When in Rome...

Remember from a couple weeks ago, when I asked for suggestions of what to make in Adobe Photoshop? I know, it's been while, but I got a suggestion from my Dad, and I have been working to make it. He asked me to do this:

How about a photo of you on vacation - somewhere you've never been but would really like to go!

     Nothing too specific, he left quite a bit of room for imagination; and I took complete advantage of that fact. I really love horses, and thus I started by looking around at different spots that I could go horse riding. For example, my first thought was me, sitting on a horse, looking out over the sprawling plains in Colorado or someplace. However, then my creative juices started working, and I went with something a little less...normal.
      There is a series of books that my brothers and I absolutely love about Greek mythology. It is called Percy Jackson and the Olympians by Rick Riordan. It talks about kids learning they are half-human and half-gods-of-the-ancient-Greeks; and the half-bloods (as they are called in the books) must learn to fight and survive against the evil monsters that frequently attack them. Anyways, I got inspiration from these books for my photo. I have really wanted to visit Greece and Rome ever since I read those books, so I decided to put myself in the Roman Colosseum. I know, riding a horse and Rome don't really go together, but it is my vacation anyway.
     So, here is the photo I used for the background of the mashup-vacation picture.

background picture before "my magic"

Remember when I said the demigods fight monsters? Well, to be unique, I decided my vacation should have me fighting an ancient Greek monster. Maybe a hydra?

In case you did not know, a hydra is a seven-headed monster that will regrow its heads when they are cut off. Two heads will regrow from the stump. Click to Enlarge.

I don't know if this hydra is from the movie they made about Percy Jackson, or where it is from. But, it is a hydra, and it is perfectly monstrous for me, so this is the one I chose. When I was working on the photo, I added in a couple more heads just for depth. The hydra now has seven heads, like normal.

Now, I need to be in the photo, on a horse, fighting a hydra. Easy, right? First of all I need is a horse for me to ride...

Great! I have a horse, but now I need to be riding the horse. This part was difficult, and was done last, because I don't actually have a horse to pose on, unfortunately. However, Mom thought of using my bike to pose on, then I would photoshop myself onto the horse's back. With a little bit of magic from the magic wand tool, I did just that. I could not very well just sit on my horse while a hydra walked towards me, so I decided I need a bow. Now my picture looked like this; make sure you click the photo to enlarge it.

not quite finished yet.....

No demigod should have to fight alone against a hydra, so I decided to call for a little backup. Percy Jackson would do nicely.

     The photo looks a little rough up close, but those edges smooth out when I shrink him. I also would like to point out that Percy is a 16 years old teenage boy, not a mid-thirties guy. It was incredibly difficult to find a picture of Percy fighting, and thus I was inclined to use this movie scene stunt actor playing the role of Percy Jackson. You don't notice the age as much when he is smaller.

     That is besides the point, however, as I am currently watching a mythical beast stomp towards me. Any help is good help. Percy Jackson is friends with a Pegasus named Blackjack, whom he saved from monsters when he first met him. 

He rides around on Blackjack everywhere, so I had the Pegasus drop Percy off with me. However, Blackjack does not stick around for a fight. He always has an excuse to fly off and leave the monsters to Percy. With that in mind, my mashup photo now looks a little more crowded. Make sure you click the photo to see the text, and other details.

still not quite finished yet.....

Well, that is looking pretty crazy. All it needs are some finishing touches, and I think we are done here!

Finished!  Click to enlarge and see details.

So there it is! What was described simply as a vacation I would love to take turned into an all-out monster versus demigod battle! I had a lot of fun with this mashup, and it took some new skills to make everything just how I wanted it. Hope you liked this description of the imagination of my mind, and if you have thought of a new mashup idea, feel free to leave it in a comment through Facebook or on my blog below.

P.S. I am aware that there is no such thing as Greek gods, or demigods, or monsters. I simply read these books out of enjoyment for Rick Riordan's sense of humor and excellent writing skill.  ;)