Make It on Mobile

Elise Swopes is Beautifully Different

By Terri Stone

“You’re always going to have your phone on you,” Swopes says. “That’s the coolest part about editing with these apps. You can be anywhere, see something inspiring, and edit it on the spot. It affects the way I create and see the world.”

Swopes’s composition was inspired by the The Bully Project Mural, a digital destination where people can share art, stories, and perspectives about bullying, its impact, and how we can help stop it. Adobe partnered with The Bully Project to launch the mural in 2014. October is National Bullying Prevention Month in the United States.

We all take pictures with our phones, but Elise Swopes makes art—and a living—with her mobile photography. She is known for her surreal, dreamlike work. In this tutorial, she demonstrates how she used Adobe Photoshop Lightroom for mobile and Adobe Photoshop Mix to combine two photos into an image that both reflects her inner strength and renews it.

“I’ve dealt with bullying myself,” Swopes says. “When I create these images, a piece of me feels powerful. It’s important to stand tall through all the things that come your way, like a powerful storm over an oddly shaped world. There’s a lot of negativity and crazy stuff going on. I hope I can bring people to something more positive and interesting.”

Courtesy Adobe Create Magazine