Create Photo Collages In a Snap With AKVIS Chameleon 9.0

November 29, 2016

By Laura Brauer

Creating photo collages can be a tedious, time-consuming process but here’s some good news: AKVIS Chameleon 9.0 offers an alternative to working in Photoshop or other image-editing software where fine-tuned selections are the norm when compositing more than one image.

Before we dig into the details, be aware that Chameleon doesn’t eliminate the need to make selections; it just makes it easier to separate a fragment of an image from its original background to seamlessly place it into (or onto) another image. There are options such as smudge, blur and history brush tools to touch up the image after it has been incorporated into a collage, and the tools you use and how you work depend, in part, on the mode you select: Montage, Chameleon, Blend and Emersion [sic].

Photo courtesy of AKVIS.

Photo Courtesy of AKVIS

The Montage mode allows you to essentially paste one image into another background without changing its color range or opacity (as shown above). It does help, though, to adjust the opacity when you’re resizing and positioning the image for a more precise composition. You’ll need to outline your selection, as well as outline the area that you don’t want to include in the final montage, but that’s fairly easy to do.

Photo courtesy of AKVIS.

Photo Courtesy of AKVIS

In the Chameleon mode (shown above), the software helps modify the second image’s color range to match the background. AKVIS compares it to the way a chameleon adapts and changes according to its environment. If your selection is a little rough around the edges, there’s an automatic Smooth Transition option.

Photo courtesy of AKVIS.

Photo Courtesy of AKVIS

Photo courtesy of AKVIS and David Kelly.

Photo Courtesy of AKVIS and David Kelly

The Blend mode (shown in the two examples above), should be familiar to most photographers. This allows the texture (or the full object) of the original image to show through. Blending the rings with the image of the bride and groom may inspire you to create an interesting cover for your client’s wedding album.

Photo courtesy of AKVIS.

Photo Courtesy of AKVIS

The Emersion [sic] mode (shown above), is similar to Montage except it’s not an overlay. Rather, the secondary image is part of the background rather than the foreground. Perhaps a better visual example would be replacing the sky behind the trees with one that features lots of clouds rather than a flat, gray-blue background.

Available as a standalone or plug-in, AKVIS Chameleon 9.0 offers new selection and post-processing tools, as well as a revamped interface, among other updates. Windows support goes all the way back to XP; Mac users will need OS X. Plug-in compatibility is extensive starting with Adobe Photoshop CS6 through CC 2017, along with Elements, Corel PaintShop Pro, Corel PhotoImpact, Serif PhotoPlus and GIMP, among others.

A 10-day free trial is available (definitely try it out before you buy it—I had some crashing issues on an older MacBook Pro running El Capitan with 8GB of RAM). For commercial use, you’ll want the Business edition (which includes two licenses for plug-in and standalone) for $82. Non-commercial licenses start at $54 and anyone who purchased Chameleon in the last 12 months is eligible for a free upgrade.

Whether you want to create collages for promotional pieces, prints or albums, AKVIS Chameleon is well worth checking out with a free trial.