Smoke & Fog Photoshop Brushes
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Photoshop brushes6 Smoke & Fog Brushes
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Made fromPhotos of Real Clouds
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DepthFar Fog to Soft Band
Install Guide
How to Install Your Brush
A short PDF that shows two ways to install this brush in Photoshop, what to do if something looks wrong, and three tips for better results.
DESCRIPTION
Fog adds depth and mood to a photo, pushing the background back and softening the light. The PHLEARN Smoke & Fog Brushes are made from photos of real clouds, so the fog builds up with the soft, irregular texture of the real thing.
The pack holds 6 brushes: Cloud Buildup, the main fog brush, Cloud Bank for wide fog in the distance, Cloud Puffs A and B for fog with some shape, Soft Band for mist on water or fog just behind a subject, and the classic PHLEARN smoke and fog brush. Use them at a low flow and build the fog up in thin layers by distance.
One zip holds the brushes in a single .abr file, a How to Use guide with a worked example and the common mistakes, the install guide and a practice photo.
PHLEARN PRO · Photoshop Brushes
Smoke & Fog Photoshop Brushes
6 smoke & fog brushesMade from real cloudsHow to Use guidePractice image
Smoke & Fog Brushes · How It Works
Fog and Mist, Built Up by Distance
Six brushes made from real clouds, for fog that is thick far away and thin up close, with your subject kept clear.
Fog in the Beech Wood
A small figure in a big forest is the perfect place for fog. Four layers fade the beech wood into mist with distance: the farthest trees almost disappear, the middle rows soften, and she stays clear and dark in the clearing, so your eye goes straight to her and the scale of the woods comes through.
Start Far, Work Forward
Paint the deepest layer with Cloud Bank, then add lighter layers with Cloud Buildup and Cloud Puffs closer in. Lower each nearer layer’s opacity so the fog thins out as it reaches the camera.
Let the Floor Stay Warm
Keep the orange leaves in front free of fog, and sample a warm light gray from the sky so the mist matches the autumn color instead of turning the scene cold.
Best on: autumn woods, small figures in big landscapes, forest trails and quiet morning scenes.
Brushes used: Cloud Buildup, Cloud Puffs B, Cloud Bank, Soft Band.
Haze Among the Ferns
The pine trunks behind him make natural depth planes. The haze is painted in four of them: thickest deep in the forest, lighter between the nearer trunks and only a soft touch just behind him, so the ferns and the man in front stay crisp and the forest seems to go on for much longer.
Leave the Front Trunks Clear
Paint the farthest layer first with Cloud Buildup at a low flow, then mask it off the trunks closest to the camera. Every dark trunk in front of the haze pushes the background farther away.
Keep the Ferns Bright
Fog sits behind the ferns, not on them. Choose Select > Subject for the man, add the ferns in the foreground with a soft brush, and keep both black on every fog mask.
Best on: pine and fern forests, hikers seen from behind, woodland portraits and overcast days.
Brushes used: Cloud Buildup, Cloud Puffs B, Cloud Bank, Soft Band.
Valley Fog Below the Lookout
From a high viewpoint, fog settles into the valley and veils the farthest range. Here the back mountains are softened, fog fills the valley below the lookout, and a soft band sits just behind the hiker, while Select Subject keeps him and the rock he stands on clean and sharp.
Follow the Land
Fog pools in low places. Paint it along the valley floor and the river with long, horizontal strokes, and let the ridgelines rise out of it. Use a large brush at a low flow and build it up slowly.
Veil the Far Range
Add a separate, lighter layer over the most distant mountains only. A little haze there pushes them back and makes the whole view feel deeper.
Best on: lookouts, hiking photos, aerial and mountain landscapes.
Brushes used: Cloud Bank, Cloud Buildup, Soft Band.
Mist on the Mountain Lake
Four depth planes of mist do the work here, while the warm light on her face and hair keeps its contrast.
Match the Color of the Light
Sample a warm light gray from the sky instead of pure white, so the mist picks up the sunrise color like the rest of the scene.
Heaviest Haze Farthest Away
Paint the far ridges with Cloud Bank first, then add lighter layers of Cloud Buildup on the nearer mountain. Each layer should be fainter than the one behind it.
A Band on the Water
One stroke of Soft Band along the far shore lays mist on the water. Keep it low and soft so it reads as moisture rising off the lake.
Keep Her Clean
Choose Select > Subject and fill the selection with black on each fog layer’s mask, then check the edges of her hair at 100%. Right behind her, soften only a little.
Best on: lake and mountain portraits, sunrise scenes and travel photos with layered ridges.
Brushes used: Cloud Bank, Cloud Buildup, Cloud Puffs A, Soft Band.
What’s in the Download
6 brushes made from real clouds
Unzip it and load the .abr file in the Brushes panel. The brushes show up in a group named PHLEARN Smoke & Fog Brushes 2026.
- ABRPHLEARN Smoke & Fog Brushes 2026.abr6 brushes: cloud buildup, cloud bank, two cloud puffs, soft band and the classic brush
- PDFHow to Use (2026)PHLEARN Smoke & Fog Brushes – How to Use (2026).pdf: the brushes, a worked example and the common mistakes
- PDFInstall Guide (2026)PHLEARN Photoshop Brushes – Install Guide (2026).pdf: two ways to install the brushes
- JPG1 Practice ImageThe pine forest from the How to Use guide
- Classic
- Cloud Buildup
- Cloud Puffs A
- Cloud Puffs B
- Cloud Bank
- Soft Band
Photoshop Brush Questions, Answered
What’s included in the Smoke & Fog Photoshop Brushes download?
One .abr file with 6 brushes made from photos of real clouds: Cloud Buildup, Cloud Bank, Cloud Puffs A and B, Soft Band and the classic PHLEARN smoke and fog brush. The zip also has a How to Use guide, the install guide and a practice photo.
Why does each stroke look so faint?
Fog should build up slowly. Paint at 5 to 10% flow with a large brush and add several passes, so no brush stamps show. If an area gets too heavy, lower the layer opacity.
How do I make the fog look like it is in the scene?
Paint several thin layers, strongest and softest far away and lighter at each step closer, and keep the scene right behind your subject almost clear. Real fog is thin close to you and thicker in the distance.
What color should the fog be?
Sample a bright, hazy area of the distance instead of pure white. Even a dark forest gets pale fog in the color of its light.
Do I need a depth map?
No. You can paint each layer’s mask by hand with a big soft brush, which works in every version of Photoshop. A depth map just makes it faster: duplicate the photo, choose Filter > Neural Filters > Depth Blur, turn on Output depth map only, and paste the gray map into the layer mask. The How to Use guide in the download shows both ways.
Are Photoshop Brushes included in my PHLEARN PRO subscription?
Yes. A PHLEARN PRO membership includes every Photoshop Brush, plus PRO Tutorials, Lightroom Presets, LUTs and Photoshop Actions.
How do I install a Photoshop brush?
Unzip the download, open Photoshop, then double-click the .ABR file. Photoshop shows no confirmation, but the brush is now at the very bottom of the Brushes panel (Window > Brushes), named after the .ABR file. You can also choose Import Brushes from the Brushes panel menu. Every method is on our Photoshop Brushes install guide.
What version of Photoshop do I need?
Double-clicking the .ABR file works in current versions of Photoshop. In an older version, go to Edit > Presets > Preset Manager, set Preset Type to Brushes, click Load, select the .ABR file and click Done.
Why is the brush so big (or so small)?
Brushes load at the size they were built. Press [ or ] to resize, or hold Control + Option (Mac) or Alt + right-click (Windows) on the canvas and drag left or right.
The brush paints the wrong color or barely shows up. What do I do?
Press D to reset your colors, then check Opacity and Flow in the options bar at the top.
Photoshop says it could not load the brushes.
The download is still zipped or incomplete. Unzip it, or download it again.
My brush disappeared after an update.
Choose Edit > Presets > Migrate Presets, or install the .ABR file again.
What is the best way to use the brush?
Paint on a new, empty layer rather than on the photo itself, so you can move, fade or erase it later. Set that layer to Screen for bright brushes and Multiply for dark ones.
Terms of Use
These Brushes are licensed for personal and professional use by the individual who purchased or downloaded them. The license does not extend to companies or partnerships, and the files may not be resold, loaned, gifted, shared, copied or redistributed. All PHLEARN Brushes are copyright protected.
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