Monday, February 28, 2011

Best of the Web ? February 2011


As you know, each month, we round up some of the best Photoshop-related content from around the web. This month, there were some excellent Photoshop tutorials and articles to choose from so please take a moment to review our favorites from February 2011.


Photoshop Tutorials

  • Photoshop Tutorial: Create an Abstract Figure From Circles

    Often, beautiful artwork can be based from the simplest of geometric shapes. In this tutorial from Digital Arts, author Mart Biemans demonstrates how to create a stunning composition using basic circles and effects.

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  • Milk Monster and Chocolate Splash

    There are a lot of tutorials that demonstrate how to use splashes in your work to create a cool effect. This tutorial from Alfoart however, stands out. It shows how to manipulate a splash to create your own milk monster.

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  • How To Paint Mustache (Video)

    Just about ever guy has wondered what they would look like with a mustache. Some have tried, others have lied about trying. This tutorial from Cute Little Factory will demonstrate how to paint a cartoon-style mustache on a character. Really fun!

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  • Incredible Horror Photo Manipulation Photoshop Tutorial

    Horror is an incredibly popular genre of art. In this tutorial from Creative Fan, they will demonstrate how to turn a bright, sunny stock photograph into a scary scene straight out of a horror film.

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  • Create an Intricate Mythological Statue Photo Manipulation Photoshop Tutorial

    Turning a photograph of a person into a statue is one of those projects that seems easier than it actually is. This tutorial from Creative Fan will demonstrate how to turn a photograph into a mythological statue.

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  • Create a Realistic Vintage Ticket Stub in Photoshop

    Making something look vintage, old, or worn in Photoshop can be tough if you don’t know where to start. This tutorial from Design Instruct will demonstrate how to create a vintage and realistic looking ticket stub in Photoshop.

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  • Burnstudio: Create An Amazing Personal Website From Scratch Using Photoshop

    Photoshop is the industry-standard app for creating web designs. This tutorial from 1st Web Designer will demonstrate how to create a personal website from scratch using our favorite design application.

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  • Look Under The Hood: Photoshop Color Settings

    Understanding Photoshop’s color settings is an important part of creating fantastic designs. This tutorial from 1st Web Designer explains these settings in detail and is an excellent resource for those of you who need to brush up on your knowledge.

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Articles and Inspiration

  • In Defense of Advertising

    Ads may be annoying at times but let’s face it, they aren’t all that bad. In fact, ads are often celebrated for their creativity and the success of the products that they promote. This article from Design Shack defends advertising and explains why we should appreciate it more.

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  • Eye-Catching & Clever Print Ads

    Speaking of ads, this showcase of clever print ads from Noupe displays some excellent examples of eye-catching print ads for your inspiration.

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  • Simplify and Improve Your Designs with the Bonsai Tree Method

    Sometimes the best design inspiration comes from outside the field of design. This article from Spyre Studios explains how you can improve your designs with the bonsai tree method.

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  • Business Design Advice to Keep You Sane and Prosper

    Let’s face it, design can make a person crazy if you let it get the best of you. This article from The Design Cubicle shares some lessons and thoughts on the business of design.

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  • Ethics in the Design Field

    Every profession has its own set of ethical guidelines most of its members adhere to. And while the design industry’s code of ethics might not be as crucial as, say, the medical industry, there are still some important ethical considerations every design professional should think about. This article from Web Designer Depot explains some of the most prominent ethical considerations that designers must deal with.

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  • How Old-Fashioned Marketing Can Supercharge Your Design Business

    Studying history is often the best way to understand the present and future. While new technologies have developed in recent years, it doesn’t mean that the old way of doing things is complete obsolete. This article from Web Designer Depot explains how you can supercharge your design business with some old-fashioned marketing techniques.

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  • Video: How to Run Your Design Business W/Emily Cohen

    Running a design business is more than just about making great designs. It’s also about organization, book keeping, writing proposals, budgets, and much more. This speech given by Emily Cohen at a Creative Mornings event in New York City gives some great advice about how you can run your own business.

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  • Digital Artwork Inspired by Geometry

    Great designs are often the result of the combination of simple shapes and effects. This article from Noupe showcases some excellent examples of artwork inspired by geometry.

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Source: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/psdtuts/~3/d0Lye9UTVFw/

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Landing Your First Graphic Design Job

So, you?re a college graduate ? now what? It?s a surreal feeling walking across the stage in your cap and gown, picking up a diploma holder (with no diploma in it ? yet) and heading out to face the world. Whether you are a recent college graduate, or just gearing up for graduation, looking for [...]

Source: http://www.youthedesigner.com/2011/02/21/landing-your-first-graphic-design-job/

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Design and Print a 70s Style T-Shirt ? Psd Premium Tutorial


Authentic, retro looking T-shirt designs are all the rage these days. In this Psd Premium tutorial, author Mark Mayers will take a heavy dose of inspiration from the 70s and create a cool, surf-style graphic with tons of retro appeal. This tutorial will also demonstrate how to incorporate an aged and distressed look to replicate washing machine wear and tear. In the final part of this tutorial you’ll see how easy it is to print your designs onto special iron-on transfer paper and apply it to a T-shirt, which is an ideal solution if you just need a handful for your local club or friends. This tutorial is available exclusively to Premium Members. If you are looking to take your t-shirt design skills to the next level then Log in or Join Now to get started!


About the Author

Author Mark Mayers is a talented designer and illustrator from the UK. He has worked as a designer and creative director for several design/advertising agencies and specializes in print, branding, packaging, and exhibition graphics. Mark began his career when the tools of the trade were markers, layout pads, and most importantly, the ability to draw, but he embraced the digital revolution in the early 90′s and swapped his drawing board for a Mac. Today, Mark freelances from his studio in Cornwall for such clients as American Express, BMW, Future Publishing, IDG Communications and Imagine Publishing.


Professional and Detailed Instructions Inside

Premium members can Log in and Download! Otherwise, Join Now! Below are some sample images from this tutorial.


Psd Premium Membership

As you know, we run a premium membership system here that costs $9 a month (or $22 for 3 months!) which gives members access to the Source files for tutorials as well as periodic extra tutorials, like this one! You’ll also get access to Net Premium and Vector Premium, too. If you’re a Premium member, you can Log in and Download the Tutorial. If you’re not a member, you can of course Join Today!

Source: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/psdtuts/~3/Q0A1DA2ZMvY/

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A Showcase of Free Facebook Icons for Designers and Bloggers

Facebook has definitely taken social networking to the next level. It has helped connect families and friends who have been separated and even allowed its users to meet people they would otherwise not know. People of all ages, color and background was taken by storm and, in truth, Facebook has reached more than a billion [...]

Source: http://www.youthedesigner.com/2011/02/22/a-showcase-of-free-facebook-icons-for-designers-and-bloggers/

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An Introduction to Font Accessibility

This is a guest article from Jennifer Moline*.
Accessibility of images is emphasised during web design training, but an equally important issue that is much less discussed is font accessibility. While images require alt text tags to enable the visually impaired to know what is being displayed, [...]

Source: http://justcreativedesign.com/2011/01/26/an-introduction-to-font-accessibility/

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Akos Major Photography

Source: http://www.graphic-design-blog.com/2011/02/akos-major-photography.html

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Lausanne Underground Film & Music Festival

The visual communication for the Lausanne Underground Film & Music Festival is really great. Demian Conrad design had a great [...]

Source: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/DailyDesignerNews/~3/113zuYWFvlM/lausanne-underground-film-music-festival-13307

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How to Make a Textured 3D Spray Can


In today’s tutorial we will demonstrate how to combine Illustrator and Photoshop to create a 3D, textured spray can. This tutorial requires some basic understanding of Illustrator and Photoshop as well as the pen tool. Let’s get started!


Step 1

Open Adobe Illustrator. Create a new document. The first step is to create all the materials and elements that will appear on the can. Most of them are basic shapes and text. I created the spatter and the shield for this tutorial. You can use them or you can find free similar vector elements over the Internet.

Note that I included measurements for you to have an idea of the size and proportion, but you don’t have to be exact. You can always resize things later if you need to.


Step 2

In the menu, go to Windows / Symbols to open the Symbols Window. Drag each of the elements you just created to the Symbols Window to convert them to symbols.

In the Symbols Window open the menu from the top right corner and select "Large List View.

Select the Symbol Options button at the bottom of the window and rename each of the Symbols as seen in the following image. Finally you can delete them from the stage.


Step 3

With the Pen Tool (P) create a shape like in the image below. Try to respect the amount of anchor points.


Step 4

Go to the menu and click Effect > 3d > Revolve. Enter the values of the following image.


Step 5

On the 3D Revolve Options Window click the Map Art button. Check Shade Artwork and check Invisible Geometry. For now we will only use the Red and Grey boxes that we converted to symbols. Use the arrow buttons to navigate through each surface. Following the Image in Step 6, apply the corresponding material, selecting it from the Symbol list menu.

Note that the wireframe turns red on the surface that is selected. If the material/symbol is too small for the surface, click the Scale to Fit button. Finally click OK on the Map Art Window and on the 3D Revolve Options Window.


Step 6

You should have something like this.


Step 7

Now open the Layers Window if it is not already open. Rename the <Path> to MAIN.


Step 8

Select your main shape; duplicate it by dragging it to the Create New Layer button at the bottom of the Layers Window. Rename the new MAIN path to WHITE BIG.


Step 9

Hide the MAIN path. Select the WHITE BIG path. Open the Appearance Window and select the 3D Revolve (Mapped) Link. Click on the Map Art button.


Step 10

First remove all the Symbols from all the surfaces. If you created exactly the same amount of anchor points you have to select Surface 5. If not, don’t worry, just find the surface that matches the one in the following image and position the White Big symbol as seen in the following image.


Step 11

Now we will repeat steps from 7 to 10 several times to position all the different elements. You may be asking: What is the advantage of placing the elements in several overlapping paths over making only one symbol with everything inside?

  1. You can copy each individual element to Photoshop as individual layers.
  2. This allows for a more efficient use of computer resources because you can hide all unused elements if you need to.

Duplicate the WHITE BIG path by dragging it to the Create New Layer button at the bottom of the Layers Window. Rename the new WHITE BIG path to WHITE SMALL.

Select the WHITE SMALL path. Open the Appearance Window and select the 3D Revolve (Mapped) Link. Click on the Map Art button. Remove all the symbols from all the surfaces. Find the surface that matches the one of the following image and position the White Small symbol as seen in the following image. Finally click OK on the Map Art Window and on the 3D Revolve Options Window.


Step 12

Duplicate the WHITE SMALL path by dragging it to the Create New Layer button at the bottom of the Layers Window. Rename the new WHITE SMALL path to SHIELD.

Select the SHIELD path. Open the Appearance Window and select the 3D Revolve (Mapped) Link. Click on the Map Art button. Remove all the symbols from all the surfaces.

Find the surface that matches the one of the following image and position the Shield symbol as seen in the following image. Finally click OK on the Map Art Window and on the 3D Revolve Options Window.


Step 13

Duplicate the SHIELD path by dragging it to the Create New Layer button at the bottom of the Layers Window. Rename the new SHIELD path to PRESSURIZED.

Select the PRESSURIZED path. Open the Appearance Window and select the 3D Revolve (Mapped) Link. Click on the Map Art button. Remove all the symbols from all the surfaces.

Find the surface that matches the one in the following image and position the Pressurized Smoke symbol as seen in the following image. Finally click OK on the Map Art window and on the 3D Revolve Options Window.


Step 14

Duplicate the PRESSURIZED path by dragging it to the Create New Layer button at the bottom of the Layers Window. Rename the new PRESSURIZED path to BRAND.

Select the BRAND path. Open the Appearance Window and select the 3D Revolve (Mapped) Link. Click on the Map Art button. Remove all the symbols from all the surfaces.

Find the surface that matches the one of the following image and position the Brand symbol as seen in the following image. Finally click OK on the Map Art Window and on the 3D Revolve Options Window.


Step 15

Duplicate the BRAND path by dragging it to the Create New Layer button at the bottom of the Layers Window. Rename the new BRAND path to NOZZLE1.

Select the NOZZLE1 path. Open the Appearance Window and select the 3D Revolve (Mapped) Link. Click on the Map Art button. Remove all the symbols from all the surfaces.

Find the surface that matches the one of the following image and position the Nozzle1 symbol as seen in the following image. Finally click OK on the Map Art window and on the 3D Revolve Options Window.


Step 16

Duplicate the NOZZLE1 path by dragging it to the Create New Layer button at the bottom of the Layers Window. Rename the new NOZZLE1 path to NOZZLE2.

Select the NOZZLE2 path. Open the Appearance Window and select the 3D Revolve (Mapped) Link. Click on the Map Art button. Remove all the symbols from all the surfaces.

Find the surface that matches the one in the following image and position the Nozzle2 symbol as seen there. Finally click OK on the Map Art Window and on the 3D Revolve Options Window.


Step 17

Duplicate the NOZZLE2 path by dragging it to the Create New Layer button at the bottom of the Layers Window. Rename the new NOZZLE2 path to SPATTER.

Select the SPATTER path. Open the Appearance Window and select the 3D Revolve (Mapped) Link. Click on the Map Art button. Remove all the symbols from all the surfaces.

This time I am going to apply the Spatter symbol to 3 of the surfaces; in this example, it will be surfaces 10, 11 and 12. Take the following image as a guide to identify the surfaces in your case. Finally click OK on the Map Art window and on the 3D Revolve Options Window.


Step 18

Reveal all paths, and by now you should have something similar to what is seen in the image bellow.


Step 19

Now open Adobe photoshop and let’s make a new 600 px x 1000 px file. If your "background" layer is white press Command/Ctrl + I to invert it. The background must be black. Duplicate the background layer by dragging it to the Create a New Layer button. Rename your new layer to "MyBg". Double click your "MyBg" layer and apply the Inner Glow and Gradient Overlay Styles with the settings of the following image. Press OK


Step 20

Go to your Illustrator file and copy (Command/Ctrl + C) your MAIN shape and paste it (Command/Ctrl + V) on your Photoshop file as a Smart Object.


Step 21

Go to your Illustrator select WHITE BIG and WHITE SMALL shapes and copy them (Command/Ctrl + C). Paste them (Command/Ctrl + V) on your Photoshop file as a Smart Object. And rename the layer to WHITE.

Do the same for the rest of the shapes one by one. Rename all the layers as seen in the following image.


Step 22

Hide all layers but MAIN. Go to the PATHS window (Window /Paths) and press the Create New Path button at the bottom of the window. Select the Pen Tool (P) and make a path surrounding the red part on the body of the spray. Press Command/Ctrl and click over the thumbnail of the path to make a selection out of the path.


Step 23

Go to the Layers Window and press the Create New Fill or Adjustment Layer button at the bottom of the Layers Window. Select Gradient Map. Double click on the icon of the gradient map to bring out the Adjustments Window. Click over the Gradient Map of the Adjustments Window and edit the gradient as seen in the following image. Press OK


Step 24

Now you need a grunge texture, you can use the one I provided with this tutorial. Open it and paste it on your file, over the WHITE layer. Rename the layer of the texture to TEXTURE. In the menu, go to Image > Adjustments > Black and White. Press the Auto button and press OK. In the menu, go to Image > Adjustments > Levels. Press the Auto button and press OK.


Step 25

With the WHITE layer selected, click the Add Layer Mask button at the bottom of the Layers Window. Go to the Channels window and press Command/Ctrl + Click over the thumbnail of any of the channels Red, Green or Blue to make a selection out of it. Go back to the Layers Window and hide the TEXTURE layer. Select the Layer Mask thumbnail of the WHITE layer. Press Command/Ctrl + H to hide the selection. Paint the parts of the WHITE layer where you want the scratches to appear color black. You can paint with color white to hide the scratches.


Step 26

Press Command/Ctrl + H again to reveal the selection. Now let’s save the selection because we will use it later. In the menu go to Select / Save Selection and enter "SELECTION" on the Name field. That will create a new channel named SELECTION. Press Command/Ctrl + D to remove the selection.

Now that we have saved our selection we can go and delete the TEXTURE layer selecting it and pressing the Delete key or dragging it to the little trash can at the bottom of the Layers Window.

By now you should have something like this on your Layers and Channels window.


Step 27

Let’s make some scratches to the shield. Reveal the SHIELD layer. Add a layer mask to it by clicking the Add Layer Mask button at the bottom of the Layers Window. Go to the Channels window and Command/Ctrl + Click over the thumbnail of the SELECTION channel. Press Command/Ctrl + H to hide the selection. Go to your Layers Window again and select the Layer mask of the SHIELD layer. Paint with color black over the shield to make some scratches appear. Remember, to erase scratches, just paint with white.

With a layer mask selected you can toggle from black to white and vice versa by pressing the X key.

If you finished with the scratches, remember to remove the selection. You cannot see it because we hid it, but it is there; so press Command/Ctrl + H to reveal the selection and Command/Ctrl + D to remove it.


Step 28

Repeat Step 27 for the PRESSURIZED and the BRAND layers.


Step 29

Reveal the NOZZLE 1 Layer; turn its blending mode to Color Burn and its fill to 40%. Reveal the NOZZLE 2 Layer; turn its blending mode to Linear Burn. Reveal the SPATTER Layer; turn its blending mode to Color Burn and its fill to 90%.


Step 30

Now let’s add some more shadows to the entire spray can. In the Layers Window, select the SPATTER layer. Press the Create New Fill of Adjustments Layer button at the bottom of the Layers Window. Select "Hue/Saturation…" Select the Layer mask of the Hue/Saturation 1 layer and press Command/Ctrl + I to invert it. Change the blending mode of the Hue/Saturation 1 layer to Color Burn. Go to the Adjustments Window and turn the Lightness to -50.

Now with the layer mask of the Hue/Saturation 1 layer selected, start painting with white on the sides of the spray can to add more shadows. Remember, you can always remove what you painted, by painting with black over the layer mask.

If you finished adding shadows to the spray can, you will notice that the background also darkened. We will remove that now.

Go to your MAIN layer and Command/Ctrl + Click on its thumbnail. This will make a selection of the spray can. Press Command/Ctrl + shift  + I to invert the selection, because we want a selection of the background, not the spray can. Select the layer mask of the Hue/Saturation 1 layer, make sure that in your Tools window the background color is black, and press the Delete key.


Step 31

Now let’s add some more Texture to the entire spray can to make it look dirtier. Go to the Channels window and select your SELECTION channel. Press Command/Ctrl + A to select all. Press Command/Ctrl + C to Copy.

Go to the Layers Window and with the Hue/Saturation 1 layer selected press Command/Ctrl + V to paste your selection channel as a layer. Rename the layer to TEXTURE. Press Command/Ctrl + Click on the layer mask of the Hue/Saturation 1 layer to make a selection out of it.

Select the TEXTURE Layer and press the Add Layer Mask button at the bottom of the Layers Window. Change the layers blend mode to Multiply and the fill to 50%.


Step 32

Now we have finished with the spray can, so we can make a group with all its elements. Select TEXTURE layer, and with the Shift key pressed, select the MAIN layer. Press Command/Ctrl + G to group all of the spray can layers and rename the group to SPRAY. Your Layers Window should look like the following image.


Step 33

Let’s create the Smoke. Create a new layer over the SPRAY group and name it SMOKE. In the menu, go to Filter > Render > Clouds.

Press the Add Layer Mask button at the bottom of the Layers Window. Press Command/Ctrl + I to invert it. With the Layer mask of the SMOKE Layer selected, paint with white to reveal the smoke.

We will turn the smoke a little green. Press the Create New Layer or Adjustment layer button. That creates a new layer named Hue / Saturation 2. Select the Hue / Saturation 2 Layer and in the Adjustments Window enter the values of the image bellow. Note that the Colorize option is checked. With the Layer mask of the Hue / Saturation 2 layer selected, press Command/Ctrl + I to invert the mask. Paint with white to reveal the green color.


Step 34

Go to Illustrator and create a spiral with the settings of the following image. To pop up the spiral window click on your document with the Spiral tool selected. Go to the menu, press Object > Expand Appearance. Press Command/Ctrl + C to copy the spiral.


Step 35

Go to back to Photoshop and press Command/Ctrl + V to paste the spiral over the MyBg layer. Rename the layer to SPIRAL. Press Command/Ctrl + T and the Transform Handles will appear; then press Command/Ctrl and drag the handles to distort the spiral as seen in the following image. Press Enter/Return when done.


Step 36

Press the Create Layer Mask button at the bottom of the Layers Window. Press the G key to select the Gradient tool and make sure you have a black and white gradient. With the layer mask of the spiral layer selected, drag diagonally to hide the backside of the spiral in the distance.


Final Image

Source: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/psdtuts/~3/UmR8F33qOAQ/

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