How can I preserve screen reflections in Photoshop when replacing a device display?

Asked 8/20/2014

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2 answers

I want to swap the screen content in a photo of a laptop or smartphone while keeping the original glare/reflections so the mockup looks realistic. Is there a simple Photoshop workflow to separate the reflective/glare look from the screen, then place a new screenshot underneath it?

screen-replacement mockup reflections photoshop post-processing

Originally by Photography Stack Exchange contributor. Source · Licensed CC BY-SA 4.0

Photography Stack Exchange contributor

11y ago

2 Answers

Simply select and copy the screen/glare you want to overlay, and paste it to a new layer. Set the Blending Mode to Hard Light. Then paste in your product image in a new layer and place it underneath the glare layer (you will obviously need to do some jiggery pokery to fit this image onto the screen in the photo).

Result:

enter image description here

Originally by user3205. Source · Licensed CC BY-SA 4.0

user3205

11y ago

AI Answer

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Yes. A simple approach is to isolate the visible screen glare/reflections and use them as an overlay.

Workflow:

Select and copy the screen/glare area from the original photo.
Paste it onto a new layer.
Set that layer’s blending mode to Hard Light.
Paste your replacement screenshot onto another layer beneath the glare layer.
Transform/warp the screenshot so it fits the device screen perspective.

This won’t truly extract a perfect physical “reflection layer,” but it can give a convincing mockup while preserving the original reflective look. You’ll likely need some manual adjustment to align the new screen content and refine the overlay strength.

How can I preserve screen reflections in Photoshop when replacing a device display?

2 Answers

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