Creating A 1960 Style Circus Poster

Hey

I don't know how I came across this idea, but it was probably down to looking at all the junk posters in the shop windows around my neighborhood. Anyway, this tutorial is going to be all about those old vintage 1960 circus posters. They are really cool and very simple to do. The final piece will hopefully be in a similar style to this poster. You don't need anything fancy, all will be provided. If you want the materials you can download the source pack from rapidshare.

Step 1) The first step as always is to create your art board. I have picked A4, but you can pick any size you want. Larger is always better.

Step 2) To enable you to line things up neatly enable the grid. Go to View > Show Grid. The grid will be used to enable you to line up a couple of the boxes and text.

Step 3) Using the square rectangle tool (U) set the fill to yellow and the stroke to white. Under the stroke palette, (Window > Stroke > More Options (Little Arrow Thing)) set the stroke to the inside, colour to white and size to 20 pixels. Draw a rectangle that takes up just under half of the page.


Step 4) Using the rectangle tool again, set the stroke to nothing and draw a rectangle underneath the yellow rectangle.

Step 5) Finally add a white background with the rectangle tool that covers the whole canvas. Right click > Arrange > Send To Back. This white bit is done last so the grid can be used to gauge how things should be aligned.


Step 6) The next step is to use our clown. I couldn't find a free vector or bitmap image to use but I did find a decent on deviantart that was good enough for this tutorial. I have vectorized it and edited it slightly to fit. You can find the one I have used in the source pack.

You need to insert the clown and transform and move the image until it suitably fits. Align it up to the edge of the yellow. I was a bit wild with the eraser and he happens to be missing an ear.


Step 7) Quite a lot of this post is text heavy. The font I have used it the sans-serif Arial Black. Insert some text and use the paragraph options to change some of the values. The paragraph options are accessed by clicking on the word character by the font selection in the tool bar. Use the appropriate box to change the line height to squash the text together.


Step 8) Continue adding the text. Make the circus text extra bold by changing it to white and adding a black stroke of about 6 pixels.


There really isn't much to explain. Just look at the images for examples of what I have written. Use the line height tool as mentioned to adjust the height of the lines to get the text to fit.


Step 9) The final step is to just finish the page off. Add some stars and a box to highlight the child tickets. As well as this in very small text I have added a copyright. They are present, it is just a little feature. I have also added "present" in the yellow to fill up the space, although it does seem a bit lost.


I hope you have enjoyed this tutorial. I enjoyed making it as always. If you want my final image you can find it in the source pack.

3D Text Effects Photoshop Tutorial

Hey

You may remember if you are a long time regular reader that I did a post about the amazing designs from Shiny Binary. The author if you visit his site is all about the really detailed and the use of 3D text. I was really glad when I found a tutorial by him about how he creates his work. Following through his tutorial I found it really difficult to follow. As well as this he doesn't offer the source materials for you to try it at home, it was part of a magazine subscription. Anyway what I am going to do is produce my own version, and give you a detailed run down of how to do it, I am also going to try and make it so all people of different experiences can follow it. I have included the source materials including the final .psd in a file located here. All the images can be clicked for the full size versions.

Step 1) The first step is to create your canvas. I initially chose mine to the 4000 x 4000 pixels. The bigger is always better. I have mentioned before that the large the canvas the better the detail when it is reduced for the final output. You can change this size to suit your needs or speed of your computer.

Step 2) On the background layer add a blue gradient using the gradient tool (G). Set it using the tool bar at the top to radial. Have one colour value lighter than the other.

Step 3) The next step is to import the images from Xara 3d. Xara 3D to my surprise is a very good program for making 3D text. After you have learn't the basic steps you can create any type of 3D text you want. If you are going to use the program your self make sure your export each of the letters separately and at a different angle. If you don't want to use the program you can download the files (2k x 2k) for use in the later stages, these can be found in the source pack. I have removed the demo background from the files, for your convenience.

Step 4) Go to File > Place and select the first letter. This will place the image into the document. Press the tick in the tool bar or press enter to finalize the placement. The default will do now. In the layers palette (Windows > Layers) right click on the layer and select rasterize, this will remove the smart object status and lets use modify the layer. Use the magic want tool to select the grey and delete it. Finally move the layer into a suitable position.

Step 5) Repeat step 4 until all of the letters have been inserted, place and resize them on the canvas appropriately.


Step 6) The next couple of steps will use the layer mask option. To keep things organized we are going to group layers. Select the first layer and go to Layer > New > Group From Layers. rename the group and proceed to do this for all of the letter layers. Each layer should now be in its own group.

Step 7) The feature of the 3D text is to have letters being in front and behind other layers at the same time. To achieve this we are going to use layer masks. Layers masks are used to hide and unhide parts of a layer. It is similar to the eraser tool except all of that layer is kept intact. To achieve this overlapping feature select the first letter go to Layer > Layer Mask > Reveal All. Use the black brush (black hides, white shows) and delete parts of the text. Repeat the process and adding a layer mask for each of the letters. You should end up with something looking like this.


Step 8) Layer masks are going to be a big feature of these piece of work, hence why folders were added. The next step is to mask off both the side and front of the letters. The first step is to create a new layer. On this layer add a mask but set it to hide all instead of reveal all. Then use the magic want to select the white face the the letter layer. Reselect the mask layer and use a white brush to paint in the front shape. Do this for all of the layers. You should, if you look closely at the layers palette, with something like this. Repeat for all of the layers.


Step 9) The same thing needs to be done for the sides of the shape. This can be a bit tricky but I have found a method to enable you to complete it. Create a new layer and add your mask, as before. One the text layer use the magic wand on the background of the layer, this should select everything but the letter. Then, press shift and click on the white front of the text. Go to Select > Inverse and paint, in white, the side of the letters on the mask. Repeat for all of the layers.

Step 10) Using the layer for the side of the text, add a shadow. Use a large soft brush and lightly paint black onto the layer. If you have the clipping mask set up correctly, to should just paint on areas on the side of the text. Repeat this for all of the layers, adding shadow where areas overlap.

A clipping mask (which will be used layer and is similar to the layer mask) is not used as this would apply to the whole layer. We want something that only applies to a small area.


Step 11) Create a new layer above the background layer and add a small soft shadow to the background of the letters. The shadow starts to bring the piece to life.


Step 12) The front of the letters will no be coloured in. Using the layers as set up before, use the gradient tool to apply a gradient to the layer. The layer mask enables the text to only be applied to a certain area.


Step 13) Do this to all of the layers. Use the paint brush tool to add in small shadows.


Step 14) The final step is really up to you what you want to add to the front of the layers. The best way to do this is to create a new layer above the colour, add you content and then right click on the layer and add a clipping mask. Some places to get really cool vectors include Go Media, these sell vectors but can be used in photoshop.

Step 15) Add some background elements if you want, and you can then export your file. To export go to File > and then either Save As or Save for Web.

The more time you spend the better the final image will be.


I really love the effect, a bit later on I may spend more time and create a better one. If you want more inspiration go to the Shiny Binary website where you can see all of his master pieces. You can download the final source pack which includes all of the images files used and the final .psd, it can be found here.

Creating A Fast Moving Car - Photoshop

Hey

I don't no how I decided to do this tutorial, I just wanted to fiddle about with cars and make them look like they are going fast. I wanted this tutorial to use a lot of filters and techniques but it didn't quite pan out as I hoped. You do get to use the motion blur tool a lot. I will also show you the technique of quick masking. This is very useful and it can be used on an infinite amount of different projects. Anyway. This tutorial will use photoshop although I reckon you can use it in any photo editing software that has some advance features. Click any of the images to enlarge.

Step 1) The first step, as always, is to open and prepare your canvas. I've used the Aston Martin from here. Be warned if you have a slow internet connection the image is rather large. Large images are always good. You can use any car you want although it does need to be side on. Reduce the image size if you have a slow computer.

Step 2) The car is centre of the image, we need a bit of room in the back part of the image for the added effects. This is very simple. Use the marquee tool (M) to select the car. Use the move tool (V) to move the car to right hand side of the canvas. The second step to complete this move is to repair the background. Use the marquee tool again to select a small area of the background that you want to copy. Copy this (Cmd/Ctrl + C) and paste it onto the canvas. Use the transform tools (Cmd/Ctrl + T) to cover up the gap. Merge these two layers together. (Cmd/Ctrl + E).



Step 3) When most cars move the wheels spin. This will be the next step. Use the circular marquee tool and select the silver part of the wheel. Copy and paste this onto a new layer.


Step 4) On this new layer go to Filter > Blur > Radial Blur. Change the values about, there is no preview for this tool so when you click ok and it doesn't look right you have to undo the blur and try it again. If you want to improve the quality of the blur set the quality to best. This will take longer to computer though. Use the value of 8 if you have the full size image. Otherwise chose a value that will look best.



Step 5) Copy and paste this layer and place it onto the front (or back) wheel.


Step 6) Since every wheel blur is on a new layer this step will be easy to complete. Copy and past the blurred wheel layer, move this using the move tool (V) into a position behind the original wheel. Reduce the opacity down .


Step 7) This is where the motion blur will come in. Go to Filter > Blur > Motion Blur. Set the angle to 0 degrees and the distance to about 200 pixels. If you have reduced the image size change this size so the wheel looks blurred.


Step 8) Repeat this for the other wheel. Merge the layer together.


Step 9) This is where the quick mask tool will come into effect. Quick mask, if you don't know is a cross between the paintbrush tool and the marquee tool. Quick mask is entered by pressing a button under the colour swatches into tool bar or pressing Q. You only have to colours now availble. Black and white. Every time you paint using any of the tools (in black) availble you produce the red effect as shown below. Red means the areas will not be selected. This is s bit counter intuitive to me.

Anyway, paint the car or the background red using the quick mask tool. You want the car to be selected so you may have to inverse the selection when you come out of quick mask mode (by pressing Q or the button again). Inversing the selection is done through the Select > Inverse option. The painting doesn't have to be perfect as it will be blurred later.


Step 10) Once you have selected the car using the quick mask tool copy and paste this onto a new layer twice. You will need to use the car outline a couple of times and if you accidentally clear your clipboard it will be a pain since you have to re mask the car. If you keep one on a new untouched layer you can use this one as reference. You can delete if later if necessary.

With the new car layer move it using the move tool (V) to the left of the car, similar to the first move. Add a motion blur.


Step 11) Repeat this process increasing the motion blur and decreasing the opacity. Do this about 3 times.


Step 12) One thing I did notice was the headlights become a little washed out. This is easily remedied. On a new layer paint over the head light using the brush tool and white as the colour. It doesn't have to be 100% accurate.


Step 13) Use motion blur once again, apply a bit of an angle.


Step 14) This needs to be ever so slightly transformed. This is a bit of an optional step. Transform the select (Cmr/Ctrl + T) and the select the warp tools Edit > Transform > Warp, or click the little button by the Yes/No tick and cross.

Transform the blur to add a bit of an effect.


Step 15) Repeat a similar process for the wheels but using lines for highlight. Do this for both wheels. Adjust the opacity if necessary.


Step 16) At this point the car is moving "fast" but the background looks a bit boring. So we are going to remove it and add one. Go to the orginal car layer (hide the other layers) and use the quick mask tool to select the background (or the car I get mixed up what the quick mask selects) and delete this.


You can unhide the other layers when done.


Step 17) At this point I wanted a country road so it could look like the car was wizzing by. Could I find one. No. I spent ages looking. So I had to do with one of this building. You can pick a background but it need to be "side on" a bit like the car. The photos I found were from every direction but no from the view I wanted. If you want to use the one I have used you can find it here. Insert it into the canvas (copy and paste, new layer) and adjust it as necessary.

Step 18) Objects in the background are usually out of focus. To apply an out of focus effect. Select the background image layer, go to Filter > Blue > Gaussian Blur. Don't set the blur two high .


Step 19) Apply a motion blue to get the whizzing by effect.


Step 20) Export the image if you want to use it and you are done.

You can click the image below for the full version. After finishing the car does look a bit to blurred. But it is a good technique and it can be applied to nearly anything.


Please leave a comment, optionally you can download the .psd using the link below.

Energy Beams - Photoshop

Hey

Energy beams are rather cool, and very popular for the sci-fi theme (or any theme) picture. This tutorial is going to show you a simple way to do these energy beams. The principle is very simple and can be used for nearly anything. For this tutorial I am going to use the Kill Bill image poster that I found here. I've changed it slightly to remove the text on the image. I love Kill Bill, and was great when it was re-ran on TV this Christmas. Click any of the images for the full versions.

Step 1) To begin, open up your image you can use the one below. It is a bit clear when the original text was but this image is only going to serve as a demonstration for this technique.


Step 2) Create a new layer above the image, this will serve as the energy beam layer.

Step 3) Select the pen tool (P) and in the toolbar at the top of the page select the 2nd option. This will enable you to draw the pen path and nothing else.

Step 4) Draw a wavy path around the sword. Imagine the path going around the sword, this will be tidied up later on.


Step 5) Select the Brush (B) from the toolbox. Set the thickness to about 6px, add a little bit of blur (hardness) on the edges.

Step 6) Set the colour of the brush to #ffd400, this is the yellow used in the image.

Step 7) Go to the Paths palette (Window > Paths) select work path. Right click on the path and select Stroke Path. Simulate brush pressure, this will make the path thin out at the ends.


Through out this tutorial you may need to hide and unhide the path. This is done by pressing the key combination Cmd/Ctrl + Shift + H. Sometime the path gets in the way and needs to be hidden.


Step 8) In the paths window drag the work path onto the new path button. This will change the state of the path to a new path shape. We need to work with the path a couple of times and we don't want it to disappear, this safe guards this.

Step 9) Use the Eraser (E) tool to remove some of the path that is behind the sword.

Step 10) Double click on the layer and set the outer glow. It really doesn't matter what you select, change the values so your image looks good.


Step 11) Do the same with the inner glow.


Step 12) Create a new layer, stroke the path using the same settings, this will be used for a slight blur.

Step 13) Go to Filters > Blur > Gaussian Blur increase the value so the path is blurred. Reduce the opacity ever so slightly.


Step 14) Create a new layer once again. These are all on different layers so you can adjust the values if you need to later on.

Step 15) Select the Brush tool and select the advance brush options (Window > Brushes). Set the size to 4px. Spacing to 450%. In Shape Dynamics set size jitter to 100%. In Scattering set the Scatter to 1000%, Count and Counter Jitter to the Lowest possible.

Step 16) Stroke the path once again from the path palette. This will produce small dots around the edges. Repeat this step if you think there needs to be more small dots. If you want to find out more about particles check out this tutorial.


Step 17) Create a new layer and a new smaller path around the base of the sword. Reduce the brush size down to 3px, reset the brush so that it is normal and stroke this small path.

Step 18) Copy the layer effects for the first path onto the new smaller path. This is done by right clicking on the layer and selecting "Copy Layer Style". Right click on the new layer and select "Paste Layer Style".

Step 19) Repeat step 17 and 18 with different paths. Reduce the opacities on the layers to get the wispy effect.


Option Step 20) If you find that the blurred layer looks to yellow, you can make it white by changing the layer properties. If you add a colour overlay of white, or off white you can adjust how it looks.

When you are done you can export the image (File > Save As). Its a pretty neat effect that can be used for nearly anything.