Photoshop Vintage Effect Tutorial (Step by Step)

Imagine opening an old photo album and instantly immersing in memories. Who is that person in the photo? Where was this picture taken? Was it so long ago? You are guaranteed to have hours of sweet nostalgia! But have you ever thought of sharing the same vintage look in your designs?

Please meet our newest Adobe Photoshop tutorial, which allows you to transform every shot of yours into a vintage piece. Whether you miss the 90s, 80s, 70s, or even 60s, you can bring back the good old days only by following this step-by-step guide. Most exciting manipulations await you: you'll obtain this vintage effect using adjustment layers, filters, and free textures. We're sure: both professional photographers and novice designers will enjoy the process of creating and then using custom vintage photo effects.

Tutorial Assets

Here are the files you will need to complete the lesson and create an authentic vintage photo effect in Photoshop:

Creating Vintage Photo Effect in Adobe Photoshop

Step 1— Open an the image in Photoshop and Right Click > Convert to Smart Object.

Step 2 — Press Control-L to open the Levels adjustments. Move the Output Levels to 20.

Step 3 — Go to Filter > Filter Gallery > Grain and use the following settings: Intensity: 60; Contrast: 75.

Step 4 — Open the Filter Gallery again and select Torn Edges. Set the Image Balance to 24, Smoothness to 14, and Contrast to 9.

Step 5 — We’ll use Black & White for the last filter. So click Image > Adjustments or just press Alt-Shift-Control-B keys combination.

Step 6 — Now, you will have to adjust the smart filters. Double Click on the little icon near the second filter and change the Blend Mode of the filter to Color Dodge.

Step 7 — Done? Perfect! Now change the Opacity of the Black & White filter to 50%.

Step 8 — Click Layer > New Fill Layer > Color Fill and use the following color code: #dfdbc7.

Step 9 — Change the Blending Mode of the layer to Multiply.

Step 10 — Place the provided paper texture above all the layers and change its Blending Mode to Soft Light.

Step 11 — Add the dust texture (also provided) for some visual noise. Change its Blending Mode to Screen or Lighten.

Step 12 — One last step! Let’s go to Layer > New Adjustments Layer > Brightness/Contrast and set the Brightness to 25 and Contrast to -25.

That's it! Who could think that making a custom vintage effect would take only 12 steps? As you experiment with settings, you can explore other aspects of vintage photography: from black and white images to retro styles inspired by classic sepia. In fact, that's what we love about such tutorials most: they are so versatile!

Video Tutorial

Want your photos to go retro instantly? Give a try to the Vintage Album Photo Effects. The toolbox has plenty of editing and customization features, so you'll surely enjoy the process.

Your photos can be of any format: square, horizontal, or vertical. All the suitable PSD files are provided. Armed with a detailed installation guide, prepare the essentials for a flawless workflow by adding a gradient file to Photoshop. Some like it more faded and seek to add noise to the image. Others prefer a lighter sepia version with hardly any deformity. This is why you will find 5 grunge texture effects diverse in style in this collection.

Vintage Album Photo Effects

Recreate vintage shots merged with distressed photocopy textures! Coming in 3 dimensions and 5 styles, you’ll have something to play around with.

16 in 1 Vintage Photo Effects Collection

There are 16 photo effects: blurs imitating polaroids, aged magazines, old tapes, and more. Let this bundle become your personal time travel machine!

Vintage Postcard Photo Effect

Hope you’ll get the excitement watching 6 retro styles converting a picture into a vintage piece.

written by

Ivan Gromov

Ivan is a Photoshop tutor and stock graphic designer who loves to create textures, templates, and all kinds of effects and tools for Adobe Photoshop. Be sure to check all his exclusive tutorials for Pixelbuddha!