Even after all these years, Kai's work never ceases to astound me. There is such a solid foundation for fiddling in his tips. I don't think I could ever say enough about KPT.
Let's take a peak at Snowy Mask:
KPT 23: Snowy Mask
Okay, it's a bit dated. Back then, it was mostly about ChOps (Channel Operations). So, a lot of what he did in KPT #23 is Alpha channel work and a single Layer. But don't let that discourage you. You can use his ChOps techniques, or your own blend of tricks.
He uses black and white. You can clearly see the neat things with such boring beginnings. Yes, black and white is fun. But I'm the kind of guy to try anything on a photograph.
Grab a photo.
Copy it twice (a non-fiddled-with copy is always good to keep around)
Give both copies some Gauss
Set the very top one to Difference
Grab Move tool and move it around a bit
Pretty cool, eh?
On top of all that, add a Levels or Curves Adjustment Layer. Fiddle to taste.
Jeez, I don't think I could scratch the surface of variations. Different amount of Gauss will give different looks. Adding HSB is pretty cool. Levels/Curves on the seperate Layers. Maybe even a few extra layers with different blending modes. Sometimes, when I get something good, I'll Copy Merged and use that for even more fiddling.
Here are some 5 minute quickies:
snowyvannah.jpg
There you have it, Joy. No Displace this time around. You can let go of your panties now. Just some good old fashioned fun compliments of the Original Guru.
Thank you, Kai, for the excellant brain candy.
KPT 23: Snowy Mask 
Linear Mode
