How to make a Street Art Stencil

There are many ways to create a Stencil. You can Draw them by hand witch gives you the most control over the final look. You can also use Adobe Photoshop or Illustrator you get the effect with out having any Drawing abilities. This tutorial will show you the most basic way to do it using a photo and Photoshop

Supplies

  • Photoshop
  • Printer and paper
  • Manila folder
  • Xacto knife
  • Spray paint

Start by opening your photo in Photoshop. I chose this image of a helicopter that I found online. It will work well because It has virtually no background, and decent contrast.

In Photoshop choose open/image/and click the open button. the photo will open in the Photoshop desktop

Now we need to turn the image to Black and White. Select Image/Adjustment/Desaturate the image will now be in Black and White

To make the image more defined we are going to use the curves filter to make a black and white image. Select Image/Adjustment/ Curves  this will bring up the curves plugin.

Each image will require diferent settings to reach the desired effect.

  • Make sure the Preview tick mark is checked
  • Use the mouse and click on the line that runs along the graph at a forty five degree angle and drag the bottom point to the right until the image becomes darker.
  • Click the top right corner and drag it left until all the gray areas become white.
  • Continue adjusting until the only shades in the image are black and white. you don’t want any gray.

The Bridge is the final area you need to focus on. In some parts of the image you will see a white area completely surrounded by black. You will need to paint in a Bridge to hold the white piece in place when you cut out the black. This will take some practice for you to recognize what needs to be bridged.

  • Use the Paintbrush tool and select the white swatch
  • Paint white on areas that need a bridge

We are going to use our home printer to make this image into a stencil.

  • In Photoshop click File/print the print window will pop up
  • Select the best orientation for your image for this image landscape was the best option.
  • Print the image.

Now we Are going to tape the printout to half of a manila folder and cut out the black areas.

  • Cut the manila folder in half using and Xacto knife
  • tape the printout to the Folder half
  • cut out all of the black areas.

Now that the stencil is cut out you can spray it on just about anything. If you really want to make a dynamic image consider using multiple stencils to create a visually stunning collage.