ADK - Photoshop Tutorials

Photo montage with a boat in Photoshop

2010-02-20T09:38:00.000-08:00

In this tutorial I want to show you some basics for making photo montages in photoshop. In this tutorial I will take 2 photos: 1 of a boat and 1 of a sea. I'll move the photo of the boat from 1st photo to the 2nd and I will blend it in a nicely way to fit the 2nd photo. This will make the perfect simple photo montage in photoshop.

(You can click on the images to view them in bigger size)

Step 1.
First if you'll follow with me you can find the images you'll need for this tutorial here:

http://www.sxc.hu/photo/1206448

http://www.sxc.hu/photo/1216209

Open image1:

and

Step 2.
Open image 2:

Step 3.
Next start to make path for a new selection using pen tool.

Step 4.
Continue with the making of the paths. There is really no need to be perfect, it is even required to be exactly like mine. You can see in the image:

Step 5.
After everything is ready you can make a selection.

Step 6.
In my case I have been clicked on subtract from area. So when I choose make selection , it makes selection on everything else except the boat. If that happens to you use CTRL+SHIFT+I to invert the selection or go to the menu selection and choose invert selection. After you have the selection hit CTRL+J and this will make a new layer with the boat on it.

Step 7.
Now move it to the other photo.

Step 8.
Using the pen tool I have removed this part between the rope and the canvas. After that take the eraser tool and adjust the settings as shown in the image:

Step 9.
Start to erase the edges of the waves like it's shown here:

Step 10.
Now I am deleting also the the other areas I don't like using the techniques I already mentioned. The eraser tool or pen tool and making selections.

Step 11.
Now using levels make some adjustments. We must make the boat to blend completely with the new background.

Step 12.
We can make also some adjustments for the background.

Step 13.
Back on the boat layer and use Inner Glow from the blending options. Look at the settings I use and the color I have choosed:

Step 14.
We're almost at the end. Merge the 2 layers and using curves we can improve the quality of our new photo.

Final
And I have made a some croping. This is our final photo. Hope you like it:

Tip: It is important to choose photos which are similar with colors and subject. For example here the background fit perfectly because there is another boats and so on. Now you can make such montages with your own photos. I hope you liked it.
Feel free to share and comment with your critique, suggestions or questions.

Easy to do vector Illustration of city in Photoshop

2010-02-20T06:04:00.000-08:00

In this tutorial I will show you the basics of vector style illustration in photoshop.

(You can click on the images to view them in bigger size)

Step 1.
First find an image you'll like to make in vector style. You can find image I use from sxc.hu here: http://www.sxc.hu/photo/1193706

Step 2.
I will crop this image a little.

Step 3.
Now after using the crop tool as you see in the image, we can take the pen tool and start to make the vector city with it. This is really easy to do.

Step 4.
Continue in the same way.

Step 5.
On the next image the vector sicy is almost done.

Step 6.
In the next image you can see how it should look after it's done.

Step 7.
Let's continue with the sun. Take the circal shapes tool and draw the sun. You must do that on new layer under the city layer.

Step 8.
Continue the making of the sun. Duplicate the cirlce layer, make the second one bigger with other color and move it under the 1st one.

Step 9.
Repeat step 8 once or twice as much as you like.

Step 10.
Now let's choose a good colors for the background. We'll use gradients. take the eyedropper tool and choose your colors from the background.

Step 11.
Use the gradient tool as shown in the next image.

Step 12. Now we'll make something like a shadow for the city. To make that duplicate the city layer and place it under original. Lower the opacity a bit.

Step 13.
Let's make rays of light for the sun now. This is something people ask me very often, how to make such, There is a custom shape in the custom shapes and it's the easiest way to make this kind of rays. See the next image:

Step 14.
After you select the shape start drawing while holding SHIFT in your keyboard from the center of the sun.

Step 15.
When you ready with the rays, lower the opacity of the layer. I have tried also other colors for the background and the sun you can see in the image:

Step 16.
That's almost all, if you like, you can add some clouds and other things to this. Just make it much more alive and detailed.

Final

That's all, hope you like it. Don't forgot to share and comment if you have any questions suggestions and critique.

Design a folder web icon

2009-11-16T15:12:00.000-08:00

In this tutorial I'll show you how I design a simple but professional looking Folder web icon in Photoshop.

(You can click on the images to view them in bigger size)

Step 1.
Like always open a new document.

Step 2.
Choosing a color.

Step 3.
Next with rectangle tool I draw a shape like in the image:
Step 4.
Selecting the shape I'll add 2 anchor points with pen tool. One in the middle and one close to the first on the right side like it's shown on the image:
Step 5.
While this 2 points are selected just holding SHIFT and pressing UP arrow keyboard button I'll move them up.
Step 6.
Duplicate this shape, changing it's color to grey and flip it horizontal with free transform tool CTRL+T I have this:

Step 7.
Again with free transform CTRL+T I resize it a little.
Step 8.
With the rectangle tool and settings it's radius again to 3 px I draw a new shape.
Step 9.
Now adding some blending options to this shapes. Look at the next images.
Inner shadow:
Step 10.
Gradient color:
Step 11.
And final stroke:
Step 12.
After this is done I copy and paste this layer styles to my other layers.
Step 13.
And here it is ready.

Thanks for reading this tutorial. I hope it has been in some use for you. Waiting for your reactions and comments with questions suggestions and critiques if any.

Design awesome 3D color graph in Photoshop

2009-10-31T03:42:00.000-07:00

This tutorial is no more available here. I am moving tutorials from this blog to my new site, you can find the tutorial here: Link to see the tutorial

Greeny navigation - web navigation tutorial.

2009-10-12T05:32:00.000-07:00

This tutorial is no more available here. I am moving tutorials from this blog to my new site, you can find the tutorial here: Link to see the tutorial

Ice cream Text Effect

2009-07-10T04:49:00.000-07:00

Learn to make this nice Looking like Ice cream text effect with this tutorial.
(You can click on tutorial images to view them in bigger size)

1. New document 800px x 600px

2. Fill the background with a gradiend color: #4f6d83 to #ffffff and use the Filter -> Sketch -> Water Paper. My settings are Fiber Lenght: 21, Bightness: 60, contrast: 80.

3.After you have the background let's begin with the text. Take some nice font and type some text with a white color...

4. Use the settings from the next few images:
Drop shadow:

5.Bevel and emboss:

6.Satin:

7.Duplicate the text layer and rasteryze it.

8.Hide the old layer and take the smudge tool now...

9. Begin to use the smudge tool now and try to make the text to look
like it is melting...

10.At the end I have something like this:
I do not make it perfect cuz I'm just showing the idea for the tutorial.
But you can make it better... Also after you're ready with this layer
unhide the old one...

11. Next thing you can do is to take the brush tool and you can add some dots with different colors.

12.And this is your final effect, Hope you like it a little bit :)

Nice glossy grey navigation menu with search box for your web sites

2009-07-05T07:04:00.000-07:00

This tutorial is no more available here. I am moving tutorials from this blog to my new site, you can find the tutorial here: Link to see the tutorial

New design for the blog!

2009-06-16T02:15:00.000-07:00

I just changed the theme for this blog and I used a ready theme and I re-designed it in the way I like. I like it and I hope you will like it too. The old one was somehow not so cool in my opinion... I have some new ideas and I hope I'll add some things to it and also new tutorials soon maybe...

Photo Effect: Typography

2009-06-11T00:50:00.000-07:00

Because some of you voted for Photo effect on my Poll: What tutorials you want?
In this tutorial I'll show you a Typography photo effect. In my tutorial I'll use a vector car which I did earlier. You can use another object if you want, this is off course just an example. I thing this can be done with almost every photo.
(You can click on tutorial images to view them in bigger size)

So let's begin.

1.First I have new document and on separate layer I have the vector car.

2.Take the type tool and type some text... you must fill up the area around your object. The vector car in my case.

3.After that open charachter window from window menu...

4.So here I use the settings you see in the charachter window and this is because we need the words and the letters to be much closer to each other as you see now. Also I use free transform to resize the car a little bit. Making it smaller to fit the texts...

5.Next on the text layer hold CTRL + click with the mouse over the icon and this will make a selection of the texts...

6.Hit CTRL +J now or the same command you can find in Layer -> New -> Layer Via copy

7.You're ready with the effect just hide the text layer and the layer with the object you have. (The car in my case.)

8.Good thing is to duplicate the layer with the car now.

9.On the new duplicated layer open layer stlye window and you can use this settings for example: (We'll add some glow with color: white... )

10.So next I thing to duplicate the last 2 layers once more...
and to group all 4 then...

11.Here after I have grouped them I just added some reflection which I'll not explain so much in this tutorial...
It depends of what object you use... If you use my car and want same result search for some reflection tutorials over the web. I have ideas to make some
tutorials about reflections soon too...

12.Here with the pen tool I added some background for the car and that's it after all it looks cool in my opinion.

Hope you like this effect and
here's the final result:

Cool Glossy Website Navigation bar

2009-05-22T23:15:00.000-07:00

Design cool glossy website navigation bar with this tutorial... (You can click on tutorial images to view them in bigger size)

1. Open new document and the dimensions I use here are: 200 width x 400 height

2. Fill the background with Grey color: #e6e6e6 and take the Rounded Rectangle tool and set it's radius to:25px and it's color to: #0498aa
Also you should select shape layers icon! (see the arrows in the image) and draw a shape like in the image below:

3. Next thing Duplicate this shape we have made and change it's color to: white

4. Then using free transform tool (CTRL+T) hold shift and try to make the shape
like in the next image. It should be on the top of our first shape. then Lower the opacity of this shape to: 12

5.Now take the type tool with some nice font and type something and after that,
next few images are for blending options.

6. Satin:

7. Stroke:

8.So it looks nice like that and we're almost finish with our navigation bar.
we Should duplicate our 1st shape 4-5 times maybe (as much you wish) and now change the texts and reposition the new shapes... It's nice to group this first shape so you can duplicate it much easier!

9. Done! and Also I added some small extras. You can experiment with the colours and everything.

Hope you liked it :)

Car Out of Bounds - Easy way

2009-05-05T01:44:00.000-07:00

Car Out of Bounds
In this tutorial I'll show you a simple and effective way for making objects like cars to get out of bounds of a photo...
(You can click on tutorial images to view them in bigger size)

1. First Open some photo with a car... In my case I'll use this here
which I have made earlier...

2.Take the Pen tool and choose the paths icon (look at the arrow in the up-left corner.

3.In next step make a path around the car. We need the car to be alone in a separate layer...

4.After you complete the path with the pen tool, click with the right mouse button and choose to make a selection. Feather radius is 0 like in the image and choose OK.

5.After you complete this steps you will have a selection of everything around the car.You need to inverse that selection now: From the menu: Select-Inverse or (Shift+CTRL+I)

6.So here you should have a selection of a car. Use CTRL+J for Layer via copy or from the menu:Layer-New-Layer via Copy

7.Here you should have like in the next picture:

8.Use the rectangle tool to draw a frame.

9.Use the subtract from shape area to finish this frame.

10. U can use free transform CTRL+T and distort to change the looks of this frame a little.

11.Also Perspective:

12.I have something like in the next picture:

13. Make a selection of this frame now. For that purpose click with the mouse
on the vector mask icon while in the same time holding CTRL.

14.Take the Eraser tool.

15.Delete the area I showed in next picture:

16.Then you can delete the parts which you want to be inside the frame.

17.Make a rectangle shape now with the pen tool or maye another tool!

18.So you can try to change some colors a little. and you're ready!

19.Fast and Easy and this is the final effect:

Hope you like this effect.

Nice glossy Web menu tutorial

2009-04-18T12:33:00.000-07:00

This tutorial is no more available here. I am moving tutorials from this blog to my new site, you can find the tutorial here: Link to see the tutorial

Film-strip tutorial

2009-04-14T23:52:00.000-07:00

This tutorial is no more available here. I am moving tutorials from this blog to my new site, you can find the tutorial here: Link to see the tutorial

Unique Web Button

2009-04-01T13:04:00.000-07:00

This tutorial is no more available here. I am moving tutorials from this blog to my new site, you can find the tutorial here: Link

Mosaic of photos

2009-03-19T05:44:00.000-07:00

This tutorial is no more available here. I am moving tutorials from this blog to my new site, you can find the tutorial here: Link to see the tutorial

Transparent Shiny Text Effect

2009-03-19T02:29:00.000-07:00

Transparent Shiny Text Effect

The tutorial shows how to make a nice impressive Transparent Shiny Text Effect
Really easy to achieve!
(You can click on tutorial images to view them in bigger size)

1. Open new document and type something.Font you use not matter so much,
just try with different type fonts. The size I use if you're interested here is
somewhere of 82pt and the background dimensions are 600px x 600px but this
is not so much important really, Just try different things...

2. Click on the text layer with the right mouse button and open the layer style window.

3. Now from here just use the settings from images below:
Blending options:

4. Drop Shadow:

5. Outer Glow:

6. Inner Glow:

7. Bevel and Embos:

8. Stroke:

Final:

Hope you like the final result.
Experiment and Enjoy.