We shot this rock pool image with a Nikon Coolpix 950 camera while in Scotland, but although it is a pleasant image a little treatment in Photoshop can improve it quite a bit.

The technique is to take a number images shot at one location (or others) and amalgamate them together placing small individual images over the stones on the rock pool.

Gather the images you want to amalgamate together in a folder and call the first image up on screen with your rock pool. Making a layered composition is a simple process, but it sometimes takes a little getting used to, so persevere if things are a little hazy to start with. With both your rock pool and your first image on screen open the layers palette F7. Drag the thumbnail of the image you wish to add, from your layers palette and drop it into main image of the rock pool as we have below.

Use your transform rotate and size tools from the menu bar to position your boat over the rock in the main image. Use the opacity command in the layers palette and the eraser tool with a low pressure setting to blend your boat into the rocks as we show below.

Continue this process with all the pictures you want to add, but save your work often so any mistakes can be put right. We have just shown all the images added to our picture below without the basic rockpool so you can see what they should look like.

It is good practice to name all your layers so that they can be identified easily on screen as you work. As you involve more layers identifying the one you want to work on can become a pain if you don't name them.

Try to have some additions more prominent than others so that the viewer enjoys looking at the image and finding more interest as they look. You may wish to leave the opacity higher on one image.

9 separate pictures of Scotland were eventually used to overlay the rock pool that you can see below.