Some Quick and Easy Techniques for Photoshop

There are some fun ideas you can play around with in Photoshop and text. Here is a great way to make imac text in just a few easy steps: 1. Type some text. I used: TG using the font "Lucida console" the font color doesn't matter so just pick one. 2. Now go to Blending Options (Right-click on text layer). Select (and modify) the following: Dropshadow, color to #4B6B95 Innershadow, color to #304B98 Outerglow, color to #44CAFE Innerglow, color to #314E9A Bevel and emboss Contour, now just double click on the little box and you'll see something like this: 3. Create 2 more points to have a total of 4 points and give them the following input-output values: Point 1: input: 0% output: 0% Point 2: input: 27% output: 4% Point 3: input: 59% output: 56% Point 4: input: 100% output: 99% You'll see something like this: 4. Select satin, change the color to #60ACFF and change the contour to "ring". And finally select color overlay and change the color to #B7E1F7. Its this easy to create your own awesome text formats.

Want to learn how to create angled lines? Having fun with photoshop there are tons of different types of angles and grids. Pulling together resources and tutorials that are correct and easy to follow can be quite awesome looking. Check out this easy way to create angled lines over your picture: 1. Open Photoshop. Open an image to apply angled lines effect. 2. Create New file with 3 pixel width, 3 pixel height and transparent background. 3. Select some foreground color. Draw angled line using Pencil Tool. 4. Select All using CTRL + A 5. Create a pattern by Edit > Define Pattern. Name the pattern. 6. Close the Pattern file and go back to image file. Create new layer. Keep it selected. 7. Edit > Fill (Choose "Pattern" from "Use" drop down menu and again in "Custom Pattern" you will find newly created pattern) 8. Select newly created pattern and fill the layer. Change the layer mode to "Multiply"

Having fun with graphics is one of the best things to do if you enjoy playing with numbers and fading things in and out of focus. It is easy enough to do, creating a lightning bolt should be like this: start by creating a new image and then right away create a new layer. Also set the background color as black, (the image size I used here is 350X500). Now make a selection one pixel wide and make it cover the whole length. Fill this selection in with white. Next you have to go to Filter > Distort > Wave. The settings are as follows, [Generators - 5], [Wavelenth - 225/299], [Amplitude - 5/35], and [Scale - 100/100]. Now you have a wavey line, Apply an outer glow and transform and duplicate it a bit (Or experiment, I am just giving you an idea of how this is done.) I made the light balls with the gradient tool set to "radial." You can now start to add detail, smaller particles and some dodges. This effect is easy, but it really depends on how much time you want to spend doing it. It really starts to look good on 3D explosions in abstracts. I went ahead doing a little more detail using the same techniques and styles.

Lots of people enjoy decorating their pages with fun little interfaces like chords and screens, they use things like gradiaents and shading that make it look difficult to do. In truth it is quite easy. To create a chord all you have to do is create a new document, make a 2 pixels line, black color. Then Filter > Disort > Shear. Play around with these settings until you see something you like. When you are done with that duplicate the layer and move it 1-2 pixels to the right to get this effect on the left. Now just give it a Drop Shadow Color = black: Layer effect = Multiply 66%: 120 Angle: Distance = 13: Spread = 0: Size = 10 And you done, it's that easy! You can do some pretty crazy things with chords, use them as string, extension chord in your graphics. Long gone are the days of hunting for good graphics online.

You know those images that bring some things into focus and shove others out? Well this is easily accomplished. These photo techniques can be used for anything really. Were going to start off by choosing a image. I used one of a piano. Feel free to download it and do the same as I did with it. Now press the "Quick Mask Mode" (Q) button. Double-click to choose color and opacity. Now grab the "Brush Tool" (B) and start coloring. You can either color what you want to select or what you don't want to select. Doesn't really matter at this stage. Go back to "Standard Mode" (Q , button left to the "Quick Mask Mode" button) and now you'll see that either the part you left blank (and thus didn't paint red) is selected. NOTE: If you colored the part you wanted to select you'll see that is that part is NOT selected. You'll have to press SHIFT CTRL i or Select > Inverse. Now go to Filter > Blur > Gaussian Blur and I used a 2,5 Pixel radius. (Experiment with it!) As an extra you can press CTRL U and set the "Lightness" to -15. And now you have a shaded picture.

Airbrushing techniques aren't limited to just shifting light, you can actually create an image that is a great ball of light and then set images in front behind, creating more layers. Set the brush as above and brush across the area required for general volume lighting similar to that shown below. Apply Filter > Blur > Radial Blur Zoom 100%. The result should be similar to below. Using the above eraser settings. Lightly brush over the lighting like the image below. Apply Filter > Blur > Gaussian Blur radius 2.5. Using the above settings for the lasso tool while holding shift select from parts of the render as shown below. Now simply delete these unwanted areas from the volume light area.

People rarely get the opportunity to see exactly how specific images are created. I am going to give you access to a step by step way to create an awesome picture: Layer 1 Create a normal gradient fill. Layer 2 Apply Filter > Render > Clouds and set the layer to soft light, opacity 25%. Layer 2-5 Importing two different views of the model, Apply filter > Blur >gaussian blur: Radius 5. Also added some lighting to the left model. Layer 6 Using Airbrushing tutorial add "wings" of airbrushing to go behind the main render. Layer 6,7 Import the main render and duplicate the layer on the first layer apply Filter > Blur > Gaussian Blur radius 10 and set to multiply to add a shadow. Layer 7-25 Using the architectural lighting tutorial add lighting to the underside and uppersides of various "blocks". Layer 26 Duplicate the original gradient layer and place it over the top of the image, then erase the center so the sides are slightly faded as above. Layer 27-42 Importing the three views of the craft model use the architectural lighting tutorial to add engine lights of blue and red, also add airbrushing with motion blur to work as engine trails. Layer 43-46 Add small areas of red lights to the upper blocks apply gaussian blur, radius 3 and then Edit -> Fade Gaussian Blur to 50%. Layer 47 Using the architectural lighting 2 tutorial add lighting to the faces of the "blocks" and the side of the "bridge" on the left of the image. Layer 48 To add "over-clouds" Apply Filter > Render > Clouds. Then Apply Filter -> Render -> Difference clouds 5 times, and erase the bottom third of the layer. Finally set the layer to soft light 40% opacity. Layer 49 On the next layer just use Filter -> Render -> Clouds erasing most of the perimeter of the layer set to color dodge 20% opacity. Layer 50 Create a color balance layer with -44, Yellow on highlight and +5 blue on both midtones and shadows.

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