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lil cactus

How to make pop art from a photo

Beginner5 minutesUpdated

Quick answer

In Lil Cactus, duplicate the photo with Layer then Duplicate Layer, then choose Filter then Noise then Median…; use Radius 8 px for the sample and click Apply. Choose Layer then New Adjustment Layer then Posterize…: Levels opens at 4; lower it to 3 and click Apply. For black and white, hide the Posterize layer with its eye and add Layer then New Adjustment Layer then Threshold…; Level opens at 128, so click Apply. Export with File then Export then PNG…, and save a layered copy with File then Save As then Lil Cactus Project…

A red pepper on cyan before and after smoothing and Posterize, with broad red lobes, light highlights and a green stem
The pepper becomes bold red shapes against a flat cyan background. Drag the handle to compare.
Time
5 minutes
Level
Beginner
You need
One clear subject against a plain background
Works with
JPG, PNG and WebP photos
Open the sample in Lil CactusUse your own photo

Free, no sign-up. Your photo stays on your computer.

A posterized photo has a small set of color levels instead of smooth shading. With a clear subject and a simple background, this makes a graphic, pop-art treatment. First smooth fine texture with Median, a filter that replaces each pixel with the middle value of its neighbors, so the texture does not break into speckles. Work on a duplicate to keep the original photo; the adjustment layer above it holds Posterize so you can change its setting later.

Make a pop-art photo in five steps

  1. Open the photo

    Open the sample from this page, or choose File then Open… for your own photo.

  2. Smooth a copy of the photo

    Choose Layer then Duplicate Layer. In Layers, double-click the duplicate’s name, type Smoothed photo and press Enter.

    With that copy selected, choose Filter then Noise then Median… Set Radius to 8 px for the sample, then click Apply and wait for the dialog to close. On another photo, use enough radius to remove fine texture while keeping the subject’s edges clear.

    Layers panel with the duplicate named Smoothed photo ringed above the original Background
    Smooth this copy, keeping Background untouched.
    Median dialog with the complete Radius control at 8 px and Apply button ringed
    Remove small texture before reducing the colors.

  3. Add Posterize and choose the levels

    Choose Layer then New Adjustment Layer then Posterize… Levels opens at 4. Lower it to 3 for broader bands on the sample. Click Apply.

    Posterize dialog with the complete Levels control set to 3 and Apply button ringed
    Three levels make broader color shapes.

  4. Compare and refine the effect

    In Layers, click the Posterize layer’s eye to compare with the smoothed photo, then click again to restore the effect.

    To revise it, double-click the adjustment thumbnail, the half-filled circle in the same row. Lower Levels for fewer, broader bands or raise it for smoother shading, then click Apply.

    Layers panel with the full Posterize name, its visibility eye and half-filled adjustment thumbnail ringed above Smoothed photo and Background
    The eye compares; the half-filled circle reopens Posterize.

  5. Export and save the editable version

    Choose File then Export then PNG…, enter pop-art.png in File name and click Export.

    Export writes a new file and leaves the original as it was. To keep the original photo, smoothed copy and adjustment layers, choose File then Save As then Lil Cactus Project…; after that, File then Save updates the project. File then Save on the opened JPEG instead writes a flat JPEG back to it, and the first time it opens Save Image.

    Whole File name field and label ringed, showing pop-art.png
    Name the image copy.
    Whole Export button ringed beside Cancel in the export footer
    Export the posterized image.

Make a black-and-white Threshold version

Click the Posterize layer’s eye to hide it, then choose Layer then New Adjustment Layer then Threshold… The new layer works on the smoothed photo underneath. Level opens at 128; click Apply. Threshold turns dark areas black and light areas white, with no gray shading.

Export as in step 5, named for example threshold.png.

Threshold dialog with whole Level control at 128 and Apply button ringed
Use Threshold for a two-tone print.
The same pepper converted to hard black and white with Threshold Level 128
Threshold uses the smoothed photo, with Posterize hidden.

What to do next

Posterized photos: questions and answers

Why does Posterize at Levels 3 give more than three colors?

In Lil Cactus, Levels applies separately to the red, green and blue channels, the three components of a color pixel. Three levels per channel can combine into up to 27 colors; it does not mean three colors in the whole photo.

Does Posterize turn a photo into vector art?

No. Posterize in Lil Cactus changes pixel colors. The PNG remains a raster image, so enlarging it still enlarges its pixels.

Can I posterize only the subject of a photo?

Yes. In Lil Cactus, mask both the Posterize layer and the Smoothed photo layer to the subject, so the original photo shows around it.

Can Posterize use two exact colors of my choice?

No. Use Gradient Map for two chosen colors in Lil Cactus. Posterize reduces the existing color levels rather than assigning a palette you specify.

How do I get more black in a Threshold photo?

In Lil Cactus, reopen Threshold by double-clicking its adjustment thumbnail and raise Level. A higher value makes more pixels black; a lower value makes more pixels white.

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