Happy New Year!

Here is a link from Adobe Photoshop to a tutorial on making a glowing 2012. Check it out!
http://www.adobetutorialz.com/articles/30970853/1/how-to-create-neon-illustration-happy-new-year-2012-photoshop-cs5

Hope everyone enjoyed their holiday. Have a safe and happy new year!

Winter Snow Globe- Photoshop

Hello creative people! I hope everyone has been enjoying their holidays and made lots of Halloween zombies and fall caramel apples! (see previous tutorials) The month of December brings many holidays, (Winter, Christmas, Hanukkah, etc.) so this tutorial is going to be a winter snow globe. Let’s begin!

STEP 1: Start by opening a new document. I’m using a standard sheet of paper (8.5 in x 11 in), RGB, with a white background. We are going to build this globe from the bottom up. So we need a base to hold the globe. Choose the rounded rectangle tool and whatever color you’d like. Make the base about 4 in long by 2 in tall. The color I used is a light blue (R=91, G=153, B=206). Rename this layer “Base.” Position the base towards the bottom, center of your page.

Step2: Add the details. I want snowflakes for my design and “Season’s Greetings”. For the text I wanted something elegant, but still easy to read, so I used “Brush Script Std” 30pt in white and centered it on the base. Then I  transformed my words a little to make them taller. (Edit> Free Transform and drag and/or rotate the bounding box until it’s to your liking). For the snowflakes I used the snowflakes that are in the custom shape tool menu. I used the following settings to add drop shadows to my snowflakes to make it look like they are molded on to the base. Click fx underneath the layers panel. Choose Drop Shadow.

 

Once you have one layer style that you like you can simply right click (or control click on a Mac) and copy layer style and then right click (control click on a mac) and paste the layer style to your other layer. I added the same style to all my snowflakes and text. This is what I have so far.

Step3: It looks flat, so it’s time to add some dimension. Select the “Base” layer and go to Edit> Transform> Warp. Click the shape right in between the 2 middle points at the top and drag down slightly to form a curve for the globe. Do the same on the bottom to parallel the top curve. Hit enter.

 You may need to reposition some of your other elements now that the base has changed. Use the move tool. Link all the things that make the base up together so that when you want to move your base, everything will move together. This is the finished base.

 Step4: Add a new layer called “Globe.” Place it under the “Base” layer. To make the globe, use the elliptical marquee tool while holding shift to draw a circle. Make the circle large enough to fit on the base and hang over a little on both sides. I used a 500 px by 500 px circle. Instead of clicking and dragging, you can enter in a size by choosing “Fixed size” from the elliptical marquee “style” options in the menubar. Then you’ll be able to type in the width and height. Don’t forget to change it back to normal when you’re done.

Fill your globe with any color. It doesn’t matter. You won’t see the fill color anyway. Position your ellipse on the base to look like a snow globe.Rename this layer "Globe".

Step5: Add an inner glow to your globe. Make sure your globe layer is selected. Choose fx underneath the layers palette and select inner glow. Change the color from yellow to a light blue. This is what I used: R=88, G=155, B=198. Then use the following settings.

Located above the layers, change the fill opacity to 0%. This will make the effect show, but whatever color your globe was, will now be transparent.

Step 6: Create a scene. It can be a portrait of you and your family, a wintery scene, Santa and his reindeer, etc. I’m going to use a snowman picture that I made in Photoshop, but use whatever you’d like. Open your file in a new document. On a new layer, create an ellipse the same size as your globe. (See step 4) position the ellipse over the part of your picture you’d like to appear in your globe. Click on the picture layer. Select> inverse to select everything other than what’s in the circle. Hit backspace (delete- Mac).  Select>Deselect to get rid of the “marching ants”. You don't need to save the changes you made to this picture, but if you'd like to, make sure you change the file name to something different, so that the original is not changed.

Step 7: Drag your scene onto your Snow globe project. Position it directly under the “Globe” layer. Rename it “Scene”. Due to the curve in the glass globe, your scene would be distorted, slightly bulging. To achieve this effect, select the “Scene” layer and choose Filter>Liquify. Use the Bloat tool to make your image bulge a little. Choose a Brush almost as big as your globe and click in the center of the globe 2-4 times. Be careful not to distort the outside edge or your globe will not look right.

 (Note: Glass tends to have a bluish or greenish, sometimes grayish tint to it. My scene, however is mostly blue, so I want to change my glass glow a little to offset it from the background and base. If your picture looks fine how it is, you don’t have to change a thing. It’s simple to make changes though. Just click on the “Globe” layer and click the arrow to expand the effects. Then just double click the effect you want to change. In this case it’s the inner glow. I changed the color to more of a greenish tint. (You will see the change reflected in the step 8 photo.)

Step8: Glass is shiny, so that’s the next step. Click on your “Scene” layer and then go to Filter> Render> Lens Flare. Then choose 105mm Prime and make it 119%. Position the shine in the upper right section of the globe. Repeat the flare only this time choose the Movie Prime Flare. Add a small flare to the base position it in the upper right corner area of the base. Use the 105mm Prime flare, but make it only 34% .

Step 9: The snow globe just needs snow. Create a new layer on top of all the others. Fill it with black. Go to Filter> Noise> Add Noise. Choose 150%, Gaussian, and check monochromatic. Click Filter> Blur> Blur More. Click Image> Adjustments> Levels Change the settings input levels to 165, 1.00, 204. The output levels stay the same. Change blend mode to Screen or Color Dodge (Which ever looks better with your picture.) If you’d like larger flakes like me, just go to Edit> Free transform and shift-drag until your flakes are the size you like.  Use the crop tool to keep everything on the canvas. Rename "Snow". (Note:To add specs of glitter, follow these instructions: Fill it with black. Go to Filter> Noise> Add Noise and then choose 150%, Gaussian and uncheck monochromatic. Go to Filter> Blur> Blur More. Click Image> Adjustments> Levels. Change the input levels to 197, 1.00, 204. Then just change the blend mode to screen. Rename "Glitter".)

Step 10: Clean up the globe. Any glitter or snow that got outside of the globe can easily be removed by command clicking on the globe thumbnail to load the selection, then selecting the "Snow" layer in the layers palette. Go to Select> Inverse. Then hit backspace (delete- Mac). Repeat for the "Glitter" layer. Make sure your “Base” layer is on top of the other layers. You’re finished for the most part. Just add some finishing details like drop shadows. Use these settings on the "Base" layer:

Use the same settings for the drop shadow on the “Globe” layer. I made the shadow a little lighter by making the opacity 32% since the snow globe would typically set on a table and the shadow around the base would be darker than the shadow on the top, especially from a clear, glass object. I also added another Lens Flare to it via the “Snow” layer (Filter> Render> Lens Flare> Movie Prime Flare). I added a few finishing touches of my own like my logo and a greeting. This is the final design.  I hope you had fun making your own snow globe. Season's Greetings to all!

Halloween Zombie Photoshop Tutorial

Halloween is just around the corner! Scare your friends with this creepy zombie tutorial.

 Step 1: Find a picture to be the subject. I used a picture of myself. I cropped it a little to get mostly my face.

Step 2: Open your chosen photo in Adobe Photoshop. I'm using CS5, but I'm not using anything too complex, so if you have an earlier version you should still be able to follow along. (The most complex thing is an adjustment layer) Call this layer "Face"

Step 3: Find a texture. You can use anything you want from cracked mud to the inside of a stomach.  It's your choice. I used a picture from Morgue File, a free website with royalty free, cost free images.  Although the name suggests morbid content, most of the pictures are regular photos, so it's a good place to look for photos of any subject matter. This is the photo I used. http://morguefile.com/archive/display/79935 .  It's the inside of a camel that had been plasticized. (It's best to download the full sized image from the above link rather than saving this little version of the picture.) Open this picture in a new layer and call it "Texture".

Step 4: Duplicate the face layer and call the new duplicated layer "Duplicate".  Arrange your layers as:

 

Step 5: Change the blending mode of the "Duplicate" layer to soft light* and the blending mode of the "Texture" layer to multiply*. 

 * Each picture is different, so you may need to try different blending modes. You should end up with something like step 7.

Step 6: You'll be able to see through the layers. Position your "Texture" layer where you like it by using the move tool.

Step 7: Erase the parts of the "Texture" layer that you don't want. (anything that's not on the face or body) Do this by using the eraser tool. I used a combination of sizes and hardnesses to achieve the look I wanted. 100% hardness makes the lines look too much like a cutout, while a hardness of about 50% will create a blended look.

Step 8: It's getting there, but not quite perfect. Create an adjustment layer* on top of your other layers. 

*If you're using an earlier version of Photoshop, you may not have this feature. You may have to try making a copy of all 3 layers: Duplicate, Face, and Texture, and merging them into a new layer. (Don't merge the original layers. Make sure to duplicate the layers before merging.) Once merged, go to Image> Adjustments, Hue/Saturation and follow the instructions in step 9.

Step 9: Adjust the hue to a greenish yellow color, then tone down the saturation a bit. 

 

Step 10:  Make a new layer on top of everything else and add some black. I colored my eye in the whole way since it was pretty much already consumed by the camel's stomach anyway. I also added some darkening to the hair by using a soft brush with about 50% opacity. Then I used a large brush size 85, opacity 50% and went over the background to darken it. Don't make it perfect. It shouldn't look solid black and don't worry if you get it on top of your zombie as we will fix that next.

Step 11: Clean it up. Use the eraser tool to clean up any black that may have gotten on your zombie's body. You can also use it to lighten the background a little in some spots if necessary. Remember to adjust your eraser as well. It should be soft and not full opacity. I used between 25% and 50% adjusting as necessary. I wanted a fog-like effect in the background, but you can make yours as dark as you'd like. 

Step 12: Add the final details. I'm making my other eye look glazed over by adding white with a soft brush with an opacity of about 75%. Make sure this is on a new layer on top of everything else. Use a brush that is big enough to cover your eye, so you can click one time and be done. Then take the eraser and clean up any of the white that may have gotten on the eyelid or surrounding area. I then added a small pupil on a new layer with a soft black brush. 

 

 There's your zombie. Tweak it to your liking from this point. adjust the opacity of different elements, if you'd like more texture, duplicate the "Texture" layer and place it directly above the original "texture layer" and use the eraser to fade different parts or the paintbrush to add shading as you see fit for your image. Here's my final picture after making some last minute adjustments. 

Hope you enjoyed this tutorial. Now, go creep out your friends!

Illustrator: Harvest Caramel Apples Tutorial

For the first tutorial, I'm going to look to the seasons for inspiration. Fall is here and that means the leaves are changing, the weather is getting colder, and it's also harvest time. I'm sure you've been to or at least heard about  different Fall Festivals in your area. There's crafts, home made pies, apple cider, kettle corn, and the subject of this post, caramel apples! I'm using Illustrator CS5, but if you have an earlier version, you can still follow along. A few things may be different, but I'm not using a lot of complicated techniques in this tutorial. So, lets begin!

Note: Basic knowledge of Illustrator is required for this tutorial. It helps if you've worked with the pen tool and gradients as well, but I will try to explain things as thoroughly as possible either way.

Step 1: Open a new document in Illustrator. I just went with a standard size piece of paper (8.5 x 11) but I made mine 11x 8.5. It's up to you. Illustrator files are scalable, so no matter how big or small you make it, it will always look just as good. (Make sure your color mode is set to RGB (unless you're sending it to a printer, then they will tell you which color mode to set it to. To switch to RGB, click File> Document Color Mode> RGB).  

Step 2: Use the Ellipse Tool to create a circle. (If you want to make a perfect circle, hold shift while dragging. When finished, make sure to let go of the mouse button before letting go of shift) I'm starting out with just an outline (stroke) and no fill. The stroke I am using is 0.0323 in. I'll change the fill in a later step. The most important thing at the moment is to get the shape of the apple right. Of course, a circle doesn't exactly look like an apple, so it's going to need to be changed a little.

Step 3: Switch to the Direct Selection Tool. Click on the stroke to highlight it and see all the nodes (the little points that make the shape up). Click the topmost node to select it. Grab the left arm and hold Alt/Option and drag it slightly up and outward. Do the same thing with the right arm in the opposite direction. It should look almost like the top part of a heart. Click on the bottom center node now and, using the same technique, make smaller bulges by dragging out and down. You should end up with something like this:

Step 4: The apple shape is almost there, but it looks a little too wide. Switch to the Selection Tool and click on the outline of the apple to select it. You'll notice a bounding box will appear around the shape.  Mouse over one of the left or right center side points (it doesn't really matter which one) until a double headed arrow appears. Click and drag towards the center until your apple looks more tall and slender. This is What you should end up with:

Step 5: Let's add some color to this apple. Click on the apple shape to select it (if necessary). In the toolbar, make sure the fill color is in front of the stroke.

(If the stroke is in front, you can simply click the swap arrow, located right above, to make sure the fill is in front). Now click the Gradient Fill icon which is the center icon located directly below the fill and stroke. It will probably make your apple look something like this:

That's not exactly the look we're going for, so you'll need to change the type of gradient from linear to radial. This option is in the gradient window. (If it's not already showing, click Window, then make sure gradient is checked.) Click the blue arrows and select radial.

This is what you should end up with:

Still not very apple-like, but look how far we've come already.

Step 6: Now it's time to give the apple some realistic color. Right now your gradient should be made up of two sliders. (see picture from step 5). We're going to change the colors. Start by double clicking the left slider and changing it to a nice shade of yellow-green. I used R=217, G= 224, B= 33. To enter in the numeric values, click the color option (in the box that pops up when you double click the slider). (It looks like a painter's palette.) Next, Double click the right slider and change the color to a bright green color. I used R=140, G=198, B= 63. (Sometimes Illustrator doesn't give you the option of using color in your gradients. You can change that by clicking the drop-down menu in the gradient panel and choosing RGB instead of gray scale.) Still looks a little off, so move the diamond at the top of the gradient. (Mine is set to position 71.43) You should have something like this:

Note: You don't have to make your apple this color.  Feel free to change the colors to match your favorite kind, be it Granny smith, Gala, Golden Delicious, or other type.

Step 7: Apples aren't perfect, so we need to add a few blemishes. Use the Ellipse Tool to make tiny, circular dots scattered over the apple's surface. I used R=117, G= 76, B= 36 for the fill with no stroke. Click on the dots individually and adjust the opacity. They can vary. Remember, it's not supposed to be perfect. To adjust the opacity click on the dot you'd like to adjust, then either click the transparency icon. (It looks like two overlapping circles, usually located on the left side of the screen depending on how you have yours set up) or you can click window> transparency, to bring it up. This is what mine looks like so far:

Step 8: It still needs more detail. Let's add a divot in the top of the apple where the stem will come out.  We're going to use the Ellipse tool to draw an oval. (You won't be needing a stroke and the fill color doesn't matter at this point so choose anything. I suggest using a color that will stand out when you're adjusting the shape so you can see it.) It shouldn't take up the entire top of the apple, just enough to give the effect of an impression. Next, use the Direct Selection tool to form the top part of the oval to the top part of the apple. (Use the same technique as in step 3.) Then move it down a little so that it's not touching the very top of the apple. This is what I have:

Step 9: That doesn't look like much of a shadow, but now that we've got the shape and position down, lets make it look more shadow-like. Use the Selection tool and click the shadow shape. Choose gradient from the middle of the 3 small icons below the fill and stroke. In the gradient window, we will be adjusting the gradient like we did in steps 5 and 6. So make sure you have Radial selected for the type. Double click the left slider and make it black and change the right slider to a dark gray. I used R=51, G=51, B=51.  Next we're going to adjust the aspect ratio to 50% so the black part is smaller and fits better in the divot. (The aspect ratio is on the rightside of the dialog box. It looks like an oval with 2 arrows, one on the side, and a dotted one on the bottom.) The opacity will help make this effect come to life. Remember Opacity is on the left side of the screen (unless you changed your setup) under the gradient window.  It looks like 2 overlapping circles. Click that to bring up the opacity window. Keep the mode set to normal, but change the opacity to about 50%. It still looks a little harsh, so go up to the top of the screen and choose Effect and, under Photoshop Effects, choose Gaussian Blur. Make it about 3%. This is what you should end up with:

Note: If your blur looks pixelated, you may need to change your Document Raster Effects Settings. Go to Effect>Document Raster Effect Settings and click it. A dialog box will pop up. Change the Resolution to High.

Step 10: It still needs more detail. Lets add the stem and that scratchy stuff around the stem. Let's do this somewhere off to the side of the apple. To make the scratchy stuff, I used the Star tool. (It's in with the ellipse and the rectangle tools) For the fill, I used a brown R=140, G=98, B=57. For the stem, I used the rectangle tool to make a skinny, stem-sized  rectangle. I used a slightly darker brown for the stem color (R=66, G=33, B=11).  Then I used the Direct Selection tool to bring the 2 bottom points in towards each other. Next, I switched to the Selection tool to rotate the stem a little to the side. Position your stem on top of the star to look like it's sprouting from the middle. Select both shapes and go to Object> Group. Place your new grouped shape coming from the shadow in the apple. The star should be in the middle. Then click the shadow and make sure it is on top by going to  Object> Arrange> Bring To Front. Now it looks like everything is emerging from the shadow. Like so:

It's getting there... (Actually, If you just wanted the apple, you're pretty much there, I'd suggest adding some highlights though and taking the stroke off the apple. Maybe add a drop shadow or something to make it pop.)

Step 11: Caramel!!! Start by making an oval with the Ellipse tool big enough to cover most of the apple, leaving the top sticking out. For the fill I used another Radial Gradient with the left slider set to R=255, G=204, B=115 and the right set to R=188, G=137, B=64. Use the Direct Selection tool to tug and pull at the nodes to give your apple a thick caramel coating. Mmmm... Look's like this:

Step 12: Up until this point, the stroke defined the edge of the apple. As the apple is starting to come to life, it's time to lose the stroke.  Use the Selection tool and click the apple. Change the stroke to none. At the top of the screen, choose Effect> Stylize> Inner Glow (Make sure to choose the stylize option from the Illustrator Effects, not Photoshop Effects) In the pop-up box, choose normal for the mode. Set the color to black by double clicking the color box. Make sure the Edge button is selected. Set the opacity to 25% and the blur to 0.35 in. This is what mine looks like now:

Step 13: The next step is to add a drop shadow to the caramel. Go to Effect> Stylize (Illustrator Effects)> Drop Shadow.  Use these settings:

Mode: Multiply
Opacity: 70%
X and Y Offset: Both 0 in
Blur: 0.1 in
Color: Black

Step 14: Caramel apples are sticky, so let's put it on a stick.  Off to the side of the apple, use the rounded rectangle tool (In with the Ellipse and Star tools) to make a tall, skinny, stick-sized shape. Use a Linear Gradient for the fill color with the left slider set to R=243, G=219, B=200 and the right set to R=115, G=56, B=34. The gradient slider diamond is set to location 59.51%. Make a small oval with the Ellipse tool and use a tan color. I used R=199, G=178, B=153. Position it at the top of the stick to form a dowel rod. Select both the stick and circle and click Object>Group. Here's the tip of the dowel.

Step 15: Attach the stick to the apple. Position the stick coming from the center, top of the apple. Since the stick is shoved through the impression of the apple, the shadow is still going to be on the stick, so arrange the shadow so that it's still in front. (Refer back to step 10) Shorten stick to make it look like half of it is stabbed into the apple.

Step 16: Let's add highlights. Copy and paste the shadow we created for the divot. Change the fill to white. Change the transparency to 29%. Use the Direct Selection tool to tug and pull the nodes to make it a little wider and narrower. Position the highlight just below the divot. Arrange the divot to the front-most position. Copy the white highlight you just created and paste it. Position it at the top of the caramel. Make it larger, and adjust the transparency as you'd like mine is at 18%.

Step 17: Now that we added a stick and we have a stem, our shadow is going to be a little different. The easiest way to do this is to copy the stem and paste it. Change the fill to black, and add a Gaussian blur (Go to Effect> Blur (under Photoshop Effects)> Gaussian Blur. I made mine 8%. Then I stretched and angled the shadow shape and lowered it's opacity to 32%. I did the same thing to the stick. The stem and stick shadows should be behind the stick. In this case, it was easier for me to arrange my actual stick to the front and then arrange the divot shadow in front of the stick rather than trying to arrange the 2 small shadows. This is what mine looks like:

At this point your delicious treat could be done. It's up to you if you'd like to add additional details like nuts or a little puddle of caramel at the base. You can stop here or you can continue on.

Step 18: Details... To make a pool of caramel at the bottom of my apple, I used the Pen tool to create an organic shape. You can also use the Ellipse tool to make a short, flat oval and use the Direct Selection tool to adjust the nodes to give it an organic blob-like appearance. The next part is easy. With the puddle still selected, use the Eyedropper tool to sample the caramel off of the apple. Your puddle should have the same gradient as the caramel from the apple. Then you can add a drop shadow by going to Effect> Stylize (Illustrator Effects) > Drop Shadow. The settings are the same as the caramel on the apple, but I made the opacity 80 since it's on the bottom.

Step 19:  Add the nuts. To make the nuts, create a bunch of squares and rectangles randomly off to the side of the apple. Rotate them different ways using the Selection tool. Use the Direct Selection tool to move the nodes around so that they don't look like perfect squares. You can use the Pen tool as well to make random shapes. When you get a bunch of chopped nut-looking shapes (10-12), select all of the nuts and for the fill color, choose the gradient again. This time I went with a linear gradient. The left color slider is set to R=255, G=250, B=208. The right is set to R=91, G=53, B=27. Add a drop shadow, using the same settings as in step 18. While you still have everything selected, go to Object> Group. Copy and paste your group several times to cover the apple. You can rotate it to mix things up and you can click on individual nuts with the Direct Selection tool and rotate or scale as you wish. When you're finished, you should end up with something like this:

Hope you enjoyed making these delicious looking treats. Stop back often for new tutorials and tips. Don't forget. You can subscribe by email to my blog as well!

Welcome

Welcome to Graphics by Heidi, my new blog. As you can see from my info, I am a recent graduate. I have done some freelance work and I have a lot of portfolio pieces from my internship, but I'm still looking for a full time job in my field. In the meantime, I'm working on a few things to get my name out there and also to showcase some of my work and skills. I'm designing a website with Adobe Dreamweaver. It's going to be kind of simple with portfolio pieces, a link to my resume, and contact info. I also started a Facebook Fan Page (You can find that HERE). My website and Facebook page are more personal sites, showcasing my portfolio and enabling people to contact me if they are in need of my services, but my blog, I want to have a different vibe. It will have tutorials for Photoshop and Illustrator, and possibly other software. Everything is in its beginning stages, but it's all coming along. So, subscribe to my blog if you're a graphic designer, a design student, or if you just love photo manipulation and creating something from nothing.