# Create Mockups to Use and Sell in Photoshop - A Graphic Design for Lunch™ Class - review & insight | Gareth B. Davies Source: https://garethbdavies.com/course-insights/create-mockups-to-use-and-sell-in-photoshop-a-graphic-design-for-lunch-tm-class/ [← All courses](https://garethbdavies.com/course-insights/) Graphic Design · Quick win · Rated 7 /10 # Create Mockups to Use and Sell in Photoshop - A Graphic Design for Lunch™ Class Updated August 2026 Helen Bradley · Graphic Design for Lunch™ Intermediate · 30 min A 30-minute walkthrough of three distinct mockup methods, ending in a sellable Smart Object template you build yourself. [Get a Free Month on Skillshare](https://skillshare.eqcm.net/c/3155494/298081/4650?u=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.skillshare.com%2Fclasses%2Fcreate-mockups-to-use-and-sell-in-photoshop-a-graphic-design-for-lunch-tm-class%2F629481794) New to Skillshare? Your first month is free, enough to take this course at no cost. Helen Bradley's class covers three separate mockup techniques in under 30 minutes, and the structure is its main strength: each method escalates in complexity, and the final one produces something with commercial value. It opens by placing a hand-drawn diamond sketch onto two pillows in a photograph, teaching the plain mechanics of believable compositing: a color fill layer clipped to the artwork, a slight rotation to follow the fabric's angle, dodge and burn to mimic light falling across the pillow, and a small Gaussian blur applied to the sharp drawing so it matches the photo's own softness. None of these moves are exotic on their own, but seeing them stacked together, and understanding why each one matters, is the actual lesson. ## From simple overlay to perspective mapping The second mockup raises the difficulty by asking for a shadow that doesn't exist yet. Rather than fabricate one from nothing, the class shows how to lift the shadows already cast by two lights in a billboard photo, split them onto separate layers, reposition and blur them, then reuse that shape as the shadow for a new image placed over the billboard. It's a scrappy, practical solution rather than a textbook one, and that practicality is where the course earns its keep. That mockup continues into the Vanishing Point filter, which is the most technically demanding section. Building a perspective plane by clicking four corners, watching for the grid to turn blue instead of yellow or red, pasting an image in and dragging it onto the grid so it snaps into perspective: these are precise, easy to fumble steps, and the course walks through the shift-drag habit needed to preserve proportions. Anyone who has fought with this filter before will recognize how much smoother it goes with someone naming the pitfalls in advance. ## Building a sellable template The last section is the one the course's title promises: turning a mockup into a reusable, sellable asset. Converting the placed image to a Smart Object before applying warp, blur, and blend mode changes means all those effects transfer automatically when a client swaps in their own artwork through Replace Contents. The workaround for dodge and burn, since Smart Objects block direct painting, is filling a layer with neutral gray, blending it with soft light, then rasterizing it so the burn and dodge tools can act on the image underneath, is a genuinely clever piece of problem solving and the clearest justification for calling this an intermediate class rather than a beginner one. Where the course falls short is pacing and depth. Thirty minutes covering three full techniques means each one moves fast, with steps like "rotate it, squash it up a bit, flip it" described almost as fast as they are performed. There is no discussion of pricing, licensing, or how to package and sell these templates once built, despite the class title's explicit promise of selling them. It teaches the Photoshop mechanics well but leaves the commercial side entirely unaddressed. Viewers should already be comfortable with layers, selections, and blend modes before starting, since none of that gets reintroduced. For someone at that level looking for a concentrated, well-sequenced set of mockup techniques rather than a business primer, the class delivers efficiently. The standout The neutral-gray soft-light layer trick that restores dodge and burn control on a Smart Object you can no longer paint on directly. ## What you will learn - · Blending a hand-drawn image onto a photographed object using clipping masks, warp, dodge/burn, and Gaussian blur to sell the illusion - · Building custom shadow layers from existing image elements (lights on a billboard) rather than relying on generic shadow filters - · Using the Vanishing Point filter to paste artwork into a photo in accurate perspective - · Converting a mockup into a reusable Smart Object template with Replace Contents - · Faking dodge and burn on a Smart Object via a rasterized neutral gray soft-light layer - · Matching an inserted image's blur level to the host photo's actual sharpness for realism Best for: Intermediate Photoshop users who already know layers, masks, and blend modes and want a fast route to sellable mockup templates. Skip it if: Photoshop beginners unfamiliar with layer basics, selections, and blend modes, since the class moves through steps quickly with no setup review. Clarity of Instruction Helpful Examples Engaging Teacher Actionable Steps [Get a Free Month on Skillshare](https://skillshare.eqcm.net/c/3155494/298081/4650?u=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.skillshare.com%2Fclasses%2Fcreate-mockups-to-use-and-sell-in-photoshop-a-graphic-design-for-lunch-tm-class%2F629481794)