Reader Tutorial: Colorful Light Effect in GIMPListThumbs

Reader Tutorial: Colorful Light Effect in GIMP

November 04, 2009

I was browsing the other day and saw a Sony-Ericsson Xperia X1 with a beautiful wallpaper on it and thought to myself "Can I make one that looks like it but using only GIMP?"

And guess what? I could! And with this tutorial so can you.

Step 1

We first create a new document, you can make it any size, though I used 1600 x 1200. Setting by default Black as your Foreground color, we can ask in the advanced options to use it as our background.

Reader Tutorial: Colorful Light Effect in GIMP

Step 2

We now create a new layer, this time it should be transparent.

Reader Tutorial: Colorful Light Effect in GIMP

Step 3

Using Filters > Render > Clouds > Solid Noise we fill our New Layer. Play with the values until you find the one that works for you, I preferred to size it 6 in both X and Y.

Reader Tutorial: Colorful Light Effect in GIMP

Step 4

Set the New Layer opacity to something between 15 and 30. I went with 20. While we are at it, rename this Layer to Clouds.

Reader Tutorial: Colorful Light Effect in GIMP

Step 5

Create a New Layer and using the Rectangle Selection Tool (R) create a rectangle that's as wide as your document but only 10 pixels in height. Fill that with #cccccc. Duplicate this layer 3 times.

Reader Tutorial: Colorful Light Effect in GIMP

Step 6

Select the lowest Line Layer, go to Filters > Blur > Gaussian Blur and select 70 as your Blur Radius.

Repeat this step for the next two layers above it, only setting the Blur Radius to 30 for one and 10 for

the other.

There should be still one Line Layer with no Gaussian Blur above them all.

Reader Tutorial: Colorful Light Effect in GIMP

Step 7

Create a new layer and use the Stripes Fine pattern to fill it. We'll call it ScanLines.

colorful7.jpg

Step 8

Create another new layer and fill it with using the Blend Tool (L) and the Full saturation spectrum CW gradient from left to right (Press the Ctrl Key to keep your line horizontal). We'll call this one Colorful.

Reader Tutorial: Colorful Light Effect in GIMP

Step 9

Place the ScanLines Layer below the last of the Line Layers.

Reader Tutorial: Colorful Light Effect in GIMP

Step 10

Go to Filters > Blur > Motion Blur and use 256 in Lenght at an angle of 90 degrees on the Clouds Layer.

Reader Tutorial: Colorful Light Effect in GIMP

The Final Touch

We add the logo and duplicate it twice and using Filters > Blur > Gaussian Blur by 70 and 10 each, leaving the third, without any Gaussian Blurring, on top of them and making sure they arebelow the Colorful Layer.

Reader Tutorial: Colorful Light Effect in GIMP

You can play with it by inserting another layer and filling it with black, painting some circles and applying Gaussian Blurr and setting this layer just above the Clouds Layer and setting its mode to Multiply.

Reader Tutorial: Colorful Light Effect in GIMP

About the Author

Hi! Ricardo Francés here, a freelance web programmer/designer from El Salvador with a passion for open source software. I sometimes post at twitter (username: squidjam) and write for my site at http://squidjam.com

It's a real pleasure and I feel honored by this opportunity. Thanks!

Help us to share this!

16 Comments

cookielabs11/04/2009

Lovely colors, and nice tut'.

Hybrid5911/04/2009

great !
_____________
http://hybrid-creation.deviantart.com/

Miripi11/04/2009

Thanks for the Gimp tutorials!
I really enjoy your colorful works (^_^)

late_cow11/04/2009

thx dude!
______
http://lateant.deviantart.com/

cydonia11/04/2009

Are you sure you had the idea by yourself?

http://abduzeedo.com/colorful-light-effect-photoshop

Sure, it's a great turotial, nice work, but that introduction text caught my attention.

Ricardo Frances11/05/2009

Cydonia:

I'm sorry, my original version of this tutorial can be located here http://liquid-snake.deviantart.com/art/HOWTO-Xperia-ish-Wallpaper-107518508 to further clarify where it came from, I invite you to revise the comments on the link you just sent :)

I think was great that Fabio gave me an opportunity to share it with the wonderful readers of this amazing website.

Arvind11/04/2009

Nice tut. I love the Colors.. :)

rafael cavalcante11/04/2009

awesome.

wonderful result.

ejm39911/04/2009

Cool tip, thanks!

http://emeyers399.deviantart.com/

Dusan11/04/2009

It would be cool if some one could make a step-by-step tutorial for mocking up the whole website in Gimp. Almost all Linux related sites are awfully looking, it's a shame because Gimp is more that capable of producing beautiful designs. Are there no talented linux-using web designers out there?

sioux city cars11/04/2009

That is gorgeous. I learn so much reading your tutorials.

S. Bruett11/04/2009

thanks for the tip

GABO11/05/2009

Yeap. There will be brillant if Abduzeedo starts to pay atention to the linux design software.

There are much more pages of Adobe.

Bye!

BrianPhilip11/05/2009

nice tutorial, but what is GIMP? is it any good?

buy winstrol11/07/2009

I think this is a very beautiful and colorful graphic for a site. I have added you to my favorites.

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