PS7: Full icon tutorial! (Including: a gradient, a motion blur, a brush, and some text.)
For some reason, while I was working on an icon tonight, I got the grand idea to make a tutorial.
So I did.
+Photoshop 7
+a sexcellent screen cap
+a
quebelly border brush
After digging around through some screen caps I took awhile ago from the Pearl Jam DVD Single Video Theory, I found an image I really liked, and thought would make an interesting icon.
(Left at it's original size in case you're like me and want to try and follow along with a new tutorial with the image they're using, to see if you can produce the same (or nearly the same) thing.)
As you can see, the cap isn't a great one... my laptop captured it with scan lines. That won't be a problem, though.
I cropped it, and then resized it. I had to then cut out the 100x100 piece because I wasn't using Fixed Aspect Ratio, and got something that, resized, was 100x101.
Anyway. This is what I got:
I decided then that I first wanted to do a gradient fill on the image. I duplicated the image, and then inserted a transparent layer between the original and the copied layer. I used the eyedropper tool and pulled a dark brown out of the image for the first color, and chose black for the second. I drew my gradient from the bottom left corner to almost the upper right corner. I then set this layer on Screen, and set the duplicated layer on Soft Light.
It now looked like this:
I thought that was looking kind of cool, but I didn't want a brown icon. (At this point, my layers are all merged.) I duplicated this layer, and then went Image > Adjustments > Variations, and started to play around. (Now, I didn't make this tutorial as I went along, so I can't say for certain which I used... I went back and tried to duplicate it, though, and got close with: More Blue, More Yellow, Darker.) I set this layer opacity at 75%, and it turned out like this:
I merged my layers again, and then duplicated the original. I wanted a soft motion blur effect (it's barely visible, but there). On the duplicated layer, I went Filter > Blur > Motion Blur. I set the angle at 10 degrees, and the distance at 2 pixels. I set this layer at 30% opacity.
I decided then it was time to add a border, so I made a new layer, and applied a border brush (one ofquebelly's excellent ones) in a very light purple color. Yes, it looked bad, but I immediately set the layer to Color Burn. Much better. It now looked like this:
I was very happy with how it looked at this point, and decided that it was time to add some text. After merging my layers once more, I chose some lyrics from a song of theirs I had been listening to earlier ("Happy When I'm Crying," if you're curious; they're lyrics especially fitting to Ed). The first layer of text is the "more than" part. My text settings were:
Times New Roman // Roman // 3 pt // Crisp
and in all caps. The color I chose was a dusty lavender.
I didn't want it so bright though, so I set the layer opacity at 60%.
My second text layer is the "meets the eye" part, this time I used these text settings:
Georgia // Regular // 4 pt // Strong
and again, all caps. The color was the same dusty lavender as the previous text layer, and I also set this layer to 60% opacity.
Now, it looked like this:
You may be thinking, that's it. Done!
Wrong.
I'm a very nitpicky person, and I didn't like the text covering the border like it did (even though it's probably not that noticeable). So I merged whatever layers I had left, and then created a new layer. I selected my pencil tool, and used the size 1 (pixel) brush (I guess you'd call it that with the pencil, too...) to draw right over the text (the border here is 2 pixels wide). The color I used was the deep purple that the rest of the border was (selected with, again, the eyedropper tool). I played around with layer settings, and finally decided on a Color Burn, at 35% opacity.
Merged layers. Saved.
The finished product:
(And, of course, the last step is optional... I like that look. You may not... definitely isn't a must.)
If there's something you feel needs clarification, or if you just have questions, please comment! (Also comment if you liked this tutorial, or though I did a good job... or if you have thoughts of how I could have done this better. I'm a little nervous posting this!) I'll be happy to answer anything.
Hope you guys liked this one!
(cross-posted in my own journal)
So I did.
+Photoshop 7
+a sexcellent screen cap
+a
quebelly border brushAfter digging around through some screen caps I took awhile ago from the Pearl Jam DVD Single Video Theory, I found an image I really liked, and thought would make an interesting icon.
(Left at it's original size in case you're like me and want to try and follow along with a new tutorial with the image they're using, to see if you can produce the same (or nearly the same) thing.)
As you can see, the cap isn't a great one... my laptop captured it with scan lines. That won't be a problem, though.
I cropped it, and then resized it. I had to then cut out the 100x100 piece because I wasn't using Fixed Aspect Ratio, and got something that, resized, was 100x101.
Anyway. This is what I got:
I decided then that I first wanted to do a gradient fill on the image. I duplicated the image, and then inserted a transparent layer between the original and the copied layer. I used the eyedropper tool and pulled a dark brown out of the image for the first color, and chose black for the second. I drew my gradient from the bottom left corner to almost the upper right corner. I then set this layer on Screen, and set the duplicated layer on Soft Light.
It now looked like this:
I thought that was looking kind of cool, but I didn't want a brown icon. (At this point, my layers are all merged.) I duplicated this layer, and then went Image > Adjustments > Variations, and started to play around. (Now, I didn't make this tutorial as I went along, so I can't say for certain which I used... I went back and tried to duplicate it, though, and got close with: More Blue, More Yellow, Darker.) I set this layer opacity at 75%, and it turned out like this:
I merged my layers again, and then duplicated the original. I wanted a soft motion blur effect (it's barely visible, but there). On the duplicated layer, I went Filter > Blur > Motion Blur. I set the angle at 10 degrees, and the distance at 2 pixels. I set this layer at 30% opacity.
I decided then it was time to add a border, so I made a new layer, and applied a border brush (one of
quebelly's excellent ones) in a very light purple color. Yes, it looked bad, but I immediately set the layer to Color Burn. Much better. It now looked like this:I was very happy with how it looked at this point, and decided that it was time to add some text. After merging my layers once more, I chose some lyrics from a song of theirs I had been listening to earlier ("Happy When I'm Crying," if you're curious; they're lyrics especially fitting to Ed). The first layer of text is the "more than" part. My text settings were:
Times New Roman // Roman // 3 pt // Crisp
and in all caps. The color I chose was a dusty lavender.
I didn't want it so bright though, so I set the layer opacity at 60%.
My second text layer is the "meets the eye" part, this time I used these text settings:
Georgia // Regular // 4 pt // Strong
and again, all caps. The color was the same dusty lavender as the previous text layer, and I also set this layer to 60% opacity.
Now, it looked like this:
You may be thinking, that's it. Done!
Wrong.
I'm a very nitpicky person, and I didn't like the text covering the border like it did (even though it's probably not that noticeable). So I merged whatever layers I had left, and then created a new layer. I selected my pencil tool, and used the size 1 (pixel) brush (I guess you'd call it that with the pencil, too...) to draw right over the text (the border here is 2 pixels wide). The color I used was the deep purple that the rest of the border was (selected with, again, the eyedropper tool). I played around with layer settings, and finally decided on a Color Burn, at 35% opacity.
Merged layers. Saved.
The finished product:
(And, of course, the last step is optional... I like that look. You may not... definitely isn't a must.)
If there's something you feel needs clarification, or if you just have questions, please comment! (Also comment if you liked this tutorial, or though I did a good job... or if you have thoughts of how I could have done this better. I'm a little nervous posting this!) I'll be happy to answer anything.
Hope you guys liked this one!
(cross-posted in my own journal)