How to use PhotoVim

Ocean in a Bottle: Composite a Scene Inside Glass

Level · Beginner Updated 2026-09-28

Place an island photo inside an empty glass bottle on a beach. Fit it with a mask, send it behind the glass and add a soft contact shadow.

Watch on YouTube

English editor and subtitles · 63 seconds

Pause at each step and follow the shortcuts on screen. The practice files contain separate source layers; the video is a recorded UI demonstration.

Steps

Tap a step picture to see it full size

  1. Create a document and place the beach

    On the start screen click New document (or File > New…, Ctrl+Alt+N). Type 1536 in Width and 1024 in Height, then click Create. Then place 01_BEACH_BACKGROUND.png with File > Place Embedded… and press Enter.

    Where to click — Create a document and place the beach
    Create a document and place the beach — Ocean in a Bottle: Composite a Scene Inside Glass

  2. Soften the background

    Choose Filter > Blur > Gaussian Blur…, type 6 in Radius and click OK.

    Where to click — Soften the background
    Where to click — Soften the background
    Soften the background — Ocean in a Bottle: Composite a Scene Inside Glass

  3. Place the empty bottle

    Choose File > Place Embedded… and pick 03_EMPTY_BOTTLE_ALPHA.png. A box with square handles appears: drag inside it to move, drag a corner handle to resize (the proportions stay the same). Press Enter to finish. Make it large and set it on the sand.

    Place the empty bottle — Ocean in a Bottle: Composite a Scene Inside Glass

  4. Place the island behind the glass

    Choose File > Place Embedded… and pick 02_ISLAND_INSERT.png. A box with square handles appears: drag inside it to move, drag a corner handle to resize (the proportions stay the same). Press Enter to finish. Scale it to the inside of the bottle. Press Ctrl+[ (Layer > Arrange > Send Backward) to put it behind the bottle.

    Where to click — Place the island behind the glass
    Place the island behind the glass — Ocean in a Bottle: Composite a Scene Inside Glass

  5. Show the island only inside the glass

    Press M for the Rectangular Marquee and drag a rectangle just inside the glass. Click the Add mask button at the bottom of the Layers panel (a rectangle with a circle inside). Press Ctrl+D.

    Where to click — Show the island only inside the glass
    Show the island only inside the glass — Ocean in a Bottle: Composite a Scene Inside Glass

  6. Add a contact shadow

    Click the beach layer and click the Create a new layer button (the square with a plus sign) at the bottom of the Layers panel. Press Shift+M for the Elliptical Marquee and drag a flat ellipse under the bottle. Click the top color square at the bottom of the toolbar on the left (Foreground color). Type 3A2A1A in the # box and click OK. Press Alt+Backspace, then Ctrl+D. Choose Filter > Blur > Gaussian Blur…, type 14 in Radius and click OK. Type 60 in the Opacity box at the top right of the Layers panel and press Enter.

    Where to click — Add a contact shadow
    Where to click — Add a contact shadow
    Add a contact shadow — Ocean in a Bottle: Composite a Scene Inside Glass

  7. Compare before and after

    Click the eye icons at the left of the layers to turn them off and on and compare before and after.

    Compare before and after — Ocean in a Bottle: Composite a Scene Inside Glass
Worth knowing

If a browser shortcut takes over, use the matching editor menu command. Keep the source files and practice on a copy.

Try it in the editor

Questions

Do I need Photoshop for this tutorial?

No. Every step is done in PhotoVim in your browser, with nothing to install. Menu names and shortcuts follow Photoshop, so the steps look familiar if you already use it.

Why use a mask instead of clipping to the bottle?

The bottle is transparent in the middle, so clipping would show the island only on the glass edges. A mask shaped like the inside of the bottle keeps the island inside.