevitable challenges in digital photography, appearing as dark specks that distract from otherwise clean images. Camera sensors collect dust over time, creating consistent spots that show up across multiple photos, particularly in bright sky areas or uniform backgrounds. Both Lightroom and Photoshop offer specialized...

Photoshop vs Affinity Photo: Feature Comparison and Professional Analysis

When choosing professional photo editing software, the decision often comes down to comparing features, performance, and value. This detailed comparison examines the core capabilities of both applications across noise reduction, smart selections, object removal, masking, and AI-powered tools. The analysis covers real-world scenarios that professionals encounter daily, from complex background...

You’ve successfully subscribed to Photoshop Roadmap
Welcome back! You’ve successfully signed in.
Great! You’ve successfully signed up.
Success! Your email is updated.
Your link has expired
Success! Check your email for magic link to sign-in.