How to Add People and Shadows into Renders Using Photoshop

Adding people and their corresponding shadows to architectural or product renders can enhance realism and scale. This tutorial covers multiple methods for doing so effectively.

Best Practices for Shadows and Lighting

Before adding shadows, consider the following lighting principles:

Sharp vs. Soft Shadows:

Shadows are sharp when the light source is small and direct (e.g., direct sunlight).

Shadows are soft when the light source is large and diffused (e.g., overcast skies or indoor ambient lighting).

Shadow Direction: Match the direction of the shadows in your render by identifying the primary light source.

Contact Shadows: A person’s feet should always have a darker, soft shadow where they touch the ground for realism.

Using Cutout People with Matching Lighting

Find and Import a Cutout Person

Use websites like VizPeople, Skalgubbar, or renderpeople.com to find high-quality cutout people. 

[Link to Drawing Resource page for more silhouettes]

Drag the image into your Photoshop render file and position it appropriately.

Adjust Lighting and Color Matching

Use Ctrl + L (Levels) or Ctrl + M (Curves) to match brightness and contrast.

Apply Hue/Saturation adjustments (Ctrl + U) if color correction is needed.

Add a slight blur (Filter > Blur > Gaussian Blur) to match image / render softness.

Add Shadows

Duplicate the Cutout Layer (Ctrl + J).

Convert to Black (Image > Adjustments > Brightness/Contrast, set brightness to -100).

Distort for Perspective (Edit > Transform > Distort) to align the shadow with the scene lighting direction.

Blur for Softness (Filter > Blur > Gaussian Blur, adjust to match other shadows in the render).

Add a Contact Shadow: Use a soft round brush at low opacity to paint a subtle dark spot under the feet.

Reduce Opacity (~30-50%) and set the layer mode to Multiply.

Make Your Own Cutout Person

Sometimes, you need a person doing a very specific thing, and while cutout resources are plentiful, you can always make your own cutout people.

Take a Photo of a Person

Capture an image of a person in the exact pose you need.

Ensure good lighting for easier isolation.

Isolate the Person in the Image

Use Select Subject (Select > Subject) for automatic selection.

Refine the edges using Select and Mask (Select > Modify > Feather or Refine Edge Tool).

Remove the background using Layer Mask or Ctrl + Shift + I to invert the selection and delete the background.

Adjust Lighting and Shadows

Follow the same steps as in Using Cutout People with Matching Lighting to blend your custom cutout into the render seamlessly.

Creating Custom Silhouettes

If you don’t have cutout people, you can create simple silhouettes for a stylized effect.

Find or Draw a Shape

Use reference images to trace figures with the Pen Tool (P).

Alternatively, use solid color filled vector silhouettes from stock resources.

Position and Scale

Adjust the figure size and placement to match the perspective of the render.

Add Shadows

Follow the steps in Using Cutout People with Matching Lighting for creating shadows, ensuring alignment with the lighting conditions of the scene.

Final Adjustments and Tips

Always match perspective, scale, and lighting direction when adding people.

Use layer masks to refine edges and remove unwanted background elements.

Add subtle color grading or overlays to unify the elements within the render or image.

For reflection effects, duplicate the figure, flip vertically (Edit > Transform > Flip Vertical), and apply a blur with lower opacity.

By mastering these techniques, you can seamlessly integrate people and their shadows into your renders, making them more lifelike and visually compelling.

Last updated by Abigail Green - May 2025