Rounding the corners of your photos is a nice way to change the look of a layout. Steps in this tutorial create a rounded shape that is used as a clipping mask to create rounded corners on a photo. This technique can also be used to create simple journaling tags or mattes!

In Photoshop Elements 4 or Photoshop CS2:

1. Open the photo or background you want to have rounded corners.
2. Photoshop Elements 4: Choose ‘File-Duplicate’ from the Menu Bar and enter a unique name for the new document.
   Photoshop CS2: Choose ‘Image-Duplicate’ from the Menu Bar and enter a unique name for the new document.
3. Close the original document. (You do all of this so that there is no risk of damaging your original photo!

To create the rounded shape for the clipping mask:

4. Choose the ‘Rounded Rectangle’ tool from your Tool Palette & change the radius to 125 in the Radius window below the Menu Bar. For CS2, also choose the ‘Shape Layers’ icon in the Menu tool bar.
5. Click and drag with the mouse until you have drawn a rectangle the size you want your photo or element to be. Release the mouse. You will now have a filled rectangle shape with rounded corners on its own layer above your photo.
6. With the move tool, click and drag the rectangle to reposition it over your photo or background as desired. (Tip: To lower the opacity of the rectangle, allowing you to see your photo/paper beneath it, click inside the opacity window at the top of the layers palette and type in a lower number. You MUST return the opacity to 100% before continuing to Step 7! Also, be sure that ‘Auto Select Layer’ on the bar below the Menu Bar at the top of your screen is NOT checked when moving the lowered opacity rectangle).
7. In the layers palette, drag your photo layer ABOVE the rectangle layer (you are just swapping their positions in the stack).

You are now going to create a clipping group. There are several ways to do this.

1. Select the photo layer in the layers palette.
2. Photoshop Elements: Click ‘Ctrl-G’ (or ‘Layer-Group With Previous’ from Menu Bar).
   Photoshop CS2: Click ‘Ctrl-Alt-G’ (or ‘Layer-Create Clipping Mask’ from Menu Bar).
3. To merge the layers hold ‘Shift-Ctrl-E’. This will merge all visible layers into one layer. You now have a photo with rounded corners, ready to place in your layout.

UPDATE: If your photo layer is also a background layer, you will either have to rename it by doubleclicking on the layer and then accepting the default ‘Layer 0′ or giving it a name of your choice. An alternative is to make a copy of your photo layer and work with that. When you get ready to merge the matte and photo layers, be sure they are the only two layers visible! Click on the ‘eye’ icon to the left of any other layers prior to the merge. You can click again afterward so they will be visible. Again, an alternative to that would be to shift and click on the photo matte layer and the photo layer and then do Ctrl & E, that will merge just the two selected layers. I hope this helps some of you who’ve had some trouble with this!

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